MV Alpenglow

The Price of Ice

2012-01-29T10:31:00.001-08:00

Last summer while visiting Tracy Arm with our friends the Crowders, we did a tour down to the snout of the North Sawyer Glacier (Crowder visit).

As we were viewing the glacier a nice chunk fell off. We were about a half mile away so I wasn’t worried about the wave but I maneuvered the boat (we had been in neutral just bobbing along) so as to take the wave on the bow. At the time there were “growlers” (see ice sizes) in the water nearby. As the splash waves passed underneath the boat, we began to “hobby horse” a bit. Unfortunately during one of the cycles, some ice was underneath the bow area. We heard the thump but had no concern about damaging our steel hull.

That evening, as we entering the anchorage for the night, I turned on our forward looking sonar (FLS). Unlike a downward facing depth sounder, the FLS is oriented forward and can give you a heads up about what is in front of you (how it works). The FLS display screen simply showed a line at a 45 degree down slope. Having anchored in the same spot the day before I knew that wasn’t correct. Since the FLS worked fine up until then, I feared that it might have been damaged during the ice “thumping.”

Flash forward six months to the middle of January, we had a diver inspect our bottom paint and zincs for wear. We also had him inspect the FLS transducer. Sure enough, the transducer shows its impact with the ice.

Although the transducer is, in theory, replaceable while the boat is in the water, we’ve decided its replacement can wait until we have the boat hauled at some point in the future as part of bottom maintenance or other work. In the meantime, I’ll be more careful around ice.

2011 Anchorages and Moorages

2011-09-26T12:52:00.001-07:00

Below is a map of all of our stops we made along the way this year.
(The blue marks for the stops may not show up in Internet Explorer, try another browser like Firefox or Chrome)

View 2011 Alaska Cruise in a larger map

September 17-20 – The Finish Line

2011-09-22T10:13:00.000-07:00

To close out our 2011 cruise on the morning of September 17 we headed south down Rosario Strait, along the west shore of Whidbey Island and into Admiralty Inlet. There is lots of commercial traffic in that area, so you venture into the vessel traffic lanes with a keen eye on the AIS in order to make sure you aren’t going to run over by a freighter moving at 20 knots. We will able to successfully cross without any major issue.

On account of the timing of the currents and the shorter days, we knew we needed an intermediate stop for the night between Anacortes and Winslow (Bainbridge Island). We decided to try the inner harbor in Port Ludlow. While the entrance is a bit shallow (~15 feet), it was short and straight with no current. Additionally, it was very protected from winds, a important consideration given the forecasted high winds for the next day. To top it off, the anchorage was remarkably scenic. While there were many homes along the shore, they were landscaped nicely and not closely packed.

The next morning, September 18, we elected to take a rest day and not move. The weather wasn’t terrible but docking with significant winds (15-25 kts) is not my favorite thing. The winds the next day were forecasted as light.

The early start on September 19 put us at the Queen City Yacht Club docks in Winslow before noon. We used the afternoon to start the boat cleaning process. Marcia working the interior while I tackled the exterior.

On September 20, the weather remained lovely for the final miles across Puget Sound, through the Ballard Locks and along the Lake Washington Ship Canal to our winter moorage in Lake Union. When transiting the locks we do our best to select a less busy day and time and calm winds. With just the two of us on board, we want to stack the odds in favor of an uneventful “lock-thru” and everything went smoothly. The time from Winslow to Lake Union, three draw bridges that had to open and one lock-thru was less than three hours.

The distance on this leg was 85.7 miles bringing the total trip distance to 3465.3 nautical miles. Total engine hours were 577.4 which works out to 6 miles per hour of engine time. Our actual speed is a bit faster since the engine hours include the time from when we weigh anchor or unmoor at the beginning of the day to the time when we are secured at anchor or dock at the end.

September 13-16 – Home Stretch

2011-09-17T08:03:00.001-07:00

The winds that blew us onto the dock in Ganges quieted down overnight and our departure on the morning of September 13 was very uneventful. We motored down Saanich Inlet and entered the calm protected waters of Tod Inlet.

After lunch we paddled our kayaks the 200 yards to shore and walked 10 minutes to the Butchart Gardens. The amount of work and care that goes into providing blossoming and colorful plants the year round is impressive.

As we paddled back to the boat from shore, another kayak was paddling along the shore. As he got closer, he asked whether I was “Kurt Hanson.” I was a bit taken back but he introduced himself as Brian McCutcheon a friend of John Douglas owner of Laysan, a sister ship to ours. John is preparing to bring his boat back from Subic Bay in the Philippines to Hawaii where John lives. He asked Brian to intercept us in Tod Inlet and find out how things have been working in the long term on our boat.

It was a great visit and we wish John a safe and speedy journey across the Pacific.

The next morning, September 14, we headed across Haro Strait and reentered US waters. We’ve signed up through the NEXUS program with the Customs and Border Patrol and were able to clear over the telephone. We proceeded directly to Echo Bay on Sucia Island where we dropped the anchor.

The entire island is a Washington State Park and it has some very pleasant trails to walk. We elected to spend two nights so that we could cover them all.

An early start the morning of September 16 got us to the fuel dock in Anacortes at 10:30 AM. The only fuel we had taken on since last September was 200 gallons in Juneau. We weren’t surprised it took 1090 gallons to fill all our tanks. The 1290 gallons since last year has cover 580 engine hours, 30 genset hours and lots of furnace operation. We were in our assigned slip in Cap Sante Marina by noon.

From here we will head south to Seattle. We will probably swing by our yacht club’s (Queen City YC) outstation in Winslow for a night or two prior to transiting the locks into Lake Union. Hopefully home next Tuesday, 9/20.

Distance covered this leg is 83.3 for a total of 3379.6 nautical miles.

September 4-12 – Broughtons to the Gulf Islands (Sun at Last!!!)

2011-09-12T21:32:00.001-07:00

Boy, a little blue sky, warm sun and calm winds can really improve a cruiser’s disposition. This leg has had some of the most relaxing cruising we’ve ever done.

When we left Pierre’s at Echo Bay on September 4, we weren’t done with the Broughtons. We decided to put in two grueling 8 mile days and visit anchorages we’ve not used before. The first was Sea Breeze Cove. It is tucked in amongst some islands which offered some fun exploring opportunities in our kayaks.

The next day’s anchorage, Mound Island, was not as intimate but it too offered some kayaking opportunities and an island on which to explore.

On September 6 we positioned ourselves to transit the narrows that divide the waters of the northern section of the inside passage from the southern. A number of boats had similar ideas so there were a half dozen other boats in Port Neville that night. It is a large anchorage so no one should have felt crowded.

The sunrise on September 7, was spectacular and we made good time down Johnstone Strait riding the flood south. Rather than use Seymour Narrows as we did on the way north, we took Okisollo Channel and spent the night in Octopus Island Marine Park. We did this same path last year on the southbound leg of our trip.

An early start the morning of September 8, got us through Hole-in-the-Wall Rapids on the slack before the flood. By lunch we were anchored in Prideaux Haven in Desolation Sound.

Some might consider the area’s name to be an oxymoron since in the main cruising season it is anything but desolate but when the temperatures are in the upper 70’s, the sun is shining and the wind isn’t blowing, we become very tolerant of the 20+ boats with whom we are sharing the anchorage. The conditions on this visit were very similar to our first trip to Desolation Sound in our two person kayak during September nearly 20 years ago.

Since the weather was so nice, we decided to spend two nights at anchor in Prideaux Haven.

On September 10, we started the trip down the Straits of Georgia (part of the Salish Sea) and anchored in Ballet Bay. Our last visit here was in 2007 during a 7-week trip on our first boat. There has been quite a bit of development on the land surrounding this protected anchorage since then.

In the morning of September 11, we crossed the Straits of Georgia from the mainland side to the Vancouver Island side. We experienced the joys of the strong westerly winds that funnel across the Qualicum gap of Vancouver Island and hit you broad side as you angle across the strait. We took a 3-hour lunch break in Silva Bay while waiting for the current in Gabriola Pass to slacken.

After restarting, we anchored for the evening in Clam Bay on Thetis Island. Many other boaters were enjoying some of the last summer weather in Clam Bay. The nearly full moon put on a stunning show for the nearly 20+ other boaters in the anchorage.

Twelve hours later, on the morning of September 12, those same boaters were greeted by a sunrise to rival the moon’s efforts.

We left Clam Bay and traveled the relatively short distance to Salt Spring Marina to catch on the basics (laundry, wine and produce). From here the plan is to spend a night or two at Tod Inlet near the Butchart Gardens and then to cross back into the San Juans.

Distance covered this leg was 239.9 raising the total to 3296.3 nautical miles.

September 1-3 – The Broughtons

2011-09-04T07:56:00.001-07:00

The Broughtons are a popular cruising area east of Port McNeill at the junction of Johnstone Strait and Queen Charlotte Strait. It has many protected channels, bays, coves and small marinas. On account of it being north of Seymour Narrows and its cousins (e.g., Yuculta, Dent, Surge) getting here takes a bit of effort so it is less crowded than Desolation Sound or the Canadian Gulf Islands.

We left Port McNeill on September 1 and traveled to Laura Cove. The descriptions of the anchorage in the guides are glowing and describe it well. Its only drawback for us was the very hard bottom which made hooking the anchor difficult. Fortunately the winds were light so we never tested it.

Before we left Port McNeill, Marcia made reservations for moorage and attendance at the very popular pig roast at the Pierre’s in Echo Bay. It was only a short distance from our anchorage so when we left the next morning, September 2, we took a sightseeing detour into Simoom Sound to check out other anchorages in the area before tying up here.

There are about a half-dozen small marinas that operate in the Broughtons. They cater to cruisers and sport fisherman visiting the area during the short summer season. They operate off the grid but usually provide all of the services that folks are looking for. At Pierre’s, the Saturday pig roasts have helped it attract cruisers.

The event is very social and the conviviality was aided but the sunny and warm (by coastal standards) temperature. People compare notes on destinations and talk boats. There is ample food (potluck side dishes) and ample pork.

From here we’ll continue the slow southbound journey, stopping in Desolation Sound for a day or two. The next likely marina stop will be somewhere in the Canadian Gulf Islands.

Distance covered this leg was 47.5 nautical miles (told you we’d slow down) bringing the total to 3056.4.

August 27–30 -Prince Rupert to Port McNeill (aka “Now its time to slow down”)

2011-08-31T15:14:00.001-07:00

It seemed as though we’ve repeated the frenetic pace of the northbound trip in our southbound journey. We are now docked in Port McNeill after covering the 295 miles from Prince Rupert in four days. The last three days were all nearly 12 hours underway. On account of the shorter days, we started all of of our days before sunrise.

On last year’s southbound trip, because of the time of the month, we frequently encountered opposing currents. This year, we were luckier and did a better job of choosing anchorages so that we could frequently ride favorable currents for much of the day.

On August 27, we revisited Lowe Inlet, an anchorage we used on the northbound trip. We were surprised that no one else anchored here as it is a convenient distance from Prince Rupert and quite lovely.

The next day, August 28, we continued the trip down Grenville and Princes Royal Channels (the “ditch”) and anchored in Mary Cove. This was a new anchorage to us and one we would use again as it is just a short distance off the main channel.

On August 29 we positioned ourselves for rounding Cape Caution by anchoring at Green Island. We anchored here in 2007 with our first boat, Dragontail, and thought it a delightful, well protected anchorage. Our opinion remains the same.

Yesterday, August 30, after some careful deliberation, we made the trip around Cape Caution and across Queen Charlotte Strait to Port McNeill. The West Sea Otter offshore buoy is often used by boaters as a key indicator in deciding in the “go/no go” decision. The 1.7 meter wave height was a bit more than the 1.5 meter cutoff we normally use but the winds were from the NW so we thought we’d have wind waves on our aft quarter. Unfortunately, the winds were forecast to increase to 25 knots in the afternoon. Since there was no forecasted storm and we had bailouts once past Cape Caution, we decided to go for it.

The current pushed us quickly out of Fitzhugh Sound and into Queen Charlotte Sound where we dropped both of our stabilizers into the water. They made a huge difference in cutting down the rolling from the beam on ocean swells and allowed us to continue in relative comfort. Once past Cape Caution the swells seemed to increase but were now coming more from the aft quarter. As we started to lose the current swell, the wind and the wind driven chop was directly behind us. The docking at Port McNeill in 20-25 knot winds turned out fine once we were given an end side tie where the wind blew us onto the dock.

From here we are slowing the pace down. We’ve reserved a space at Pierre’s at Echo Bay in the Broughtons for this weekend’s pig roast and are looking forward to that. We are still targeting a return to Seattle the last half of September.

Total distance this leg was 295.7 nautical miles (in 4 days!) bringing the trip total to 3008.9.

August 25-26 - Thorne Bay to Prince Rupert (aka “Escape from Alaska”)

2011-08-26T19:20:00.001-07:00

The weather on Thursday, August 25 was a 180 degree change from the recent weather. We left before dawn to calm winds and flat seas in Clarence Strait. We decided to take as much advantage of it as possible by going as far as we could.

We blew by Ketchikan, intending to get into a good position to reach Prince Rupert with the next available weather window. We next passed by our original destination, Foggy Bay, because we still had several hours of daylight. We ultimately anchor in Port Tongass after nearly 14-1/2 hours of running and with 90.1 miles under our belts.

Fair weather (or at least winds and seas) hold together one more day on August 26 and we cover the last 37.8 miles to Prince Rupert more leisurely. By using Port Tongass, we split the crossing of Dixon Entrance into two smaller sections. The exposed portion of today’s crossing was only 10 miles.

From here, we have generally protected cruising until we reach Cape Caution, the exposed area north of Vancouver Island. That will probably take a week or so. We hope the weather will improve as we head south.

The distance traveled this leg was 127.9 bringing the total to 2713.2 miles.

August 12–23 Juneau to Thorne Bay (or “September is two weeks early this year”)

2011-08-24T18:23:00.001-07:00

I’ve been using pretty bland blog post titles so as to not to detract from the more journal style entries I am doing this year. The weather we’ve experienced recently its impact on our itinerary and schedule cannot be ignored, though.

After our friends, Sharon & Craig Rowley departed on August 11, we busily reprovisioned at Costco and Safeway for our trip south. Our intent was to head south through Wrangell Narrows and head into the town of Craig on the west side of Prince of Wales Island. From there we’d revisit Cordova Bay, round Cape Chacon at the tip of Prince of Wales Island and then head across to Prince Rupert, B.C., to clear into Canada.

The next day, August 12, after adding 200 gallons of fuel to serve as our reserve for the trip home (we’ll do a total refuel when back in Puget Sound), we headed out. The weather kept improving as the day wore on and by the time we pulled into Tracy Arm Cove the clouds were breaking up. We even had a lovely full moon over the mountain towards our south.

The weather remained good on Saturday, August 13, as we went to Cannery Cove, although the crossing was lumpy on account of the interaction between the brisk wind and current in Stephens Passage. We launched the dinghy, set two crab pots and went on the hunt for halibut in Pybus Bay. As we made our way between a couple of islands into the main bay, that same wind and current interaction occurred again. Since we were in the dinghy and not wanting to deal with much if any chop, we beat a retreat and Marcia tried her luck in more protected waters. No luck though. Back at the boat, though, we did catch a glimpse of a brown bear sow with three offspring.

Before we left on August 14, we retrieved the crab pots placed the afternoon before and managed two keeper crabs. Since the weather forecast was for a storm the next day, we decided to try an anchorage that offered good protection, a sticky bottom for the anchor and lots of swinging room for the boat in case we needed to hunker down. As it turned out, Portage Bay on the northend of Kuprenof Island only provided the last two items.

During the morning of August 15, the weather deteriorated as was forecast. The five other boats in the anchorage the night before all cleared out as the morning wore on. We stayed put assuming that while we might have some fetch bringing wave chop as was mentioned in the guide book, it wouldn’t be too bad. The wind started in the 15 to 25 knot range but picked up to 20 to 30 knots.

What really made it unpleasant was the current that swept past our boat depending on whether the tide was rising or falling. When the tide rose, the wind and current were fighting each other causing the wind driven waves to steepen and become closer together. Additionally, current was strong enough that it pushed the boat upwind. Our boat was the little stuffed animal being pulled (pushed in this case) apart by two children. The worse moments were when we had 3-foot choppy waves hitting the boat broadside because the current was pushing us one way while the wind was pushing us the opposite.

As the tide changed and the current with it, the battle was over and they both pulled us hard against our anchor. Fortunately the bottom was good and the anchor well set. Since everybody else had bailed that anchorage we certainly didn’t worry about swinging into anyone.

The next day, August 16, was a little bit better but not so good that we wanted to head out and fight conditions to either a new anchorage or uncertain docking in Petersburg. We stayed another night in our private purgatory.

At last, on August 17, the weather was much improved and we headed out on a rising tide (did I mention that the entrance to our anchorage was shallow with a dog-leg turn and had a propensity for fast current during tide changes?). We passed Petersburg and went straight in to Wrangell Narrows. This was our first southbound trip through the narrows and it looked different. Fortunately, we are gaining confidence and while we remain very attentive we aren’t stressed the way were on our first transit through Wrangell Narrows. We made for the very convenient anchorage in St John Harbor, just four miles south of the south entrance to Wrangell Narrows.

The next morning, August 18, we decided to do as many miles as we could since the forecast was for another storm to come through in a couple of days. The ultimate destination kept changing as we rode a favorable current out of Sumner Strait. We ended up the day at Kaguk Cove, an anchorage east of Sea Otter Sound and only 27 miles from Craig, what we intended to be our last town visited before heading into British Columbia.

With the early forecast on Friday, August 19, we knew we needed to get to Craig as quickly and as soon as we could since gale force winds were forecast that evening. Rain showers were already starting but the winds were still in the teens until we started to head into more open channels, then gusts in the upper 20’s began to buffet the boat. About the same time we picked up a radio transmission from a commercial fishing boat to the Craig Harbor Master. It sounded like everything was filled and the boats were beginning to raft up. At that point we were still 17 miles from Craig and decided to cut our losses and head back to anchorage that we knew was good. After a 20 mile trip to nowhere, we anchored again in Kaguk Cove to wait out the storm.

The winds picked up during the evening as forecast and continued into August 20. It rained a lot and we spent a lot of time trying to keep the interior windows from fogging up. We monitor some basic weather conditions with the instruments on the boat. What struck us was the dramatic pressure drop during the storm and the rapid temperature rise. The temperature rose during the night from the mid 50’s to the low 60’s. It felt like one of those “Pineapple Express” storms that Puget Sound gets during the winter where a tropical storm from the central Pacific comes barreling into the area.

It was while waiting out this storm and listening to the upcoming weather that we decided that the weather pattern for Alaska had switched to a more autumnal mode and that the storms would be stronger and more frequent than seen in the summer. It was time to abandon every other goal except heading south. For us that meant heading north through (generally) more protected waters back down through Ketchikan and cross Dixon Entrance, the unavoidable open section of water separating Alaska and British Columbia, at the first weather window after positioning ourselves for the crossing.

On August 21, we motored north through El Capitan Passage out into Sumner Strait and headed for Hole-in-the-Wall on the northwest corner of Prince of Wales Island. I became enamored with the description of its entrance and protection as described in the guide book. While everything turned out fine, the entry was nerve wracking as I had to pass one submerged rock on the right then one on the left while ignoring the breaking waves from the following seas on either side of the entry. While the initial entry was as narrow, at one point further in, we concluded it was only 100’ wide. Ultimately, we had a lovely anchorage with very little wind and only a tiny bit of swell working its well through the entrance.

The next day, August 22, the exit from our anchorage was not nearly as stressful as the entry. We continued north around Point Baker, along Sumner Strait and south down Clarence Strait. The winds were forecast at 20 knots but we generally saw winds in the low teens instead. That is, until we turned the corner at Clarence Strait. At that point, winds are in the low 20’s and gusts to the upper 20’s. Since it was on the “nose”, it is more a nuisance than an issue. As we got into the more open sections of Clarence Strait, the pounding got worse but we persevered and pulled into Ratz Harbor for the night. It was a surprisingly protected and comfortable anchorage.

Once again the forecast was for gale force winds on the night of August 23. Until that time, the forecast was for SE 25 knots with 5 foot seas. We got a 0430 start in the dark (it is nearly the end of August after all!). Our goal is to tie up in Ketchikan by early afternoon. Things went well for the first 1-1/2 hours until we started into the central part of Clarence Strait. At this point we start pounding in very short duration 5 foot seas. The bow pitches up and then comes crashing down, nearly burying the anchor (8 feet above the water line) in the water. Fortunately there was a nearby bail out option and by 0815 we are tied up to the transient dock in Thorne Bay.

Later that day, we are joined on the dock by the sailing vessel Noah from Point Roberts Washington. It being the small world it is, we had gone through the Glacier Bay National Park boater orientation with them in early August. Its owners, a very nice couple, Kellie and Terry, concluded similarly to us that while, yes, the boat might be able to handle pounding like we experienced in Clarence Strait there was no reason to do it voluntarily. We spent a pleasant evening talking boats and plans.

Today, August 24, we remain at the dock planning on departing tomorrow in forecasted SE 10 knots with 2-foot seas. We will take advantage of those conditions and go as far as we can get. Hopefully we will be in Prince Rupert, BC this weekend.

Distance covered in this leg (including our “sightseeing” trip of about 20 miles) is 404.3 bringing the total distance traveled to 2585.3 nautical miles.

Sitka to Juneau – July 29-August 9

2011-08-23T10:59:00.001-07:00

Better late than never. First Internet since Juneau

Our friends Sharon & Craig Rowley arrived from a sun-deprived Seattle to a rainy Sitka on Wednesday, July 27. After a brief orientation, we turned them loose to explore the sights around town. Marcia and I continued with a few boat chores. Since Craig is a better photographer than I am, unless otherwise noted, I am using his photographs in this blog post.

We get underway on Friday, July 29 after lunch and make the short trip to the Magoun Islands, a short distance north of Sitka. Already anchored outside the entrance to the inner cove is the Ursa Major, the boat Marcia traveled from Baja to Seattle on in 2006. We join them there since the shallow entrance channel will be at low tide the next morning when we want to depart.

We have a 6-day permit for Glacier Bay starting on August 3. The weather forecast is favorable so we elect to travel the outside coast of Chichagof Island to Icy Strait over two days. The route we take actually only has two sections on the outside. The first section of 20 miles we do on the first day and the second section of 10 miles we do on the second day.

The westerly swell is not large but we drop one stabilizer on the port (weather) side into the water to reduce any rolling. Additionally, it gives us some more experience with the new stabilizers we are using this year. They are significantly lighter than our original stabilizers and are easier to retrieve from the water.

On Saturday, July 30, we pull into Kimshan Cove. The afternoon weather is nice enough that we cook hamburgers on the gas grill on the fly bridge. It isn’t nice enough to eat outside, though.

The next day, July 31, we continue the north a short ways than take the Lisianski Strait that separates Yakobi Island from Chichagof Island. We end the day on the public dock in Elfin Cove. We spent several days in Elfin Cove last year with our friends the Dorothy and Dave Nagle. A childhood friend of theirs owns Coho Bar & Grill in Elfin Cove. It had been badly damaged in a fire last year and we lent a hand at the cleanup. This year it was open for business and we had afternoon appetizers there.

The clouds and rain were returning but the next day, August 1, we departed across Icy Strait for Dundas Bay. Although we timed our departure for near slack current, when we made our way through Middle Pass through the Inian Islands, the seas were sloppy on account of the swirling currents. Stellar sea lions were taking advantage of the confused waters to feed on fish that were being buffeted by the current.

We had heard many good reports about Dundas Bay but we’ll have to return in better weather. We ended up anchoring in as protected an area as we could find and watching the wind driven rain buffet us about.

The next day, Tuesday, August 2, as we left Dundas Bay we did spot a brown (aka “grizzly”) bear foraging on the beach at low tide. We continued east along Icy Strait past the entrance to Glacier Bay (the National Park Service is adamant that you only enter on the day of your permit). We cruised by a popular humpback whale viewing area at Point Adolphus. There were abundant number whales and gave us hope for further viewing while in the park.

We anchored that night in Flynn Cove. On account of it being Marcia’s birthday, Craig did the cooking. Dessert was brownies with cookie dough ice cream.

We entered Glacier Bay on our appointed day, August 3, and attended the boater orientation at the park HQ in Bartlett Cove. There are some hiking trails near Bartlett Cove so we anchored out and dinghied to the public dock to go for afternoon hikes.

For August 4, we traveled past the bird sanctuaries of North & South Marble Island. Stellar sea lions use the haul-out rocks at one end of the island and birds nest in the steeper rock sections along the islands face. Two kinds of puffins, tufted and horned were present on the island. That night we anchored in North Sandy Cove a lovely anchorage we used in 2010 on our visit to the park.

The visibility was pretty low when started our cruise the next day, August 5, up Muir Inlet. It is a long way up and we were concerned that we wouldn’t see much. Fortunately, the weather improved to give us some nice views. One unexpected treat was a pod of 4 or 5 orca whales feeding. We saw them both on the way up and the way back. After a long day of motoring along, we dropped the anchor in Blue Mouse Cove.

While we saw some glaciers in Muir Inlet, the iconic glacier view in Glacier Bay National Park is Margerie Glacier. Saturday, August 6, was the one day that week in which there were no cruise ships in the park. As it turned out, we had the glacier pretty much to ourselves that morning. In addition, it was the best weather we had had for several days.

We made a 1/4 mile “drive-by” of the glacier front for photo-ops then moved away to a 1/2 mile and shut down the engine. There was no wind and no current so we barely moved 100 yards in the 45 minutes we drifted there. Anchorage that night was in Reid Inlet.

For our last night, August 7, in the park we made our way to North Finger Bay. As we were entering the bay, we saw whale spout from 3 or 4 humpback whales feeding in the bay. We put the boat in neutral and drifted 10 or so minutes while whales were feeding around us. We even had a synchronized diving show by two whales 200 yards from the boat. We waited for the whales to move away from the boat before we motored slowly towards the shallow part of the bay.

The next day, August 8, as we left the park, humpback whales gave us one last show. We saw several whales feeding and breaching a short distance from the boat. After watching them a few minutes while in neutral, we concluded the “show” was over and resumed our motoring along. Suddenly, 300 yards away, a whale breaches the water and comes crashing back. Marcia grabs the camera and races out onto the bow of the boat and waits for another breach. Not wanting to disappoint Marcia, the whale accommodates and repeats its earlier performance twice more.

After the excitement, we make the journey east down Icy Strait where it joins Chatham Strait. We anchor our last night before Juneau in Funter Bay.

On the morning of August 9, before departing Craig and I retrieve the two crab pots we set the night before and find two keeper crabs. The 15 knot winds that start our journey that morning disappear as we approach Auke Bay, a few miles north of downtown Juneau, where we conclude this leg of the trip.

The distance traveled from Sitka to Juneau was 423.4 nautical miles bringing our total distance since leaving Seattle to 2181 miles.

Juneau – August 12

2011-08-12T07:03:00.001-07:00

You’d think that I could budget my time better over three days and actually get a proper blog entry describing our trip from Sitka to Juneau with our friends Sharon & Craig Rowley, but I didn’t. I’ll try to work on it while underway during the next leg.

I will upload the following pictures of some really wonderful whale experiences we had in our last 24 hours in Glacier Bay.

The first picture was taken after entering North Finger Bay where we anchored the night. It wasn’t until passing the entrance bar that we notice the spouts of the 3 or 4 whales feeding. We put the boat in neutral and as we drifted, the whales continued to feed, sometimes within 200 yards of the boat. After they moved away and had started another feeding dive, we slowly motored to the shallower end of the bay where we anchored for the night.

The second picture was taken shortly before leaving the park waters by Point Gustavus. This was a lone humpback repeatedly launching itself out of the water, presumably through a very tasty herring ball.

Our plans from here are to start our return journey south to Seattle. We plan to be back in home waters the last half of September. Next major stop will probably be Petersburg.

Pokin’ around Sitka – July 19-25, 2011

2011-07-26T17:32:00.000-07:00

The day after our guests, the Crowders, departed on July 18, Marcia and I also left Sitka. We didn’t go far though. Last year we thoroughly enjoyed the leisurely times we spent cruising the Ketchikan region while waiting for our buddy boat for the season, the DavidEllis, to join us. This year, we thought we’d take advantage of the time between the Crowders and our next set of guests, Sharon & Craig Rowley, to poke around Sitka.

Sitka is located on the west coast of Baranof Island. While tucked into Sitka Sound with a goodly number of islands sheltering it, if you venture west, you know you are on the coast. Fortunately, for at least the first 30 miles south from Sitka, islands continue to offer a protected route along the coast. Beyond that point, safe travel depends on having good weather conditions and being able to tuck into protected anchorages should the weather deteriorate.

On July 19, our first day of travel we covered those 30 miles south and anchored in the very sheltered Scow Bay. In some areas, you are traveling a route through submerged rocks. When you do that, you have to have confidence in the charting done by NOAA and the accuracy of your position as reported by your GPS. In those areas, we traveled along with our chart plotter set to show the results of the depth sounder. You make sure that the bottom reflects what the chart says you ought to be seeing.

One of the purposes of the cruise was for Marcia to do some serious fishing. The next day, July 20, we started slowly back north and covered the relatively short distance to Herring Bay. Marcia tried her hand at fishing for halibut from the stern of Alpenglow. She had one good bite but it got away without being hooked. The fish also got away with Marcia’s octopus bait.

We remained a second day in Herring Bay and tried fishing from the dinghy. Marcia hooked a dog fish that not only thoroughly swallowed the circle hook but also wrapped itself in the line to the point that we had to simply cut it loose. Our efforts with the prawn trap were equally unsuccessful. We cut our losses and dropped the kayaks and went paddling. The entrance to Herring Bay had several sea otters in residence so we paddled out there. The sea otters seem more bashful of our kayaks than our power boat.

On Friday, July 22 we continued north and returned to a lovely anchorage we visited last year, Samsing Cove. The cove is less than five miles from Sitka but we had it to ourselves and never would have known we were near a community except for the Alaska Air jets on approach to Sitka airport. The weather was sunny and warm (by SE Alaska standards).

The next day, July 23, we motored north across Sitka Sound and revisited the Magoun Islands Marine Park. When we were here the week before being cowards about the shallow and narrow entrance to the inner cove, we anchored outside. Having scouted the channel with the dinghy, we felt comfortable entering the very lovely inner cove.

After anchoring, we launched the dinghy and tried fishing in nearby Krestof Sound. A rock fish was the unlucky catch of the day and it served as a component of fish tacos. Our friends the Nagles and their daughter were anchored in the bay just to the east of us and dinghied over for a visit. The weather remained sunny and warm, although a change was forecasted.

We were all prepared to try more fishing on Sunday, July 24, but the weather became windy with occasional showers. We spent a leisurely day swinging at the end of our anchor chain.

The next day was calmer but definitely wetter. The wind had done a wonderful job of setting our anchor and we had to power several seconds with the chain taut in the opposite direction the anchor was set in order to pop it loose. We were back in Eliason Harbor in Sitka shortly after 10 AM.

The total distance covered during the six days was 90.1 miles, bringing our summer cruise to 1757.6 nautical miles.

Sitka Roll-up – July 5 through July 16

2011-07-18T08:32:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Sitka on Saturday having completed our trip from Wrangell to Sitka. Rather than a day by day journal, I’ll give a description of the highlights with photos. At the end will be a log of the anchorages and distances traveled.

For this leg of our trip, joining us were our friends Ginny and Ken Crowder. They had never been in Alaska before so we set so goals for the trip:

Get the Crowder’s safely to Sitka
Experience some of SE Alaska communities
Experience the slower pace and quiet of cruising
See whales
See ice
See bears
See sea otters

After the 4th of July celebrations in Wrangell, we started off towards Petersburg via Wrangell Narrows. We anchored out in Deception Cove at the south end of Wrangell Narrows in order to time the current correctly for the next day.

Before we docked in Petersburg we gave the Crowder’s another boating experience, that of boat problems. Since we passed by Petersburg at 6:30 AM, we went out into Fredrick Sound to kill some time and sight-see. As we were traveling along, we suddenly heard a very loud fan-like noise unlike anything we’ve heard before. After a minute of panic trying to figure out what it was, we identify it as the bow thruster. Flipping the breaker off solved the immediate problem. Some quick diagnosis, isolated the problem to the bow thruster control at the upper helm. As best we can figure it out, the control unit failed and sent signals to the bow thruster motor causing it to operate in a mode it ought not to. A replacement was ordered and will be picked up in Sitka.

At the parking lock adjoining the docks was a tree adorned with 14 eagles. There are several seafood processing plants in Petersburg and apparently the eagles find easy pickings from the seafood waste released.

For whales, in the area just north of Cape Fanshaw, we were fortunate to watch for over a half-hour two humpback whales feeding nearby. They dived repeatedly and resurfaced five minutes later only a few hundred yards from where they went under.

Humpback whales remained common occurrences the rest of the trip and we even added porpoises surfacing our bow wake and a pod of orca whales to the cetacean list.

For ice, we headed into Tracy Arm where the tide water Sawyer Glaciers pumps ice into the water. The South Sawyer Glacier where we visited last year was too choked with ice to get to but the area in front of the North Sawyer Glacier was nearly wide open.

Most SE Alaska tide water glaciers are receding. In the case of the North Sawyer, it is nearly 3/4 of a mile further back than the nautical charts show. It is a little disconcerting to see your charted position as being somewhere on a glacier. While bobbling in the water a 1/2 mile from the glacier (we are cowards), we did see a big chunk of the glacier fall off producing a significant swell which struck us several minutes later (photo courtesy of Ken Crowder).

After Tracy Arm, we headed towards the Pack Creek Bear Viewing Area near Windfall Harbor in the Seymour Canal. Last year we went to the Anan Wildlife Viewing Area. The two have different feels. Anan is very intimate because the viewing platform is only 50 yards or so directly above a plunging stream. At Pack Creek, you are more distant and the surroundings are more open. Both are worth the trip.

From Pack Creek we headed towards Sitka via Peril Strait, enjoying several quiet anchorages along the way.

On the last day of the cruise, instead of going directly from our anchorage in the Magoun Islands to Sitka, we threw in a loop out into Sitka Sound around St Lazaria Island, a protected island for sea birds. On the way back in, we got the last item on the to punch list of things to see, sea otters.

Date	Destination	Distance
7/5/2011	Deception Cove	22.5
7/6/2011	Petersburg	44.9
7/7/2011	Sandborn Canal	55.0
7/8/2011	Tracy Arm Cove	38.9
7/9/2011	Tracy Arm Cove	49.5
7/10/2011	Windfall Harbor	43.6
7/11/2011	Windfall Harbor	0.0
7/12/2011	Henry’s Arm – Pybus Bay	49.8
7/13/2011	Ell Cove	45.0
7/14/2011	Appleton Cove	31.4
7/15/2011	Magoun Islands	39.0
7/16/2011	Sitka	30.4
	Total miles (nm) traveled this leg	450.0
	Total miles (nm) traveled to date	1667.5

Independence Day Holiday in Wrangell

2011-07-06T18:15:00.001-07:00

At the Seattle Boat Show some of the smaller Alaska communities send representatives from their ports to encourage recreational boaters to visit. While talking with the Wrangell Harbor master, she claimed that Wrangell had the best 4th of July celebration in SE Alaska.

After spending the extended holiday weekend in Wrangell, we can’t say their the best since we haven’t seen other towns but Wrangell sets a pretty high bar for the others. If they can work on the weather, they’d be hard to beat. Here is a collection of photos from the events we saw.

They had a “trash fishing” tournament for kids and anything caught with a hand line at the city dock counted.
	Of course, there was a parade down main street.
They had a logging contest involving various cutting skills and a log rolling contest (brrrr!).
The festivities culminated in a fireworks display over the harbor done by the fire fighters that was pretty impressive.

Our friends, Ginny & Ken Crowder, flew in from Seattle the morning of the 4th and experienced a true small-town Alaska celebration.

From Wrangell, we head north through Wrangell Narrows, spend a night in Petersburg, and work our way to Sitka where the Crowders will fly back home.

June 21 to July 1 – Exploring the the Area

2011-07-02T12:58:00.000-07:00

Our first set of guests are arriving in Wrangell on July 4. We want to be in Wrangell on July 1 to get the boat cleaned and to enjoy the holiday celebrations (the Harbor Master advised us that Wrangell takes its Independence Day holiday pretty seriously). We used the days before our return to Wrangell to explore areas we passed through quickly last year en route to Juneau.

On June 21, we left Wrangell after lunch to travel a short distance to St John Harbor on the north end of Zarembo Island. The route from here goes through the Wrangell Narrows, a sometimes busy, narrow and shallow channel to Petersburg. A slow boat like ours ought to time its transit near slack, as well. We could have done it that evening and spent the night in Petersburg but we elected to do it the next morning and spend the night at anchor in St John Harbor. We did get to stare regularly at a derelict hull washed up on the shore. We don’t know its history.

The day’s mileage was 20.8 with the cumulative total at 920.9. The anchor site was here.

June 22 was an oh-dark thirty start to hit Wrangell Narrows as we planned. The trip through was a bit easier than last year because the visibility was better and the current was less. We continued past Petersburg and aimed for Thomas Bay. A few miles north of Petersburg we were hailed on the radio by Josh, the captain of Ursa Major. Marcia spent about seven weeks on Ursa Major in early 2006 crewing a transit from Baja to Seattle. Ursa Major is a 65-foot wood trawler that takes guests on tours in Alaska and Baja. We crossed paths with Ursa Major about four times last year.

At the northeast end of Thomas Bay the Baird Glacier has receded back from the water’s edge but still is visible. The aptly named inlet called Scenery Cove is a short distance from there. Unfortunately, the depths here were a bit deeper than we like so we continued to the south end of the bay and anchored in the cove at the SE corner of Ruth Island.

The sun was bright and the boat warmed up nicely. I took a nap in the afternoon (on account of the early start, of course) while Marcia did her fish gear fussin’. We did not bother with our crab pots because commercial crabbers had amply covered the area with their pots.

Distance traveled today was 52.6 bringing the total to 973.5. We anchored here.

On June 23 we continued our voyage up the east shore of Frederick Sound and rounded Cape Fanshaw. While we saw a few humpback whales in the distance, we didn’t get show that we did last year with a pod of whales actively feeding relatively near.

Wanting to explore areas we hadn’t been, we headed east into Port Houghton just north of Cape Fanshaw and anchored in Sanborn Canal. While the Douglass “Exploring SE Alaska” describes this area as seldom visited it speaks well of it. We shared the anchorage with three other boats.

One of the boats had a styling similar to the classic George Buehler Diesel Duck with which our boat shares a heritage. As it turns out, we saw Gray Pelican in 2007 on the extended cruise we did that summer on our previous boat.

The rain began to fall shortly after we arrived and continued steadily through the night.

We traveled 54.0 miles bringing us to 1027.5 total nautical miles since leaving Seattle. Our anchor site was here.

The next morning, June 24, the rains became less steady and more “occasional.” We crossed Stephens Passage towards Gambier Bay. We saw more whale activity but nothing very close. Based on the positions where we observed the whales diving, they were feeding at the upwellings associated with underwater terrain changes.

The entrance to Gambier Bay is very scenic, the route working its way through many islands. The bay itself is quite large and Snug Cove, our anchorage, was hardly what I would call snug. It could easily hold a dozen boats at good anchoring depths and ample swinging room.

The trip was 30.3 miles, increasing the total miles to 1057.8. We anchored here.

Having been on the move steadily the last several days, on June 25 we took a rest day. We dropped two crab pots amongst the commercial pots also scattered throughout the cove, our prawn trap and went fishing. Of all those activities, only the fishing was productive. Marcia pulled in a 25 inch halibut (weight undetermined). After cleaning, Marcia got three 2-person portions from it. One went into the freezer and the other two were retained for consumption in the next couple of days.

We motored the next day, June 26, southwest towards Pybus Bay. We to the scenic route between the Brother Islands and inspected, from the outside, the anchorage on the west side of the West Brother. Josh on the Ursa Major speaks highly of it but the charts are poor and rocks are around so we wanted to eye-ball it before trying it sometime in the future.

We continued on to Cannery Cove in Pybus Bay. A fishing resort is at the entrance to the cove but the anchoring site is a mile or more further in. Later we were joined by two other vessels. But were bigger than we were so they stayed further out.

The cove is quite scenic with a large mountain cirque rising above a meadow. During our time there, we saw bears twice. The first time was a sow with two adolescents. Since Cannery Cove is on Admiralty Island, the bears were brown bears (aka grizzly) since those are the only type of bears on the island. Later we saw it a solo bear. Based on its color (it was darker), it was a different bear than seen earlier.

We covered 32.8 miles (a total of 1090.6) to get here.

We remained at anchor June 27 to again try our hand at catching local seafood. In a reversal of our experience in Snug Cove, the crab traps gave us one nice keeper crab, the prawn trap gave us 16 prawns (8 spot and 8 striped) but fishing drew a blank.

While we were harvesting local seafood, another “crew member” was harvesting horse flies. We aren’t sure where we picked up our spiders, but after their display of ridding us of flying pests we are glad they came aboard.

The next day, June 28, we departed across Frederick Sound to another area we hadn’t visited. We tucked into a lovely anchorage called Honeydew Cove on Kuiu Island. This certainly met my definition of a cove as you’d be hard pressed to put more than two boats in here.

While we didn’t visit the beach, it looked lovely and inviting for a later trip. A rock cliff at the end of the beach even had a stone arch to add to the ambiance. The only draw back, which we were not to discover until the next day, was huge amounts of kelp on the bottom. Fortunately our anchor apparently penetrated it as when we tested the anchor before shutting down the engine, it was fine.

The day’s journey was 25.7 miles for a total of 1116.3. We anchored here.

When we hoisted the anchor on June 29, we had extra 8-10 minutes to clear the kelp from the anchor and chain. When the anchor cleared the water, you couldn’t see the anchor through all of the kelp draped over it. Raking the kelp off with the boat hook eventually cleared most of it off.

Keeping with the spirit of exploration on this loop, rather than returning to Petersburg and the Wrangell Narrows, we used Rocky Pass to go from Frederick Sound to Stephens Passage. We read the various guides, reviewed blogs and accounts posted on the Internet and studied the charts ahead of time. We timed our transit to hit a key section, Devils Elbow, at high slack (i.e., high tide before the water begins to ebb out).

The chart clip to the left shows the tight turns through the navigation markers. The circles around the route waypoints are 100 yards in radius (200 yard diameter). The numbers on the chart show the zero tide depths in feet not fathoms (6-feet). Since we draw nearly 6 feet, at zero tide we’d only have 3 or so feet under the keel. Fortunately, we had an extra 12 or so feet on account of it being high tide but seeing only 16 feet on the depth sounder does give you pause. The route is well charted so using electronic aids made the route feasible for us.

As we exited Rocky Pass, the wind increased to the 20-25 knots on our nose. While not uncomfortable, pounding our way through head seas to our anchorage in La Bourchere Bay on Prince of Wales Island was tiring. Our distance for the day was 51.2 miles bringing the total distance to 1167.5. Our anchor site was here.

After listening to the weather radio on June 30, we expected another bouncy ride but they never showed up, although we did have some heavy rain showers. We could have made it to Wrangell but we elected to anchor again at St John Harbor on Zarembo Island. We want to find space on the Reliance Dock in Wrangell and it fills up more in the afternoon. We figured a mid-day arrival would give us a better chance.

Distance traveled was 29.1 miles, a total of 1196.6. The anchor site was here, less than two boat lengths from our June 21 anchorage.

The wind was blowing pretty briskly as pulled anchor on July 1 and made our way to Wrangell. Fortunately, we got on to the Reliance Dock during a lull as the direction of the wind was blowing us off. We covered 20.9 miles, a total of 1217.5. Our position on the dock is here.

During the eleven days of our Fredericks Sound loop, we covered 317.4 miles while putting on 53.3 engine hours.

Crabapalooza 2011 – June 12 to June 19

2011-06-20T13:48:00.001-07:00

In 2010, we hung around the Ketchikan area for about a month before rendezvousing with our friends Dorothy & Dave Nagle and their vessel the DavidEllis. During that time we explored a number of areas and identified some worth repeating. Specifically they were worth repeating because we were able to catch crabs.

This year we came equipped for more serious crabbing with three pots instead of only one. We stood pat with only one prawn pot since they are dropped much deeper (i.e., more line to store and handle) than crab pots. Additionally, we both bought Alaska fishing permits instead of only Marcia as we did last year. That means I can drop and retrieve pots instead of Marcia having to do it while I chauffeur her around in the dinghy.

We left shortly after 8 AM on June 12, and motored in pretty calm conditions through Clover Passage, out into Behm Canal and into Yes Bay. We made our way to the same spot as we used last year, at the head of the innermost cove. The two passages joining the outer bay to the 1st inner and the 1st inner to the 2nd (and furthest) inner are narrow but deep. Stay to the east shore and you’ll be all right.

By about a quarter to 3 pm, the anchor was down and engine off.

The day’s mileage was 40.6 bringing the cumulative distance to 720.1 miles. The anchor location is here.

The next day, June 13, in the rain we went out and checked the pots and found 3 keepers among the 5 total crabs in the 3 pots. Most of the bait was intact so we just reset the pots with existing bait. The afternoon check came up blank so I moved the pots to new locations. We also set our prawn pot in the first/outer Yes Bay near where we saw pot floats as we entered. The depths were about 200 feet there.

On the morning of June 14, the pot pull was as dreary as the weather with zero crabs in them. The prawn pot, though, had 20 spot prawns worth keeping. The photo right shows the now headless prawns waiting to be cooked.

We start the engine shortly after 10 AM and head to location on Behm Canal we did not visit last year but with reportedly good crabbing. About 3:30 PM we are anchored in Fitzgibbon Cove. Since we pulled our dinghy behind us, we were able to get crab pots quickly after we were anchored.

The day’s mileage was 26.0 miles bringing the cumulative distance to 746.1 miles. The anchor location is here.

Expectations are high the morning of June 15 as we motor over to the first pot. Up it comes and 5 crabs are doing the Muhammad Ali rope-a-dope in the cage daring me to reach for them. With careful jabs and pot jostling to disrupt their footwork, we get them into the plastic buckets.

The next pot pull brings up 8 crabs. After culling the sole female crab and another barely legal (6-1/2 inches across the carapace in Alaska), we take one and leave the others in the pot. Alaska regulations allow only 6 in “possession” at a time. Once the crab is processed into a form able to be preserved 15 days or more, it is not in “possession” any longer. For us that means frozen and stored in the freezer.

Marcia gets busy, killing, cleaning, cooking and picking.

After the first set of six are processed and frozen, I go out and check our 3rd pot. Four more keepers there. I add two from the crabs waiting in pot number 2 and bring the “lucky” six back to Marcia (see photos above). Processing crab is a lot of work and Marcia is pretty pooped after the second set of six, so we call it a day.

The next morning, June 16, shows only the three crabs in pot number 2 that have been patiently waiting since the day before. I feel badly for one (the smallest) and toss it back. The other two return with me and, eventually, there meat goes into the freezer. Before we start the engine for our next anchorage, we decide 14 keeper crabs makes Fitzgibbon Cove worth another visit in the future.

The next destination is Fire Cove in Neets Bay. The previous two anchorages were pretty big so finding a suitable spot with plenty of swing room was not a problem. Fire Cove is more intimate and an uncharted rock that is revealed on 5 foot tides complicates things. After some fussing, we anchor in a location and fashion that both Marcia & I can sleep well with. With the freezer more full than when we started despite nearly three weeks of travelling, we put only two pots down for an overnight soak.

Today’s mileage is 33.0 bringing the cumulative total to 779.1. We are anchored here.

The next morning, June 17, we dinghy over to the pots and pull them. The first pot had five crabs, all legal. The second pot comes up with 9 crabs (actually 8 inside and one hanging on the outside of the pot). Processing six crabs was all that Marcia signed up for so we keep the six biggest and throw the others back for next year. All that “free” time gave Marcia the opportunity to make fresh bread to accompany the crab casserole she made.

On June 18, we get an “oh-dark thirty” start to catch favorable currents out of Behm Canal and up Clarence Strait. It was reminiscent of our earlier trip north because we covered over 80 miles. Fortunately conditions were good and the hardest part was staying awake from the early start.

The trip through Kashevarof Passage was lovely. The water was glassy. The Blashke Islands to the right of the passage look like a great place for kayakers to explore and camp. For a large power boat, they would be a nightmare of hidden rocks and tricky route-finding. We anchor a short distance beyond in Exchange Cove. The entrance and the anchor field was dotted with commercial crab pots which required some effort on our part to avoid. Shortly after 4 PM we are anchored.

Today’s mileage is 84.1 bringing the cumulative total to 863.2. We are anchored here.

Our previous plan had been to continue counter clock wise around Prince of Wales Island to Hole-in-the-Wall anchorage. Since we will probably head south via that route, we decided to forgo that extra leg and head over to Wrangell.

On June 19, we start the engine at 8:30 AM to catch the flood east up Sumner Strait towards Wrangell. The trip there was pretty benign and by 2:30 PM we are tied up to Reliance Dock in Wrangell.

Dinner tonight is with our friends Dorothy & Dave Nagle who are with their boat in Wrangell where it has been since February having work done on it.

Today’s mileage is 36.9 with the cumulative mileage at 900.1. We are moored here.

June 11 – Photos at Last!

2011-06-11T20:38:00.003-07:00

Since we have been moving north pretty relentlessly, we haven’t had time to take many photos. To liven up the text posts I have done to date, here are some photos.

A panorama of about 150 degrees taken in Gorge Harbor. As the dark clouds hint, a rain storm rolled through later.

A panorama of about 180 degrees taken in Lowe Inlet. As the clear blue sky shouts out, it was a lovely day. Probably the best weather day of the entire trip.

Ship’s provisions acquired in Ketchikan. To save you the math, that is 21 liters of wine and 48 bottles of beer in the photo.

The term the “dog watch” is a well defined nautical term. I fear if a similar term was defined for the “cat watch”, it might be as a pejorative.

The NW Explorations 2011 Mother Goose Fleet passed us.

June 3 to June 9 – Ketchikan or Bust

2011-06-10T17:29:00.000-07:00

A little catching up to do as we haven’t been anywhere with Internet since we left Campbell River. Below is a chronology of the trip since Campbell River.

Date	Activity	Mileage	Position
June 3	An “Oh-dark thirty” start from the Discovery Harbor marina in Campbell River in order cover the 11 or so miles in the waning flood and hit the 0620 slack before the ebb at Seymour Narrows. We and a half-dozen other boats (fishing and pleasure) arrived right on schedule. Travelling through Seymour was fine and we soon begin riding the ebb current down Johnstone Strait. It worked very well. We didn’t hit the incoming flood until we approached Cracroft Island. Once we struggled through Blackney Passage at just about max flood (lots of eddies and 4-5 knot adverse currents), things eased out. We crossed Blackfish Sound, rounded Swanson Island and headed straight north to Cullen Harbor on Broughton Island for the night. We shared the anchorage with one other vessel. It took two attempts to hook the anchor because of lots of kelp on the bottom.	85.3	Here
June 4	We are starting here rumblings on the weather radio that a quasi-stationary offshore high is going to start sending strong NW winds towards the coast in a couple of days. Our motto this year is that you go when the weather is good and that means go long. After confirming that the seas at the West Sea Otter buoy are only 1.2 meters we decide to get an early start and round Cape Caution and head up Fitz Hugh Sound. We started to pick up westerly 15 knots in the afternoon but the seas weren’t building to anything uncomfortable. For our anchorage tonight, we try a new (to us) place, Kwakume Inlet. It proved to be very pleasant and I would recommend it to others and use it again.	84.5	Here
June 5	On account of the forecasted increase in winds, our expectations started low. Just past Bella Bella, you have to poke yourself out into Milbanke Sound which is exposed to ocean swells. We identified a lovely anchorage (“Anniversary Cove”) with bomber protection to wait out the winds. As we motored along and listened to the weather, the reports indicated the winds were delayed by about 24 hours. We stayed true to our 2011 motto and decided to keep pushing. Anniversary Cove will wait until a later time. Conditions were good through Milbanke Sound, only bouncy for an hour or so. Once into Findlayson Channel conditions were fine. The treat for us was seeing our first humpback whale. We saw it twice (we assume it was the same one) separated by about an hour. Our anchorage for the night is our old foul weather standby, Bottleneck Inlet. Unlike our previous two visits the weather as we entered was warm and sunny (it has always been rainy and cloudy), and it was unoccupied (always several other boats hunkered in as well).	76.9	Here
June 6	The day started lovely. We left about 0800 in order to not hit Hiekish Narrows at a reasonable adverse (ebb in this case) current. The winds still were moderate at around 15 knots on our nose. While going through Hiekish Narrows, we were passed (everybody passes us) by the five boats in this year’s NW Explorations "Mother Goose" Flotilla. They all have AIS so I saw them pop up on my chart plotter well before I saw them. Seeing five boats strung out in a row is not a common sight. Shortly after Hiekish Narrows, we saw a humpback whale again. Don’t know if it was the same one we saw the day before or not. From here, the route goes up Princess Royal Channel and then Grenville Channel (the “ditch”). By the time we were exiting Princess Royal, the winds were blowing 25-30 knots, pretty much as a head wind. In addition, the current was generally against us so it was slow going. We were somewhat hopeful that as we entered Grenville Channel, the winds would lie down a bit and we’d start to pick up a bit of flood current. Neither of those two items happened. While not extraordinarily rough going, it was painfully slow. It just kept getting slower, going from 5 knots to 4 knots to finally 3 knots (4 knots of adverse current!!!). We finally pull into Lowe Inlet, the first anchorage along the route up Grenville, about 2130 (9:30 PM). The saving grace is that it is a beautiful setting.	74.7	Here
June 7	A rest day and a beautiful one to boot. We sleep in and Marcia prepares asparagus and cheese omelets. Later when we start the generator to charge the batteries, Marcia bakes bread in the toaster oven. The chore we set for ourselves is launching the dinghy and testing the outboard. The launching goes fine but starting the engine is a no-go. Probably the absence of my performing winterization has a lot to do with it. I keep my cool because I know that right near Bar Harbor in Ketchikan is a marine service center specializing in Honda outboard motors. After letting the motor sit for 30 minutes after my first 20 minutes worth of yanking on the starter, the motor begins to catch with my pulls. Finally I keep it going and I let it idle to fully warm up. Marcia and I then take it out for a spin around the inlet. Life is good again.
June 8	Fully rested, we finish off Grenville Channel and actually pick up a bit of favorable current. We speculate the current problems we were having in Grenville on June 6 were because of the Skeena River, which is at the north end of Grenville, overwhelming the normal ebb and flood current cycles with outflow. Again we monitor the weather as we are going along. The worst of the winds are over and things seem to be laying down. We decide to go to an anchorage on Dundas Island that puts us in good position for the crossing of Dixon Entrance and getting to Ketchikan. The three other boats with whom we share the anchorage had the same idea but the place is quite large so there is no problem. Probably a half dozen more boats could have come in before anyone would have had to work to find a spot with enough swing room.	85.5	Here
June 9	A first light start gets us and two other boats, Maritime (Selene 47) and Banyan (Krogen 42), into Dixon Entrance early. It is a little bouncy because the ocean swell is coming from the west but the wind wave chop is out of the east. We consider dropping a stabilizer fish in the water (the poles were already down and ready to go), but decide to tough it out as the fish take a knot or so off your speed. That proves to be a good decision as about 3 hours after starting the seas are getting less choppy the further up Revillagigedo Channel we go. The most stressful part turns out to be in Ketchikan proper. After the relative calm of the inside passage, the ruckus of cruise ships, tour boats, sport fishing boats and sightseeing float planes is almost overwhelming. Additionally, there is no space for us at our preferred anchorage in Bar Harbor. We end up docking in Thomas Basin on our non-preferred side (port) in winds pushing our stern around. Marcia did great and I didn’t. The next day, June 10, we are able to move to Bar Harbor.	57.7	Here

In Ketchikan, we are doing laundry, provisioning, getting fishing licenses and preparing for the next leg of the trip.

We are leaving on Sunday, June 12 to head up Behm Canal to visit some of the places we hit last year that were productive for crabs. We’ve added two more crab pots to the one we had last year. Since both Marcia and I have fishing licenses our limit is higher. We hope to do some major harvesting. Additionally, we’ve outfitted our dinghy with a downrigger. Marcia got a halibut last year and she is really-really trying to get a salmon this year.

Our plan is to head next to Wrangell. We may bump into our 2010 buddy boat, DavidEllis, and friends Dorothy & Dave Nagle. They came up to Alaska in January (read their blog for the details) to have work done on the boat in Wrangell. On July 4, our friends Ginny & Ken Crowder will fly into Wrangell. They’ll accompany us on our trip from Wrangell to Sitka.

Cumulative Mileage – 679.5

June 1 – Campbell River

2011-06-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

We are tied up in Discovery Harbour Marina in Campbell River after a short passage from Gorge Harbour.

Our next challenge is Seymour Narrows about 9 miles upstream from Campbell River. Typical max ebb or flood current is 10 to 15 knots. By a slow boat like ours it can only be transited at slack current (the interval between tidal currents changing direction). While slack current typically occurs four times a day, we want the slack before the ebb (i.e., the slack between the change from flood current to ebb current). Seymour ebbs north so transiting then will allow us to ride the ebb current through Johnstone Strait. When you have a slow 7 knot boat like ours, picking up 1 to 3 knots makes a huge difference. Likewise, fighting a 1 to 3 knot adverse current can add hours over the course of a day.

Since we don’t like to travel in the dark, we are waiting in Campbell River for Friday, June 3, when the slack before the ebb at Seymour Narrows occurs at 6:20 AM. After the transit, we hope to make a long run to the Broughton Islands at the south end of Queen Charlotte Strait. When we are able to make the rounding of Cape Caution (one of the two crossings open to ocean swells), we will continue to make long days in order to get to Alaska quickly.

Campbell River works out well as our major Canadian provisioning stop. It is a major community for both the locals and has a thriving tourist economy(salmon fishing and whale watching). Pretty much anything we might need is available locally or could be flown in if not available.

Today’s Mileage – 15.6

Cumulative Mileage – 214.9

Current Position

May 31 – Gorge Harbor

2011-05-31T18:45:00.000-07:00

The relentless grind north proceeds. We departed shortly after 5 AM to start our 80 mile day north up the Strait of Georgia. This body of water is the northern section of the newly designated Salish Sea (the southern portion includes Puget Sound). It trends from NW to SE separating Vancouver Island from the mainland.

When the weather is poor this long section of relatively unobstructed water develops big seas. Today, it was pretty benign. The winds started out about 10 to 15 from the west then clocked around by the end of the day to 10 to 15 from the southeast. The timing of the wind change was about in line with the current change so there was never a case of wind opposing current to stack up waves. In fact, we had filtered sun most of the afternoon and the pilothouse warmed up to the upper 70’s. We had to open windows let some cooler air in.

It is a simple route. The entire 80 miles had only five way points. Two legs, 24 and 38 miles respectively constituted the lion’s share of the day. All in all, a pretty uneventful day. It was a blessing to drop the anchor and turn off the engine.

Gorge Harbor has a dramatic narrow entrance into a large oval shaped harbor. Unfortunately, the surrounding hills aren’t so large to keep out the forecasted winds of SE 15-25 this evening. A heavy anchor and lots of chain draped out will let us sleep easy despite the wind.

Today’s mileage – 80.2

Cumulative mileage – 199.3

Current Position

May 30 – Silva Bay

2011-05-30T20:57:00.000-07:00

By comparison to yesterday’s bash up Puget Sound, today was leisurely. We elected to use Silva Bay on Gabriola Island as our jumping off point for running north up the Strait of Georgia. In the past we’ve used Nanaimo but moorage is pricey and it can be hectic and crowded. Silva Bay itself is clogged with lots of boats but most of them are locals storing their boats on mooring balls or at anchor. The boat traffic is only modest.

From Garrison to Bedwell Harbor where we cleared Canadian customs and immigration was only about 13 miles. A security team was manning and checking boats at Bedwell so after providing all of our information, the team performed a 10-15 minute onboard search of our boat verifying our “truthiness” (as Stephen Colbert would say). Still, it only took about 40 minutes from the time we tied up until the time we departed.

We ended up lollygagging up Trincomali Channel in the Canadian Gulf Islands so that we reached Gabriola Pass near Silva Bay close to slack current. We were about an hour early so there were swirlies and some standing waves but the passage is pretty straight and not too bad. We were anchored with the engine off shortly after 4PM.

Today’s Mileage– 48.7 miles

Cumulative Mileage – 119.1 miles

Current Position

May 29 - We are off

2011-05-29T21:04:00.000-07:00

I think we set a personal record for getting from Lake Union to outside the locks. We left our dock at 6:58 and were motoring from the locks by 7:57. That included opening two bridges and locking through the small locks. We didn’t have to slow down but a little at any point. The tide was low so we even fit under the Burlington Northern Railway bridge at Shilshole without it having to open.

The seas and winds were calm all the way to Port Townsend and it wasn’t until there that we started to pickup onshore winds in the Strait and the start of the ebb current into Admiralty Inlet. A few hours more of slogging got us through that and we were travelling up Haro Strait with the current and following seas. We had the anchor down and engine off in Garrison Bay on San Juan Island at 6:30 PM.

Today’s distance - 70.4 miles.

Current Position

Ready to Leave (almost)

2011-05-28T07:18:00.001-07:00

We moved onto the boat yesterday and will use today for settling back in and doing a final shutdown of the house. It is amazing how much we’ve forgotten in the nearly nine months from not having lived on the boat.

We also like to do a couple of nights on the boat prior to departure to acclimatize the cats to the changed environment. They sensed something afoot yesterday as more and more boxes and bags scattered around the house disappeared. As Marcia gathered each of them up to put into their crates, they first run away, then hissed and finally resigned to their fate. Pitiful meows and moans serenaded us during the half-hour drive from house to boat.

Once on the boat, Maggie did pretty well and is busy rubbing against everything in sight to scent mark them. Annie is far more timid and has spent most of her time on the master stateroom berth burrowed under covers. Hopefully in a few days she’ll feel comfortable enough to spend daylight hours in the pilot house or salon.

For the 2011 cruise, we are trying out the changes we made based on last year’s experience. Marcia has packed the freezer efficiently with more meat and fewer prepared toppings. With respect to clothing, we’ve pretty much left cotton behind and gone with all synthetics. Our combo washer/dryer simply couldn’t dry heavy cotton t-shirts or jeans effectively.

The plan is for an early departure tomorrow (5/29) with a destination of the Port Townsend area. On Memorial Day, we’ll cross the border and try to get into position for a Strait of Georgia passage on Tuesday.

We are going to push north steadily and not take any side-trips or voluntary rest days along the way. It is about 700 miles from Seattle to Ketchikan via the Inside Passage. At an average of 50 miles, that works out to two weeks. Schedules seldom work so smoothly so extra days while waiting for weather a crux points won’t bother us.

Sad News

2011-05-21T10:16:00.001-07:00

This is certainly off-topic from a cruising blog but this is my blog so I get to decide what to write about.

Last Saturday, May 14, my mother, Vida Hanson, passed away. She was 94 years old. Her death was sudden in that she had no major chronic ailments and the cause of her death was not a sudden acute event (e.g., stroke, heart attack, etc.). My best description is that her body wore out.

In a period of barely three weeks she went from good health, to bronchitis resulting in two ER visits, a nine day hospitalization, a week of 24 hour home health care, 2-1/2 days at a rehabilitation center, a readmission to a hospital and finally two very short days at a hospice care. During all that time, her family stayed on top of her care and continually planned and acted on where she needed to be next. Her mind remained active during this time and if anything, she knew her body better than anybody else and the ultimate outcome. Her continual refrain was she was “weary.”

In the end, it was her time. She died with all of her children present and we all miss her very much.

Summer Plans

2011-03-27T13:05:00.001-07:00

You can tell Spring has arrived to the PNW. Days are longer, grass is growing and the rain is warmer. Everywhere you look people are starting on outdoor chores.

Our cruising plans begin with a departure the last week of April or the first week of May. We still have some projects on the “list” and their completion or postponement may affect the actual departure date.

In broad brush strokes, we’ll depart Seattle and head north steadily. Some stops along the way may be Victoria (we’ve never been there), Tod Inlet/Butchart Gardens (always lovely), and Campbell River (we’ve never transited through Seymour Narrows).

Our friends and last year cruising partners, the Nagles, already have their boat in Alaska (A Winter Passage: Seattle to Ketchikan), so we don’t need to spend much time in Ketchikan as we did last year while waiting to rendezvous with the Nagles. Now that Marcia’s appetite for fish has been whetted, she wants to spend more time fishing. Preliminarily, we think we’ll be working the area between Ketchikan and Wrangell looking for crab, halibut and salmon.

From Wrangell, we may try our hand at getting around Kupreanof Island via Rocky Pass on its west rather than Wrangell Narrows on the east. Once in Frederick Sound, we’ll probably head west and aim towards Sitka. We enjoyed that area immensely last year and may try using Sitka as a base for exploring the west coast of Baranof Island both north and south.

Other than arriving back to Puget Sound in mid/late September, we don’t have specific dates for departing Alaska. There are so many places to explore along the way, it is hard to make a bad choice.

Winter Dream’in – Part 2

2010-12-22T10:49:00.001-08:00

I’ve been fussing further with the track data I extracted from the navigation computer and have uploaded all our anchorages up to both the Microsoft and Google mapping sites. These can be opened up as a separate browser windows and don’t require any downloads or extra applications.

Map of anchorages using Microsoft Bing Maps

Map of anchorages using Google Maps

View 2010 Inside Passage Anchorages in a larger map

Winter Dream’in

2010-12-08T17:22:00.000-08:00

While looking out at the Seattle winter grayness it is fun to relive this summer’s journeys. I pulled from the navigation computer the tracks recorded by the software. I’ve exported them into a file that can be opened in Google Earth (software available here).

The file has an individual track for each day we traveled so the little blue arrowhead symbol usually represents an anchorage. There are a few “bonus” anchorages caused by when I had to restart the navigation software and a new track was created. When you zoom in and see a symbol away from shore and with no obvious anchorage around, that is probably what happened.

Try as I might, I can’t get the above link to open directly in a download dialog box. Instead it takes you to a Microsoft Live web page from which you have to select download in order to get it onto your local computer.

September 3-19 - Propped Migration

2010-09-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

Rather than pretend I am keeping up the blog by back dating entries, this post is a roll-up of things since Ketchikan.

There is a wonderful movie about birds, Winged Migration. I feel as though we’ve become a part of a human equivalent by joining the flocks of boats heading south for the winter. Boats that we’ve seen elsewhere in Alaska, for example Glacier Bay, Juneau or Sitka, cross paths with us along the main boat migratory paths.

After saying goodbye to the guests, Mac & Wade, who have been travelling with the Nagles, we sit out several wet days, in Ketchikan waiting for suitable weather to cross Dixon Entrance and enter Canada.

We depart near noon on September 3, south for Canada. The Nagles pick up a couple hundred gallons of diesel on the way out and we motor at a slower speed so that they can catch up. The night is spent at Judd Harbor on the SE corner of Duke Island just north of Dixon.

The anchorage proved to be like so many of the unexpected treasures on our trip. It was well protected and scenic. We even saw and heard some migrating Sandhill cranes before we left the next morning. We only wished we had more time to spend exploring and enjoying it further.

The crossing of Dixon on September 4, was not a big issue. We deployed our weather side stabilizer fish to make the trip more comfortable in the swell coming off the ocean. Once we got in the shelter of Dundas Island, the seas laid nicely and we pulled in the stabilizer to reduce the drag. We saw lots of feeding humpback whales including some bubble feeding activity.

We were able to get dock space at the Prince Rupert Yacht Club, which had been filled on the way north. While on the dock, we met a Seattle couple completing a four year trip around the world on their sail boat, S/V Marcy. They did the circumnavigation the hard way by going around the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn. They sailed from the coast of Chile (Puerto Montt) to Hawaii and then from Hawaii to Alaska. What an adventure they have had!

From Prince Rupert we took the “outside-inside” route which avoided the long channels of Grenville and Princess Royal but stayed inside the protection of some large islands. We saw only a few fishing boats and one cruise ship for nearly three days.

The first night, September 5, was at Newcombe Harbour, a deep, nearly land locked bay with good anchoring depths and holding.

The second night, September 6, was in Dunn Passage on Campania Island. It had a narrow entrance and was a delightful collection of little islands. While we got a good anchor set, DavidEllis was struggling finding a good hook. They ended up rafting with us for the night. The winds were calm all night and our boats would just flip direction depending on the tide but hardly moved position.

The next day, September 7, we continued down Laredo Channel until we got to Meyers Passage, a convenient route back over to the main southbound route. We were an hour past slack water when we reached it but the currents were not running so strong as to make it impassable for our slow boats. We anchored in Clothes Bay, a mile or so south of the village of Klemtu.

September 8 was the short (36 mile) cruise to Shearwater. The Nagles were meeting a friend David Cohn flying in from Vancouver to the nearby community of Bella Bella. This Spring, David put his order in with Seahorse for a Diesel Duck like the Nagles. This time on the boat was his opportunity to see how the boat handled and learn from the Nagles about the care and feeding of a “duck.”

The next day, September 9, we continued our southbound trip and stopped at Pruth Harbor. Both the Nagles and we stopped here northbound and found the beach (Hakai beaches) across the island from the anchorage to be stunning.

An early start of 7AM (it is Autumn and that is when the sun rises now) and a long day on September 10 got us across Cape Caution and into Port Hardy, the major community at the north end of Vancouver Island. We stayed at the public docks near the Coast Guard station.

Trying to get some miles in before the forecasted winds picked up, on September 11, we traveled the short distance (25 miles or so) further down to Port McNeill. We first tried the docks at Sointula, across from Port McNeill but they were filled. Rather than staying at the city docks which can be tight, we stayed at the recently added docks attached to the fuel dock. Their orientation was perfect for docking in the 15 to 25 knot gusts that were now blowing. Lunch was at our favorite Port McNeill restaurant, Gus’s Pub. Marcia got here cajun shrimp with sweet potato fries.

Back on the road again the next day, September 12, we stayed at the public dock at Port Neville. The DavidEllis docked first and we rafted to them. It is easier for their dog Rusty to get on and off the dock directly from the boat than having to get him over a boat rafted in between.

Port Neville is one of those villages that was instrumental in the development of the area but has now become obsolete because of technology and further development. The general store and postal office is now, in effect, a museum.

Since we have cruised this section more that the Nagles, they let us set the route back down to the San Juans. From here, on September 13, we continued down Johnstone Straits. On account of adverse currents (wrong time of the month to head south), we were going less than 5 knots much of the time. Before we got to Seymour Narrows, we cut off along Okisollo Channel through Upper Rapids into the Octopus Islands Marine Park. This was our first anchorage on the northbound trip where we felt like we were really away from civilization (Octopus Island Marine Park). We took the kayaks down and paddled around the coves.

The next day, September 14, was through Hole-in-the-Wall channel at slack and then down Calm and Lewis Channel into Desolation Sound. We anchored in Prideaux Haven. We are now encountering lots and lots of boats, probably a 15 to 20 in this anchorage. Some going south like us but many boats doing their September cruise into Desolation Sound. Besides the boats, the air temperature and water temperature are several degrees warmer than north of Cape Caution.

An early start on September 15 gets us down Malaspina Strait and past Texada Island to Smuggler Cove Marine Park. We stayed here in 2007 on our previous boat Dragontail (MV Dragontail blog). The anchorage is tight so the BC Parks has put in rings on the shore to which you tie your stern after dropping your anchor. The idea is to eliminate all of the boats swinging and to pack in lots more boats.

We haven’t done a huge number of stern ties and none on Alpenglow. After three anchor drops we find a good spot and hook. We drop a kayak and Kurt paddles to shore with a lap full of line. He passes the line through the ring and pulls himself back to the boat while continuing to trail out line. We then cleat off the bitter end on the boat and start pulling in slack on the spool side. Eventually we get the boat turned around so that the stern is pulled tight towards the anchor ring on shore. I am sure with practice we can smooth out the process.

September 16 was the crossing of the Strait of Georgia into the BC Gulf Islands. The Gulf Islands and the Washington San Juan Island are really part of the same archipelago. An international border happens to cut through them is all.

If I thought there were a lot of boats at Prideaux Haven, I was certainly not prepared for the Gulf Islands. Our original destination was Wallace Island but as we got close we could spy the narrow Princess Cove had at least a half dozen boats already in it. We continued on towards Montague Harbor where we anchored on the north side of Gray Peninsula. It was a little more exposed than I would have cared for but it had plenty of swing room and good holding.

The next morning, September 17, we part ways with the Nagles. They are headed towards Lopez Island where their guest David Cohn’s family has a vacation home. We’ve been travelling with the Nagles for two months and have enjoyed the company and support as we’ve travelled the more remote areas of Alaska and British Columbia.

We head towards Ganges Harbor on Saltspring Island. It is only a short distance, less than 10 miles, from where our anchorage so we are in town with plenty of time to walk around. Our yacht club has an outstation here which means we can stay for only $8 a night, a real bargain compared to the dollar a foot we often pay.

Ganges has a busy art community and there are many galleries. Marcia finds a few items that she likes at a price she is willing to pay. We eat out at one of the many restaurants in town. Besides art, it looks like a good food town, as well.

We reenter the United States the next day, September 18. Besides recreational boat traffic, ferry and commercial traffic is lots higher than up north. We have to dodge BC ferries shortly after leaving Ganges, alter our course to avoid two freighters in Boundary Pass between Canda and the USA, than hug the shore to allow room for Washington State ferries in Thatcher Pass.

As we cruise through Wasp Passage between Orcas and Shaw Islands in the San Juan Islands, we are hailed by a vessel about 200 yards behind us. It was Summer Song a 72 foot Hatteras owned by a couple we met in Ketchikan two months earlier. After conversing with them, we are hailed by another vessel hearing our boat name on the radio. It was Abacus, a Nordic Tug 42, operated by a couple we first crossed paths with on our northbound trip in British Columbia in early June. Its a big cruising area but a small world.

Immigration and Customs clearance was easy as we went through the “trusted traveler” program this Spring and have been vetted by both the Canadian and US immigration services. We are cleared for entry by phone as we motor along Guemes Channel towards Anacortes where we spend the night in the Cap Sante Marina.

The next morning, September 19, we lighten our pocket book and load up on 1042 gallons of diesel at Cap Sante fuel. For a change we have favorable currents, riding the ebb out of Guemes Channel, down Rosario Strait and into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We pick up the flood as we start down Admiralty Inlet. We pull into the QCYC Winslow outstation dock shortly before 5 PM.

Mileage from Ketchikan – 753.1

Cumulative Mileage – 3208.3

Engine Hours – 512.0

Ketchikan – August 30

2010-08-30T16:57:00.000-07:00

After six weeks of poking around north and west of Ketchikan, we motored back into Bar Harbor marina this afternoon.

Before pulling in, we stopped at the fuel dock and took on 200 gallons of fuel. I estimate that we had somewhat over 300 gallons of fuel remaining which ought to be enough to get home but the 200 gallons is our reserve so that we don’t worry. At the engine RPM we typically motor (~1500), we use about 2 gallons per hour and average pretty close to 7 knots which is a bit over 3 miles to the gallon.

We can certainly tell that the cruising season has pretty much ended here. The pleasure boats still in the marina tend to be homeported in Alaska. We don’t see many folks on the docks that look like cruisers, mostly commercial fisherman.

The weather is also telling us it is time to head south. The forecast is for rainy and windy weather the next several days. We will head towards Canada at the first weather window. Once past Dixon Entrance, we can travel a couple hundred miles in pretty protected waters.

Today’s mileage – 38.0

Cumulative mileage – 2455.2

August 29 – Gardner Bay

2010-08-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

What a great day! First, the weather was perfect, light winds and partly sunny as the day wore on. Second, the scenery was spectacular as we motored through protected channels created by the dozens of little islands in the bay. Lastly, we had some unforgettable whale viewing.

The highlight was the pod of 4 or 5 sei or fin whales (we aren’t sure which) that we saw. These are bigger than humpback whales and exhibit different behaviors than humpback whales. For the DavidEllis, they had an additional treat seeing a lone orca grab a seal for its dining pleasure.

The picture to the right is of a humpback that was using a rock at the entrance of a pass between some islands to which we were heading as its scrub brush. Later we saw another humpback doing likewise on rocks next to the shore almost inside the pass.

After clearing the islands into the main part of Cordova Bay we continued around Cape Chacon and then up to our anchorage in Gardner Bay, on the SE shore of Prince of Wales Island. Despite our being exposed to ocean swells from the time we cleared the islands in Cordova Bay until we nearly in Gardner Bay, they were very low and the cruising was very comfortable.

The anchorage turned out even nicer than we expected. Rocky peaks rose from beyond the head of the bay. In addition, we had some really interesting jelly fish undulate past us.

Today’s mileage – 42.0

Cumulative mileage – 2417.2

Current position

August 28 – Kassa Island Bay

2010-08-28T20:55:00.000-07:00

We departed at oh-dark thirty in order to hit slack at Tlevak Narrows, about 19 miles from Craig. Even though we were only about forty minutes past slack, we already had a 2 knot current (in our favor fortunately) in the narrows and nearly knots after exiting. Fortunately, the whirlpools and overflows the guide book talked about had formed by then.

The original goal for the day was to pass around the bottom of Prince of Wales Island at Cape Chacon. The day before, the weather forecast suggest that tomorrow (8/29) would be marginal. After listening to the updated forecast, we realized the front was delayed so pulled up short for the day and went into a lovely anchorage, Kassa Island Bay.

The area we are transiting is seldom visited by recreational boats because it is a little out of the way from the main routes between Ketchikan and points north or west. People are missing out because it is lovely area and offers some great opportunities.

We saw a number of humpback whales and one occasion had to back off to neutral because a whale passed within a few hundred yards of us and we weren’t sure where it was going to come up. As far as sea otters, when the DavidEllis entered the bay in which we were anchoring, they startled a big pod of sea otters which took off away from them by porpoising through the water. That was a behavior none of us had ever seen in sea otters, who are mostly blasé about boats. We speculated that the otters may be hunted by the native Americans who live at Hydaburg, a community about 20 miles away, and are more fearful of boats.

Today’s mileage – 53.2

Cumulative mileage – 2375.2

Current position

August 27 – Craig

2010-08-27T19:22:00.000-07:00

We got a fairly early start in order to get close to slack water through the Tonowek Narrows. The cruising was pleasant and we arrived in the town of Craig shortly after 12PM.

Along the way, we saw the requisite sea otters. We also had become sensitized by our caving experience to the many exposed rock formations, likely limestone, on the island.

Craig is the major community on Prince of Wales Island. Its population today is about 1200 people, supported mostly by fishing, both commercial and sport. Prince of Wales Island has been heavily logged in the past and the island is laced with logging roads. Clear cuts are very common and many forests are second growth.

Logging today, though, is not common in SE Alaska. The practice of clear cutting can severely damage the salmon streams besides creating a long-term eye sore. The fishing industry and conservation have pretty much won out over the logging industry.

Today’s mileage – 37.7

Cumulative mileage – 2322.0

Current position

August 26 – Cyrus Cove

2010-08-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

From Dry Pass Lagoon, we traveled a few miles further and anchored a short distance from the dinghy dock for the El Capitan Caves. In hindsight, we probably should have skipped last night’s anchorage and just anchored here. Next year, maybe.

The caves are in the Tongass National Forest and managed by the US Forest Service. For safety, the USFS has secured the caves and been running tours during the summer for over fifteen years. The caves are karst caves formed by ground water percolating and dissolving channels and caves in the limestone layer. It was a fascinating tour and one worth doing again in the future. The photo at right is of Marcia and our USFS guide.

After the tour, we returned to the boats, had lunch and continued down El Capitan Passage into Sea Otter Sound. We have been seeing sea otters regularly in the cruising areas near the outer coast and Sea Otter Sound was no exception.

Today’s mileage – 23.4

Cumulative mileage – 2284.3

Current position

August 25 – Dry Pass Lagoon

2010-08-25T18:53:00.000-07:00

The weather was excellent for rounding Cape Decision. While we lowered our stabilizer poles just in case we needed to drop the “stabi’s” in the water, we never needed to. The photo at right is the Cape Decision light house.

After rounding the cape, we headed back up Sumner Strait, entered up towards Shakan Bay then worked our way to Dry Pass.

Dry Pass is a natural channel between Prince of Wales Island and Kosciusko Island that is dredged periodically to keep it navigable. There are navigation markers along the way and you don’t want to get confused as to which side to be on. Between navigation markers and GPS connected electronic charts though, it isn’t difficult but simply requires paying attention.

On anchorage for the night was at a lagoon in the channel between two narrower sections. Fortunately, there wasn’t a lot of other boat traffic so it wasn’t quite like camping in the median of the interstate.

Today’s mileage – 52.4

Cumulative mileage – 2260.9

Current position

August 24 – Port Malmesbury

2010-08-24T19:26:00.000-07:00

We continue our path down Chatham Strait with the intent of rounding around the bottom of Kuiu Island. Port Malmesbury is one of the last anchorages before Cape Decision at the bottom.

The weather was a bit foggy at the beginning of the day but fortunately, we didn’t have the boat traffic we did several weeks earlier in foggy conditions in Icy Strait. As the day wore on, the visibility improved but the number of commercial fishing vessels did as well.

Under the “rules of the road”, fishing vessels in the process of fishing have the right of way so we had to occasionally alter our course to stay out of their way. Fortunately, the vessels were all trollers so we did not have nets trailing behind the boat to worry about. The vessel in the photo at right was painted a very distinctive color which I had to document.

The particular anchorage we were in is called the “Mud Hole”. Despite the name, it is a very attractive spot. The name must refer to the remarkably level bottom in which we anchored.

We were there early enough to drop the kayaks and paddle around. At one end of the bay was a stream with spawning salmon, both humpy and silver. The Nagle’s dog, Rusty, had a field day chasing after and catching the wriggling salmon. He did not eat any but simply enjoyed the chase.

Today’s mileage – 44.6

Cumulative mileage – 2208.5

Current position

August 22-23 – Red Bluff Bay

2010-08-23T18:55:00.000-07:00

After our relaxing time at Warm Springs, we headed a short distance further south to Red Bluff Bay. Both guidebooks and firsthand accounts rave about how scenic Red Bluff is so we are looking forward to it. Besides the scenery, the guides also talk about good prawn fishing, so we are anxious to try our hand at that, as well.

The weather forecast is such that we anticipate two nights on account of a brief storm and high winds rolling through. With a little patience, we are able to anchor in a very protected cove within the bay so we are well set up for winds.

The bay is very scenic with snow capped mountains beyond the head of the bay. We repeatedly watch a brown bear prowling and fishing at the stream inlet.

We are sure the bear’s fishing was more successful than ours as we were skunked both for prawns and crabs.

Today’s mileage – 21.0

Cumulative mileage – 2163.9

Current position

August 21 – Warm Springs Bay

2010-08-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

The run to Warm Springs Bay was comfortable in calm seas. On account of the name, it is no surprise that the attraction here are the natural hot springs. There is as small community of vacation homes and a state public dock, which is generally occupied.

When we arrived, Mac from the DavidEllis went ashore in the dinghy and sized up the available spot. It was tight but Dave Nagle expertly put in his boat in it despite the strong current coming from a nearby stream. I then brought Alpenglow alongside to side tie to it.

We arrived with ample time to walk the quarter mile up the board walk trail to the hot springs sitting above the rushing stream (river?). The water temperatures were warm and very relaxing. The photo, right, is of Mac and Marcia in the pool.

Mac has been a guest of the Nagles since the middle of June. He is a retired police officer from Australia. Besides sharing the same occupation as Dave Nagle, he is also a dive instructor like Dave.

The photo below is a panorama of the bay, dock, stream inlet and some of the homes at Warm Springs Bay.

Today’s mileage – 39.4

Cumulative mileage – 2142.9

Current position

August 20 – Appleton Cove

2010-08-20T16:47:00.000-07:00

We departed Sitka about 10 AM in order to time a slack current transit of Sergius Narrows, the protected water route from Sitka to Chatham Strait. A local eagle sat on the stabilizer poles of a nearby fishing boat and watched us depart.

Along the way, we took a scenic detour through Nakwasina Sound and Passage. Wade, a guest of the Nagles on board the DavidEllis (image below), has lived several summers in Sitka piloting tour boats for cruise ship passengers and guided us through this section.

We hit Sergius Narrows within 10 minutes of slack so its transit was not a problem. As with all choke points like this, it can get busy with other boats making their passage as well.

Our anchorage tonight was Appleton Cove. It is well protected from wind and waves and our one night here was calm and pleasant. We saw many crab floats out but because we were here only one night, we chose not to put out our crab pot.

Today’s mileage – 54.5

Cumulative mileage – 2103.5

Current position

August 14-16 Touring Sitka

2010-08-16T17:25:00.000-07:00

We got back this afternoon from doing a short two night cruise to some local anchorages. Our “guide” has been Wade, a friend of the Nagles who is joining them for the return trip to Seattle. Wade is a retired United Airlines 747 pilot who, post retirement, worked summers in Sitka piloting tour boats for several seasons.

On Saturday, 8/14, we travelled only a short distance to Samsing Cove, a lovely anchorage only 4 or 5 miles from Sitka. Getting in was a bit of a challenge as one of the fishing seasons was open and commercial fishing boats nearly had the route into Samsing blocked by gill nets. We followed the DavidEllis in as they wound their way through boats and nets. After making our way in, we rafted up to the now anchored DavidEllis.

From here we dinghied around to Pirate’s Cove, a quarter mile west. A lovely, white sand beach invited us to spend a sunny afternoon relaxing.

The next day, 8/15, after again transiting through active fishing, we headed towards St Lazaria Island. When Marcia and I visited Sitka in 2006 we did a tour to the island (perhaps even piloted by Wade?). The island is noted for its bird population, especially tufted puffins.

The rocky cliffs are preferred by nesting birds as predators cannot easily reach them. You spot the bird nesting areas by looking for the white color of the dried excrement from the birds.

As we were leaving St. Lazaria Island, I snapped the photo left of the DavidEllis with the island in the foreground and Mount Edgecumbe, the extinct volcano on the north entrance of Sitka Sound, in the background. The skies were blue skies, the winds light and ocean swells modest as we rounded Cape Edgecumbe and headed north to Goleta Cove. It too has a lovely sandy beach on which we relaxed in the afternoon sun.

Below is a stitched photo (six photos combined into one) taken from the boats stern looking south towards the north side of Mt. Edgecumbe.

Along the route, we passed a milestone for us by having travelled more than 2000 miles since we left Seattle in the middle of May.

This morning, 8/16, the weather clearly had begun to change, so we pulled anchor and retraced our route to Sitka. We arrived back in Eliason Harbor on the north end of town shortly before 3 PM.

August 9 – 12 – Elfin Cove to Sitka

2010-08-12T18:25:00.000-07:00

We departed Elfin Cove Monday, August 9, for Sitka. We started the trip by going to Pelican, another board walk community similar to Elfin Cove with no roads, only a board walk. The cannery in Pelican closed a few years ago and many other businesses in the community have not been able to make a go of it. Elfin Cove seems to be sustaining itself on its sport fishing lodges and commercial fisherman. Pelican has commercial fishing but it is further from the sport fishing area and doesn’t have as many lodges.

Travelling with the Nagles in the DavidEllis is their friend Shirley, the owner of the Elfin Cove bar damaged by fire earlier in the summer. She lives in Sitka for about half the year and was hitching a ride with them. Since she needs to be in Sitka by Wednesday, the Nagles have elected to travel to Sitka on the outside coast, the short route but more exposed to wind and seas. We don’t have that constraint and elect to go the long way back through Icy Strait, down Chatham Strait and then through Peril Strait (despite its name, the only perilous part is Sergius Narrows which requires timing in order to hit slack current).

Bright and early on Tuesday, we head north from Pelican and retrace our route from the previous day. Just north of Elfin Cove as we are motoring through the fog, we see three humpback whales heading towards us a few hundred yards away. We put the boat in neutral and begin to coast. The whales continue towards us, their backs rising and falling as they swim. About 50 yards away, the two whales still heading directly towards us, make the classic big arch of their back, flip their tail skyward and plunge dive. Of course we have no photos because we were so astonished we didn’t think of it until after the whales dove. The camera came out at the ready but no more whales made a grand exit in front of us.

Besides the whale encounter, the trip to Sitka involved one very long day (86 miles on 8/10), one not so long day (62 miles on 8/11), and one short day (30 miles on 8/12). The two anchorages we used, Pavlof Harbor on 8/10 and Deep Harbor on 8/11 were pleasant. The transit of Sergius Narrows was pretty straightforward as we hit it at slack current (it can run at over 7 knots at max current) with no opposing vessels to worry about. The weather by the time we got to Sitka was spectacular.

Sitka is located on the outer coast but behind many protective islands. There are high mountains on one side and water on the other (of course, that describes nearly every Alaskan town in the Southeast). I think Sitka’s proximity to the ocean and the low profile of the islands to its west make it seem even more open and vast the other communities we have visited. In any event, it is a stunning setting and a lovely town (the good weather may be biasing my point of view, however).

August 5 – 8 – Elfin Cove

2010-08-08T20:09:00.000-07:00

After three glorious days in Glacier Bay, the clouds returned and the morning fog did not burn off. We motored south out of Glacier Bay into Icy Strait.

The visibility was less than 1/2 mile so we relied on our radar to tell us what vessels were out there. We usually run with our chart plotter displaying a split screen, the electronic chart on the left and the radar image on the right. Things that aren’t charted, such as other boats, stand out that way. Whenever you have a solid return on your radar image, you make a point of identifying whether it is a charted rock or buoy, everything left over becomes a “target” that you monitor.

The route to Elfin Cove goes through South Passage, on the south side of Lemesurier Island, and then through South Inian Pass. The currents can run pretty briskly through those passes so you want to time them towards slack current. Especially in South Inian Pass, if a strong ebb current collides with the incoming swells from the ocean, waves can stack up uncomfortably. We timed the current pretty well and had no problems.

Elfin Cove is a small Alaskan fishing community built around two coves. The outer cove has a 200 foot community dock and we were able to get a spot. The inner cove is extraordinarily protected and calm but it is narrow and shallow and generally only used by the locals. We were fortunate to get dock space because both commercial and sport fishing boats use the dock for night time moorage. As it is a public dock, allowing boats to raft to you is expected if you are directly on the dock. Later we moved off the dock and rafted to the Nagles’ boat, the DavidEllis

Our friends, the Nagles in their boat the DavidEllis, had been in Elfin Cove since Monday, August 2, helping their friend Shirley Perkins who owns the Coho Bar & Grill there. About six weeks earlier a fire broke out at 2 AM in an adjoining building to the bar (KCAW radio news story). It took everyone in Elfin Cove and fire crews from several nearby communities to put it out. Shirley’s building was partially burned and received major smoke damage. The water used to extinguish the fire was salt water pumped from the cove so it contributed to the post fire damage.

Shirley had been busy cleaning and rebuilding (note the new siding). The Nagles volunteered their labor towards the effort while in Elfin Cove. While we stayed there, we added a couple of days of our labor as well.

Elfin Cove has no road but is built along and around the boardwalk connecting buildings and homes. As the photo to the left shows, had the wind been blowing that night, it would have spread quickly from structure to structure and burned far more than it did.

We did take one afternoon off from work and took our boat with everyone else aboard over to a nearby island. It is the site of a artillery piece installed during World War II to protect the entrance to Icy Strait. It must have been an incredible effort to bring in everything needed to build and operate such a base.

August 1 – 5 – Glacier Bay

2010-08-05T16:21:00.000-07:00

To say we had a wonderful time in Glacier Bay is an understatement. Bookend between a bit of clouds and wind at the start of the trip and mist and fog and the end of the trip were three absolutely gorgeous days.

Glacier Bay is quite deep, probably 50+ miles from the entrance to its head at the end of Tarr Inlet. We anchored in three different locations. North Finger Bay on August 1, Reid Inlet on August 2 and North Sandy Cove on August 3 and 4.

In the lower part of Glacier Bay we saw lots of sea otters. They look just like the adorable videos on TV and the ones in the aquariums. You see them floating out in the middle of the on their backs grooming their fur or eating the food they have gathered from the bottom.

Speaking of otter food, the locals talk about how the sea otters have put a significant dent in the crabbing in areas in which they are living. We can say from first hand experience that our crabbing attempts in Glacier Bay yielded absolutely nothing.

Rather than give a dull recounting of our day by day activities, I will let photos of the park speak for themselves.

The day of our entry. We bought the “high-vis” rain jackets in Ketchikan when our “lower 48” rain gear proved inadequate for the Alaska climate.

The welcoming committee for Glacier Bay (yes, every bump is a sea otter).

The views as you cruise north in Glacier Bay.

We were able to get very (1/2 mile) close to the glacier terminus of several tide water glaciers. Below is a stitched image of eight photos taken of the glacier terminus.

The anchorage in the photo to the left, Reid Inlet, was simply stunning. The glacier at the end of the inlet does not extend to the water but nearly so. We felt like we were anchored in the mountains.

While cruising to our final anchorage in the park, North Sandy Cove (photo right, above), we had great whale encounter with a pod of five feeding humpback whales. We probably sat for fifteen minutes drifting with the engine off watching the whales dive repeatedly within a half-mile of the boat.

July 31 – Swanson Harbor

2010-07-31T18:13:00.000-07:00

We left yesterday, July 30, for Glacier Bay National Park. We have a six day permit for entry on August 1. As an intermediate spot between Juneau and Glacier Bay we went to Swanson Harbor. The state of Alaska has two floats in Swanson Bay and we managed to get a spot on one.

We did a layover day today and went fishing in our dinghy just outside the entry to Swanson Harbor. Marcia applied all that she learned from talking to a serious sport fisherman in Ketchikan to selecting the fishing location, the type of bait and the method of fishing. She must have listened well because about 10 minutes after putting her hook down in the chosen site, she hooked a halibut.

Marcia brought it close to the boat, I gaffed it then Marcia put a couple of shark hooks in it to keep it from getting away. From hearing warning tales about not putting a live halibut in the dinghy, we tied the shark hooks off to the side of the boat and slowly motored back to our boat. We brought the fish on the dock and measured it at 31 inches. Based on the table of standard halibuts, the fish weighed about 11-13 pounds.

Besides the halibut which Marcia cleaned and trimmed up, we managed to get three keeper crabs in the two times we dropped the crab pot in Swanson Harbor. Marcia then cleaned, cooked, picked and froze the crabs’ meat.

All in all, it was a very productive stop.

July 30 – A Few Photos

2010-07-30T08:49:00.000-07:00

While breakfasting at a local waffle shop, I am taking advantage of its WiFi to upload a few photos of the trip since Petersburg.

The whale photos are courtesy of Dorothy Nagle. I never seem to have our camera out and telephoto attached when the whales are nearby.

The sighting usually begins with seeing a whale “spout” at some distance. It looks more like a mist column above the water.

It next progresses to seeing the dorsal of the humpback whale. It is not as dramatic as orca whale dorsal fins but the name “humpback” is clearly appropriate. Humpbacks adults are usually in the 30-50 foot range.

The last image of a humpback is of the terminal dive. After catching its breath swimming near the surface, it makes a big arch with its back, begins its dive and flips its tail out of the water.

After our day of whales getting up to Tracy Cove Arm anchorage, we took our trip into Tracy Arm. The inlet is not particularly wide so we traveled pretty closely with the Nagle’s and their boat the DavidEllis and took many photos of each others boat.

The first photo (one of mine) is of the DavidEllis with one of the valleys that entered the inlet. The water has the cloudy turquoise appearance on account of the glacial silt in the water.

The ultimate goal of the journey was the terminus of the South Sawyer Glacier. We each took turns being the “cover girl” for the other. Since we were using telephoto lenses, it foreshortens the images and makes the glacier appear closer than the actual 3/4 mile we were from it.

Getting here involved dodging lots of ice chunks (bergie bits and growlers). While a local tourist boat got quite a bit closer to the glacier, to preserver our bottom paint and running gear, where we stopped was perfectly fine with us.

The left image is of us, Alpenglow, and the right image is the DavidEllis.

July 27 - Juneau

2010-07-27T18:13:00.000-07:00

The Internet connection here is very poor so no pictures at this time.

We arrived late this morning in Auke Bay, about 7 miles NW of Juneau proper. The marinas near downtown Juneau have very little transient moorage and the docking is very tight. Most cruising boats like us tend to head to the larger facility in Auke Bay.

The previous two days have been long but really wonderful. The good weather that we have had certainly has contributed to it.

On Sunday, 7/25, we left Petersburg at 4:30 AM and rode the ebb out of Wrangell Narrows and up Frederick Sound. The day started out foggy but by 9 AM it was burning off nicely. The winds were virtually non-existent so the water was glassy.

Shortly after we passed Cape Fanshaw, where Stephens Passage from the north meets Frederick Sound the humpback whale action took off. During the couple of hours or so we were in that area, we must have had sightings of more than 40 different whales. Our buddy boat the David Ellis even had a couple of humpback whales bubble feed next to them.

After about 74 miles of cruising, our anchorage that night was the very lovely Tracy Arm Cove (aka “No Name Cove”), just north and inside of the entrance to Tracy Arm. Marcia prepared crab-shrimp cakes as an appetizer for everyone. They were a real hit.

The next day, 7/26, we traveled up Tracy Arm. My best description of the inlet is Yosemite Valley with 1,000 feet of water in it. It is a beautiful fiord with steep glacial carved mountains on either side.

At the head of the inlet’s two arms are the North and South Sawyer Glaciers. The South Sawyer Glacier is a tide water glacier which means the bottom of its snout is below the surface of the water. As the glacier calves chunks of ice off the snout they crash into the water. The face of the glacier is at least 100 feet so there are some big chunks that fall off.

Even at our anchorage at the entrance of Tracy Arm there was ice floating in the inlet or grounded on shore. The further we traveled up Tracy Arm the more the ice increased. You avoid hitting all but the smallest (shoe box size) chunks of ice. One of the last things you want to do is damage either your propeller, rudder or one of your depth transducers by bumping into a chuck of ice the size the size of a car, weighing several tons. Since 90% of the volume of ice is below the water, you do your best to avoid all ice. Eventually, we stopped about 3/4 of a mile from the South Sawyer Glacier because the ice was packed in so much that we couldn’t get through without turning ourselves into “snow plows.”

It is 20+ miles up Tracy Arm and you have to do that same distance to get back out. We than ran another 25+ miles up the coast to Taku Harbor where there is an Alaska state dock. We arrived there about 8:30 PM making for another long day.

We left today at 4:30 AM in order to have as much time in Juneau for the Nagle’s nieces to visit a few Juneau sites before they leave tomorrow. While the trip was about 33 miles, it was slow on account of the continual opposing current. That compensates for the good current we experience a couple of days ago.

While they were touring, Marcia got on the phone and obtained a permit for cruising Glacier Bay National Park, about 50 miles west of here. The park service only allows 25 private cruising boats in the park at a time. Our date of entry is Sunday, August 1. More details of our plan later.

July 23-24 – A Tale of Two Cities; Wrangell to Petersburg

2010-07-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

We left Wrangell (photo right) in the steady rain at 8 AM in order to arrive at Wrangell Narrows at the appropriate time to transit the narrow 20 mile route to Petersburg. We got there a bit early on account of favorable currents which meant we had to watch our path through the narrows as we wound our way through the many (50+) navigation markers. Fortunately the opposing traffic was light and we had no major issues.

Docking at Petersburg was a bit more challenging as the wind picked up about the time we arrived. A little bit of drama accompanied the docking but that is par for the course when the wind is blowing 20 knots.

Petersburg is what you would envision an Alaskan fishing town would look like. It celebrates its Norwegian heritage so I felt right at home here.

From here we will continue north to Juneau with a swing into Tracy Arm to see the tidewater Sawyer Glacier. We also hope to start seeing more humpback whales which are reportedly feeding along the route we are taking.

Today’s mileage – 40.0

Cumulative mileage – 1368.9

July 21 – Anan Bay & Wrangell

2010-07-21T20:59:00.000-07:00

A busy day today. While not as early a start as yesterday, we still managed to take our dinghy out at 5 AM and pull a crab pot we left soaking all night that contained one keeper crab and then get going from Santa Anna Inlet by 6 AM. We had about 15 miles to Anan Bay to cover.

Entrance to the Anan Wildlife Observatory is controlled and we got the last permits for the day when Marcia reserved them on Monday. Because we had an additional 30 miles to travel afterwards, we wanted to arrive not to long after they opened. We were anchored about 8:30 AM.

The anchorage in Anan Bay is poor and boaters are advised to not leave their boat unattended while ashore. That meant that we had to visit the observatory in two waves using a dinghy to ferry ashore.

While the weather had deteriorated and the rain began in earnest, at least the wind was pushing us in a fashion that kept our anchor tight. We use our GPS to monitor our position and it showed we hardly moved while at anchor.

The observatory was great! A half mile walk from shore leads to a viewing platform above the stream rapids. Bears are the main wildlife viewed and when the salmon are running, the bears are there.

Before leaving shore, a Forest Service ranger briefs you on what to do if you encounter a bear along the trail. Another Forest Service ranger at the viewing platform makes sure you follow the rules while viewing the bears.

Both black and brown (aka grizzly) bears frequent the area. During our visit, the black bears were hanging around the steeper drops and trying to snag salmon as they leaped from pool to pool going upstream.

The brown bear we saw had a different fishing style. Perhaps because of its greater heft, it worked the lower portion of the stream and would trap the fish against the stream bed. It would then pull them out to eat on shore.

Both the black and brown bears seemed to eat only the choice portions of the salmon (a surprisingly small portion) and leave the remaining carcass on shore. The many eagles hanging around would then swoop down and begin eating the remainder.

We retrieved dinghies, had a bite to eat and were underway about 2 PM. We covered the nearly 30 miles to Wrangell slowly because we had an opposing current of a knot or two almost the entire way. We were moored in Wrangell about 6:30 PM.

Today’s mileage – 44.1

Cumulative mileage – 1328.9

Current position

July 20 – Santa Anna Inlet

2010-07-20T23:58:00.000-07:00

In order to beat the typical afternoon winds, we left Ketchikan bright and early at 4:15 AM. While it can be a challenge to get yourself moving that early, the payback is usually calm seas and lovely early light.

Our goal for today was Santa Anna Inlet, about 53 miles from Ketchikan. This will put us in good position to visit the Anan Wildlife Observatory early tomorrow.

The weather the last several days has been excellent and it continued today. We anchored shortly after 12 PM in bright sunshine. We had to open all of the windows in the boat to keep it from becoming too hot. Who would have thought.

The Inlet is oriented NNW which gave us late evening light and a terrific sunset. The calm wind allowed for near mirror-like reflections. The photos, of course do not do it justice. Marcia and I enjoyed a last glass of wine on the fly bridge as the sun set.

Today’s mileage – 53.6

Cumulative mileage – 1284.8

Current position

July 17-18 – A Weekend in Naha Bay

2010-07-18T21:38:00.000-07:00

To give Dave Nagle’s brother and sister-in-law a brief taste of Alaska cruising, we did a short 20 mile trip from Ketchikan to Naha Bay. There is a public dock there and trails that go to some upland lakes.

The dock is a bit small so Dave went in first and I rafted to him on the outside. Unfortunately, while waiting for Dave to dock and my focus on him the wind pushed us a bit to close to the shoal outside a stream emptying into the bay. Faster than I can say “oh #@!&” our stern drifted into the soft bottom and we got stuck. Our bow float proudly the entire time.

Fortunately, we were only an hour before low tide and we easily floated off about two hours later. Dave and crew gave us a hand by taking our anchor in their dinghy and dropping it 100 feet away in the deep water so tantalizingly close as seen in the image taken of our forward looking sonar screen (as an aside, the FLS is at the lower helm and I was at the upper helm because that is where I dock from). As we floated clear, we took in anchor chain to help pull us away from the shallow. Dave in his dinghy simultaneously pushed us along at our stern.

The rest of the weekend was extremely pleasant as the weather improved. Marcia prepared a wonderful halibut cioppino for everyone using fish that was given to her by Justin from the fishing boat Little Lady. Marcia has discovered that chocolate chip cookies are an effective bait for “catching” fish.

On Sunday, before departing back to Ketchikan, Marcia and Dave dove our boat using Dave’s hookah gear (an air compressor operating on deck and supplying air via hoses). It was the first time Marcia (photo right in case you don’t recognize her) has dived on compressed air since college. Fortunately, our brief grounding caused no harm and it gave Marcia a good excuse to dive under the tutelage of Dave, a certified dive instructor.

We returned to Ketchikan at about 5:30 PM in the warm sun and enjoyed our post docking beer, chips and salsa on our fly bridge.

Roundtrip mileage – 41.9

Cumulative mileage – 1231.2

July 14 – MV David Ellis

2010-07-14T18:43:00.000-07:00

Our friends Dorothy and Dave Nagle on board their vessel the David Ellis arrived in Ketchikan today around 3:30 PM. We monitored the radio so knew which slip they were coming in to and were there to catch their lines.

We kidded them about having a floating party all the way up because on board were 7 people and 1 dog. Accompanying them were Dave’s brother and his family (4 people) and a visiting Australian friend of Dave. Their dog, Rusty, was one they adopted in Hong Kong. Rusty has far more sea time than we do since he was on board during David Ellis’s trip last year from Hong Kong to Seattle via the Aleutian Islands. The blog of their travels is at Semper Gumbi.

Dave’s brother and sister-in-law leave Ketchikan for their home in California on Monday. Dave’s two nieces will cruise with them for an additional week before also flying out from Ketchikan.

Now that we are assembled we can begin making plans for travels further north. Sitka and Elfin Cove (north of Sitka, near Glacier Bay) are on the Nagle’s desired list. We’re pretty flexible and not locked into any firm commitments. Details later.

July 13 – Back in Ketchikan (again)

2010-07-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

We left Meyers Chuck early to make the 30+ mile trip down Clarence Strait and Tongass Narrows to Ketchikan. We docked about 10:30 AM which gave us lots of time to do a few chores.

We picked up at the post office the two packages of material from Fisheries Supply in Seattle that we had ordered before we left last week. In one package was some high-tech rope that I used to replace the wire cable that came with it. Some of the wires in the cable had begun to break as a result of the repeated flexing launching and retrieving the dinghy and were becoming a “poke” hazard when handling the cable.

Our friends the Nagles on the MV David Ellis called and said they were south of Prince Rupert but expected to make the leg across Dixon entrance the next day. They have made fabulous time from Seattle having left on July 5.

While in Meyers Chuck Marcia bought a Coho (silver) salmon from a local fisherman. While he gutted the fish, Marcia got to practice her skills at scaling and filleting it. Fresh salmon for dinner tonight!

Today’s mileage – 33.1

Cumulative mileage – 1189.3

Current position

July 12 – Meyers Chuck

2010-07-12T19:25:00.000-07:00

The wind died down overnight and the clouds were broken when we awoke. For our destination today, Meyers Chuck, we decided on an early departure even though it we had to travel only about 30 miles. As it turned out, that was a wise decision.

We hoisted the anchor at about 6:30 AM. We had to work a bit to loosen the anchor from the gooey, stinky mud but that is a small price to pay for being able to sleep well at night knowing that you aren’t going to drag your anchor should the wind really pick up.

The clouds were broken and lots of sun shone on ourselves and the surrounding islands through which we traveled. The seas were only slightly choppy so the trip was pretty pleasant.

We reached Meyers Chuck, a small community of a couple dozen residences, about 10:40 AM. What makes this a good stop is the state government dock providing free moorage. There isn’t any electrical power so you have to run off your batteries but not having to fuss with your anchor and being able to walk off the boat is a real plus.

When we arrived, there was one other transient pleasure boat like ours at the dock so we had no problem tying up. There were lots of boats of the locals but they tend to be small craft and tie up in the spots that larger boats like ours would find difficulty reaching.

As I write this in the evening, the dock has six transient pleasure craft tied up and four more anchored out in the bay. Because we got here early, we were able to get a spot at the dock’s end so our departure tomorrow morning will be relatively easy.

Today’s mileage – 29.3

Cumulative mileage – 1156.2

Current position

July 10 – Thom’s Place

2010-07-10T19:54:00.000-07:00

We got an early start out of Thorne Bay because the bay’s entrance has one narrow section that can have current pushing you around during the tidal exchange. We transited it at the low water slack and it was easy.

Our destination today is across Clarence Strait from Thorne Bay, so off we went. Unfortunately, the following seas from yesterday are now more on our beam and the “rollies” become uncomfortable for us and alarming to the cats. We adjust our course a little more northerly so as to have the waves on our aft quarter and things calm down a bit.

Either because the 15 knot SE winds blowing up Clarence Strait don’t make the corner or the winds have died down, but the seas flatten out totally as we entered Ernest Sound. A thin fog and low level cloud cover bedeck the shores and islands along the route. We enjoy this cruising far more than slogging the bouncy waters of Clarence Strait.

The distance traveled today is about the same as yesterday and on account of our early start we arrive at Thom’s Place shortly before noon. Thom’s Place is an undeveloped state marine park, no facilities but no development anywhere in sight. A very different type of location than Thorne Bay.

The bay is reputedly a good crabbing location so we drop a pot a short distance from the boat using the kayak. A small commercial crabber has a dozen floats dotting the bay as well.

Besides the crab pot, Marcia tries her hand at a “meat hook” from the stern. While in Ketchikan, we ran into a couple, Jill and Doug Princehouse (MV Passages, Ocean Alexander 50), from the Queen City Yacht Club to which we belong. Doug is a serious fisherman and on his previous trips to Alaska he has effectively and conveniently hung a fishing pole from his stern hanging 10 feet above the bottom, a “meat hook” as he called it. Worth a try, we think.

Our plan is to spend a two nights here than start back towards Ketchikan and meet up with our friends the Nagles who will be arriving soon on their vessel.

Today’s mileage – 37.9

Cumulative mileage – 1126.9

Current position

July 9 – Thorne Bay

2010-07-09T20:24:00.000-07:00

We are off again for another short, 4 to 5 day, cruise out of the Ketchikan area. Tonight’s destination is Thorne Bay, about 30 air miles NW of Ketchikan up Clarence Strait and on Prince of Wales Island.

Clarence Strait is the main artery into Alaska inner waters from the south. Cruise ships and commercial traffic from Seattle use it regularly when heading towards Juneau and the other communities in the Alaska Panhandle.

As part of our installed electronics we have AIS (Automatic Identification System), which receives navigation information about other AIS equipped vessels and transmits our navigation information. It is especially useful when staying out of the way of the cruise ships and barges because their position and route is displayed on our chart plotter. We can make small adjustments to our course well ahead of time rather than having to make large adjustments at the last minute.

Clarence Strait is wide enough that winds and ocean swells travel a long way up it which can make for a bumpy ride at times. We had the seas on our aft quarter so our auto pilot had to work a bit harder as the following seas would push our stern slightly off course. As we approached the entrance to Thorne Bay, the seas flattened out and entering the bay was not a problem.

Prince of Wales Island has an extensive road system in its interior to access logging areas. They also connect the many communities on the island. Thorne Bay is one of those small communities and our anchorage is not the “wilderness” experience we’ve grown accustom to in recent weeks. There is a small marina here, many homes around the bay’s interior and considerable small boat traffic. It is, though, a safe and comfortable anchorage with good holding.

Today’s mileage – 36.9

Cumulative mileage – 1089.0

Current position

July 7-8 - Ketchikan

2010-07-08T18:44:00.000-07:00

Marcia got up early (4:30 AM) yesterday to try her luck at halibut fishing from the back of our boat at anchor. The fish hanging out there proved elusive although it did make an appetizer of the herring Marcia offered it on her squid lure.

With the fishing done for the morning, we hoisted the anchor (finding some old fishing lines and hooks draped across it) and were underway about 5:30 AM. The further south we went in Behm Canal the better sunny and warmer the weather became.

As we turned the corner towards Ketchikan, though, the wind from the northwest picked up and by the time we reached the Bar Harbor Marina, it was blowing 15 to 25 knots. During the docking, I added another paint scuff mark to the collection I have accumulated in the last six months.

The weather in Ketchikan is terrific, lots of sun and temperatures in the upper 70’s. We’ve had to break out the sun screens we had made in China.

Bar Harbor Marina where we are staying has lots of working fish boats coming and going. The pleasure craft typically “hot bunk” the slips vacated by the fishing boats that are out working. In fact, after we had lunch, the harbor master knocked on our boat and asked us to move because the permanent resident of the slip we were initially assigned called to say he was returning that evening. Fortunately, a member of the harbor master staff was at the other slip to catch our lines when we moved because the wind was still blowing strongly.

Today’s mileage – 42.4

Cumulative mileage – 1053.1

July 6 – The Carnage Continues

2010-07-06T19:11:00.000-07:00

Marcia continues to do well with her taking from the “seas bountiful harvest.” The tally is six keeper crabs (out of 13 pulled up in our traps), 7 large spot prawns in today’s haul from the prawn trap, and two rock fish. Halibut and salmon continue to elude her although she is starting to get nibbles as evidenced by the chunks taken from the herring Marcia is baiting her hook with. She is very good now at getting her herring bait to spin enticingly as they are trolled through the water.

Since crab has been our predominant catch, Marcia is honing her processing skills. The technique she uses is very different than the “flashy” (and messy) method of putting a live crab in a pot of boiling water. It involves a quick kill using a cleaver, cleaning the now split crab and discarding the inedible portions before cooking. This avoids contaminating the meat with any toxins concentrated in the crabs organs.

July 5 – Klu Bay

2010-07-05T20:48:00.000-07:00

The weather continued to improve overnight and the day dawned only partly cloudy with significant sun breaks. The winds are calm so the water was glassy as we pulled our crab and prawn trap. The crab trap had one very feisty keeper missing a claw (probably the result of his attitude). The prawn trap was bare of prawns but did have a half dozen or so really interesting small crab/lobster crustaceans. Since we couldn’t identify them, we threw them back into the water.

Today’s destination was Klu Bay, a short distance from Neets Bay but the route required going back out to Behm Canal and travelling north a short distance before cutting in again. We motored slowly in order to give a reasonable length of time for the alternator to recharge our batteries.

Just before entering Klu Bay, while still in the deeper waters of Shrimp Bay, we dropped the prawn trap. Will let it soak overnight and will check it tomorrow with our dinghy.

Klu Bay has a USFS mooring buoy but the luck we enjoyed in Misty Fiords ran out and someone else was already using it. One other boat was also anchored. We dropped our anchor in the water as well and let out over 300 feet of chain to give us sufficient scope in the nearly 100 feet we were anchored in. Fortunately, Klu Bay is large with plenty of room to swing.

In the afternoon, we watched a black bear cruise shore grazing on the lush grass. Until the fish begin running in earnest and the berries ripen, grass is a big part of a bear’s diet.

Today’s mileage – 18.9

Cumulative mileage – 1010.7

Current position

July 3 – Neets Bay (Fire Cove)

2010-07-03T19:47:00.001-07:00

After spending several days in Ketchikan doing boat chores (e.g., marking chain, replacing the chain gypsy and replacing the failed lower helm bow thruster control), we made a break for it. The Independence Day Holiday weekend weather forecast was not great but we’d rather be at anchor in a quiet cove in the rain versus than hanging around the marina.

After discussing options for a 4 night excursion, we decided to head back up Behm Canal on the west side of Revillagigedo Island and check out some of the anchorages that mention good fishing or crabbing. Marcia is especially keen to get a salmon, preferably a King salmon. Neets Bay as our first stop looked promising as there is a fish hatchery at its head and the normal King salmon catch limit is increased.

Southeast winds pushed us along Tongass Narrows as we left Ketchikan but dropped off rapidly as we turned the corner in Clover Passage. Marcia even tried trolling from our rear cockpit but only had a nibble, as indicated by the small bite taken from the herring she was trolling with.

As we entered the small cove behind the island we would anchor, we spied a black bear walking along a shoal bared by low tide extending from the island. A few hours later, we saw the bear paddle the short distance to shore, shake itself off and walk into the forest.

Besides the bear, shortly after we anchored and were eating lunch, we spied a submerged shoal not far from the stern of our boat. Concerned about bumping it during the next low tide cycle, we took in a little chain on our anchor to get us further from the shoal.

While the rains fell during the afternoon, Marcia prepared herself for a round of fishing the next day. We launched the dinghy during a brief lull in the rain.

Today’s mileage – 36.2

Cumulative mileage – 991.8

Current position

July 3 – Neets Bay (Fire Cove)

2010-07-03T19:47:00.000-07:00

While the rains fell during the afternoon, Marcia prepared herself for a round of fishing the next day. We launched the dinghy during a brief lull in the rain.

Today’s mileage – 36.2

Cumulative mileage – 991.8

Current position

June 30 – Back in Ketchikan

2010-06-30T21:25:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, was a very rainy day so we had little interest in sitting in a bobbing dinghy in wind driven rain. We did retrieve the crab pot and found two keepers among the five crabs in the pot. We also tried our hand with the prawn trap but drew a blank.

Since the winds are generally lighter in the morning, we left Yes Bay a little before 7 AM and headed south in Behm Canal towards Ketchikan. The trip was pretty calm until we reached the busy channel, Tongass Narrows, that passes in front of Ketchikan.

On account of the sport and commercial fishing, there is lots of boat traffic. The real twist on things are the many float planes taking off and landing. Between the scenic flights for tourism and the commercial flights taking passengers to outlying islands, it is pretty busy. It can be a bit disconcerting motoring along and have a float plane land 100 yards to one side or have a float plane pass a couple of hundred feet above your head after it has taken off behind you.

In order to be closer to boating services, we went to a different Ketchikan marina than we used before. Bar Harbor is the largest marina but can be totally full if the commercial fishing fleet is in town.

Fortunately, they had a space for us and we were tied to the dock shortly before 1 PM.

Today’s mileage – 41.0

Cumulative mileage – 955.6

Current position

June 28 – First Blood

2010-06-28T19:41:00.000-07:00

Behm Canal on the west side of Revillagigedo Island offers excellent fishing. Guides leaving from Ketchikan work the lower portion and guests at the Yes Bay resort work the upper end. The thought of catching a king salmon or a halibut was a mighty temptation for Marcia and while in Ketchikan she outfitted herself with a license and the necessary equipment.

On the morning bite, we took our dinghy and retraced our way back to the outer portion of the bay. Marcia had her salmon gear and dropped her line in about 180 feet of water. After about 10 minutes, she pulled her line up and had her first catch, a rock fish. Not exactly the 20 lb king Marcia had in mind but still, you have to start somewhere. After a few more tries, it proved to be the only catch of the day. After we returned, the rock fish was featured in our lunch its head and other parts became bait for the crab pot which we took out after lunch.

In the afternoon, after a 4 hour soak, we pulled the crab pot up and found a nice 7 inch keeper dungeness crab and one smaller female crab which we returned. Lots of bait left so back the pot went to see what an overnight soak will produce. For us, though, it is crab for dinner tonight.

June 27 – Yes Bay

2010-06-27T19:18:00.000-07:00

We awoke in Walker Cove to broken clouds. It provided some wonderful light for a photograph of a boat with whom we shared the cove. This same boat was in Punchbowl Cove with us as well. Since anchoring is difficult in Walker Cove, we offered to have them raft with us on the mooring buoy but they declined and managed to find a good hook with their anchor.

From here, we motored around the north end of Revillagigedo Island through Behm Narrows. Our destination was Yes Bay on the northwest side of Behm Canal and only about 40 miles from Ketchikan.

We negotiated our way through a couple of narrow channels, past the Yes Bay Resort and into the back end of the the inner bay. Since we started around 7 AM, we were anchored with the engine off shortly after 2 PM.

The early arrival gave us ample time to launch the dinghy for the first time on the trip. Since we left Seattle the middle of May, whenever we’ve felt the need to leave the boat while at anchor, we’ve used the kayaks. The launch was uneventful and the Honda outboard started up after a couple of tugs despite it having not been run for three months since our shakedown trip the end of March.

Today’s mileage – 49.5

Total mileage – 914.6

Current position

June 26 – Walker Cove

2010-06-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

We continued our short hops up Behm Canal in Misty Fiords National Monument while staying at US Forest Service buoys. Today’s destination was Walker Cove, one fiord north of the Rudyerd Bay/Punchbowl Cove.

Anchoring within the fiords is difficult because the sides are very steep. About the only places where depths are convenient for anchoring (30 to 80 feet) are near the outlets of streams. Unfortunately those areas are often too shallow, drying at low tide, and then dropping quickly to depths too deep.

Before we left Ketchikan, we stopped by the USFS office and got information on the buoys. The person with whom we spoke said the buoys had all been replaced last year and would be ample for a boat our size. We do set our anchor watch alarm to warn us in case the buoy lets us drift too far.

Our buoy snagging technique must be improving as we got the Walker Cove buoy on our first attempt. We were engine off and moored before 11 AM.

Shortly after we arrive, the rain begins to fall. The kayaks stay in their cradle on top of the boat. Marcia takes this time as an opportunity to get her fishing gear ready for later use. Low tide is in the evening and we see a grizzly bear come down to the sedge grass growing along the shore to graze.

Walker Cove is a stunning setting equal to that of Punchbowl Cove. As we watch the low level clouds drift through the trees on the slopes and pour over the ridges we have a clear understanding why the area is called Misty Fiords. The area is a real treasure.

Today’s mileage – 19.0

Current mileage – 865.1

Current position

June 25 – Punchbowl Cove

2010-06-25T16:04:00.000-07:00

Today turned out to be a very short day, a little over 10 miles with less than 2 hours of engine time.

Punchbowl Cove/Rudyerd Bay is one of the signature sites within Misty Fiords National Monument. It is a winding inlet surrounded by rocky mountain sides. We visited here in 2001 on an Alaskan state ferry in the pouring rain and waterfalls were cascading down the cliffs.

The weather today was considerably better than on our 2001 trip but it was still overcast. It was better, though, than we have had since the sunny weather that greeted our Ketchikan arrival.

Our plan was to check out Punchbowl Cove where a US Forest Service buoy is located and, if available, grab it. If taken, we would continue another 20 miles north to Walker Cove, another USFS buoy site. Fortunately for us, the buoy was available and after 3 attempts (the first two were too fast or off the mark slightly), we snagged the buoy and were tied securely.

The advantage of buoys is that you don’t have to worry about the anchor dragging or retrieving 300 feet of chain between you and the anchor. When leaving the next morning, untie one end of the line from the cleat on your boat and pull the line through the ring from the other end. In about 20 seconds you are free and clear.

On account of the area’s notoriety, a steady stream of scenic flights from Ketchikan are coming through. They will dwindle off as the cruise ships get ready to depart from Ketchikan and the airplane’s customers all embark for their next port of call.

Today’s mileage – 10.3

Cumulative mileage – 846.1

Current position

June 24 – Winstanley Island

2010-06-24T17:44:00.000-07:00

We ordered a number of things to be sent to us general delivery, Ketchikan so while they are in transit, we have taken off for a trip around Revillagigedo Island. This is the island on which Ketchikan resides. The trip will also go through Misty Fiords National Monument.

Today’s trip was southbound out of Ketchikan, retracing some of the route we took getting here. After about 20 miles we turned left and head up Behm Canal into Misty Fiords.

Shortly after we left the harbor, we were dodging a few small logs in the water. Ahead, 100 yards or so, I saw a somewhat larger log. The “log” proceeded to spout a few times and do a shallow dive. Needless to say, it was a humpback whale and not a log. Before we could reach our camera though, it arched steeply and did a deep dive. No picture this time.

Our destination today was Winstanley Island, on the south shore of Behm Canal. There is a US Forest Service buoy in the bay available on a first come – first served basis. If the buoy was taken, there is also good anchorage.

Fortunately, the buoy was available. After two attempts, we snagged and tied off the buoy to our forward bollards. We have used Washington State Parks buoys in our previous boat but this is the first time in Alpenglow. Since this boat is higher off the water and the buoy we are snagging is a lot beefier, we had to use a different technique. We will refine it as we try other buoys in the days ahead.

Besides the buoy, the Forest Service has a cabin on shore, popular with kayakers, for rent. Shortly after we arrived, a boat shuttle picked up two kayakers staying at the cabin and replaced them with a solo kayaker.

Today’s mileage – 43.4

Cumulative mileage – 835.8

Current position

Laser Eyes

2010-06-22T19:04:00.000-07:00

Dinner for the “girls” is precisely 4 PM. Today we were running errands in town and returned a little after the expected time. Annie & Maggie were waiting for us and our explanation. We are glad their eyes are merely reflecting the camera flash and not emitting laser beams.

Beating to the pulse of cruise ships

2010-06-20T18:36:00.000-07:00

In recent years, Ketchikan has been shifting much of its economy from extractive industries such as logging to tourism. For 2010, they are forecasting 429 stops by cruise ships with an estimated 771,000 passengers aboard. As you can see from the table to the right, though, that is down nearly 20% from recent years.

Where we are moored at the city floats, we can watch ships come and go from two of the four cruise ship berths. The typical pattern is a 7 AM arrival, passenger disembarkation at about 8 AM, and a departure between 3 PM and 5 PM. Last Friday, we saw five cruise ships pass through town. The next day, only one.

Activity in downtown moves with the pace of the cruise ships. It awakens with the first passengers and falls back to sleep as the cruise ships depart.

At the docks, tour boats and fishing guides race in to pick up clients and then return them 3 or 4 hours later.

June 18 – Ketchikan

2010-06-18T18:12:00.000-07:00

Weather and sea conditions remained favorable and the cruise into Ketchikan was good. The radio and boat traffic increased dramatically the closer we got to Ketchikan.

All of the marinas in Ketchikan are managed by the port authority and they may assign you to any of in the town depending on your requirements and their inventory. Many of the slips in the largest marina, Bar Harbor, are “hot” slips normally occupied by a fishing vessel but available when the vessel is gone.

We expect to be in and out of Ketchikan for about a month waiting for our friends the Nagles to make their way north. Based on that we are intending to buy a one month moorage pass and the harbor master suggested we go into the City Floats, tucked in behind the berth 3 for cruise liners. It is a bit intimidating crossing between two cruise ships to find you mooring site.

We are moored at 11:15 AM and shortly after 12 PM we’ve been cleared by the Customs and Border Patrol agent who visited our boat (Ketchikan is a 100% inspection entry point).

Today’s mileage – 36.6

Cumulative mileage – 792.4

Current position

June 17 – Welcome to Alaska – Foggy Bay

2010-06-17T21:52:00.000-07:00

It pays to be patient some times and this was the case today. The skies were clear and the winds mild as we crossed Portland Channel into Alaska.

The total distance from Prince Rupert to Ketchikan is a bit over 80 miles. The pattern is for the winds to pick up in the afternoon so ideally you are off the water around lunch time.

Being a slow boat, there is no way to reach Ketchikan in one day by early afternoon. The US Customs and Border Patrol, however, does give permission for boats to anchor in Foggy Bay before clearing. Marcia calls them and obtained the necessary permission.

We were joined in the anchorage by two Nordic Tug 42’s, Reflections and Abacus, traveling north at about the same pace as ourselves. We’ve bumped into them several times. While the inner cove’s entry is a little tight, especially at low tide, the anchorage is delightful.

We celebrated our first Alaska anchorage with sparkling wine given to us before our departure by our friends the Crowders. All in all, a wonderful introduction to Alaska cruising. Oh that every day would be like today.Today’s mileage – 49.1

Cumulative mileage - 755.8

Current position

June 16 – Killing Time

2010-06-16T18:57:00.000-07:00

We are still anchored in Pillsbury Cove across from Prince Rupert. We don’t really need anything in town so pulling the anchor and trying to dock in tight quarters in winds (it blows 10 – 20 knots out of the west in the afternoon) is not appealing.

There is an island with a dock a short distance (1/4 mile) away so we drop the kayaks and paddle over. We think it may be some sort of park but we don’t see any signs. Nobody around to ask, though.

June 14 – Prince Rupert

2010-06-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

It rained heavily overnight in Coghlan Anchorage but the winds let up by morning. Anchor pulling went fine. The bottom must be sandy because there was no mud on the chain or anchor despite it having dug in deeply on account of the wind.

Two miles later, we are motoring up Grenville Channel, an equally narrow (yet deep) channel as Princess Royal Channel. The channels are generally less than a mile wide yet nearly a 1,000 feet deep. The peaks on either side are several thousand feet high. You can almost visualize the glaciers gouging these channels out during the ice age.

Besides small craft like ourselves and fishing boats, commercial traffic such as tugs with barges and passenger vessels use Grenville Channel. No cruise ships today but we did pass going south bound the B.C. ferry that goes from Port Hardy on the north end of Vancouver Island and Prince Rupert, the last major community on the British Columbia Pacific coast.

Based on the weather forecast, we did a long day and made Prince Rupert our today’s destination. As we got within cell phone coverage, Marcia started calling the various marinas.

We knew that Prince Rupert pleasure craft moorage is tight during the summer. It proved to be so last night so we motored across to a cove on the north side of Prince Rupert Harbor, Pillsbury Cove, and dropped our anchor for the night.

During the day, as we motored north, the weather continually improved. We were in full sun when the anchor was snubbed and the engine turned off. Our attitude was decidedly improved over 24 hours earlier when we were in strong wind and rain.

Today’s mileage – 76.9

Cumulative mileage – 706.7

Current position

June 13 – Coghlan Anchorage

2010-06-13T20:28:00.000-07:00

The winds let up overnight and we, along with three other boats, got a 7 AM start to hit the slack water at Hiekish Narrows. From there it is a long slog up Princess Royal Channel, the main route north. The channel is very protected and generally pretty calm.

As we entered Wright Sound near Hartley Bay, southerly winds began to pick up to the upper teens and the rain began. Our destination for the night was Coghlan Anchorage, a somewhat protected channel between Promise Island and the mainland.

We tucked as well as we could towards the north side of Promise Island, dropped our anchor and 240 feet of chain and watched it stretch out as we drifted back in the wind. Our anchor, a 120 pound (55kg) Rocna, is a beefy tool and it dug in well. With the wind staying strong, we stayed stretched out and hardly moved. While a bit noisy on account of wave chop, the anchorage turned out better than we were expecting in these conditions.

We were joined in the anchorage later by a Canadian Coast Guard vessel doing exercises in the area.

Today’s mileage – 57.9

Cumulative mileage – 629.8

Current Position

June 12 – Waiting in Bottleneck

2010-06-12T18:27:00.000-07:00

We passed our storm day in Bottleneck lazily. It was too rainy and windy to paddle in the kayaks so we were boat bound.

Anticipating this outcome, Marcia prepared bread dough the day before to bake in the toaster oven while the generator was recharging batteries today. We have a 9KW generator but the inverter/charger uses less than 2KW for charging. Generators run most efficiently when loaded 60% – 80% of capacity so we added resistance loads like the toaster oven and an electric space heater to increase the load factor.

As usual, the bread Marcia prepared came out wonderfully crusty. She uses a “no-knead” recipe we got from the New York Times in 2006. Besides the bread, as an extra treat, Marcia made some chocolate chip cookies.

June 11 – Bottleneck Inlet

2010-06-11T17:42:00.000-07:00

A front is forecast to cross over the area this evening bringing wind and rain. We’d rather not be stuck in Shearwater too many nights so we departed about 8 AM this morning.

Until the front passes though, wind and sea state are relatively benign so we took advantage of conditions and took the “express” route up Milbanke Sound rather than the more sheltered (but slower) route through Reid Passage and Percival Narrows.

The direct route is also convenient for stopping at Klemtu to add some more water to our tanks. Shearwater has water available but, as is often the case with water along the Inside Passage, it has a slight tint on account of tannin from the trees in the water shed. Klemtu has a full up water treatment plant with good clear water at its fuel dock. A one hour stop allowed us to add an estimated 150 gallons to the 200 gallons remaining in our tanks. This ought to be enough to get us to Ketchikan.

So far, we have repeated only two anchorages from our 2007 cruise, Waddington Bay and today’s stop, Bottleneck Inlet. It is a well protected stop with convenient anchoring depths (20 to 30 feet) and sufficient space for many boats swinging on safe anchoring scopes. We spent 3 nights here in 2007 with a half-dozen other boats waiting out a storm. We hope this year’s stop isn’t quite as long.

Today’s mileage – 46.2

Cumulative mileage – 571.9

Current Position

June 10 - Shearwater

2010-06-10T17:08:00.000-07:00

Shearwater and the nearby town of Bella Bella are the primary coastal communities between Port Hardy on Vancouver Island and Prince Rupert just short of Ketchikan. Bella Bella is the more populous but Shearwater is more tourist oriented.

The trip up from Kisameet was short, a little over 20 miles. Boat traffic concentrates in the channel (Lama Passage) approaching the area, fishing boats, cruisers and ferries. Both the B.C. and Alaskan ferries pass right by. We turned off towards Shearwater just as the Columbia, the Alaskan ferry going between Ketchikan and Bellingham came through the northern pass approaching Bella Bella.

We’ll be here just one night to do laundry and minor provisioning (we’re dangerously low of white wine!). Our plan is to head to Prince Rupert briskly and not poke around too much. We are taking the main route via Princess Royal Channel and Grenville Channel (aka “The Ditch”).

Today’s mileage – 20.5

Cumulative mileage – 525.7

Current Position

June 9 – Kisameet Bay

2010-06-09T16:12:00.000-07:00

Today was a short cruising day, about 22 miles. Folks in a hurry would have gone to the community of Shearwater (our likely destination tomorrow) another 20 miles further but we are taking our time. The guide books speak highly of this anchorage so we thought we would check it out.

The route we followed today turned out to be a treat. We cut across Hakai Passage, a channel exposed to the full ocean swell. Islands and rocks on the outer coasts have a different appearance and vegetation than those in protected waters. It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to visualize how fierce winter storms batter the outer islands.

Hakai Passage was pretty benign and the low swells we experienced disappeared totally as we started along Ward Channel, the narrow route connecting Hakai with Nalau Pass. From there we diagonalled across Fitz Hugh Sound to tonight’s anchorage.

As we entered Nalau Pass, we glimpsed the first whales of the cruise. At least two humpback whales were feeding in the area. The most you can see of the humpbacks are their tails sticking up as they start their dive. Hopefully these are the first of many whale encounters.

Today’s mileage – 21.9

Cumulative mileage – 505.2

Current position

June 8 – Hakai Beaches

2010-06-08T16:52:00.000-07:00

We took advantage of our flexible schedule by spending a day at anchor in the cove south of Pruth Bay. We enjoyed our walk to West Beach the day before so much we decided to do it again and extend it to North Beach.

The red portion on the map to the left is owned by the Hakai Beach Institute. It is a private non-profit organization that operates a lodge open to educational groups doing biological research. Up until September 2009, the facility was a high end fishing lodge. They allow visiting boaters to use their dinghy docks to access the trail to the beach.

The weather today is quite lovely. As I am sure you can tell, the sunshine has improved our disposition significantly.

June 7 – Pruth Bay

2010-06-07T18:22:00.000-07:00

It was a rainy start from Daswons Landing this morning but it soon let up and by the end of the day we had patches of blue. One blessing of the frequent rain we have had is that the boat deck is staying pretty clean and we have no salt crusting on the boat.

Today’s route retraced our waypoints back along Darby Channel into Fitz Hugh Sound. After only a dozen miles, we hung a sharp left and headed almost due west in Kwakshua Channel to its head at Pruth Bay.

Immediately after we dropped our anchor, two Nordic Tug 42’s pulled in and dropped their’s. We aren’t anti-social but being by yourself in an anchorage (as we were at Allison Harbour), is a special treat. We had chosen the bay to the south of the main anchorage because the guides indicated it

Perhaps it was our negative vibes or perhaps it was their plan all along but after a lunch break the Nordic Tugs hoisted their anchors and headed out of the area totally. A delightful anchorage to ourselves.

After lunch, we dropped the kayaks in the water and paddled over to the west head of the bay. From there you walk a quarter mile or so to West Beach, a lovely sandy beach open to the ocean swells. I’ll do a bigger write-up of that activity with photos tomorrow.

Today’s mileage – 25.6

Cumulative mileage – 483.3

Current Position

June 6 – Dawsons Landing

2010-06-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

The report from the West Sea Otter met our standards (less than 1.5 meters of combined wind waves and swell) as did the lighthouse reports for Egg Island and Pine Island (rippled with a low westerly swell). We were away shortly after 6:30 AM.

The conditions were fine and we rounded Cape Caution a couple of hours after pulling the anchor. The further we went in Fitz Hugh Sound, the more benign became the sea state. Things damped down even further in the protected Darby Channel on the north side of Penrose Island.

As of about 1:10 PM,we are tied to the dock at Dawsons Landing, a small general store/resort/community along Rivers Inlet. While here, we’ll add a few provisions (wine is getting low), use the Internet and other chores.

From here, we aren’t sure where exactly we will go. Based on guide books, there are some areas worth further investigating.

Today’s mileage – 46.9

Cumulative mileage – 457.7

Current Position

June 5 – Allison Harbour

2010-06-05T16:10:00.000-07:00

After listening to the morning weather radio report, we elected to spend another day in Allison Harbour. The weather was fine but the ocean buoy report for “West Sea Otter” was a bit higher than our liking. We aren’t on a fixed schedule so we are playing it safe. We will continue to monitor conditions and go when we like them. The anchorage here is pleasant and we have it to ourselves so we dropped the kayaks in the water and went for a paddle.

While exploring anchorages in the past, we’ve noticed that the nautical charts tend not to spend a lot of effort to precisely chart non-navigable areas. This makes sense this the primary purpose of nautical charts is providing the safe travel of commercial traffic. Recreational use is a recent addition to their purpose.

What this means is that when you poke around with a kayak or shallow draft dinghy in the shallows and back waters of some of these remoter areas, you can find all sorts of areas that the charts only vaguely hint at. Today was a case in point.

As we paddled to the back end of Allison Harbour, over a bar that prevents larger boats from entering, a treasure of a protected lagoon unfolded. As is typical with the temperate coastal rain forests, the moss gives an emerald hue to everything.

June 4 – Allison Harbour

2010-06-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

When we awoke this morning, low gray clouds hung over Turnbull Cove. But even then hints of blue beyond could be seen and by the time we pulled the anchor around 8 AM, you could tell it was going to be a very nice day.

We exited the Broughton’s through Wells Passage and turned right outbound along Queen Charlotte Strait. The water was only lightly rippled as we motored along in the sunshine that has been so rare thus far on our trip.

The further along we went, the more evident became the ocean swells rolling past the north end of Vancouver Island. The shore and its vegetation reveal that we are no longer in protected waters. Trees are lower and the exposed rocks pounded by the surf are bare of sea life.

Tonight’s anchorage, Allison Harbour, is one of the last good anchorages before rounding Cape Caution. We can wait here, well protected, until we get the weather and sea conditions we want.

Today’s Mileage – 40.5

Cumulative Mileage – 410.8

Current Position

June 3 – Turnbull Cove

2010-06-03T18:18:00.000-07:00

We poked a little further along the way north but stayed in the protected waters of the Broughton’s. Today’s destination was Turnbull Cove just off of Grappler Sound. In 2007 we visited a couple of nearby anchorages but based on the recommendations of another boater at Waddington Bay we decided to give Turnbull Cove a try.

We pulled anchor shortly after 9 AM and had the anchor down and secured in Turnbull Cove just shy of 1:30 PM. We tend to cruise around 7 knots, plus or minus, depending on the current. Today we had a bit of both.

After we arrived, we had lunch and then dropped the kayaks in the water. From the north shore of the cove is a short trail to a very large lake (visible just above the cove in the chart to the left).

Despite the rain shower (rain drops visible in the photo below) it was a lovely walk in the woods.

Today’s Mileage – 26.9 miles

Cumulative Mileage – 370.3 miles

Current Position

June 1 – Waddington Bay

2010-06-01T18:11:00.000-07:00

We made our getaway about 11 AM after completing our 100 hour oil change (at 134 hours). This is the last break-in oil change so we are on the regular schedule now.

While the weather wasn’t too bad (occasional showers and light wind) when we left, it was forecast to deteriorate later in the afternoon. We wanted an anchorage that was protected and relatively close. Waddington Bay on Bonwick Island fit the bill.

After a 23 mile run, we pulled into Waddington Bay, where we turned out to be the only one there (although two more boats followed us in). We chose a spot with good swinging room because a boat tends to swing about on its anchor in winds.

Based on the weather forecast, we will probably spend two nights here. After that, we’ll look for another pleasant anchorage in the Broughtons.

Besides being a scenic area with many protected anchorages, the Broughtons are well positioned for moving north around Cape Caution when the weather permits.

Today’s mileage – 23.2

Cumulative mileage –343.4

Current position

May 30 – Port McNeill

2010-05-30T14:47:00.001-07:00

It was a relatively short run down Johnstone Strait to Port McNeill. The weather continues unsettled with clouds, wind and showers. We arrived in at the Port McNeill shortly after 10 AM and were glad to do so because the winds were forecast to pick up to 20-30 knots this afternoon.

The highlight of today’s leg was having a pod of dolphins surf our bow wake for ten or so minutes. The Robson Bight area in Johnstone Strait where we picked up our friends is famous for orca whale viewing but we drew a blank.

We’ll spend at least two nights here getting some service done on the engine, doing laundry and some provisioning before the next leg up the Central B.C. coast. On our 2007 cruise we also used Port McNeill for these chores and found everything an easy walk from the marina.

To the right is a picture of Alpenglow at the dock in the rain. Someday the sun will shine, won’t it?

Today’s Mileage – 33.8 miles

Cumulative Mileage – 320.2 miles

May 29 – Port Harvey

2010-05-29T13:30:00.001-07:00

We spent a lay day on May 28 in the Octopus Islands and are moving again today. We did an “oh-dark thirty” departure to catch the slack before the ebb at some narrows a couple of miles north. From there it was a short run down to Johnstone Strait.

In Johnstone Strait, between the wind on our nose, the strong ebb current pushing us along, and the eddies with the current, it was a bit bouncy at times as we motored along. The cats hunkered down and silently cursed us for bringing them.

Not long after we entered Johnstone Strait, we were passed by a CruiseWest small cruise ship, the Spirit of Yorktown, on its way to Alaska.

We turned up Havannah Channel and then into Port Harvey where we are currently anchored behind Range Island. There is a surprising amount of activity here. Barges and equipment associated with logging are stored here and a few folks have vacation homes. In 2009, a small marine resort opened up and three power boats are tied at their docks. Besides ourselves, two sailboats are anchored out.

Tomorrow we are targeting Port McNeill.

Today’s Mileage – 53.4 miles

Cumulative Mileage – 286.4 miles

Current Position

May 27 – Octopus Island Marine Park

2010-05-29T13:12:00.001-07:00

The night in Drew Harbor was pleasant with virtually no wind the entire night. The rain stopped overnight and the day started with broken clouds.

We did a leisurely start because we had to time our arrival at Surge Narrows to be slack (the time when the current is the minimum as it changes direction). Slack was around 10:20 AM so we raised our anchor at about 8:45 since we only had 9 miles to cover.

We dropped our anchor and had the engine off at 11:30. To the right is a screen clipping from the charting program I use to drive the boat that shows where we are and the route we followed. The narrow channel we came in on was straight and fair although narrow as it was low tide.

Since we had a free afternoon, it was time to open up Marcia’s barbershop and give Kurt a clipping. We decided to use the #0 clipper for a nice close trim. We think the before and after photos convincingly demonstrate that point.

Daily Mileage - 15.1 miles

Cumulative Mileage – 233 miles

Current Position

May 26 – Drew Harbor

2010-05-26T19:09:00.001-07:00

We took advantage of a very calm (but drippy) day on the Strait of Georgia to run its length from Nanaimo to Drew Harbor on the East shore of Quadra Island. We covered 78.6 miles from the dock in Nanaimo to where we dropped the anchor.

The wind started out at 15 knots but by the end of the day we were around 2 knots and the water seemed syrupy. You could see the rain drops rings on the water’s surface. You could not have asked for easier conditions on the Strait.

Quadra Island is accessible from the ferry in Campbell River and there are homes on the west shore of the Drew Harbor and a marine park (Rebecca Spit) on the east shore. I have managed to steal an open WiFi signal from someone and have used it to post this entry (so much for being in the wilderness).

Tomorrow is the short day through Surge Narrows and into the Octopus Islands.

Today’s Mileage – 78.6

Cumulative – 217.9

At Rest - Nanaimo

2010-05-25T18:50:00.001-07:00

We spent the day in Nanaimo doing some “freshie” provisioning. Since both Canada and the USA restrict many fresh food items (e.g., vegetables and fruit) when crossing the border, you have to pick those items up shortly after entering the country.

Besides the food items, we bought a prepaid Canadian phone card for our cell phone so we can make cheaper calls than if roaming on our current T-Mobile plans. We also picked up more beer and wine (you are also restricted on the amount of alcohol you can bring in). We did some of our provisioning at the Nanaimo Costco store, taking the bus to and from the harbor to get there.

Despite the rainy night and morning, the sun burned its way through the cloud cover to be a pretty nice day as shown in the photo of Alpenglow at the dock.The forecast is looking good for tomorrow (5/26) and we plan to take advantage of it and do a long run the length of the Strait of Georgia to Drew Harbor (Rebecca Spit Marine Park) on the East side of Quadra Island. This will put us in a good position to go up Hoskyn Channel and through Surge Narrows the next day into the Octopus Islands Marine Park. After that we’ll continue North along Okisollo Channel and reconnect with the Discovery Passage north of Seymour Narrows. We’ll probably follow Johnstone Strait until we can cut off to one of the protected routes into the Broughtons near Cracroft Island.

Anchoring will probably be the norm during this section so blog posts will have to wait until we get reconnected in a community or marina.

May 24 - Nanaimo

2010-05-24T18:09:00.000-07:00

We decided to save Ganges on Saltspring Island for another day and went directly to Nanaimo since we had some shopping (a prepaid cell phone card for one) that we needed to do here. North of Victoria, Nanaimo is the largest city on Vancouver Island.

We departed Deer Harbor around 7:30 AM and arrived shortly after 3 PM. Conditions were good although a SE wind picked up as the day progressed reaching 15-20 knots towards the end of the day. Since it was on our tail and we also had the current pushing us, the waves did not build up.

We saw lots of boat traffic since today was Victoria Day which made for a 3-day holiday weekend in Canada.

Today’s mileage – 52.2

Cumulative mileage – 139.3

At Rest

2010-05-23T18:33:00.000-07:00

We now have “proof” that the new chairs we bought serve their function well, as can be seen in the photo of Kurt & Maggie in Deer Harbor.

May 23 - Deer Harbor

2010-05-23T15:32:00.000-07:00

We did the short run from Anacortes to Deer Harbor. The journey was uneventful but my docking was a bit “rough,” taking me three attempts.

The dock space reserved for our yacht club is a side tie at the outside of one of the docks (visualize the top edge of a capital “T”). Normally this docking arrangement is pretty straightforward but between the wind today, the dock orientation and our boat’s layout, everything was working against us. Nevertheless, with the help of a kind individual on the dock, the third-time was the charm.

We needed to stop at Deer Harbor because Marcia had a package shipped here when it became apparent it wouldn’t arrive before our departure on the 16th. The package was waiting for Marcia when we arrived so our next leg will take us into Canada. We haven’t finalized which port of call in Canada will be our first.

Today’s mileage – 21.0

Cumulative mileage – 87.1

Trawlerfest

2010-05-22T07:22:00.000-07:00

The Anacortest Trawlerfest is an event put on by Passagemaker Magazine, a magazine focused on slow, long distance type of boats. Passagemaker puts on an annual Trawlerfest on many different locations throughout the United States in the areas with active boating communities.

We’ve met many people not currently owning a boat but interested in this category. The event provides a very effective way of getting lots of information and seeing lots of different boats and manufacturers. The boat brokers and manufacturers like the event because the number of attendees are fewer than at a regular boat show but are more serious. For someone living full-time away from the water it gives them a chance to walk on board and compare many different vessels all at once.

Below are photos that I took from our boat deck of the boats surrounding us.