August 15 Ganges B.C.

By early July, we had made it to Port McNeill along the northern west coast of Vancouver Island. The broken alternator issue was still in limbo, but a new one awaited us. I installed it, only to "burn" the connection to the "house bank" of batteries. I was told that the cable must have been lose, and to replace the cable....it worked perfectly.

At the Harbor, we saw many old friends and made many new ones. A "real" boat was docked across from us...


We ran most mornings around the town and wanted to plant some of these trees!



The detail in this fence was amazing:

The crabbing remained good, and Christy insisted on photographing all of our meals:


I have wanted a fish-cleaning platform on the swim step, and we were directed to Frankie Dormier as a master stainless steel builder and fabricator. He looked ta the boat, and designed the perfect platform. He came to the boat to customize it, and install it:


We decided to head further into the "Broughtons" and found our favorite spot yet...Kwatsi Bay. We have friends who have said that they would like to spend the entire summer there, and now we know why. Anka and Max, with their two kids, Russell and Marika live there and what hosts they are. The setting is in a huge cove with steep side walls surrounding. There is snow above, a huge water fall on one side, and the crabbing and prawning is great! My first big "pot" of prawns was photographed as I came to shore, and I found out that it was by the editor of the cruising bible, Waggoners. He actually put our picture and story on his web-site the next day.


At Kwatsi, every other day is pot-luck dinner (mandatory) and everyother day is cocktail hour (also mandatory). What fun to sit on the dock every afternoon and rehash stories and learn from fellow boaters.


In the Bay, the kayaking was great..



The water fall next to the dock at Kwatsi..


Here is Dave, Carol, and Jasper. Dave is a professional Tug captain, cruising from Anchorage to Seattle on his 100' Tug. Their pleasure boat is the one behind them, the Navigator. It is a 42' Norhavn purchased a year ago. He will leave his boat while he returns to work for 6 weeks....6 on and 6 off.




Our next stop was at Pierre's at Echo Bay. This is a very popular stop, mostly because of the pig roast every Saturday. Chris is here on the dock,


and here on our walk to Billy Proctor's museum..


Billy Proctor has collected artifacts for 50 years and has put them all on display in a museum. It is an incredible collection of great stuff....he also has written a book.."Full Moon-Flood Tide" which is a must read. Christy has an autographed copy!


Overlooking the dock at Pierre's...


We headed home after July 4th to see the kids but mostly to see grand-kids...

Isla's grin is infectious...


Addison, Ethan, and Harrison in the backyard..


And William IV enjoying company and food

Then we headed in our plane back toward the boat, but we detoured to the Oshkosh fly-in first. We took the bikes to get around at OSH, but they will come in handy again on the boat, as we get closer to Anacortes..

Chris biking around the runway at OSH


An electric fan to propell the willing into the air....what a device!


We landed at the Boeing Field in Seattle, left our plane, and flew on Kenmore Air Floats back to Greenway Sound (where we left our boat)




Back at Greenway, this is a hike to 2 lakes above the marina


The proprietor advised me about where to put out the prawn pots, and we had another "haul"..


The crabs that are this big have about 2 pounds of meat each! The picture below is the meat from just these two crabs...





Last year we travelled for weeks with two great friends, Ron and Kap Ferguson. Their boat last year was Cosmo Place. They sold it during the winter and bought a brand new Flemming shown here, named Flying Colours....we have comunicated with them often about trying to hook up this summer, but it didn't happen until last week. While we are underway, I have called to them on the VHF frequency often just in case they were nearby. While we were in Johnstone Strait, I heard them call for us. We were headed toward Campbell River, but diverted toward them at Blind Channel. What a reunion we had! Touring their boat was a treat in itself! It is fabulous! We cruised by dinghy to dinner about 5 miles away, and had to have a designated driver (Kap) to get home




Then it was off to Vancouver. This is the city off our bow as we headed in. We would bear right into False Creek and dock in downtown...




This is False Creek looking toward the entrance from our moorage. The 1,000 acrea park is in the city to the far right with over 50 miles of trails! Keep in mind that Central Park in NYC is only 900 acreas. (Ruffner Mountain in Birmingham is 1,100 acreas!!!)


Here is Undoc'd viewed from the bridge over False Creek..



We left Vancouver to go to Ganges, BC. This is a small village on the island of Saltspring. Everyone loves their market on Saturday's, so we had to be there. Below is the view of the marina from a popular hotel, Hastings...



Hastings gardens are terrific




There is a park in downtown Ganges called Muoat's. We ran there in the mornings...



And now it is Sunday morning, August 16th and we are loading up to cruise toward Brentwood Bay, Sidney, and/or the Butchart Garden bay. Last year we saw the gardens from the Victoria side, and can't wait to see them again this year. Craig and Millie are joining us this Friday in Victoria for some cruising and we will definitely see the gardens with them....

Tuesday, June 16th in Port McNeill

Thursday, June 11, 2009
We took a different route this trip from last year, and we were visited by whales all along the Finlayson Channel. We covered the 50 miles easily, and played with the radar alarms, and sea bottom data. It was mostly overcast until noon when it cleared up again. We arrived in Shearwater at 3:00 or so, and they had a spot at the dock for us. It was a 50 foot gap between two large boats, and we slipped her in there just like pros (our stern thruster is still out, until I can get her hauled out for a repair). This is an interesting town, Indian (First Nation by their description) populated, and an important stopover for boaters traveling north or south. Unfortunately, there is no cell coverage, but there is a weak internet connection. My U/N and P/W from last year was still good, so we posted the pictures from the past few days. We will start early to get as close as we can to the last major “crossing”, that of Queen Charlotte Sound, also called Cape Caution. This one makes us both nervous!

Friday, June 12, 2009
We are up early, and underway. First, we needed to depart the dock without bumping any other boats. There is a strategy to leave the bow tied tightly, push the stern away briskly, and then when clear, use reverse to get away. It worked well, and we were headed toward Cape Caution by 7:00 AM. Our plan was to get to a secure waiting cove north of the passage, and then cross early on Saturday. We had covered 60 miles by 2:00 and were at a decision point….either duck into cover for the night, or proceed with the crossing which would take another 2 hours with the winds having increased from 5 kt to 15 kts during the past hour. We decided to give it a try, and see how it felt. We were in the lee of several islands which helped greatly, and we proceeded across the Queen Charlotte Sound and around Cape Caution. We had the winds, waves, and the weather at our backs, so the ride was not too rough, and we turned the corner to a cloud-free sky and beautiful weather. Since we had not planned to make the crossing today, we had not researched an anchorage. Chris got the maps out and began studying…she suggested Skull Cove, which is described as “one of the prettiest anchorages you will find”. It tucks around an unnamed island into a cove with rocks, islands, and scenery all 360 degrees! Many use this as an overnight before the crossing heading north. The winds had picked up by this time (4:00) but the bottom was great holding mud. Since we were a day ahead of schedule, we decided that we would spend a couple of days at this site. Tomorrow shall be a crabbing day!

Today marks a month in Alaska on the boat. We have spent more days at anchor than at dock, and we have only eaten 4 times off the boat. One of those was with Niki and Bud in Ketchikan (thanks, Niki and Bud), and one was with Paula and Randy (what great friends). Christy says that she is now, and only now, truly on vacation. She has worried about the two crossings since last year, and now they are both behind us. The boat is in fine shape, the new alternator awaits us at Port McNeil, and our comfort level with the boat grows. We are making more water than we can use, the icemaker is keeping up with our needs, and the washer and dryer have us clean. The house battery-bank is strong, and we have enough food to last...”about 2 weeks” according to Chris. Our refrig and freezer is stuffed, and 2 ice chests are full as well. What a life this could be. This is why we have decided to leave the boat in the PNW another year or two. Tomorrow is haircut day (on the bow by Christy), crab-pots down, and I will install a depth finder on the dinghy.

Saturday, June 13th
This was a great day of recovery, relaxation, and chores. I launched the dinghy first thing and wired the depth finder to the battery. It required splicing 4 lengths of 16g wire to include a fuse in-line, and battery connectors at the ends. It works great, but I will wait until we are at dock to drill the holes in the transom for permanent mounting. For now, I can hold the transducer in my hand and get depth readings fine. I then headed out in the cove to launch 2 crab pots. Then Chris and I found a great place for my kayak, on the outside of the upper deck railing, very secure and out of the way. Much better! Chris’ kayak is secure under the cover on the fly-bridge.

Christy shelled the last 4 crabs from the harvest of a few days ago, and prepared another crab feast on salad…about 2 lbs each. I then headed to the 2 pots, not expecting much, and we had 5 huge Dungeness of about 2 lbs each. As I cleaned them, Chris had the water boiling, they were cooked, and we cleaned the meat out and are set for crab-cakes tomorrow. But first, she made our salads with them... All of this took about 1 hour from pulling them out of the water, to having the meat ready to go. We will head to Port McNeil tomorrow and be at a dock waiting for a new alternator. This little cove has been beautiful and well protected from the winds. The weather was again great, with the sun coming out to a cloudless sky by noon, and the winds only about 10 kt.

We loaded the dinghy, and checked everything for the crossing of Queen Charlotte Strait, and were ready. The departure is through a very narrow entrance, and caution is the word of the morning... Early on Sunday morning, June 13th, we pulled anchor and headed across the Strait. This is one of the rare places where the high and low tides do not time with slack currents. Normally, as the tide maxes out (or minimizes out) the currents also come to slack water. Crossing the Strait, high tide may be at 8:00 (for instance today) while slack water occurs at 9:30. As we left the cove, we were face to face with swells from the NW as we headed West toward Port McNeill. It was much rougher than we anticipated, but it looked calmer further out. We pushed on, and it became glassy smooth at the middle. What a pleasant surprise! We pulled into Port McNeill feeling great, and immediately headed out for an exploratory run of the town. It is small, quaint, and beautiful. We found the grocery store, the marine supply store, and Progressive Diesel where my new alternator will be shipped.

The houses are terrific, with views over the strait from high above...

We saw a Norhdavn on the dock that looked exactly like our friend's boat from last summer, Scott and Teri Strickland. I went to introduce myself, and it was the same boat...Scott sold it about 2 months ago. I immediately called Scott (now in Ft. Lauderdale) and we laughed and laughed. He is anxious to get another boat (after he works awhile to recoup and restore finances) and rejoin us next year. What a small world.

Then we met our dock-mates, John and Margie on a Symbol 55' and joined them for cocktails and fun. He is 82, and she is 54...both are full of life and enjoy living aboard from May thru October every year. During the winter, home is Tuscon, AZ. On Tuesday, Chris and I rode the bus north to Pt. Hardy to look around, shop, and have lunch. What a day. We heard that the alternator will not arrive until Friday afternoon, so we may cruise to Sointula and Alert Bay tomorrow....we'll see.

Other wildlife in the harbor...

And this tug moored across from us...

See you tomorrow!

Prince Rupert to Shearwater...Thursday June 11

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Our arrival in Prince Rupert was not without issues. We had the understanding that if weather or distances were prohibitive, you could overnight (anchor only) prior to clearing customs. Well, that is the case when entering the US (heading north to AK, for example). We called customs in Prince Rupert and told them the truth about anchoring in Brundidge Inlet (in Canadian waters) the night before. As Christy says, “never tell the truth” (just kidding). They sent 2 agents to our boat to inspect us, and while they were very nice, they were also thorough and suspicious. Now we know that no matter what, you cannot enter Canadian waters and stop until you clear.

We intended to stay one night at the PRR&YC (Prince Rupert Rowing & Yacht Club), so the next morning (Monday June 8^th) we filled with fuel and started out of the harbor. I noticed that our voltage on the start, house, and generator batteries was not where they should have been. This is bad. Chris went to idle while I went below to find that our alternator belt was off as a consequence of the #2 alternator coming loose with a broken bolt. This is really bad, since the belt is required for the water pump to cool the engine, as well as both alternators. Furthermore, that usually kills the alternator. We shut the engine down and called to find a tow back to our marina. I found a diesel mechanic to meet us at the dock (Barry and Angelo of Bytown Diesel), and they were waiting when we arrived. Last summer, the same alternator had broken loose exactly like this! Volvo had told me that the remedy had been made with new bolts, but obviously that was incorrect. I called Volvo, and they were very, very uncooperative. Barry & Angelo got two grade A bolts to secure the “bad” alternator, helped me remount it, and we were set to go, but with only one alternator. I asked Volvo about getting a replacement (we are still within the 2 year warranty period) and they would not commit to covering it. Perhaps they don’t understand what “2 years” means and they may need an attorney to explain it to them. They have agreed to ship a new one to Port McNeil, but wanted my credit card for payment! I will deal with the warranty issue later. Needless to say, Chris is a little nervous being underway with a failed component, but everything seemed to be working well otherwise. Our voltages remained good, and off we went.

Tuesday June 9^th we left heading toward the Grenville Channel. We tucked into Baker Cove and anchored in a most beautiful spot, surrounded by snow-capped mountains in the bright sunshine. Our timing gave us a flood “push” all the way. Tomorrow early should continue to be good currents. I sat out on deck reading while Chris did the work...

Wednesday June 10^th, we left at 5:00 AM to get the ebb tide out of Grenville, and we were seeing a 3 to 4 kt push for over 3 hours. Now that’s a trip! We passed about 20 fishing boats heading opposite against the currents. We are heading toward the site, Turtle Point, where a ferry crashed 2 years ago. You may remember the incident, since 120 people were dumped into the cold waters in the middle of night, and all were rescued by the First Nation Indians from the nearby town of Hartley Bay. The captain of the ferry had turned off the alarm that sounds when it’s time to sequence to the next waypoint, and ran directly into the point. In gratitude, the ferry company paid for a new float/dock system for the citizens that is quite elaborate. It looks like we will make Port McNeil in 4 days to get the new alternator, and then on to the Broughtons!

Just at the entrance to Hartley Bay, we entered the most dense fog that I’ve ever been in. I hope the pictures show the “bank” as we entered it, but visibility fell to absolutely zero. With the radar on, we could see that other boats were still underway in the fog, so we slowed down and monitored the oncoming traffic. As we veered right and left, we communicated with each one to alert them as to our intentions. Each vessel had radar also,

"Radar shot, with two "threats" on the screen. Visibility was Zero. We never saw the boats as they passed"

so we were watching each other and passing either port to port, or starboard to starboard. We were in the soup for about 2.5 hours, and finally exited it at Tribble Point.

This is a shot as we left the fog...

The remainder of the day was glorious sunshine, with great pictures of waterfalls coming into Fraser, and then Graham Reach. Our anchorage will be at Green Inlet, Horsefly Cove. We will have covered 75 miles today, with another 40 to Shearwater, and then 120 more to Port McNeil.

Ketchikan to Prince Rupert

New Eddystone Rock, outside the entrance to Punchbowl Cove

Monday, May 25^th, 2009:

Before leaving Petersburg, we helped this gill-netter load his new net...

Calculating the timing for travel is important, especially in the big waters of the Alaskan coast. We are traveling south through the famous Wrangell Narrows, but that empties into Sumner Strait, feeding off the Pacific. You never want to enter that strait with opposing winds and tides, so the calculations. We estimate that we will arrive at 3:00PM, just at the high tide. That means an ebb flow, which is west in Sumner, will follow. The forecast is for easterly winds, so that is good…we’ll see.

We said goodbye to Lee & Diane...

It worked out perfectly, with our anchorage at St. John’s Harbor near the “big water”. We were close to shore, but in 40 feet of water, and I launched one crab pot. The next morning, we readied and headed to Wrangell. That took about 3 hours and the marina had dock space. This is a quaint little town, full of characters. The first person we met was Knut from near Seattle. He is a commercial fisherman by trade, but now retired and fishing every day for “fun”. His wife, Gerry, is a Bartlett from Cullman! The world is very small.

Then Wednesday morning, we went out for a run toward a new harbor built in Wrangell since our visit there last year. As we left the dock, there were two large fishing trawlers on the grid, at low tide. They use that to work below the water line as a free “haul-out”, and when the tide floods, they are launched again. The new harbor is huge, and only about a mile from town. We went into a shop we saw last year and talked to the owner for a hour before heading back via the grocery store. We re-stocked as much as we could think of, and I spent the rest of the afternoon removing the stern-thruster motor from inside the boat. The factory had suggested that the shear-pin between the motor and the drive would be the first one to break, and it can be replaced from within the boat. So after about 2 hours of work, I removed it, and the shear-pin was intact. That means that the “failed” pin is the one from the shaft to the propeller. That takes a haul-out to fix. Oh, well. I called Kurt Dillworth at Tomco Marine (builders of our boat) and we talked about many things relating to the boat, newer design changes, etc. Meanwhile, we had to get the line out of the thruster propeller....

A local diver, Bob Z. did the job...and he pulled this out...

The big AT Rendezvous is Sept 25^th at the factory, and we will see him there.

Our course further south is the “eastern passage” around Wrangell Island, a route we did not take last year. It passes by Anan, the famous bear viewing area during the summer. It is only open when the salmon are running, and we’ve never seen that spectacle. We would need an early departure in order to avoid an ebb tide current against us, so we hoped to get away by 7:00. Of course when you are planning on an early start, you wake up too early (we were underway at 5:00!!). I had calculated the currents such that they would provide a “push” the entire way, but they didn’t. Not sure why. We wanted to get to one of our favorite spots last year, Meyer’s Chuck, and the day was beautiful. Enroute we were greeted by Dall Porpoises, numbering 10 or so….I got a terrific video of them surfing our bow wake. When I went below, I could hear their noises thru our hull in the bow.

We arrived at 12:00 noon and met a few people at the dock.

Rain had started, so we just ate and read after walking around the village. The next morning the winds were calm, so we decided to take advantage and move toward Misty Fjords, the circumference around the Island that Ketchikan is on. This is a National Monument and is one of the most famous of the Inside Passage. The route is about 100 miles, and we would arrive in Ketchikan to meet Niki and Bud Culver on June 2^nd. But the “sticky bun lady” must be waited for at the dock. She brings them to the dock at 7:30 every morning, so we waited and they were really good!

The 44 miles to the next anchorage was in the beginning of the Misty Fjord, a spot called Snail Point. Don’t you love the names? I dropped two crab pots before cocktails. We could hear the anchor chain dragging across the stone bottom, so I got out the anchor bridle, and it solved the noise issue completely. The bridle places a nylon line between the chain and the boat, thus removing any transmitted sounds. It also drops the contact point to below the water line, reducing the amount of scope necessary (or improving your anchorage for any given scope). We got up early to begin the journey to Punchbowl Cove, one of the most photographed areas in Alasaka.

What a day to travel….sun and warm weather. I’ve mentioned the issue of waves created by opposing tide and wind, and we were in choppy seas with waves around 1 to 2 feet. We were heading southeast with the winds in our face out of the SE. We had an ebb tide with us, opposing the wind. The slack after the ebb was calculated to be at 12 noon, so we watched to see what the flood (with the wind) would do to the waves… and at almost exactly 12 noon, the water became as smooth as glass! Christy said that we have no more excuses for rough weather…we simply will wait until the winds and tides cooperate.

Our arrival into Punchbowl was truly magnificent. Clear, no boats in the cove, calm weather, and the granite wall vertical to 3,000 feet forming the north border. It is breathtaking to see, and the pictures cannot reveal the majesty of it. We tied to a mooring buoy (much easier than anchoring) and settled in. The next morning, there was not a cloud in the sky! We decided to stay another day here, and after pancakes, we launched the kayaks for the first time. What fun! We spent over 2 hours along the shores and taking pictures. The boat looked so good in the sparkling sunshine, that I couldn’t resist taking more. We sunbathed on the deck, read, and then kayaked again. What a day. We have loaded and secured the kayaks for the trip to Ketchikan in the morning…Christy can’t wait to see her brother on June 4^th there. We spent two night at Punchbowl Cove and the only people we saw was a couple who arrived to camp out on shore. I kayaked to meet them, and they are on a 3 week vacation, with a ferry that drops them off at certain locations for a few days at a time with provisions and gear. It’ll be hard to top the past 2 days, as the temp was 70 today, and cloudless! There is a trail at the head of the cove, slippery and steep, but terrific but not maintained...

Saturday, June 06, 2009

We are ending 5 days spent in wonderful Ketchikan, AK. After Punchbowl, we found a slip in the northern part, but walked to the “downtown” marina and met Garry Morfit. He has an older trawler, but well equipped. He was sitting on the dock working on his lines when we walked up. We asked how he got that slip, and he said by luck, but it’s “first come, first served”. He offered to call us at the other marina if anything opened up. The next morning (Tuesday the 2^nd) at 7:00 am, he called and we jumped into high-gear! We got the slip across the dock from him, and that began a great friendship. He heads a mission called Project Healing Waters. He invites to his boat wounded soldiers from the Iraq conflict, takes them out as crew to enjoy the Alaskan experience. He has 160 soldier-days scheduled already for this summer. I watched a DVD of them catching a 110 lb Halibut, pulling crab traps, etc. and having a ball. All of this on his nickel! He became another mentor to us, and we spent hours together talking about boats, boating issues, fishing, anchoring, fixin’ things, etc.

I worked on a few splices to "bridle" the crab pots...

Paula Wiesel owns the Arctic Bar in Ketchikan. She was the spirit last year at the bake auction benefit, and we looked forward to seeing her again. She was as lively as ever, and we met her in the bar every day. She invited Christy and me to dinner at the Salmon Falls resort. What a setting, with a huge old lodge overlooking the Behm Canal of Misty Fjords. We had a great meal and enjoyed spending more time with Paula and her boyfriend, Randy. Randy’s father is 83 and still one of the most productive fishermen in the area.

Niki and Bud Culver arrived on a cruise boat on Thursday, June 4^th. We got to spend the day hanging out and hiking part of Deer Mountain Trail. We sat out on the fly-bridge talking for hours and Christy was in heaven seeing her brother all day. I finally got around to adding 150 ft of rope line to my 200 ft of anchor chain. There are times when you may need that length, but it also gives you a way to get rid of a fouled anchor (cutting rope is easier than chain!). After splicing the line to the chain and securing the bitter end, I played it out and practiced getting the line from the windlass to the capsan (other side). That proved more difficult than I imagined, and after many agonizing small injuries and blisters, I had it all figured out. Once I had the chain off under load, and couldn’t get it back on. Christy suggested using the “come-a-long” that I bought a week ago, and it worked great. She is a genius, and she lets me know often.

Garry suggested that we head out on Friday the 5^th toward Weasel Cove about 30 miles away. Since this was almost our route to Prince Rupert (planned for Saturday the 6^th) we jumped at the chance. He caught a nice King Salmon on the way, and then we put out our “pots”. After social hour, we went to pull them, and one of mine was stuffed with huge Dungeness Crabs! What a feast. We went to our boat to cook them, and Garry cleaned his Salmon. It is now in our ‘fridge waiting on our next meal, because the crabs were more than we could eat. We each ate about 3 lbs of crab and collapsed. Christy and I planned an early start this morning, so we got up at 5:30, but it took us ‘till 7:00 to get things stowed, the dinghy secure to the upper deck, and get underway. This could be our last day in Alaska until next year. We are underway heading toward the Dixon Crossing. I spoke with a Nordic Tug we passed (Oleander) and he crossed with good weather yesterday, so we will keep our fingers crossed.

We departed late, after working on the gen-set intake….it had overheated late on Friday, so I cleaned the intake and sea-strainer of weed, and we left at noon. It was a long and bumpy ride toward Prince Rupert. After 5 hours, we were nearing the mid-point of Dixon with another 3 hours to go. We decided to rest in the protected inlet called Brundidge Inlet. That is in Canada, but the remainder of the cruise would take another 3 hours, and seemed too much. The sun was shinning, and we recovered from the crossing with a book on the bow... You can spend a single night prior to clearing customs either north bound to clear in Ketchikan, or south bound to clear in Prince Rupert. We’ll get an early start tomorrow (Sunday, June 07, 2009) and clear customs at the Prince Rupert Yacht Club near mid-town.

Video of the Dall Porpoises

Leaving Petersburg, Diane, & Lee

Tuesday, May 26th,
Petersburg has a 20 foot tide, and this is what the shore looks like at low tide...

With eagles like pigeons, one on every mast...



After the crabbing, we returned to Petersburg to do boating chores, one of which was getting a line out of our stern thruster. Rather than me dive for it, I hired a diver to get it out. Another lesson learned, but this line was left tied to the staple-rail on the swim platform, so low down that I did not see it when we readied for our return trip. Problem! But it's all worked out now. On our dock was a "gill-netter" rigging a new net for his boat. This stuff is casual but very serious. Dinner was the crab and prawns again....somebody has to eat this...
On our walk after eating, we saw this dear in downtown ...

And this sign in a window says it all, especially about a small town. Every birthday is know to all, and recognized monthly like this...

This is my first attempt at a line splice...I needed to lengthen a 250 foot poly line to 300 feet and this is what it looks like..
Last year, again with Lee's instructions, I did a loop splice around a thimble for an anchor bridle
Lee & Diane are hard to say goodbye to....here is Christy, tears and all...
Monday we waited for the currents to "push" and headed south through the Wrangell Narrows. This is a 20 mile passageway marked with over 60 markers and buoys, with 20 or so major turns, all in a natural waterway. We only burned 2.5 gph and still had over 8kts, since we had a current the entire way. We anchored across Sumner Strait in St. Johns Harbor. Then it was up on Tuesday for the short trip to Wrangell.

This was our first rainy day, overcast, and with seas that were over 3' for about 20 minutes. We sped-up for the first time to 15 kts to shorten time spent in the bumps, but it's clearing up this afternoon. The boat behind us Salty Dawg, is based in Anacortes. They are Kunt and Gerry Frostad, and Gerry is a Bartlett from Cullman...small world isn't it?

Second week, Petersburg, crabbing, prawning...

Lee Simpson is "the man", and his wife, Diane "the lady"! We have followed them around, and learned so much it's hard to describe....some of the below tells about the experience.


Lee cooking steaks before leaving Petersburg for the crabs and prawns..


Lee's tender....this is a 1,300 pound real boat, with an 80 HP outboard that stays on top of Sonata. He has a 2 ton crane to launch it....


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Thursday, May 21, 2009

Lee called at 10:00 and said let’s get going. We cruised over to Thomas Bay, and what a sight.

Undoc'd in Thomas Bay, with a crab trap float deployed....

We curled around Ruth’s Island to our anchor site and launched the dinghies. The crane motor worked without leaking, and the dinghy started right up, our first start of the year. Then we set out my 2 crab pots, and Lee’s 4. This was in about 50 feet of water near a flowing stream (best places, according to Lee). Then we went further along the shore into 300 feet to drop 4 shrimp traps. On the way back, we pulled up one of the crap pots “just to see”, and there were already 2 huge crabs! We decided to wait and harvest everything tomorrow morning. We played Mexican Train on Lee’s boat until 6:00 or so, then came back for the night. The morning will be at 8:00 and our “harvest”.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Christy and I are up at 6:00 to start the gen and get some heat into the boat. She warms up quickly, and the battery bank has only dropped to 70% during the night. At 8:00 sharp, Lee and I head out to “harvest”. Two of the crab pots had a total of 12 huge males, and another had 3 more…this was a lot of crab-meat. Then as I was re-launching one of mine, I let the rope tangle with the buoy, and it sank forever, lost and gone. Lesson learned, and thank God it was not Lee’s. We took them to the boat, and headed to the prawn’s. We had 50 or so huge prawns, and they looked fabulous to me and The Coog….about 50-60 with several huge “tigers” the rest “spots”. Lee suggested dropping the prawn traps again in another spot. We immediately cleaned the crabs, boiled them, and refrigerated them. I almost lost a finger to a big one. You cannot get any fresher than that. Then we cleaned the shrimp and Chris took them back to our boat to cook. She is doing dinner tonight for the 4 of us, and it will be risotto and shrimp, with tomato and cucumber salad, French bread, and the rum cake Chris made yesterday. Then Lee took me out to try our halibut skills. We fished from the dinghy about 3 miles from the boats, and didn’t have any luck. But I am hooked, and now I think I know how to do this stuff.

Lee suggested that we pull anchor at 3:00 and head further into Thomas to an inlet he has anchored before called Scenery Bay. It is beautiful, narrow, and calm. On the way in, he spotted a black bear at the head, and we just sat there for 30 minutes watching him graze and hunt. He was oblivious to us and great fun to watch him. The anchorage in the inlet is very narrow, and deep but we found a 50 foot spot with enough swing room. Lee took a spot further out, in 80 feet of water. Once secure, Chris fine-tuned the dinner while I took care of checking the mechanicals. What a day!

Lee & Diane came over for dinner, and the bear came out again. He roamed for an hour at the spit of land at the mouth, about 40 yds from us. We watched him for the hour, and Lee & I got in the tender to head closer for pictures. He was never startled, but finally headed back into the woods.

On Saturday the 23^rd we got up early to pull the prawn traps, and this time there were even more, and much bigger. What a feast! Lee insisted that I take all of them, which I did, and we cleaned and boiled them before 9:00AM! They would be our appetizer tonight at the dock. We pulled anchor and headed back to Petersburg and the dock. I had some fishing, crabbing, and prawning gear to buy. Lee & Diane came over for the prawns and other horderves at 6:00 and we socialized at the dock before turning in.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Another sunny day, and T-shirt temperatures. We provisioned some, and planned the trip south toward Wrangell. We have an anchorage in mind half way called Jones Harbor near the entrance to Sumner Strait (it comes directly in from the Pacific). Petersburg had a Memorial Weekend fishing tournament every year with $thousands in prize money. The winner for largest Salmon was on display….weighing 59.8 pounds! With this in mind, I made sure that I had bait for the trip to Wrangell. We popped some popcorn, listened to music, and played gin for an hour before getting the book out to read for 5 minutes before passing out.

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First week, from May 12th

Tuesday May 12^th,

We arrived in Sitka after a long day of flying. We left BHM at 7:00 AM (on May 12^th), and arrived in Sitka at 7:30 PM. For the first time, we saw Sitka from the air, and what a sight! They have had sunshine and 65 degrees for the past 3 weeks, and we never had a single day that nice last summer. We headed out for a walk around Sitka, and then straight for some food and the bed, delaying our first visit to the boat until Wednesday morning (5/13).

Wednesday early we headed by bus to the “haul-out” where Undoc’d spent the winter. Along the way, we picked up our two kayaks that had been shipped from Friday Harbor, WA. We spent a long day doing all of the things that are required to both “de-winterize” and trouble-shoot all of the parts, components, systems, storage, clothing left on board, utensils, cleaning, and most important, trying to find out how to get our boat launched the next day. I checked all of the “thru-hulls” and electricals, and took pictures of the bottom of the boat. There was a huge fishing boat in front of us that had been completely covered with plastic, built within a frame of wood. It looked like an almost permanent home for someone, and I could not imagine how they would be moved. It looked like a small home, and moving it would destroy the frame and cover. They assured me that it could (and would) be done, but I was still skeptical.

They said to wait until about 10:00 on Thursday the 14^th for the launching, and we did. Sure enough, they lifted the boat in front without any problem, move it, and then grabbed us for a launch. Christy and I both rode in the boat for the over-land action, and were ready to go through the checklist and start Undoc’d when in the water. It was smoother than we imagined, we tested the engine and thrusters, backed out, and headed toward Sitka. This was about a 4 mile journey, and we did that at near idle speeds, testing only up to 1200 RPM. I had forgotten how fuel efficient we are at that slow speed. We were getting nearly 8 mph and burning only 7 gph at 1200 RPM. The marina “Old Thomsen Dock Harbor” had allowed us to dock at the primo location close to the office, with good electrical and water, and only a 5 minute walk to town.

Now that we were in the water, we could truly check our components for the first time. We expected that several things would suffer the agonies of a long winter in Sitka, and have worried much about this for the past 8 months. We were not disappointed! First, the crane (davit) that is used to launch the dinghy blew a fuse. We replaced it, and it blew again. Not knowing what to do next, we called the manufacturer (Kurt Dilworth is “the man”) and he had the component (Steelhead Marine) call me. He decided that the hydraulic motor had failed and would ship a replacement for a Saturday the 16^th delivery. That seemed overly ambitious, but we’ll see.

Then we found that the sump for the gray water didn’t work. That is a real “deal-killer” since you cannot function without that. All shower and sink water from the staterooms must be pumped out, since they are below the water-line. Kurt said to cut the float switch detector from it’s wires, and intentionally short them to see if the motor would run. We did, and it did, and that meant that the motor was OK, we just needed to install another float switch. I headed to town, bought a new one, and installed it. Everything worked fine. Next problem was found to be the bilge pump in the main hull (engine room). It would not come on, and the float switch lever was “stuck” and wouldn’t move. I bought another one, and that solved that.

Friday the 15^th was “provisioning” day. Getting groceries for a couple of weeks while underway is a significant event. We spent $400 and are certain that we don’t have enough yet. I heard from the Davit maker that the new motor would arrive early on Saturday morning, so I began the dismantling of the old one, taking pictures, making notes, and diagramming the schematics so I would be ready.

Early Saturady, the pump motor arrived, and it took about an hour to install it. What a thrill to see the crane work properly again after connecting 4 high-pressure hoses, and about 8 electricals to the unit. Feeling now ready to depart Sitka, Christy and I headed out to hike the 6 mile trail loop in the forest, and along Indian River. Not a cloud in the sky, and the temp about 65 degrees….what a day! Christy then cooked an incredible meal of chili appetizer, then corn on the cob, spinach, broccoli, with cornbread…what a treat. We are exhausted, but ready to head out tomorrow.

I forgot to describe unpacking, assembling, and inflating the new kayaks. What a product they are. Hobie makes several versions of inflatables with a drive for pedaling. Very ingenious mechanics, with cruising speeds of 8kts without paddling….even faster with paddling added. They were inflated and placed on the upper deck, secured and are ready for use. Many things are yet to be tried, such as the dinghy, but that can wait. We are headed south!

Sunday, May 17, 2009

We were anxious to get started, but needed to wait until after 9:00 in order to take advantage of the currents thru Sergious Narrows. They can approach 8kts, and are routinely 6-7 kts, and you had better plan to have the current pushing you! I got our flag on the stern, and an Alaska flag for our burgee on the bow, pre-flighted the engine, gen-set, retracted the power cord, and then headed to the marine supply store to check for tide and current charts. Christy prepared a huge pot of Risotto and Caprese salad for our dinner later on, and toasted a pan of pine nuts. We had no idea where we would get to, but we were ready to eat already. The smell of the Risotto was incredible, and of course, we had to taste it.

The day was overcast and rainy, with the temp around 55 degrees….not the best day to be in Sitka, but a good day to be underway. Even though our trip is to head south, we must first head north and then east. The reason is the inside passage is a maze of waterways, and everyone wants to avoid getting “outside” in the Pacific. Outside is the most direct way to get south, but there are risks involved, so we head north.

We covered around 50 nm before we decided to anchor for the night. We were near the mouth of Peril Strait, which merges with Chatham Strait, and turns south. This spot is called Honus Bay, and is where we anchored last summer with Greg and Jan Brown on our way to Sitka

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This is the chart-plotter....and below is the same spot viewing a 3-D topography of the bottom:

Pretty cool stuff

Christy did a masterful job at the controls while I lowered the anchor with the windlass. We were in 20 kt winds, so it wasn’t easy keeping Undoc’d pointed into the wind. We were in 20 ft of water, and let out 100 ft of chain. Next stop was an incredible supper!

Everything seems to be working, including the float switch I replaced, and the crane hydraulic motor. Christy washed a load of clothes, dryed them, and all while playing 5 hands of gin. It’s great having all of the amenities of home while “roughing it”. We are planning on watching a DVD tonight, but not sure what yet. The satellite receiver will not get anything until we are further south, typically below 55 degrees of north latitude, so no TV yet. Tomorrow will be better weather, and we are excited to get to Warm Springs. They are really spectacular, they say, since in addition to the warm baths, there are several 200 ft waterfalls that cascade into the cove. That will be only 30 miles from here, so we are not sure whether we will press on further, or stay there tomorrow night.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Well, what a difference a night makes. We awoke to a crystal clear sky, and sun shinning brightly! The winds were 20 kts all night, and the waves were slapping against the hull. We raised anchor and immediately were headed toward Warm Springs. The east coast of Baranof Island is famous for the severe cliffs and waterfalls. We caught the ebb tide just right and had another knot of push helping along. Sunglasses were a must. We could see on the AIS (coded signal sent out by larger boats) that a National Geographic boat was ahead at the Kasnyku Falls, so we headed toward them, and it was amazing. Huge falls cascading into Chatham Strait, that we could motor right up to. Then it was onward. Christy saw commotion in the water ahead, and as we approached, there were 20 or so Dall Porpoises playing. They gathered on both sides of our bow, and Christy got a great video of them playing in our wake. Then we saw our first whales, a pod doing their bubble-feeding, but they were too far off to get pictures.

We turned into Warm Springs, and were greeted by a massive fall smack in the middle of the village. The boardwalk trail went up above the village, and to the lake, but was covered with snow yet to melt. We docked at their public pier which was perfect, and Christy talked to two fishermen just tying up their small boat. One had just purchased one of the homes, and was excited about spending the winter there next year. He said it snowed 27 feet last year! Two large boats were coming in, so we headed out again.

We had to cross Chatham Strait, and there were 3 to 4 foot rollers out there. For the first time, we speeded up to shorten the time for crossing, and then headed east through Fredrick Sound. The fishermen suggested our next anchoring should be at Portage Bay, so off we went. Our first great friends from last year, Lee and Diane Simpson, had wintered their boat, Sonata, in Petersburg. Since that was our destination for tomorrow, I decided to call them on the cell. Lee answered and much to our surprise was still in Petersburg. He said he’ll have dinner ready for us Tuesday night! Lee is the former raisin farmer turned boat builder who personally built his 60 foot, 60 ton steel hulled Sonata. He has a grand piano and a fireplace in his salon, and electronics that remotely monitor and transmit via the web all of his environmental data. If he travels south for the winter, he can always look at the status of his boat on the internet. Can’t wait to see them.

We arrived at Portage Bay at 5:00 after a 70 mile day….too long. We had decided earlier that the weather looked good enough to take advantage of it, and cross Fredrick Sound. We have quite the spot for anchoring, and Christy has put together another incredible meal. This time it was fresh corn, broccoli, sweet potatoes, huge salad, and cornbread. We’re starting on shrimp, salmon, and halibut tomorrow.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Early start to get to Petersburg early enough to get a run in. House battery-bank drifts down at about 2% per hour, which is only 12 amp-hours. The generator restores the overnight losses in less than 30 minutes. We were given a good slip at the dock in downtown Petersburg. The first thing we did was go for a run….it’s been too long, and we’re not gonna “do without” this trip! The sun is blazing away, and the temp is warm. Everyone here is excited because of it.

We see Jade Princess (from NC) and Sonata (Lee & Diane) across the way, and will have dinner with Lee tonight.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Great dinner last night with Lee and Diane. Huge steaks, but better conversation. He has offered, and we have accepted, to head out tomorrow, Thursday for a fishing, crabbing, and prawning clinic. We will cruise 2.5 hours north to Thomas Inlet, where the halibut, prawns, crabs and salmon thrive. He has all of the equipment, and is certain that he can educate me in the methods and strategies involved. What fun that is going to be. This is the filling of a huge gap in knowledge for me. Can’t wait!