We leave Spencer Spit in low clouds and occasional fog. The trip back is fairly painless except for the 5 knot current we find approaching the Anacortes ferry dock. Dave steps on the throttle and takes it up to maximum wake speed. And hands the helm over to Melissa. Perhaps the kayaker we passed app…
Blog posts : "2010 Canada"
Day 11 - Leaving
We separate from the Gemini and head off to Spencer Spit to position the boat for our final jump back to Anacortes. We show up early and find a mooring buoy open. Dave takes the dinghy to shore and pays the ten bucks. Hmmm - ten bucks to avoid anchoring. Dave is getting soft. Still - we are out …
Day 10 - Back In the USA
Dave decided that we should leave before low tide. Something about measuring the depth on the stern and determing that there would be only a foot clearance at low tide made him not want to sleep in. Dave rose and cast off a couple hours before low tide heading for Roche Harbor where we would bec…
Day 9 - Go South Somewhere
Dave has never gone through the west side of the Gulf Islands. Over to the government docks at Chamainus on the "Big Island" we went in search of water. Dave finally realized that we might need to get water before returning after all. It would be close but if we could find some convenient water, i…
Day 8 - Racing for Dodd’s Narrows
Across the Straights we go again. The water was a bit stirred up from an earlier high-wind warning but perfectly comfortable. Waves were less than 2 feet but a bit confused. We were headed for Dodd Narrows near Nanaimo with a goal to hit it about slack. As planned, the passage was absolutely cal…
Day 7 - Back through Paradise
The trip back down through the inlet was spectacular. Dave is now three out of four - another painless passage through Malibu Rapids. Now all of the mountains were showing their snow covered peaks. The trip down was peaceful and no weather to speak of. Arriving at a very nice bay off Hardy Island …
Day 6 - Summer begins July 5
Dave closed all of the curtains in the cabin to make it a "cave" so we would sleep in. Dave got up at about 10:00 and made coffee. As usual in the Pacific Northwest, the day after the Fourth begins absolutely gorgeous. Dave sits on top enjoying the quiet and his coffee while his bride sleeps in to…
Day 5 - Boating through the North Cascades
Dave woke up early again and realized we would hit perfect slack if he got moving. On goes the engine, up comes the anchor and we are off by 6:15. We have just shy of a six hour cruise and slack at Malibu Rapids is at noon. Perfect. The weather was typical Fourth of July - low clouds, mist but lit…
Day 4 - In Search of Fly
Off we go to Garden Bay across the straights. This is going to be a long day (9 hours) and Dave decides to get going early. Apparently, Melissa is perfectly happy to sleep while he motors. We exited through Active Pass - the main pass for the Gulf Islands. The current was with us at about 2-3 knot…
Day 3 - Fix the Faucet
MELISSA broke the faucet yesterday. Something about not even tugging at the faucet but it "broke right off in her hand" story. Yeah, right. Anyway, Ganges has a great hardware store just up the way. We discovered this last time when we had to fix a fan or coat hook as it was were. A quick 2 hour cru…
Day 2 - Spa Day
Melissa goes and gets the last of the provisioning. Cannot forget Anacortes hamburgers and steaks. The best in the world. Melissa arrives with the catch and Dave is already throwing off the lines to get going. Today's goal is Poet's Cove just about a four hour cruise from Anacortes and where we wi…
Day 1 - Getting Ready
Melissa blocked off from 3:00 on to leave early from work. So did Dave. What does that mean? Dave gets home at 6:00. At least we missed traffic.
Up to Anacortes we go. Traffic is fine. We get to the boat and find it all locked up. Must be a key somewhere. Ah ha, here it is. The plan is for Dave to…
12 blog posts