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Written by Sharlene Minshall
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Wednesday, 01 June 2011 00:00 |
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 State Route 20 in Washington State took me south along the length of Whidbey Island. Pulling up to the Keystone Ferry kiosk on the Fourth of July at noon without a reservation, I asked, “Can I get on this run to Port Townsend?” The male attendant said with a straight face, “No, you’ll have to wait in line until tomorrow.”
“How do you feel about buying me dinner?”
“Well, OK then, get into line #2.”
It was the fastest rejection I ever experienced but I was disembarking the ferry in downtown Port Townsend in short order.
An RVing friend who owned a Victorian house in “uptown” Port Townsend 40 miles northwest of Seattle rented her studio apartment to me for two months. From the right spot, I could watch boats and ships of all sizes glide through Puget Sound to worldwide destinations. And the best part was that I had three friends, Chris, Lynn and Grace, with whom to share the summer.
 The apartment wasn’t big and it wasn’t fancy but it was convenient— a half block uphill through the back yard to the 1930 Jefferson County Carnegie Public Library with Wi-Fi, a half block to the 1897 Uptown Theatre, and two blocks to the historic First Presbyterian Church (1873). The church’s antique pipe organ with 692 pipes is the oldest organ in Washington State that is still in its original home. The church was lovely, full of friendly people, and produced great sermons, but by the end of summer, I still didn’t know anybody beyond the non-committal handshake.
Deer were everywhere, and I learned to come and go quietly to avoid startling a whole family into flight. Over my time there, I watched legs become stable, and fawns lose their spots, and I learned to drive v-e-r-r-y carefully.
Art and Food
Walking a block took me to the Wednesday afternoon and Saturday morning farmer’s markets. Among the colorful fresh, mostly organic, fruits and vegetables were unusual crafts, specialty foods, artisan breads and locally made cider and cheese. It was a great place to eat and enjoy tractor-sized doughnut holes. While munching my favorite sausage and sauerkraut sandwich, I once shared a table with two ladies visiting from Kentucky and their friendly Burmese Mountain Dog. (Port Townsend is so small that I met them again on the wharf later in the week.) The music was lively, and flower and spice vendors provided fragrance.
The Port Townsend Summer Band played at the Uptown Street Fair as fish tacos, sizzling salmon and biscuit burgers tempted the palate from booths lining Lawrence and Tyler streets. Tents shaded unusual crafts, paintings and photography. Kids loved the on-site craft-creating and sidewalk pastel-sketching. A young fellow giving a lively cooking demonstration referred to goat cheese and various fruits and vegetables as “sexy,” making me wonder if he was sampling his homemade cooking wine.
 From babies to babes to grandma and grandpa, tourists and neighborhood friends dressed to the nines in outlandish clothes and wigs of bright green, purple and pink. Their eclectic and intriguing parade started at the top of the hill, continued in front of the Uptown Theater and sort of spilled into the fair. A unicycle wound its way through, and a group of belled dancers shimmied and shook their bangled and beaded bellies.
The Jefferson County Historical Society Museum offers a walking tour. They will surely tell you that in the late 1800s Port Townsend referred to itself as “The City of Dreams.” Those dreams included becoming an even bigger shipping port with a northwest railroad extension assuring Port Townsend’s growth into a major city. A depression and lack of funds ended those dreams where the railroad lines ended east of Puget Sound. The magnificent Victorian houses had already been built and in 1977, Port Townsend became a National Historic Landmark. Over time Port Townsend has become known as a “Victorian Seaport and Arts Community.”
Many of the Victorian houses are now bed and breakfasts. Each has a story. At the Ann Starrett Mansion, built in 1889, they tell about a wealthy contractor and his bride. He was so infatuated with his new wife that he created an unusual tribute to her—a free-floating spiral staircase leading to a solar calendar within an eight-sided dome tower. The calendar uses her likeness for each of the four seasons and four virtues. Supposedly when the sun shines on the first day of each season, a ruby red light shines toward her angelic representation of that season.
Downtown Port Townsend
In 1893, the Galatea statue, a mythological Greek sea nymph, first appeared at Chicago’s World Exposition. In 1906, Theodore N. Haller donated it to the City of Port Townsend. Having survived many repairs and reconstructions, it lives at the bottom of the Taylor Street Stairs.
 At the corner of Taylor and Water Streets, wrought iron stairs lead down to a former storage space converted into a unique and cozy coffee and food bar called UnderTown. It is filled with art and happy chatter, and a local band sometimes plays for dancing. The coffee steams and the wine flows in this mini community center where friends chat, lounge, play chess, read or munch.
I passed by Bergstrom’s Antique and Classic Auto building, but I can see that a guy could spend hours checking out the old cars and memorabilia. Car shows are scheduled throughout the summer at Memorial Field on Washington Street.
I actually handed out programs for the Key City Public Theatre when Grace, who is an active year-round volunteer, couldn’t make it one evening. The Rose Theatre shows motion pictures and The Upstage Restaurant and Theatre offers entertainment. A major film festival is held each September.
Late one evening Lynn and I got the munchies and went down to the Nifty Fifties Soda Fountain Shop. I’m not sure they knew what a Black Cow was, but they gave it their best shot with our instructions—scoops of ice cream drowning in foamy root beer. We sang old fifties songs along with the jukebox and Sh-boom Sh-boomed our way into the night as they closed the shop.
The Art Walk is the first Saturday evening of each month. We tromped through the cool rainy streets wearing sweatshirts and jackets. Port Townsend is basically one main street with a few side streets attached, lots of trees and hanging street-side flowerpots. We ducked into the many art galleries, admiring the artwork, snacking on hors d’oeuvres, laughing hysterically over nothing, and dodging obstreperous umbrellas.
Lynn also scrounged with me through the many local second-hand shops like The Sea Hag and The Wandering Wardrobe. The weekly free Thursday night “Concerts-on-the-dock” offered people-watching to the max, and occasionally when the music didn’t blast our eardrums, we could listen as well as engage in quiet conversation. Those who felt so moved entertained us with their gyrations and joy of the dance. Chetzemoka Park, a large grassy picnic park up on the bluff, also had band concerts all summer.
Port Townsend has so much to offer and I’ll tell you more about it next time. God Bless.
Autographed copies of 2009 fourth edition RVing Alaska and Canada ($19.95) and Adventures with the Silver Gypsy ($14.95) are available through Amazon.com. Follow Sharlene Minshall’s blog, “The Silver Gypsy,” at rvlife.com
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