Articles written by Anne Basye
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Local shops have new local owners
Two La Conner institutions have new owners – and one of them a new name. Purchasing the Reclamation Candle Company and Coffee Bar from Barney and Tammy Richard was a no-brainer for Greg Whiting and...
Jeannette DeGoede tells inside story of Tulip Town
Very few people give up a desk job to work in the tulip fields – but Jeannette DeGoede did. “I was sporting goods managers at Ernst Hardware in Mount Vernon,” she remembers. “Leaving a nice warm store and coming out to a cold field with no...
Tulip Festival is back, if not yet in full bloom
Ready or not, here comes the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. The Mount Vernon Kiwanis are firing up the grill for their annual salmon barbecue, which starts this Saturday, April 1. The four local flower...
Yes it has been cold: Weather delays daffodil blooms
It's March 15, and nary a daffodil can be seen, but Brent Roozen isn't worried. Field picking ramped up last weekend, said the Washington Bulb Company CEO, and daffodils are shipping to customers at...
Conway billboard proposal comment period extended
What laws govern billboards in Skagit County? Exactly what kind of billboard is being proposed by the 76 gas station owners east of the Conway exit? The answers to those questions are one reason the county revised its “Notice of Development... Full story
More coffee, biscuits and potatoes in and around town
Morning coffee, afternoon tea and better St. Patrick's Day potatoes are now on tap in greater La Conner. Cruser Coffee, 313 Morris Street, is a new source for your morning joe. Nicole Cruse owns and...
Morris and First street business shufflings
January and February may be quiet months for La Conner, but town businesses are in the midst of big changes. Perhaps the most prominent is the recently opened Firehall Kitchen and Taphouse at 402...
Rain and wind like you would not believe hit California
In the first three weeks of January, 32 trillion gallons of rain and snow fell on California. I was there for an awful lot of them. Usually, when I make my holiday sojourn to Sacramento, I enjoy sligh...
Butchering steer on the hoof demonstrated in cooking class
When Taylor Brink visited La Conner High School last Thursday, he was fully armed – and armored. The butcher/meat cutter for Northwest Local Meats, the retail butcher shop for the Island Grown...
Roger Gietzen directs Lincoln Theatre successes
After struggling through two pandemic years, the Lincoln Theatre in Mount Vernon closed out 2022 in good shape. Audiences are returning. There is money in the bank. Membership, which dipped to 482 dur...
Avian flu hits waterfowl around La Conner, Fir Island
Larry McCormick has been seeing a lot of dead birds. "You drive around Best, Calhoun, Bradshaw, you see them," said the La Conner resident, an avid hunter. "At one farmer's field with goose decoys...
Community was all-in at Art's Alive opening gala
Art, appetizers and wine and lots of buzz about the quality of the show – in short, the Art's Alive opening gala Friday was "a wonderful night," observed La Conner Arts Foundation board member...
38th annual Art's Alive!: Great art, Friday gala
This year, raising a glass to the artists featured in the annual Art's Alive! festival will be a cinch. Instead of sipping your wine or beer outdoors in a tent – a measure taken in 2021 to keep the...
Farm report: Dry, with warm weather while water stays scarce
A long dry season has been a mixed blessing for local farmers. Back in June, when the Skagit Valley was so cold and drenched some fields could not even be planted, Dean Swanson thought we would never hit 80 degrees. “Farmers asked for a warm dry fa...
"Welcome to Indian Country" opens Poetry Festival
Some of the 37 guest poets and artists participating in this year’s Skagit River Poetry Festival are crossing oceans to reach La Conner. Others just have to cross the Rainbow Bridge. Canadian poet Karen Solie, flying in from St. Andrews, Scotland,...
Sweet deal for Poetry Festival volunteers
A million details make the Skagit River Poetry Festival happen – and they are all coming together. Before the Festival takes place in La Conner Oct. 6-9, there are 34 poets to match to housing,...
Hikers organize to improve mountain trails
When Bill Hayton and Laurence McCulloch moved to Pleasant Ridge, they wanted to explore hiking trails in the region. Joan Melcher made that happen. Melcher, 85, is the point person of the Skagit...
Poet Laureate Rena Priest read at Lincoln Saturday
“When you are poeting, you are making the world, creating the universe out of nothing,” Washington State Poet Laureate Rena Priest said last Saturday at the Lincoln Theatre. That’s because the word poet comes from the Greek word poesis or “ma...
Birthday Club keeps harmony among neighbors
Books clubs and bridge groups come and go, but the Harmony Birthday Club has been around for about 130 years. Honored with a Pioneer Spirit award at the Aug. 4 Pioneer Picnic, the club has been...
La Conner residents win ribbons at county fair
After a vigorous week at the Skagit County fair, two leaders with La Conner roots are taking it easy. As 4H dairy supervisor for the whole fair, Chelsy Mesman of Mesman Farms helped 18 young people...
Dam relicensing drives Skagit County habitat restoration moratorium
On July 18, the Skagit County commissioners approved a six-month moratorium on offsite compensatory mitigation of salmon habitat. “Offsite compensatory mitigation” means habitat restoration projects that mitigate for environmental impacts that...
Poetry and music sounded Sunday in Pioneer Park
Could there be a more beautiful spot for poets and poetry than the sylvan glade of Pioneer Park? Georgia Johnson doesn’t think so. “For 37 years I’ve driven across the bridge and past the park...
County residents want agritourism on ag land
In the ongoing discussion around whether and how to permit agritourism activities, Skagit County residents believe preserving the county’s rural character should be a top priority. In a spring 2022...
‘Farmstand Fresh’ produce from Genuine Skagit Valley Farms
Genuine Skagit Valley’s Farmstand Fresh campaign is winning applause from La Conner-area participants. The summer promotion seeks to bring visitors to Skagit farmstands between the tulip and fall harvest seasons. When visitors purchase from 16...
Wet weather and high costs bogging down area farmers
A good farming year is easy to recognize, says John Thulen of Pioneer Potatoes. “My ancestors bought a pickup, built a barn or added on to the house,” he said. It’s all in the county register. With record rainfall, late freezes, a cool spring...
