The view out to Birch Bay from a Whatcom Transportation Authority bus. The tide is low so the shoreline is off in the distance. It's a cloudy day and a peninsula sits off in the distance on the right.

Quick Guide to Whatcom County Transit Treks

One surprising thing I’ve found putting together The Transit Trekker Manual is that a few of the smaller transit agencies or their partners have created transit-based recreation guides. It’s less common that I come across these from larger agencies, TriMet in Portland being one exception (but also: not in Washington state). Whatcom Transportation Authority is one of those smaller systems — they’ve published this overview of some of the parks and trails served by bus routes.

The guide doesn’t include some of the most scenic trips you can take; I’ll be including quite a few of those in the manual, like Birch Bay, as seen in the image above.