The Salmon is "Sacred to my People" - All the pictures (120) from our trip, with a slideshow

The British Columbia House of Parliament in Victoria, BC - Highlights from our trip, with a slideshow with captions

The The beautiful Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC - All the pictures from the gardens, with slideshow

Indigenous masks at the Museum of Anthropology at UBC, Vancouver, BC - All of my pictures from the Museum and Slideshow

Vacation 2025: Seattle and Anacortes, WA; Vancouver, BC, and Victoria, BC

For Vacation 2025, my friend Msgr. Dennis Metzger, a priest of Toledo, Ohio, came west to Oregon for a 10 day trip that took us north from Portland, to Seattle (for a Red Sox game), then to Anacortes, Washington, Vancouver, BC, and finally Victoria, BC.  We had wonderful weather and a great time.

The trip began in Seattle at T-Mobile Park for a Mariners vs. Red Sox game (Dennis is a Red Sox fan).  We stayed at a nice Silver Cloud Hotel right next door to the stadium.  It was a good way to start our journey, and both us found the hotel quite accommodating.  The next day, we hit I-5 again, to Anacortes, Washington, on Fidalgo Island, about 80 miles north of Seattle.

​Anacortes is the home of my sister, Maureen Brennan, and she welcomed us graciously.  Also arriving was my sister, Lori Howe.  It was my first visit to Anacortes, and my sister Lori's as well.  Maureen had moved to Anacortes a few years before, leaving Portland for this beautiful coastal town.  Anacortes struck me as a prosperous town, with second homes, a trendy downtown, a beautiful harbor, and many good restaurants.  My sister loves the ocean . . . this seems the perfect place for her.

Maureen took us on local tours, around Fidalgo Island (Anacortes [pop. 17,000] is the largest and only city on the island).  The neighboring island is Whidbey, with a rugged coast and high cliffs (note the high bridge we walked across!).  Of note, the first known overnight stay on the island by a non-Native American was Fr. Francis Norbert Blanchet on May 26, 1840, the first archbishop of Oregon City.

Leaving Anacortes, Dennis and I headed north again to Vancouver, staying in North Vancouver.  We did a walkng tour of downtown Vancouver, a very busy city with impressive buildings, fine shops, and 5-star restaurants (we always ate well on our trip).  We even  chanced upon a Corpus Christi procession!  Our main destination was the impressive Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, an outstanding collection of both native art and culture.

From Vancouver, we headed for the BC ferry that would take us to Victoria on Vancouver Island.  Our main point of interest was the famous Butchart Gardens, perhaps the most impressive gardens in the world.  We were blessed with a sunny and cool day to visit the gardens.

The founder and owner of the gardens was Robert Tim Butchart (1856-1943), a manufacturer of Portland Cement.  He moved to the west coast of Canada with his wife, Jennie Butchart (1866-1950) because of the limestone deposits needed for cement production.  The earliest part of the garden was a Japanese garden in 1912.  When the limestone quarry was exhausted, Jennie began turning it into a sunken garden.  Completed in 1921, Jennie then began receiving visitors.  In 1939, the Butcharts gave the gardens to their grandson, Ian Ross (1918-1997).  Ross was involved in the promotion and development of the gardens until his death 58 years later.

Victoria is a beautiful city, the provincial capital, and Dennis and I went for a lovely early evening walk at the port, with the elegant Empress Hotel in one direction and the impressive parliament building in another.  We had dinner with a nice view of the port.

​We headed home the next day on the ferry to Port Angeles, then south to Portland.  Dennis had one more day, so we decided to visit Mount Angel Abbey, then the "Oregon Garden" in Silverton.  After the Butchart Gardens, well, the "Oregon" wasn't much.  In the end, after 10 days, a good time was had by all!  Dennis, it was great having you in the magnificent Pacific Northwest!

For a quick view of Highlights of the trip, CLICK HERE for a slideshow with captions.

The Travelers - Maureen Brennan and Lori Howe

The Travelers - Dennis Metzger and Pat Brennan

Pat at T-Mobile Park, Seattle, for a Red Sox vs. Mariners game. The Red Sox won!