Remote Surveillance Trailer in Anacortes, WA

by Tom Banse, Washington State Standard

In her two years as the Anacortes Town Crier, Julie Nester has proclaimed and oyez, oyez, oyez’d at the community’s Christmas tree lighting, the Fourth of July parade and sister cities golf tournament. But one plum assignment is still missing from her town crier resume: the annual Anacortes to Sidney, British Columbia ferry route reopening ceremony, traditionally held in late March.

That gap persists because the century-old ferry connection between Anacortes, Friday Harbor and Vancouver Island remains suspended for a seventh year by Washington State Ferries. The international route shut down in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The main reason it is still down is the state’s shortage of ferryboats. Washington State Ferries says it is not able to restore the Sidney service until at least 2030. That’s when it expects to receive the first of three new 144-auto hybrid electric ferries on order. The agency emphasized that it hasn’t given up on reviving the route.

Anacortes’ honorary, unpaid town crier has fond memories from her younger years of riding the ferry to Canada. In an interview, Nester said she composes her own “cries” and knows what she would say when the international run returns.

“In my cry, I would highlight the goodwill of our peoples and also the economic stimulus that is so important for both communities and which both communities have really missed,” Nester said, using her unaccented inside voice.

The longing for the return of the long-suspended route extends well beyond the ferry terminal cities. For a group of western Washington travelers, the frustration boiled over into a lawsuit filed last month against the state ferry system.

The lawsuit seeks to have a court declare the international route improperly abandoned and order the service be restored within 90 days. Lead plaintiff Duncan Chalmers filed the case in King County Superior Court in his name and on behalf of an informal advocacy group named Restore Our Ferries. The friends drafted the case together without the help of an attorney.

Chalmers said he formerly used the Sidney ferry service regularly to visit relatives and friends on Vancouver Island and they would make the reverse trip to visit family in suburban Seattle.

“It’s obvious there has been some adverse impact and it’s just not the right direction to be going,” Chalmers said in an interview. “We’re supposed to be building a state, not disassembling it.”

The legal complaint hinges on a decades-old law that says only the Legislature can add or eliminate a ferry route. Chalmers and Restore Our Ferries argued the ferry system circumvented the law.

“It’s completely unreasonable to last a decade or more and call it a suspension,” he said. “It appears unlikely to ever come back.”

‘We’re not trying to get rid of it’

The ferry system’s second-in-command insisted in an interview Friday that WSF has every intention to bring back the Anacortes-Sidney route. John Vezina said the ferry system’s improved crewing situation and shipbuilding progress made him hopeful for the 2030 restoration date.

“It’s a great route. It’s important,” he said. “We get it.”

“We’re not trying to get rid of it,” Vezina said, before adding, “When you have resource constraints, you have to make hard decisions.”

He called the lawsuit “specious” and meritless.

image: John Vezina, right, now the second-in-command of the state ferry system, thanked Sidney celebrants after the first ferry of the season arrived in spring 2018. That year, the WSF fleet stood at 23 ferries. Since then, two ferries were retired and no new ones have been built. (Photo courtesy of John Vezina)

At the moment, the ferry system could not resume sailing to Sidney even if it had a spare boat. That is because it currently lacks a vessel certified to sail internationally. The U.S. Coast Guard imposes tougher lifesaving, fire suppression and crew training requirements on ferries in international service.

The ferry Chelan previously had the needed clearance, but the ferry system let that boat’s international certification lapse a few years into the Anacortes-Sidney route suspension. Vezina said his agency’s vessels department is reviewing whether the Chelan is the right boat to recertify or whether to pursue modifications to a newer ferry.

How else to get across the water

Court petitioner Chalmers said when he needs to go to Vancouver Island these days, he drives a lengthy detour up through the Vancouver suburbs to catch a British Columbia ferry from Tsawwassen. That’s one of three ferry options Washingtonians have today. The other two are the private Black Ball Ferry Line from Port Angeles to Victoria and the FRS Clipper passenger-only high-speed catamaran from Seattle to Victoria’s Inner Harbour.

The state-operated Sidney ferry route formerly operated nine months out of each year, with one daily roundtrip during spring and late fall and two roundtrips daily in the peak summer season.

In recent years, legislators prodded their staff and the ferry system via the state budget to study various options to achieve a quicker restart, including the feasibility of privatizing the run or acquiring a used ferry.

Most interestingly, in 2023, the state Department of Transportation tasked a vessel broker to scour the world for used ferries. The broker identified dozens of car ferries for sale, including 25 in the Greek Islands alone. But upon closer scrutiny, every last one of them was judged to be too slow, or too old, or had the wrong car deck geometry to load and unload at the Salish Sea’s existing state ferry landings.

The recently adjourned 2026 session included offhand mentions of a possible San Juan Islands to Sidney foot ferry during a broader debate about boosting passenger-only ferry options. But nothing came of that.

Restoring the international route sooner than 2030 was a declared priority of the city of Anacortes for years. Mayor Ryan Walters even built a personal website to enumerate all the economic and cultural reasons for bringing back the Anacortes-Sidney route.

But this year, the route restoration dropped off the city council-approved legislative priority list. Walters said the city still wants the run restored as soon as possible, but is now resigned to the fact that it can’t sail without more boats.

“We accept the reality that it’s not going to happen before then,” Walters said. “There’s no magic to make it happen.”

In the meantime, the state continues to pay the Town of Sidney to keep up the lease of the unused ferry landing on the Canadian shore. The cost to Washington taxpayers of the long-term lease, tax, utilities and maintenance is notable. It is averaging around $250,000 per year for a ferry dock that hasn’t been used in years and apparently won’t be for at least half a decade more.

To Chalmers, that seems “like a waste.” To Vezina, the spending is evidence of the ferry system’s commitment to resurrect the international service someday.

Republished with permission. Read the original article.

Washington State Standard is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Washington State Standard maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Bill Lucia for questions: info@washingtonstatestandard.com.

For many reasons, Anacortes has been labeled as the most walkable downtown in Washington. In just a handful of blocks stemming from Commercial Avenue, pedestrians can find the Majestic Inn, operating since the early 20th century, live music at Rockfish Grill, and Pelican Bay Books, a coffee-and-book mainstay since the 1990s. This Skagit County gem concentrates its best eateries and shops into an easy-to-navigate core. A short stroll leads to the Cap Sante Waterfront and marina on Fidalgo Bay, while murals and salmon can sculptures reflect the town’s historic canning roots.

Walking the Streets of Anacortes

The primary thoroughfare of this walkable downtown center in Anacortes surrounds Commercial Avenue. In fact, all of the side streets from Third to Ninth branch off from this primary artery, cutting through. Along the carefully maintained sidewalks ideal for strolling, you can see a pleasant array of murals and public art, including colorful can sculptures modeled after salmon to pay homage to the town’s history of canning. At the eastern end of historic downtown, a walking path guides pedestrians to the marina and the Cap Sante Waterfront.

Given the walkable downtown, it is advisable to consider accommodations that keep guests right in the middle of the offerings. For those in Anacortes, that means the locally owned and popular Majestic Inn and Spa, positioned at 419 Commercial Avenue. This hotel is so renowned that it is widely considered one of the few anchors of the entire city. The historic building dates to 1890, and the inn has operated in its current form since the early 1900s. While there is highly praised on-site eating at the Majestic Bistro and Bar serving meals and drinks from early morning to late at night, the biggest amenity of this beloved hotel is its proximity to the action on Commercial Avenue.

Dining Made Simple on One Street

Commercial Avenue is the heart of downtown, so this is where visitors to the city are likely to find the community’s most popular and most unique dining and quick-bite eateries. At 320 Commercial Ave, explorers will come across Rockfish Grill. For more than 25 years, this establishment has been operating and claims to be one of the longest-running music venues in the western half of Washington. While music might seem to be the centerpiece, people keep coming back for the food here. American fare is the focus, with everything from greasy burgers and creative vegetarian entrees to fresh seafood and wood-fired pizzas.

Just on the edge of the downtown district, you will find Dad’s Diner, whose thin layout might be easy to pass if you are not looking for the bright white, black, and red sign out front. Some of the items on the menu are changing with the seasons, so you have to check the chalkboard when you come in to see what’s on the grill that particular visit, though some staples for the AM remain constant, like the sizable Dad’s Plate dish. Later in the day, guests can enjoy comforting mains like a Texas Philly or Dad’s BLT.

Shopping by the Waterfront

For over a decade, the Anacortes Oil and Vinegar Bar has occupied 704 Commercial Avenue. This small shop specializes in high-grade extra-virgin olive oils and balsamic vinegars from Modena, Italy. Beyond the multiple varieties of fused and infused oils, shoppers also delight in the stock of pasta, sauces, bread dips, olives, salts, and ceramic tableware. With both a tasting bar and a reasonable price point for high-end, imported products, the Anacortes Oil and Vinegar Bar is a popular stop for shoppers walking Commercial Avenue.

Pelican Bay Books has been a consistent shop serving downtown since the mid-1990s. Its shelves sort rare and secondhand titles by topic; nautical history sits alongside works on Cascadia, science, literary fiction, verse, and obscure subjects. What sets the spot apart is how easily it balances two purposes at once: offering carefully selected novels and publications while serving coffee from Olympia Coffee Roasting Company, baked items made in-house, and simple meals. Beginning each day at eight o’clock, six days per week, it becomes an early point of interest during strolls through town; caffeine seekers arrive first, then lingerers browse pages into the afternoon hours.

Exploring Nearby Towns

While Anacortes has plenty to keep someone busy on foot, when you are ready to take a drive through the scenic routes of the Pacific Northwest once more, there are a couple of destinations nearby worth checking out.

Head about 15 miles to the southeast, and you can find La Conner sitting along the Swinomish Channel. Much like Commercial Avenue, La Conner has First Street, a main thoroughfare that runs right by the water. Locals in the region have literally voted it the Best Tiny Town in Washington in a poll run by Seattle news outlet King 5. With its small footprint, exploring is easy, whether someone wants to dive into fine art at The Museum of Northwest Art on First Street or seek a warm, inviting place to eat and drink, like La Conner Brewing Company, which has been serving wood-fired pizzas since 1995.

Island communities are not uncommon around the channels and bays connecting the waterways to the Pacific Ocean, and about 20 miles below Anacortes, you can find one called Oak Harbor on Whidbey Island. The town is quaint and quiet, with an active pedestrian corridor, Pioneer Way, anchored by a sizable steel-and-copper kraken sculpture. Nature plays a significant role in the small town’s draw, particularly for those who access Deception Pass State Park just to the south of the community to explore its 4,000 acres of hiking trails and tidal pools.

Unlike heading to La Conner or Oak Harbor on a highway out of town, getting to the popular destination of Friday Harbor means taking the Washington State Ferry from the Anacortes terminal and a one-hour boat trip. The town once thrived on exports like fruit and salmon, though it now does pretty well through tourism. The few blocks right around the ferry landing are loaded with shops, dining options, and art galleries, making this almost an extension of the walkable Anacortes offerings. When taking a break from the bustle of the initial few blocks, take a minute to check out The Whale Museum, which has been operational since 1979, with multiple exhibits ranging from orca biology to an explanation of Pacific Northwest marine life.

Taking an Easy Stroll Through Anacortes

For many reasons, Anacortes has been labeled as the most walkable downtown in Washington. In just a matter of a handful of blocks stemming from Commercial Avenue, pedestrians can find quality accommodations at the Majestic Inn, which has been up and running since 1904, one of the longest continually running music venues in western Washington, at Rockfish Grill, and Pelican Bay Books, which has been a hotspot for morning coffee enthusiasts and readers alike since the 1990s. Places here set up shop and stay rooted, and are easily found on foot by those who take the time to explore Commercial Avenue and its wide selection of one-of-a-kind destinations.

See all the latest scores & stats from your favorite teams! Simply sign in or create your free MaxPreps account to unlock this page - it only takes a minute to join.

The Lynden (WA) varsity basketball team lost Thursday's home conference game against Anacortes (WA) by a score of 50-47.

Rankings & Records

Record Breakdown