# Washington State/Canada



## post-it (Oct 10, 2014)

Would Tuggers familiar with Pacific Northwest help me plan a trip to Washington with day trips to Canada?  Thinking of whale watching from Vancouver, but what other places across the border for a day trips should we not miss?
I’m looking VI at Homestead, Lynden  June 11  7 nights.  Resort info says 5 min to border.  Can anyone help with what to do and see in this area, and is this border an easy crossing or huge hassle. 

Thanks


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## DaveNV (Oct 10, 2014)

I'm located ~40 miles south of there.

Lynden is quite close to the Border.  But once across, you still have to drive a fair bit to get out to the coast where there may be whale watching boats. Traffic heading into Vancouver can be very backed up in the morning.  I wouldn't plan on doing much whale watching from there.

Day trips to Canada can be done from Lynden, as long as you understand that crossing the Border can be a time-consuming thing in either direction.  It depends on day of the week, time of day you're crossing, and which crossing you're using.  (There are several.)  Be prepared for a wait of some duration, from a few minutes to a few hours.  The crossings all require a certain amount of planning.

From Lynden, you're a few miles to I-5, at Exit 270.  Another Border crossing is a few miles north of there, and Bellingham is 15 miles or so to the South.  There may be whale watching boats available from Bellingham, traveling out to the San Juan Islands.  There are resident pods of Orca whales that live in the San Juans.

Depending on how much time you want to spend in the car, there is plenty to occupy your time up here. What sort of activities do you have in mind?

Dave


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## post-it (Oct 10, 2014)

I sure my DH will not what to drive that much since he drives all day for work, so the whale watching closer sounds better.  We enjoy outdoor activities, hiking for one.


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## ChrisandBeth (Oct 10, 2014)

Homestead is indeed close to a border crossing, but it is a small highway. Less traffic also means fewer lanes. We've near had a long wait.

The bigger issue is traffic on the freeway into Vancouver from the crossing.Avoid rush hour.

But I would add Stanley Park, then cross over to the north shore and take a drive up one of the mountains. Awesome views of the city and the ocean all the way to Vancouver Island on a good day.

Granville Island market is fun if you are a shopper or browser or people watcher.

Don't try and do Vancouver Island in a day. You will be way too rushed. But Victoria is a very pretty city and give you a taste of the Island. It worth doing an overnight here. If you are a VI owner you have two choices for nightly accommodation. You may decide to arrange a longer stay on another trip.

The merlot is kicking in. If I think of more I'll repost later.

Cheers
Chris


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## Czahara1 (Oct 11, 2014)

*June Washington trip*

You may want to consider taking a ferry to the San Juan Islands.  They are situated in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains and have drier weather.  June can be wet in the Pacific Northwest.  The ferries travel to Vancouver Island as well.  Generally, everything is more expensive in Canada than the U.S.  Ferry fares, gasoline, excursions such as whale watching trips, etc.  Doesn't mean it isn't worth going across the border, but you can plan both.  Here are a couple of helpful links.

http://www.visitsanjuans.com/
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/pdf/wsfroutemap.pdf


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## humor_monger (Oct 11, 2014)

Gastown ( http://www.gastown.org/ ) was redeveloped in the 70's and may be of interest. Capilano Suspension Bridge Park is worth a visit in North Vancouver.  Stanley Park is large and has a lot of neat things to do. We've done Whistler on a day trip from Birch Bay which is very near Lynden. Dr. Sun Yat‑Sen Classical Chinese Garden in Chinatown was pretty cool. We did that on another day trip. Lynden itself is a good place for breakfast and is worth a half day to visit. The museum is interesting. Their Dutch heritage is interesting.

Butchart Gardens is pretty popular on Vancouver Island and probably shouldn't be done in conjunction with a visit to Victoria. Port Alberni is on my list to do next time I'm on the island.

http://www.bcferries.com/ 
http://www.butchartgardens.com/

Buy your fuel in the US. It is CONSIDERABLY higher in Canada and gets progressively higher as you approach the border. Ferndale is the last place before the prices start going up.


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## BevL (Oct 11, 2014)

I think you will be doing a fair amount of driving.  Lynden is a lovely little town, but I wouldn't consider it a destination at all.  So you'll be doing day trips pretty much throughout, I'd guess.

Plan your trips to Canada using some of the tools that give estimated border crossing wait times.  Border Buddy is an app that I have on my iPhone that gives wait times and webcam views and estimated wait times on different days of the week for various border crossings.  There is a border crossing just north of Lynden that will be your best bet, although it is not open 24 hours a day.

One interesting tidbit about Lynden, there are no liquor sales within the town limits on Sunday.  Just so you know.  And gas is a good price there, we fill up at the Arco or the Safeway with our club card to get a few cents off.  But definitely cheaper gas on the US side.


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## bjones9942 (Oct 11, 2014)

Enjoying food I will let you know that some very good Dim Sum, and excellent Indian food can be found in the greater Vancouver area.  Take a trip over to the yelp.com site and browse the reviews.  There used to be a nice Hungarian place downtown that served chicken soup with chicken liver dumplings (not sure if it's still around).


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## Bill4728 (Oct 12, 2014)

Crossing the border at Lynden can be a <5 minute affair but it can be a lot longer. 

I'd plan both US day trips and Canadian day trips so if the border wait is long you can go to Mt Baker or Bellingham or Semiahmoo or even a day trip to Seattle. BUT I'd guess that most of the time, a trip into Vancouver will not be so bad that you'll want to not brave the border and traffic.


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## easyrider (Oct 12, 2014)

The area around Lynden is beautiful. Mt Baker and Artist Point are easy drives from Lynden. This area is really unique in that there are not as many tourists that go here. Its a good couple of hours of driving to get there but the views and scenery are extraordinary.

As far as June goes this area does have a good chance of either rain or sun all in the same day. 

Driving into Canada has never been a problem for us. Driving back from Canada can take some time. 

We did a week at the Worldmark Canadian last summer in August and did the hop on bus tours. Its a good way to get around to the different areas. My wife really liked Granville Island. 

http://bigbus.ca/home/route-map

Closer to Lynden is Discovery Bay. I like this area because of the low tide and fishing opportunities. 

Bill


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## MULTIZ321 (Oct 12, 2014)

Also keep in mind that returning from Canada to the U.S. you'll need either a passport or an enhanced Driver's License.



Richard


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## oceanvps (Oct 13, 2014)

IMO
if you have time  i'd say get nexus $50 for 5 years.  Lane open 7am to midnight on both sides.  You have time to get it if its June 2015

I had nexus first then got enhanced at last dl renewal and i was surprised at the limited hours of enhanced.

I've stayed at the VI in Lynden, the units are nice enough, you have to walk over to the golf club to use pool and hot tub, not far by any means but a bit more work than if your hotel had the pool in hotel.


http://www.ezbordercrossing.com/list-of-border-crossings/washington-state/lynden-aldergrove/#.VDvyN_nF9Ag


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## BevL (Oct 13, 2014)

oceanvps said:


> IMO
> if you have time  i'd say get nexus $50 for 5 years.  Lane open 7am to midnight on both sides.  You have time to get it if its June 2015
> 
> I had nexus first then got enhanced at last dl renewal and i was surprised at the limited hours of enhanced.
> ...



I live 10 minutes from the border and don't bother with Nexus.  It might be something we'll get in the future but unless you really have to travel at peak times all the time, I'm not sure it's worth it.  Not sure if the new upgrades to the LYnden/Aldergrove border crossing will improve access, but at the Sumas border crossing going into the US, you have to wait in the lineup on the road before you get close enough to use the nexus lane.  Lynden/Aldergrove, at this point, is kind of the same, it's basically a one lane road approaching the border so it can be a bit of a wait before you can get to the point where the Nexus lane branches off.  

But to each their own.


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## sue1947 (Oct 13, 2014)

easyrider said:


> Closer to Lynden is Discovery Bay. I like this area because of the low tide and fishing opportunities.
> 
> Bill



Did you mean Birch Bay instead of Discovery Bay?  The latter is on the other side of Puget Sound and I would not describe it as close to Lynden.  

Sue


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## easyrider (Oct 14, 2014)

sue1947 said:


> Did you mean Birch Bay instead of Discovery Bay?  The latter is on the other side of Puget Sound and I would not describe it as close to Lynden.
> 
> Sue



Yup, Birch Bay. I get those two bays mixed up. I like Discovery Bay a little better than Birch Bay because my timeshare at Discovery Bay has a boat dock with launch and some of the units are right on the water.   

Birch Bay is a good crabbing area , imo, with beautiful sunsets. 

Bill


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## post-it (Jan 22, 2015)

I booked Birch Bay, 2bd for 4 nights June 14 and came across these ideas while on Trip Advisor:
Birch Bay is a good place to use as a base for the many activities available in the area. Vancouver is a short drive to the north. We took the ferry from Vancouver to Vancouver Island. Seattle is a 2 hour scenic drive to the south. We also visited a fair in Ferndale, Rosario Beach and Deception Pass, Orca whale watching from Anacortes, Semiahoo Point and Seattle. The Space Needle and Chihuly Glass Exhibit in Seattle were both great. We took an excellent food tour of Pike Place Market while in Seattle.
Since flying from CA we will have a short flight giving us time on Sunday and our check out day if we can get the last flight home.  

Any other additional insights would be appreciated.

Thanks


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## dr.debs (Feb 1, 2015)

We stayed at Birch Bay, exchanging in on II with my SDO smaller 1br lockoff. We were there over spring break. It is a nice resort and we had a peak a boo view of the bay. Lovely sunsets and great low tide walks across the tidal flats. bring water shoes. Bike rentals available at the resort. We did the Vancouver day trip and it is at least 1 1/2 hours. The chinese garden was lovely but the area surrounding it is dicey. The UBC museum is not to be missed. Getting to Victoria or Sydney is not a day trip. Plan to stay overnight. June is not peak whale watching but there are resident Orca pods in the sound, and Anacortes might be a better option; or perhaps an overnight to Orcas or San Juan Island from Anacortes. The Ferry system just rolled out a new reservation policy sailing out of Anacortes to the San Juans. If you want to drive on make sure you have reservations. Walk on passengers needn't worry. Not sure about bikes.  Have a great trip!!


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## post-it (Feb 1, 2015)

Thanks Deb - I see Bellingham has boats to the San Juan island area and its only 30 mins away from Birch Bay.

Can anyone recommend a Whale Watching tour group in the area?

Thank you


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