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🐹 Toots On The Southside 🚂🚂

🐹 Toots On The Southside 🚂🚂

March 12, 2025

Good morning, Bellingham. This is your Wednesday update from The Hamster Wheel.

It’s hard to believe we’re halfway through March! This year feels like a classic Whatcom County preseason- rain, clouds, and just enough sun to toy with us. Fingers crossed that I’m right, my poor plants are still in therapy from last year’s warmup, freeze, repeat fiasco.

Have fun, and stay safe out there!

~ Val & Evan

Nature, Community, Sasquatch, UAP

Photos From the Hoods

Mount Baker From Hovander Park - 📷 by Ravyn Whitewolf

Mossy Trail - 📷 by Robert Dyer

Cloudbow Over Bellingham Bay - 📷 by Mike Torpey

Tag @bellinghamsterwheel on Instagram or reply to this email to get your photos in The Hamster Wheel.

Weather Forecast

Wednesday: 50°F 🌡️ 38°F | 🌧️ Rain Showers | 🌧️ 100% | 💨 SSE 6 to 9 mph

Thursday: 48°F 🌡️ 35°F | 🌧️ Rain Showers | 🌧️ 90% | 💨 SSW 5 to 8 mph

Bellingham Bay Tides

Day	Time	H/L	FT
Wed	5:52 AM	H	8.62
Wed	11:39 AM	L	4.56
Wed	4:31 PM	H	7.00
Wed	11:13 PM	L	0.67
Thu	6:14 AM	H	8.49
Thu	12:04 PM	L	3.83
Thu	5:25 PM	H	7.05
Thu	11:48 PM	L	1.25

Moon Phases

Weather & Tides from NOAA. Moon data astronomyapi.

Events, Updates & News Around Town

Get off the Hamster Wheel

Blood Moon Over Bellingham

Okay, it’s a long shot, but this Thursday night into Friday morning, a total lunar eclipse will occur, offering us hamsters a chance to witness the Moon passing through Earth’s shadow. The current weather forecasts look dicey, with rain across western Washington. However, some sources I’ve checked suggest a window of patchy clouds in the late evening, potentially allowing partial visibility between 10 PM and midnight.

During this event, the Moon will take on a red-orange hue, 👆️ a phenomenon known as a “Blood Moon,” caused by sunlight filtering through Earth’s atmosphere.

A lunar eclipse happens when the Sun, Earth, and Moon align, positioning Earth directly between the other two bodies. As the Moon moves into Earth’s shadow, it first enters the penumbra, where the shadow is faint, then the umbra, the darkest part, causing the total eclipse. For Bellingham, the partial eclipse begins at 10:09 PM, with totality from 11:26 PM to 12:31 AM, and the partial phase ending at 1:47 AM.

NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio produced this awesome video 👆️ illustrating the lunar eclipse’s progression. It shows the Moon moving from right to left across Earth’s shadow, highlighting key stages. Fingers crossed for a break in the weather! 🤞

A Few Less Toots On The Southside

Fairhaven’s long-awaited Quiet Zone is officially launched, reducing train horn noise along 1.25 miles of rail line. After nearly 20 years of planning, five crossings now feature upgraded safety measures, allowing trains to limit horn use except in specific cases like emergencies or maintenance.

“The Fairhaven Quiet Zone will support a more peaceful, livable city for generations to come,” said Port Executive Director Rob Fix. “This project has been a priority for many years and, through strategic infrastructure investments, the Port is committed to reducing noise, enhancing safety and improving the quality of life for all residents of Whatcom County.”

The upgrades include flashing signals, automated gates, pedestrian exit gates, and enhanced signage. The project, a complex effort involving risk assessments, interagency coordination, and funding, marks Bellingham’s first Quiet Zone, with a second planned for the Waterfront area. Three of six crossings there are complete, with others in progress.

In other news…

🎨 The Whatcom Museum is installing a maquette of a Billy Frank Jr. statue in its Rotunda Room today, where it will remain on display through April 11. (Full disclosure: I had no idea what a maquette was. I looked it up. It’s a scale model. 🤦) The full-scale statue will later be placed in the U.S. Capitol’s Statuary Hall, a tribute organized by the Washington State Arts Commission in collaboration with the Nisqually Indian Tribe.

Billy Frank Jr. (1931–2014) was a Nisqually tribal member and activist who faced over 50 arrests while defending his treaty-guaranteed fishing rights. His efforts culminated in the 1974 Boldt Decision, a federal ruling that upheld tribal sovereignty and established co-management of Washington’s fisheries. Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, Frank’s legacy also encompasses salmon conservation and environmental policy.

🏡 The Whatcom County Charter Review Commission is meeting in the Blaine Library tomorrow (March 13) at 6 PM.

Food & Drinks

Hamsters Gotta Eat

Wednesday Food Trucks
A Que Tacos @ Goods Local Brews
Big Stick Barbecue @ Stemma Brewery
Burnt Side Down @ Stemma Brewery
Calcutta by Simmering Tava @ K2
Dumpling Girls @ Goods Local Brews
El Pollo Feo @ Kulshan Brewery (Roosevelt K2)
El Tapatio @ 4124 Strider Loop Rd
Falafel Feast @ 4370 Meridian St
Galley 2 Go @ Stones Throw Brewery
Luchadora @ Wander Brewing
Mobile Mouth Hole @ Lowes Parking Lot
New Public Vegan @ Evil Bikes (700 Harris Ave)
Outpost Eats @ Kulshan Brewery (James St. K1)
Sammies Vegan @ Wander Brewing
Tacos El Tule @ West Marine (Meridian St)
The Galley @ Ponderosa Beer + Books

Thursday Food Trucks
A Que Tacos @ Goods Local Brews
Big Stick Barbecue @ Stemma Brewery
Burnt Side Down @ Stemma Brewery
Calcutta by Simmering Tava @ K2
Dumpling Girls @ Goods Local Brews
El Pollo Feo @ Kulshan Brewery (Roosevelt K2)
El Tapatio @ 4124 Strider Loop Rd
Falafel Feast @ 4370 Meridian St
Galley 2 Go @ Stones Throw Brewery
Greektown @ Kulshan Brewery (James St. K1)
Luchadora @ Wander Brewing
Mobile Mouth Hole @ Lowes Parking Lot
New Public Vegan @ Evil Bikes (700 Harris Ave)
Sammies Vegan @ Wander Brewing
Tacos El Tule @ West Marine (Meridian St)
Tam Tam Pizza @ Lost Giants Cider Co.
Tezpoteco Taco @ Stemma Brewery
The Galley @ Ponderosa Beer + Books

Test Your Knowledge

Bellingham & Whatcom Trivia

Which coal mine was the location of Whatcom County's worst mining disaster.

This mine was the site of Washington’s deadliest industrial accident: a methane gas explosion that killed 23.

The correct answer to the last question: “What Whatcom/Skagit Photographer took this iconic photo of a cedar stump house in Edgecomb Wa in 1901?” 👇️ was Darius Kinsey.

Darius Kinsey (1869–1945) was a photographer who documented life in western Washington from 1890 to 1940. Born in Maryville, Missouri, he moved to Snoqualmie, Washington, at age 20 and began his photography career. In 1896, he married Tabitha May Pritts in the town of Nooksack, and the following year they opened a studio in Sedro-Woolley.

Kinsey initially focused on portraiture while also capturing scenic views. In 1906, the couple relocated to Seattle, where he shifted to photographing the lumber industry and regional landscapes, using an 11" x 14" Empire State view camera with glass plates until switching to film in 1914.

Kinsey’s work covered logging operations, locomotives, and natural features across the Northwest. His wife, Tabitha, managed the darkroom, developing negatives and producing prints that were sold to loggers. After a fall from a stump in 1940 ended his photography career, Kinsey spent his final years organizing his negatives. He died in 1945 and is buried alongside Tabitha in Nooksack.

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Performance Arts This Week

Dance of The Hamsters

THEATRE - DANCE - FILM

BAAY Theatre:
Beetlejuice Jr. | Fri, Sat 7 PM; Sat, Sun 2 PM

BAAY Theatre:
Snoring Beauty | Sat, Sun 11 AM

iDiOM Theater:
Serial Killers | Sat 7 & 9 PM

Mount Baker Theatre:
Dragons & Mythical Beasts | Sun 3 PM

The Claire:
Lion King Youth Production | Fri, Sat 7 PM; Fri, Sat, Sun2 PM

COMEDY

Nacho Problems:
Nacho Average Comedy Open Mic | Thurs 8:30 PM

Uisce Irish Pub:
Guffawingham | Mon 8:30 PM

PARTICIPATORY DANCE

Scottish Country : Scottish Dancing Workshops @ Fairhaven Library | Wed 7 PM
Tango : Tango Practica @ The Majestic Ballroom | Wed 6:30 PM
Party : Emo Therapy @ Wild Buffalo | Thurs 9 PM
Bachata : Bham Bachata @ ‘ONO Kitchen & Bar | Thurs 7:30 PM
Social Partner Dance : Flow Fusion @ Karate Church | Thurs 7 PM
Line Dancing : Country Night @ Bar 211 | Fri 8 PM
Party : St Pat's House @ Wild Buffalo | Sat 8:30 PM
Party : Digital Kiss @ Blue Room | Sat 11 PM
Party : Bad Bunny Party @ Bar 211 | Sat 10 PM
Silent Disco : Sunset Silent Disco @ Boulevard Park | Sat 6:30 PM
Salsa : The Salsa Collective @ The Majestic Ballroom | Sun 5:30 PM

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Music & Nightlife

Spinning Into The Night

Hakuna matata

To All Our Readers

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Have a great Wednesday!!