There are two new audio tour guides out from Northwest Heritage Resources, completing the circle that began with the “Cascade Loop Heritage Tour — South.”
“Cascade Loop Heritage Tour — North” and “Cascade Loop Heritage
Tour — West” add links from Anacortes to Chelan and the length of Whidbey Island.
Like the first audio tour along U.S. 2 to Wenatchee, the new guides come with CDs and liner notes that include maps, text and photos related to cultural heritage, stories, folk poetry and traditional music of the people who live along the routes.
The Whidbey Island tour begins aboard the Mukilteo ferry to Clinton with a sea chanty from the Shifty Sailors, directed by Vern Olsen of Coupeville. It goes from Scandinavian influences around Clinton and Langley to the Dutch touch in Oak Harbor, concluding with the Salish Anthem by the Samish Singers, perhaps as you cross Deception Pass.
You could make a weekend of it with the north part of the tour, as the CDs in that package begin in Anacortes and carry you eastward over the scenic North Cascades, through the Methow Valley and south to Chelan.
Along the way, hear the stories of fishing, farming, ranching and logging, to name a few.
It would be nice if there were an east to west version of the southern part of the loop, so you could piece together a complete circuit of the Cascade Loop with audio for an extended weekend.
More information about the new tour guides, as well as previous ones, and how to order them can be found at www.washingtonfolkarts.com. Each one costs $9.95, plus $2.85 postage and handling.
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