June 20th
On our way up Frederick Sound we saw several groups of humpbacks and at one point sat still and watched as 5 or 6 of them slowly swam all around us and leisurely dove down and showed us their tails. It was hard to keep track of them all and trying to capture it on video was hysterical. They are beautiful creatures.
Humpback in Frederick Sound 6-19-13
June 19th
Wrangell Narrows were a breeze and we only saw 2 other boats going through! We were blown away by the view of the mountains as we rounded the corner into Petersburg…absolutely awesome. The landscape just keeps getting bigger and bigger as we continue north. Petersburg is a town of approximately 3,500 whose economy is dependent upon fishing and seafood processing. The marina was mainly filled with fishing and charter boats. It’s a Norwegian town that’s very proud of it’s heritage and it’s known as the halibut capital of Alaska. We hope we’ll be able to visit here again on our way down, but need to press on.
Petersburg
Tuesday, June 18th
Tom & Carolyn are apparently weather god and goddesses as we’ve had sun or only light clouds since they arrived in Ketchikan. Our journey the first day with them from Ketchikan to Santa Ana Inlet was unbelievable with sun and the temperature in the high 70s. We were on the flybridge for the first time. We were visited by about 20 Pacific White Sided Dolphins who traveled with us for about 20 minutes darting under our bow waves crossing back and forth. Another group of them joined us about 30 minutes later and then a group of 4 again later. It was SO cool. They are so playful and joyful. We were going about 9-10 knots and they had no trouble keeping up with us and didn’t even appear to be working all that hard. They were a beautiful black and white and looked very healthy.
We were the only boat in Santa Ana Inlet and enjoyed kayaking and sitting in the cockpit for Happy Hour and dinner. With the sun not setting until after 10, our dinner time gets later and later each evening. I noticed when I woke up at 3:00am that the sky was still light… very weird.
The water started turning to a milky green color as we headed north yesterday to Wrangell. Wrangell has a relatively new Marina which is nice and it is larger than we expected. The town is about 2 miles from this Marina and it is very small and “Alaskan” feeling.
We’re now heading to Wrangell Narrows, a 21 mile waterway with over 60 navigational aids to help get through it. There can be cruise ships, tugs with loads, fishing boats and other pleasure craft and it is narrow in spots so we could have an interesting passage. We think we have timed it to have the least amount of current.
First photos attached were taken in Ketchikan: My sister & me and Jack & David.
Third photo is the of the White Sided Pacific Dolphins playing in our bow waves
We spent an extra day in Prince Rupert in the rain waiting for the 12 foot seas to calm down. When we crossed Chatham Sound on the 9th it was totally calm and we arrived in Ketchikan 8 hours later. We took on 700 gallons of fuel and moored in a harbour at the north end of town which is predominately fishing boats and far away from the cruise ship area. It’s a busy harbour and fun to watch all the fishermen working on their boats and coming and going. David loves it. There are eagles everywhere and late afternoons and evenings they’re chattering like mad. They perch atop the masts of the boats in the harbour, often three or four of them nearby.
We spent time in a little bay north of here where we found a deserted house on the beach that our Captain just had to explore. Mike and Jack flew out yesterday heading home to Boston and it seems very quiet and dull now. Our friends Tom & Carolyn arrive tomorrow and we’ll head to the east side of Behm Canal to the Misty Fjords for a night. Then we’ll head back north on our way to Wrangell.
Our most exciting sight to date was the humpback whale that surfaced 30 feet in front of our bow as we were cruising up the coast on June 1st. What a surprise! We stopped and watched her for about 20 minutes. What a thrill. We’ve been hoping to see bear but have been told that it will probably be another 3-4 weeks before the salmon are running and the bears come out to fish.
We arrived in Prince Rupert this afternoon and are hoping to cross to Ketchikan tomorrow if the weather dies down a bit. We have had mostly rain and overcast skies but the seas have been calm which is more important! We are blown away by the beauty and vastness of Northern BC: the size of the snowcapped mountains that surround all the bays we anchor in and the quiet and solitude. We can travel all day without seeing another boat and are often the only boat in the inlet. We’ve traveled about 600 miles so far and can’t believe we might be in Alaska tomorrow! We are having a ball!
Thursday, May 30, 2013
We left Nanaimo yesterday morning crossing the Strait of Georgia with calm seas and rain. We anchored in a pretty little cove, Gowlland Harbour across from Campbell River, B.C. and enjoyed kayaking in the afternoon.
Jack & Susie in Gowlland Harbor
Today was another early departure in order to time Seymore Narrows at slack tide. The infamous Johnstone Strait was calm, just rainy, but indeed beautiful scenery even in the rain.
A quick glimpse of the sun…BEAUTIFUL!
We’re currently in Lagoon Cove in the pouring rain but hoping to see our first Grisslie. This is a very funky little marina and I think we should adopt the rules posted on their Bulletin board.
Rules posted on the Lagoon Cove Marina Bulletin Board
Jack is in to exercise
View from the Happy Hour Deck.
Must go join the Captain for Happy Hour 🙂
MAY 28, 2013
ANEGADA: A very small island in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) which was named by the Spanish and means “the drowned land”. It is the only coral island in the Virgin Islands’ volcanic chain and is only 11 miles long and 3 miles wide with its highest point just 28 feet above sea level. There are beautiful coral reefs surrounding the island and we love the secluded sandy beaches. We named our boat Anegada as we think of the boat as our own private little island.
May 25, 2013: We’re off! With my sister Mike and her husband Jack, we departed our dock at 5:45am Sunday morning under cloudy skies and calm seas & winds.
Departing our dock at 5:45 a.m. for our great adventure!
We arrived 10 hours later in Bedwell Harbor, South Pender Island, BC where we cleared customs and dropped the anchor. David & Jack tossed back a good shot of Pussers Rum as they ceremoniously raised our 2 Pussers Flags high atop our antennae. These special flags come from the BVI (where we love to sail) and written on them is “Splice The Mainbrace!” “Splice the mainbrace” is an order given aboard naval vessels to issue the crew with a drink. Originally an order for one of the most difficult emergency repair jobs aboard a sailing ship, it became a euphemism for authorized celebratory drinking after the hard work and then it just became the name of an order to grant the crew an extra ration of rum or grog. We like extra rations of rum…
“Splice The Mainbrace!”
Pussers Flags flying high
The sunset was beautiful and we were delighted to be out “on the hook”.
Enjoying our first night out and at anchor
Bedwell sunset
We pulled anchor at 6:30am the next morning bound for Nanaimo, BC where we are currently on the dock waiting for the “severe winds” to subside in the Strait of Georgia. It’s raining like mad but we’re well equipped with rain gear and took refuge at one of our favorite places here, The Dingy Dock Pub.
POURING!!!!
Sisters in their glow-in-the-dark boots 🙂
Nothing like a good Pub to make the boys feel better
The barometer is rising and we suspect we’ll be able to get out tomorrow and head north.
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