Thursday, August 28, 2008
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From Prince Rupert to Shearwater
It was warm and sunny as we left Prince Rupert around 11am. As we rounded the industrial area docks we saw the Foss tug boat being loaded with tank cars from a railroad bed. This seems to be a very tricky procedure. A locomotive pushes a line of cars onto the tug. The line is disconnected and the train backs up and the tug re-aligns for the next set of cars. This tug will take the tank cars up to an area near Valdez, Alaska
One of the crew from the tug recognized us and yelled, “Chehalis?” I answered, “Yep!”
Between Pitt Island and Banks Island we witnessed an amazing humpback whale display. The whales were feeding along a cliff not far from us. Wow!
Captains Cove Pitt Island Aug 21 Sunny afternoon had to set hook twice. There was no one else in our little back cove. One other boat was in the outer cove. The weather held in the morning as we continued our journey.
Monckton Inlet Pitt Island Aug 22 23 Hearing that the weather was going to change for the worse, we looked for the best place around to set the anchor. Monckton Inlet was reported to be “bomb proof”. “Bomb proof” means that if the wind blows there will be little if any wave action to knock you around. Monckton proved to be bomb proof but man, did the wind blow. Just before dark we saw a small water spout whiz by our boat! All night long we could hear things going “bump” and the wind howling through the rigging. We survived the night with the anchor holding well. The VHF radio weather gave reports of 50mph winds and 4 meter seas on the outside.
The next day was spent there as we watched the rain. Our leak in the electrical panel spread to the master bedroom. I discovered that my books and clothes were getting wet and water was dripping down from the ledge on the ceiling.
We stayed in the anchorage for another night. The second night there was quieter but the rain was relentless.
(Some of joy of the trip is being taken away by the pain in my shoulder. The ships doctor thinks it is an inflammation and I should take Aleve and keep my arm in a sling. The mean arm pain takes my mind off my lower back pain.)
After a bumpy sail, (waves coming over the bow kind of bumpy sail) the next night was a windy night at Union Passage Lagoon. The anchor held nicely. In the morning it looked like water was once again accumulating in the space beneath the anchor well. We will have to take everything out of the V-berth and bail it out. Mark had caulked around in there a couple of weeks ago. At least our boat only leaks on the top!
Our fifth night out we were at the dock at collapsing Butedale. It was blustery and wet when we arrived. Lou and his dog, Burton, were there to greet us. Skipper and Burton get along very well.
It doesn’t look like Lou has done anything to the place since we were there a month and a half ago, except chop firewood.
Although I hadn’t been off the boat for 4 days, I stayed on board because of the wet.
Klemtu Aug 25 and 26
Klemtu is a nice Native Town with a band store (Grocery store and a coffee shop)
Foul weather threatened again and we spent two rainy days at Klemtu on the Government Dock. The first morning we had breakfast at the band store coffee shop. The restaurant is definitely not a fancy place but more than adequate. We enjoyed talking to a native man, Francis, about how to look to nature and predict the weather. The little gulls in the harbor were all hunkered down and had their beaks pointing into the wind. You don’t have to be a meteorologist to know the weather is nasty.
It seemed to the captain that the big blows had exhausted their selves over night and it was safe to venture out again. We left Klemtu around 9:30 after quick breakfast of fruit, yogurt, and cereal. After clearing Cone Island we entered the Finlaysian Channel. The seas were up but “not bad” according to the Captain.
We cut across the Channel to the Percival Narrows. This passage contains an S curve at the end. Boats over 70 feet have difficulty making the turns.
After clearing the Narrows we were in the unprotected waters with 3-meter seas. That’s 12 foot swells and waves to you landlubbers. Skipper and I headed for cover and the brave captain sallied forth into the Mattison Channel. After a few hours of battering, we entered the quieter waters of Reed Passage. Around 5pm we reached our destination of Shearwater Marina.
Our landing was not graceful as the winds pushed us VERY close to an Oyster, a beautiful custom sailboat. Three guys hopped on the Oyster to fend us off.
This is our first “civilization” in about a week. Note: Some say that our Wauquiez is a “Poorman’s Oyster”.
We will do our laundry tomorrow, buy groceries, do cleaning, and bail the v-berth.
(Leak update 8-28-08-the space beneath the anchor locker is dry!)
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
One of the crew from the tug recognized us and yelled, “Chehalis?” I answered, “Yep!”
Between Pitt Island and Banks Island we witnessed an amazing humpback whale display. The whales were feeding along a cliff not far from us. Wow!
Captains Cove Pitt Island Aug 21 Sunny afternoon had to set hook twice. There was no one else in our little back cove. One other boat was in the outer cove. The weather held in the morning as we continued our journey.
Monckton Inlet Pitt Island Aug 22 23 Hearing that the weather was going to change for the worse, we looked for the best place around to set the anchor. Monckton Inlet was reported to be “bomb proof”. “Bomb proof” means that if the wind blows there will be little if any wave action to knock you around. Monckton proved to be bomb proof but man, did the wind blow. Just before dark we saw a small water spout whiz by our boat! All night long we could hear things going “bump” and the wind howling through the rigging. We survived the night with the anchor holding well. The VHF radio weather gave reports of 50mph winds and 4 meter seas on the outside.
The next day was spent there as we watched the rain. Our leak in the electrical panel spread to the master bedroom. I discovered that my books and clothes were getting wet and water was dripping down from the ledge on the ceiling.
We stayed in the anchorage for another night. The second night there was quieter but the rain was relentless.
(Some of joy of the trip is being taken away by the pain in my shoulder. The ships doctor thinks it is an inflammation and I should take Aleve and keep my arm in a sling. The mean arm pain takes my mind off my lower back pain.)
After a bumpy sail, (waves coming over the bow kind of bumpy sail) the next night was a windy night at Union Passage Lagoon. The anchor held nicely. In the morning it looked like water was once again accumulating in the space beneath the anchor well. We will have to take everything out of the V-berth and bail it out. Mark had caulked around in there a couple of weeks ago. At least our boat only leaks on the top!
Our fifth night out we were at the dock at collapsing Butedale. It was blustery and wet when we arrived. Lou and his dog, Burton, were there to greet us. Skipper and Burton get along very well.
It doesn’t look like Lou has done anything to the place since we were there a month and a half ago, except chop firewood.
Although I hadn’t been off the boat for 4 days, I stayed on board because of the wet.
Klemtu Aug 25 and 26
Klemtu is a nice Native Town with a band store (Grocery store and a coffee shop)
Foul weather threatened again and we spent two rainy days at Klemtu on the Government Dock. The first morning we had breakfast at the band store coffee shop. The restaurant is definitely not a fancy place but more than adequate. We enjoyed talking to a native man, Francis, about how to look to nature and predict the weather. The little gulls in the harbor were all hunkered down and had their beaks pointing into the wind. You don’t have to be a meteorologist to know the weather is nasty.
It seemed to the captain that the big blows had exhausted their selves over night and it was safe to venture out again. We left Klemtu around 9:30 after quick breakfast of fruit, yogurt, and cereal. After clearing Cone Island we entered the Finlaysian Channel. The seas were up but “not bad” according to the Captain.
We cut across the Channel to the Percival Narrows. This passage contains an S curve at the end. Boats over 70 feet have difficulty making the turns.
After clearing the Narrows we were in the unprotected waters with 3-meter seas. That’s 12 foot swells and waves to you landlubbers. Skipper and I headed for cover and the brave captain sallied forth into the Mattison Channel. After a few hours of battering, we entered the quieter waters of Reed Passage. Around 5pm we reached our destination of Shearwater Marina.
Our landing was not graceful as the winds pushed us VERY close to an Oyster, a beautiful custom sailboat. Three guys hopped on the Oyster to fend us off.
This is our first “civilization” in about a week. Note: Some say that our Wauquiez is a “Poorman’s Oyster”.
We will do our laundry tomorrow, buy groceries, do cleaning, and bail the v-berth.
(Leak update 8-28-08-the space beneath the anchor locker is dry!)
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
We are Leaving Prince Rupert
It is Wednesday and the storm has passed.
The dock is still very bumpy and rolly. Our slip isn't as bad a the outside slips. That dock looked like Galloping Gertie with its pitch and roll. I got seasickk just walking on it.
We were fortunate to eat at the Cow Bay Cafe again. We had lunch there yesterday. The chef has won numerous awards. She has no formal training, only cooking for her family and their critiques. If I were to be here for any amount of time, I would beg to work in her kitchen and learn from her.
The Captain says we are heading out today for Ocean Falls. It is a very small town near Bella Coola with a beautiful waterfall.
I got my internet Skype Phone working and have been making cheaper phone calls now. I even made a call to a friend in Guam for .21 a minute.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
The dock is still very bumpy and rolly. Our slip isn't as bad a the outside slips. That dock looked like Galloping Gertie with its pitch and roll. I got seasickk just walking on it.
We were fortunate to eat at the Cow Bay Cafe again. We had lunch there yesterday. The chef has won numerous awards. She has no formal training, only cooking for her family and their critiques. If I were to be here for any amount of time, I would beg to work in her kitchen and learn from her.
The Captain says we are heading out today for Ocean Falls. It is a very small town near Bella Coola with a beautiful waterfall.
I got my internet Skype Phone working and have been making cheaper phone calls now. I even made a call to a friend in Guam for .21 a minute.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
Monday, August 18, 2008
Prince Rupert Once More
August 14, we pulled out of Ketchikan-in a drizzle.
We sailed a while until the wind died then motored on to sweet little Meyers Chuck. Again, at 7:30, we were awakened by loud knocking on the hull of the boat, by the Sticky Bun Lady. It was a delicious but rude awakening.
The rain had abated as we continued on to Foggy Bay for a quite night on the hook. We were joined by an old power multihull and a red fishing boat. The rigging on the fishing boat made a perfect X.
Saturday was very foggy as we left our little harbor and headed out to the dreaded Dixon Entrance. We would not have been able to go on without the radar. The sun eventually burned through and we were treated to the beautiful scenery that we had miss the first time we traveled through the area. After 8 hours of motoring we were at the Prince Rupert Rowing and Yacht Club for our reserved slip. We were lucky to get a slip there the last time so I called ahead as we left Ketchikan.
Amazingly I was able to get cell phone calls while out on the ocean. My cousin in Maryland called to wish me happy birthday. Also Mike and his kids called and sang, “Happy Birthday.” When I got on the Internet at port, Sandy and others had emailed me birthday greetings.
We ate at the tiny Cow Bay Café for my birthday dinner. They were absolutely the best meals yet. Everything is prepared from scratch. The beautifully presented food was delicious.
Sunday, Mark worked on drying out the boat while I walked into town for a bit of shopping.
I made Sockeye Salmon, Yukon Gold baby potatoes-refried in butter, and cole salw for dinner. We had leftover Gingerbread Cake with rum sauce and whipped cream for dessert.
We enjoyed talking to a young Amish couple tonight on the dock. They had traveled by train from Michigan. Tomorrow they take the ferry to Alaska. They said that this is their honeymoon trip. Mark has read two books about the Amish this summer so he had a lot of questions to ask them. The woman said that they did not have raingear. He, Joe, said that was all right because they will just stay on their cabin if it rains. She, Edna May, seemed happy to receive my old Helly Hanson rain parka.
Don't know if we will sail away tomorrow or not. Guess the morning will tell us.
Check out new photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
It may will be a while before I will be able to blog next because we will be in the back channels untill we get to Port Hardy.
We sailed a while until the wind died then motored on to sweet little Meyers Chuck. Again, at 7:30, we were awakened by loud knocking on the hull of the boat, by the Sticky Bun Lady. It was a delicious but rude awakening.
The rain had abated as we continued on to Foggy Bay for a quite night on the hook. We were joined by an old power multihull and a red fishing boat. The rigging on the fishing boat made a perfect X.
Saturday was very foggy as we left our little harbor and headed out to the dreaded Dixon Entrance. We would not have been able to go on without the radar. The sun eventually burned through and we were treated to the beautiful scenery that we had miss the first time we traveled through the area. After 8 hours of motoring we were at the Prince Rupert Rowing and Yacht Club for our reserved slip. We were lucky to get a slip there the last time so I called ahead as we left Ketchikan.
Amazingly I was able to get cell phone calls while out on the ocean. My cousin in Maryland called to wish me happy birthday. Also Mike and his kids called and sang, “Happy Birthday.” When I got on the Internet at port, Sandy and others had emailed me birthday greetings.
We ate at the tiny Cow Bay Café for my birthday dinner. They were absolutely the best meals yet. Everything is prepared from scratch. The beautifully presented food was delicious.
Sunday, Mark worked on drying out the boat while I walked into town for a bit of shopping.
I made Sockeye Salmon, Yukon Gold baby potatoes-refried in butter, and cole salw for dinner. We had leftover Gingerbread Cake with rum sauce and whipped cream for dessert.
We enjoyed talking to a young Amish couple tonight on the dock. They had traveled by train from Michigan. Tomorrow they take the ferry to Alaska. They said that this is their honeymoon trip. Mark has read two books about the Amish this summer so he had a lot of questions to ask them. The woman said that they did not have raingear. He, Joe, said that was all right because they will just stay on their cabin if it rains. She, Edna May, seemed happy to receive my old Helly Hanson rain parka.
Don't know if we will sail away tomorrow or not. Guess the morning will tell us.
Check out new photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
It may will be a while before I will be able to blog next because we will be in the back channels untill we get to Port Hardy.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Ketchikan Revisted
We have been here in Ketchikan for 3 days, trying to recover from all that sun in Wrangell!
Our neighbor at the dock showed us his raingauge for the last 24 hours--4 inches. Believe me it rains alot here...sorry if I had mentioned that before.
There are still some leaks on the boat. The latest was the v-berth head. It was rapidly taking in sea water (clean). Mark used an old repair kit and replaced the "flapper".
We celebrated our 41st wedding anniversary last night at Annabells Restaurant. Wonderful.
Limited internet time here so I will post pics when we get to Prince Rupert in about a week.
Our neighbor at the dock showed us his raingauge for the last 24 hours--4 inches. Believe me it rains alot here...sorry if I had mentioned that before.
There are still some leaks on the boat. The latest was the v-berth head. It was rapidly taking in sea water (clean). Mark used an old repair kit and replaced the "flapper".
We celebrated our 41st wedding anniversary last night at Annabells Restaurant. Wonderful.
Limited internet time here so I will post pics when we get to Prince Rupert in about a week.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Back to Wrangell
Tuesday,the 5th of August, we pulled out of Deception Point Bay mid-morning and continued south for the little town of Wrangle. The weather continued to improve and by the time we reached Wrangle (less than 4 hours) summer had begun.
Women and children had donned their tank tops and sundresses. Men were wearing their rolled down or clog style gumboots and had discarded their hooded sweatshirts. It was High Summer!
I had several opportunities to photograph totems in bright sunlight!
Wednesday we cleaned the boat, did laundry, and worked on solving some mechanical problems. That day, one problem was solved-the outboard motor was probably over filled with oil and that caused it to balk at starting. The remaining problem, the non-charging house batteries, stayed unsolved until a mechanic was called the next day.
I had met a guy on the dock who was restoring an old Gulf 32 for a friend. He thought he might be able to help with the electrical problem. It turns out that he is a college professor at James Madison in Virginia. (My nephew graduated from there 3 years ago.) Gary has a book of photography coming out next spring on the volcanoes of Alaska. He used his voltmeter on the system but couldn’t figure out the cause of the problem.
Andrea, Gary’s daughter, flew in that evening from Virginia. She is a college student at William and Mary.
The next day, with sunny weather continuing, Andrea and I went out to Petroglyph Beach to photograph and beachcomb. I found a bag-full of sea glass, an antique button, and an excellent polished agate. Mark had called a mechanic so he stayed at the boat. Andrea is an aspiring opera singer and FBI adgent.
The mechanic showed up after we got back and found the problem but didn’t have the parts to fix it. Mark did a bypass on the bad “isolator” and now we are in good shape until we can get a replacement.
Yesterday, Mark felt like he needed a “decompression” day so we took the dog up to Petroglyph Beach for our day off. Skipper had a great time bugging French tourists picnicking. Again I found lots of sea glass and another button.
Now, we are going to leave my favorite Alaskan town, and head down to Ketchikan.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
Women and children had donned their tank tops and sundresses. Men were wearing their rolled down or clog style gumboots and had discarded their hooded sweatshirts. It was High Summer!
I had several opportunities to photograph totems in bright sunlight!
Wednesday we cleaned the boat, did laundry, and worked on solving some mechanical problems. That day, one problem was solved-the outboard motor was probably over filled with oil and that caused it to balk at starting. The remaining problem, the non-charging house batteries, stayed unsolved until a mechanic was called the next day.
I had met a guy on the dock who was restoring an old Gulf 32 for a friend. He thought he might be able to help with the electrical problem. It turns out that he is a college professor at James Madison in Virginia. (My nephew graduated from there 3 years ago.) Gary has a book of photography coming out next spring on the volcanoes of Alaska. He used his voltmeter on the system but couldn’t figure out the cause of the problem.
Andrea, Gary’s daughter, flew in that evening from Virginia. She is a college student at William and Mary.
The next day, with sunny weather continuing, Andrea and I went out to Petroglyph Beach to photograph and beachcomb. I found a bag-full of sea glass, an antique button, and an excellent polished agate. Mark had called a mechanic so he stayed at the boat. Andrea is an aspiring opera singer and FBI adgent.
The mechanic showed up after we got back and found the problem but didn’t have the parts to fix it. Mark did a bypass on the bad “isolator” and now we are in good shape until we can get a replacement.
Yesterday, Mark felt like he needed a “decompression” day so we took the dog up to Petroglyph Beach for our day off. Skipper had a great time bugging French tourists picnicking. Again I found lots of sea glass and another button.
Now, we are going to leave my favorite Alaskan town, and head down to Ketchikan.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Petersburg-again
So it is South we go.
We left Juneau three days ago as the sun was trying to shine. It failed. Again we faced the Douglas Bridge, this time clearing by at least a foot. See the video on the gallery site. It is rated PG-13 for language. Sorry about the orientation.
I had adjusted the ISO on my camera because so many of my pictures were dark. Most of the last two day’s pictures are bright but grainy. There is always a trade-off.
The first night out of Juneau we revisited Taku Harbor. The same fishing tender, The Island Dancer, was docked there again. This time the 4 boys were jumping off the boat and the dock into the water. The dad came out and yelled, “Bear”. Everyone looked down the shore and saw a big black bear near the water.
There was a group of people at the picnic table along the shore. They got up and looked down the shore to see what all the shouting was about and then calmly went back to their dinner. The black bear was just 400 yards from their table.
Later we found out that they were Italian and only spoke a little English. They didn’t understand, “bear”. They wanted to see my photos of the bear when they found out what had happened. All six of them, two couples and two guys, came aboard Kiata to see the pictures. I transferred the grainy pictures to their memory stick. I have since restored my ISO setting to finer grain.
The next night we went to the State Dock in Entrance Harbor. No bears, no bergs, just a drunk lighthouse keeper on leave, and a nice couple from Victoria with their furry dog, “Missy.”
Last night was spent on the hook at Portage Bay. It was very scenic, dark, and quite.
Today, as we continued on to Petersburg, Mark had a chance to put the sails up for a while.
Tonight we are at the southern dock in Petersburg. It is newer and has a lot less activity. The sun was able to cast shadows today but then retreated behind the clouds.
“Life on a boat is a fluid situation.”
Earlier in the week I had noticed that some of the bags in the V-berth were moldy and began to pull everything out of there. The sides above the mattress were covered with mold and everything touching them was moldy. Wonderful.
The source of the problem seems to be a recurrence of the leak in the anchor locker. We had it “fixed” last spring. Mark removed three buckets of salt water from the space under the bed. Now besides the clean up, there will have to be another repair. All the stuff that was stored in that berth is now in our spare head (bathroom), and the moldy stuff bagged for the laundry.
Today, Saturday, August 02, 2008 we woke up to bright sunlight! And now at 6pm in the evening, I can say that it hasn’t rained all day!
We left Juneau three days ago as the sun was trying to shine. It failed. Again we faced the Douglas Bridge, this time clearing by at least a foot. See the video on the gallery site. It is rated PG-13 for language. Sorry about the orientation.
I had adjusted the ISO on my camera because so many of my pictures were dark. Most of the last two day’s pictures are bright but grainy. There is always a trade-off.
The first night out of Juneau we revisited Taku Harbor. The same fishing tender, The Island Dancer, was docked there again. This time the 4 boys were jumping off the boat and the dock into the water. The dad came out and yelled, “Bear”. Everyone looked down the shore and saw a big black bear near the water.
There was a group of people at the picnic table along the shore. They got up and looked down the shore to see what all the shouting was about and then calmly went back to their dinner. The black bear was just 400 yards from their table.
Later we found out that they were Italian and only spoke a little English. They didn’t understand, “bear”. They wanted to see my photos of the bear when they found out what had happened. All six of them, two couples and two guys, came aboard Kiata to see the pictures. I transferred the grainy pictures to their memory stick. I have since restored my ISO setting to finer grain.
The next night we went to the State Dock in Entrance Harbor. No bears, no bergs, just a drunk lighthouse keeper on leave, and a nice couple from Victoria with their furry dog, “Missy.”
Last night was spent on the hook at Portage Bay. It was very scenic, dark, and quite.
Today, as we continued on to Petersburg, Mark had a chance to put the sails up for a while.
Tonight we are at the southern dock in Petersburg. It is newer and has a lot less activity. The sun was able to cast shadows today but then retreated behind the clouds.
“Life on a boat is a fluid situation.”
Earlier in the week I had noticed that some of the bags in the V-berth were moldy and began to pull everything out of there. The sides above the mattress were covered with mold and everything touching them was moldy. Wonderful.
The source of the problem seems to be a recurrence of the leak in the anchor locker. We had it “fixed” last spring. Mark removed three buckets of salt water from the space under the bed. Now besides the clean up, there will have to be another repair. All the stuff that was stored in that berth is now in our spare head (bathroom), and the moldy stuff bagged for the laundry.
Today, Saturday, August 02, 2008 we woke up to bright sunlight! And now at 6pm in the evening, I can say that it hasn’t rained all day!
Our Last Day in Juneau
The tour of the USS Juneau was magnificent. After standing in line for 45 minutes and making new friends, we were divided into groups of 18 and taken aboard the ship. This USS Juneau is a troop carrier and beach landing ship. Most of the lower haul is a large open space holding at least one HUGE hovercraft. The bow door opens to allow the hovercraft to take troops and equipment ashore. We toured the bridge, radar room, mess and most of the decks. There was a lot of going up and down on steep ladders! The ship is headed down to San Diego for mothballing. At the end of the tour I felt like I was ready for mothballing!
We saw our tall sailor friend from Phoenix later in the day. The town “adopted” all the crew and entertained them. He was enjoying his visit to Juneau and thankful he was not in Phoenix with the 118-degree heat.
After another delicious meal at the Hanger and some shopping we went back to the boat for a good nap. Then the decision to not try to go any further north and head for warmer and drier climates to the south.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
We saw our tall sailor friend from Phoenix later in the day. The town “adopted” all the crew and entertained them. He was enjoying his visit to Juneau and thankful he was not in Phoenix with the 118-degree heat.
After another delicious meal at the Hanger and some shopping we went back to the boat for a good nap. Then the decision to not try to go any further north and head for warmer and drier climates to the south.
Check out photo albums at: http://picasaweb.google.com/kiata.linda08
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