In early 1998 the Bellingham Bay Cam started with a $70 QuickCam and a retired 486 computer. This was during the time that BCS decided to host it's own web server so that the online inventory system, WebOPTICs could happen. For 2 years the trusty 486 and Quick Cam photographed Bellingham Bay from the BCS main office through the tinted windows of Clyde Duranceau's or Stowe Talbot's offices and posted the images to BCS's LiNUX and Apache based web servers.

As the Bay Cam's fan mail started to increase BCS was able to afford a small budget to get a better camera and outdoor enclosure.

The Bay Cam is now mounted on the roof of the ICE House, the highest location in our complex.  The ICE sign  was purchased in 1948 from an InsuranCE company that went bankrupt. We can control the direction the camera points with a remote unit in the main office.  Usually the camera will be pointed directly South over Bellingham Bay towards Post Point and the Fairhaven neighborhood where the Alaska Ferry calls. 

The current camera is a WinCam.Live unit.  For the last 2 years KVOS TV has been using Bellingham Bay Cam images on their morning news casts.  Tune into KVOS during the 7:00 a.m. news. Most days around 7:18 a.m. you'll see the Bellingham Bay Cam during the weather segment.

Recently BCS added a live weather station to the Bay Cam page. Stowe Talbot 'gifted' the weather station to the Bellingham Bay Cam so you boaters be sure to thank Stowe. Thanks Stowe.

Here's a picture of Clyde Duranceau with the Bay Cam freshly mounted on the ICE House. Notice that the seagulls haven't managed to hit the camera or mount yet with their seagull 'stuff'.  Clyde is 5'9" by the way. Notice the $60 Radio Shack antenna rotor that enables us to pan the cam. It's the beige in color block between the Bay Cam and the mount.

BCS's resident welding artist Jack Cammack made the Bay Cam mount and also the Weather Station's sensors 'cactus' mount. Nice work Jack. Notice the anti-seagull crown the cactus mount sports.  We did have anti-seagull devices on the Bay Cam itself but found out that the seagulls and occasional eagles sitting on the Bay Cam helps keep the spider webs off of it. 

Here's a close up of the weather station.  It's a Davis Weather Wizard III. Another retired 486 communicates with the weather station and then updates the Bay Cam page.

Thanks to BCS, Duane Shelly, Jack Cammack, Stowe Talbot, Clyde Duranceau and Jim Tagart. They're the ones who've paid for, setup and keep maintaining and improving the Bellingham Bay Cam.

If you like the Bellingham Bay Cam, drop us a line and tell us from where you're watching.