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(To return from
links on this page, close window that appears) A couple years ago, the Fairhaven Village Green was ready for it's grand opening. A bronze statue of Dan Harris, Fairhaven's founder, was to be unveiled.
In the mid-1880s, Dan Harris took leave of a whaling vessel and arrived in Victoria, BC in hopes of pursuing the fabled and lucrative northwest fur trade. Meeting the Hudson Bay crown monopoly there, he was advised to get the heck out of their territory before embarking on any such enterprise. He took their advice. Dan bought a small dory and rowed to Bellingham bay. He found the folks at the established community near the mouth of Whatcom Creek overly critical of his casual garb and aromatic presence, so he moved into a shack at Post Point, by today's sewage treatment plant. In the following years, he probably found Fairhaven an easier place to ply his trade - smuggling rum and other staple commodities from Victoria to Bellingham. Later, the death of a partner clouded title to o much of Bellingham. Dan was then able to plat and sell parcels in Fairhaven, amassing a fortune and eventually building the famous Fairhaven Hotel. Dan never really learned to wash or dress to the satisfaction of the local society, and eventually moved to Los Angeles. About the time
the Village Green was ready to open, Fairhaven merchants and boosters
hatched a wonderful scheme. They would reenact Dan's journey to Fairhaven,
rowing from Victoria to Bellingham Bay in small, open dories. I was
among the three rowers who embarked on a magical April trip through
the San Juan Islands.
We were towed down to Victoria behind Gato Verde, a charter catamaran expertly skippered by Todd Schuster. You can find him and his boat at the Ferry Terminal. He runs a charter service and can definitely show you around the local waters. Todd's boat is very well equipped, so we rowers didn't have to suffer. With two showers, a gourmet kitchen and two great chefs, we lived in luxury between stints in the rowboats. Because it was April, and maybe because of the small boats, we were met with interest and hospitality all along the way. The City Government of Victoria was excited as all get-out, despite never having heard of Dan. They mustered the UBC rowing crew, a search and rescue helicopter and vast crowds to see us off on our trip. At Roche Harbor, I (dressed as Dan) was offered the John Wayne Room. It has a balcony with a view of the harbor (478KB) and is next to the John Wayne Tub, so big it requires its own room. No kidding, John Wayne actually stayed there. No kidding, it's a really big tub! We had a wonderful and peaceful stay at Obstruction Pass, seeing the best sunset (1.6MB) of the trip. When we arrived at Inati Bay, we were met by a contingent of locals from Bellingham. They bore gifts of food and beverage and a great time was had by all. Next morning
the wind kicked up, giving us a boost across the bay. We arrived quite
a bit ahead of schedule and settled into a hidden beach at the shipyard
to relax
while waiting to hear the cannon that was to signal the readiness of
the Fairhaven Middle School Marching Band.
We heard the gun and finally arrived, greeted by the Mayor and his wife. We marched up to Fairhaven with all appropriate fanfare, listened to speeches, opened the Village Green and unveiled the statue of Dan. Today the Village Green is the heart of the Fairhaven district, a place for the farmer's market, evening dancing, boche ball and busking. As your Port
Commissioner, I vow to work to make the trip from Victoria to Fairhaven
an annual event of international diplomacy with our neighbors to the
south (That's right! Victoria is 55 miles southwest of Bellingham!).
The Dan Harris Days deserve to pay attention to the tradition of international
trade with Canada spearheaded by Fairhaven's founding father.
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