Hello From Yuma, AZ - 12/19/2010

Typical Sunset In Yuma

We haven’t updated our blog in quite some time so to those who don’t know, we left our home in Port Orchard around the end of October and headed south on our annual trek to our little home in Yuma. Since arriving, we have settled in with Karyl working 3 days in the park café and me (Ron) doing mostly nothing. I was playing a lot of Ping-Pong but about a month ago I badly hurt my knee going after a side shot. After going to the emergency room where they diagnosed it as a sprain I have been trying to strengthen the knee by lots of walking and bicycling but I think something bad has happened in the knee as I have a funny pain with certain positions. I can’t get it checked out until we return to Port Orchard because of my insurance limitations.

We took a short 4 day trip to some sights in SE Arizona, south of Tucson. We left Wednesday morning in our little Winnebago View motorhome and drove about 290 miles to Kartchner Caves state park and camped in the adjacent campground. That late afternoon we took the last guided tour of the day to go into the caves. There where only 2 others with us so we had the guide almost to ourselves when normally there are up to 20 people on a tour. These caves where first discovered in 1974 and became part of the Arizona State Park system in the late 1990’s. They have done a great job in developing the site and protecting the caves. We had to go through 3 airlocks before we entered the caves. This maintains a constant temperature of 70 degrees and a humidity in the 90’s. For further information click on: http://www.azstateparks.com/Parks/KACA/index.html

Kartchner Parks Campground

The next day we headed to the town of Tombstone, about 20 miles further south and parked in a campground across the street from the famous OK Corral. The town is very commercialized but still interesting with lots of gunfight shows and museums. We went to one gunfight show (disappointing), a mine tour, and the courthouse museum which was great. It was fun walking around the town and imagining how it was back in the 1880’s. That night we had our first rain since we arrived in Arizona over a month and a half ago. It sure smelled good to have moisture in the air but the next day was dry again.

We debated the next morning to stay another day in Tombstone or head further south to the town of Bisbee. We decided to make a day trip to Bisbee and after checking out the town head back to the Kartchner Caves campground to spend the night before heading back home to Yuma on Saturday.

Downtown Tombstone

Bisbee is another town that developed because of mining. Whereas Tombstone was developed because of silver mining, Bisbee’s mining was copper and it is said that more copper was pulled out of the area mines than any other mine in the US. Now the economy is based on tourism with many artsy-fartsy shops populated by 60’s hippies. When we arrived Friday morning, Karyl and I parted ways. She went to check out the shops and I went to the local museum. We got back together around lunch time and went to one of the local places that was recommended for its soup and sandwich fare. Afterwards, we walked around the town checking out the architecture. In this part of Arizona, it is very hilly, even mountainous and Bisbee is built on these hills. Some of the houses are way up and it looked like the only way to get to the house was up a huge flight of stairs, maybe 2 or 3 hundred feet up. The town claims it has the best climate in the country. Click on http://www.discoverbisbee.com/ for further information. That afternoon we drove back to Kartchner Caves campground for the night and Saturday morning we headed back to Yuma. All in all, a fun trip.

Downtown Bisbee, AZ


MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

We Are Back Home

August 25, 2010

We made it back to the home dock today and after spending 2 hours unloading the boat we are in the house. No movement, no view and the dogs, Max and Maddie, are happy. After leaving Ganges last Sunday we headed to Roche Harbor to clear customs into the USA again with our friends, Larry and Marci following us in their boat. The customs officer came aboard to check us out and ended up taking the tomatoes that Karyl bought the previous day in Ganges because they where not grown in the US or Canada. Oh well, that’s better than what happen a few years ago during the mad cow scare when customs took a couple of very nice New York steaks when we entered the US.

After getting cleared we headed to Garrison Bay on the opposite side of San Juan Island. This is one of our favorite anchorages and has a small dock to land the dinghy so it is easy to get off the boat. Larry tied his boat to ours and we went ashore to explore the park where they have restored some of the buildings from when the British had a garrison here before the present US/Canadian border was established.

The next day we headed to Hunter Bay on Lopez Island and anchored for the night. This placed us fairly close to Deception Pass where we have to time our passage for slack current. We had a peaceful night along with about 30 other boats but the bay is huge so we never felt crowded.

We made it though Deception Pass on the 24th and continued on to Oak Harbor. Larry and Marci said goodbye here and they continued on to Everett where they keep their boat. When we tied up in the Oak Harbor Marina we called brother John and he came down to visit. We went over to his house and had a great fish and chips dinner with his wife and daughter Rena. We made the decision to continue on home the next day instead of staying around another day as originally planned because we felt we needed more time to unload the boat and clean it up before Uncle Perry and Bobbi come to visit us after their cruise ship trip to Alaska. They are arriving in Seattle on the 29th and will be staying with us for a few days. Anyway, we made the trip from Oak Harbor to Port Orchard today in about 7 hours and 54 miles. It was a beautiful day with calm seas and no wind and for most of the trip we had a wonderful current that gave us a knot of boast. After arriving in Port Orchard the work began. We had to unload clothes, food, laundry and other misc. stuff. As I write this, we got most of the stuff off which filled the back of my pickup to the top - that was all we could take today. So things are somewhat back to normal but there is still a lot of work to do getting the boat empty and cleaned up after our trip of 3 months and 2060 miles.

Thanks everybody for keeping track of us and having an interest in our trip to Alaska.

From Ganges, BC

August 20, 2010

We dropped off my cousin Bob and his wife Karen in Nanaimo and joined up with our friends, Larry and Marci. We had a great time with Bob and Karen and the boat seems empty with them gone. Larry and Marci came up to Nanaimo in their 30 foot Bayliner Express Cruiser from Everett to cruise home with us. They travel at 20 knots and since we can only go 7 ½ knots, Larry was willing to slow down some so we could stay together on our passages.

We left Nanaimo at 11:30 so we could catch the slack current through Dodd Narrows, however, we were a little early and we had a couple of knots of current against us as we went through the narrowest part. There were quite a few boats waiting to traverse the rapids as everyone is now heading south towards home. We headed to one of BC’s Provincial Parks, Princess Cove, which is located on Wallace Island. We have never been there, but heard many good reports so we thought we would gave it a try. When we arrived it was blowing over 15 knots right down the cove. In most parts of this cove it is required to anchor and then stern tie to shore so the boat will not swing on the anchor so it allows for more boats. The problem was that the wind was trying to force the boat 90 degrees to the anchor. I got the line to shore OK, but it was almost impossible to pull the boat around so it would be perpendicular to the shore and in line with the anchor. Another boater in the cove noticed my problem and used his inflatable dinghy to push my boat in line with the anchor while I tightened the shore tie line. When this was done, Larry brought his boat along side and we rafted together so we could socialize. This caused even more strain on the anchor and shore tie. I took my dinghy and brought his anchor out off the side of his boat to drop his anchor and line. This helped keep our boats from being pushed sideways to the wind which made us pretty secure. This whole procedure took about 2 hours of hard work and we where all exhausted. About an hour later, a 50 foot sailboat came in and dropped his anchor very close to where we were. After the wind died down, we retied our stern line further downstream to keep us from drifting if the wind or currents changed over night. As it turned out, that was a good thing as the wind changed direction and we drifted even closer to them the next morning. It never hurts to have an extra line out in crowded anchorages even when stern tying.

The next day we headed again to Ganges on Salt Spring Island so could attend the Saturday market. We stopped here last year with Larry and Marci and really enjoy their amenities. We wanted to get there early as we felt it would be easier to find dock space. This is a favorite stop for boaters, especially in the summer. Larry went first and found a spot on the dock and then found another boater who was about to leave. He talked them into waiting until we arrived so we could have his space. Amazingly, another friend of mind, Robb, was already at the dock and was there to help us tie up. It was amazing because last year when we came to Ganges, Robb was also at the dock to help us and that was the last time we saw him. What a shock! Robb, Larry, and Marci joined us for a great steak dinner on our boat that evening and everyone told sea stories. It was a fun evening.

Our plan is to leave Ganges tomorrow and head back to the USA to clear customs and perhaps spend a few days in the San Juan Islands before heading to Whidbey Island to see brother, John and his wife Joanne and then head home on the 26th.

Hello From Nanaimo

August 18, 2010

After leaving Sullivan Bay Marina, we headed to Echo Bay Marina for another day of fun. While there we took a hike to Billy Procter’s Museum on the other side of land. This was a pretty strenuous hike up and down steep hills, and in a couple of spots, ropes where provided to pull yourself up the hill. Billy Procter has lived in the area all his life and has made it a point to collect “stuff” where ever he finds it. He admits his museum is full of junk, but it was interesting. After the hike, the marina put on a pig roast which we took advantage of and there was entertainment put on by a group of musicians who are traveling around the area and getting, I assume, free moorage at the different marinas. The weather has finally changed for the better with almost hot clear skies and calm winds.

BILLY PROCTER'S MUSEUM

The next day, we headed to Lagoon Cove Marina which we stopped at on the way north. We took another hike across the land to “The Blow Hole.” This hike wasn’t as hard on us old folk so we took the dogs along. That evening we attended the happy hour and later were again entertained by the traveling musicians around a camp fire and roasted marshmallows. Lots of fun!

Now it was time to seriously start heading south. The next morning it was down Johnstone Strait and it was doing its typical thing of giving us strong winds, but this time they where behind us so we made great progress for the 10 to 12 miles we where in it. We stopped in Forward Harbour and anchored among 13 to 14 other boats. The next morning we went through Whirlpool rapids and Green Point rapids and stopped in Shoal Bay. We usually try to tie up to their dock, but this time the dock was full so we had to anchor for the night. The next day it was though another set of rapids, Dent and Gillard. With all these 4 rapids, it is best to time your transit for slack current or close to it. After we got through the rapids, we headed to Desolation Sound and anchored in Squirrel Cove for the night. We counted about 60 boats anchored here before the day was over. The further south we go the more crowded it gets.

The next day we headed to Refuge Cove for water and doing laundry. We stayed the night on the dock and the next morning we went to the heart of Desolation Sound and anchored in Prideaux Haven and also tied the stern to shore. This is necessary to make room for more boats as it can be quite crowded here. It had been rumored that Oprah Winfrey had been here the previous day and had been helicoptered to a large yacht for a few days. From Prideaux Haven, we headed further south to anchor in Ballet Bay on Nelson Island in the Pender Harbour area and then on to Smuggler’s Cove where we staged ourselves for the trip across Georgia Strait and on to Nanaimo. Bob & Karen had a flight scheduled on Kenmore Air out of Nanaimo for the 17th which would take them back to Seattle and on to their home in Pensacola Beach. The weather is still hot, maybe too hot for some of us, but a nice break from the constant overcast skies we have seen for the better part of this trip.

SCENERY SHOT IN DESOLATION SOUND

ANCHORED IN SMUGGLER'S COVE

SUNSET IN SMUGGLERS COVE

The crossing across Georgia Strait was uneventful with fairly calm seas and we arrived at the Nanaimo Yacht Club and tied up with the help of a couple of fellow Port Orchard Yacht Club members who helped us find a place on the dock. The next day we got Bob and Karen off on their float plane flight to Seattle and then spent the afternoon and evening with our yacht club friends.

Today is the first time I’ve had the time to get this blog updated. We are leaving late because we have another rapid to go though called Dodd Narrows. Our friends Larry and Marci have taken their boat up to Nanaimo and we will cruise together until we get home. The weather is changing and the wind is coming from the south. This will bring more clouds and lower temperatures.

Sullivan Bay, BC

This is a picture of our anchorage in Millbrook Cove the day before crossing Queen Charlotte Sound.

MILLBROOK COVE

This is the plane landing at Port McNeill yesterday that had cousin Bob and his wife, Karen aboard coming from Seattle.

KENMORE PLANE LANDING AT PORT McNEILL

August 8, 2010

We left Port McNeill this morning at 7:00 AM to try and avoid some adverse current on our way to Sullivan Bay Marina up in the northern reaches of the Broughtons. As we crossed Queen Charlotte Strait, the fog closed in on us and we had maybe a quarter of a mile of visibility. As we got closer to Sullivan Bay, the fog lightened up to just an overcast sky. We tied up to the dock around 11:00 AM




Sullivan Bay Marina is totally surrounded by water and is only accessible by boat or float plane. There is only one ramp to land and that is to the fuel tanks and is closed to the public. They get their electricity from a diesel generator that runs 24 x 7 during the summer season. It is owned by a consortium of home owners who live here during the season and has a restaurant, a general store, sells fuel to the visiting boaters, and has regular float plane service to the outside world. Oh yes, free internet! I was here about 11 years ago and found most of the floating homes were run down, but look at it now. See pictures below.

SULLIVAN BAY FLOATING HOME - NOTE THE HELICOPTER

Port McNeill Again

August 05, 2010

We made it around Cape Caution and are now in Port McNeill waiting for my cousin Bob and his wife Karen who are flying in from Pensacola, Florida having arrived in Seattle last night. They fly to Port McNeill on a Kenmore Air float plane. They will accompany us to Nanaimo, BC for the next 12 days.

We left Shearwater on July 30th and went all the way to Millbrook Cove in Smith Sound, a distance of 63 nautical miles. This is the first time we have tried this anchorage and we entered it in a rather heavy fog. In the past we have stopped in Fury Cove to await the next day to cross around Cape Caution, the open ocean passage to the north end of Vancouver Island. Millbrook Cove is another 12 miles further along and cuts the open ocean passage in half so during that 12 miles, a good part of it was in the swells and lumpy seas we always seem to experience in this area. When we finally arrived at Millbrook Cove, there where 6 other boats at anchor but the bay is fairly good size so we easily found a spot for our anchor.

The next morning at 5:00 AM we raised the anchor and started out to round Cape Caution. Again, the seas where lumpy and we had a 2 to 3 foot swell right on the beam. Lots of rocking and rolling and as I’ve said before, these open ocean passages are just something to be endured. Luckily, the wind was light so we didn’t have to contend with wind waves on top of the swell. The fog was very heavy, but with the radar and chart plotter we knew were we were and who was around us at all times. After 41 miles, we arrived in Blunden Harbour where we dropped the anchor.

Blunden Harbour was once the site of a thriving Indian village and there is an extensive midden by a deteriorating long house that has long since fallen down. The vegetation has pretty much taken over the whole site now, but walking the beach you can still find pieces of pottery, glass and metal left over from the old days. We spent 2 days here before taking off for Port McNeill where we are now.

Our plan from here is to spend time showing Bob and Karen the Broughtons and then moving south to Desolation Sound before going to Nanaimo where they are going to catch a plane back home. We have to be in Nanaimo on the 17th for them to make the flight on Kenmore Air.

Hello From Shearwater Again

July 30, 2010
After an extremely rough night at the dock in Prince Rupert, we took off at 5 A.M. to catch the tide and favorable winds to start the trip down Grenville Channel. The fishing fleet just happened to come in our last night on the dock and the waves seemed to never stop. At one point, we even jumped out of bed because we thought one of the large seiners was going to ram us! The boat rocked so hard, we were afraid it would break our dock lines! We got underway and the trip around the Lawyer Islands (we don’t want to know how they got that name!), was pretty calm. On our way north when we went around these islands, it was rough and we had to take an alternate route to try to get to Prince Rupert. My prayers were answered. We went to Lowe Inlet to try to get as far down Grenville Channel as possible, even though we told ourselves we would not stop there again after spending our last two stays there losing a whole night’s sleep on anchor watch. The third time must have been the charm because we got a good spot and the night was uneventful. We were again up early to catch the favorable tide and seas to finish Grenville Channel and head to our next stop at Khutze Inlet. The wind started to pick up as we rounded Hartley Bay and headed to McKay Reach. Wright Sound and Whale Channel can get choppy as the water swells in from Hecate Strait. We got around the point and into Fraser Reach, passing an 80 foot yacht. We commented on the boat and headed south. About an hour later, we heard that boat radio a distress signal to the coast guard that they were having engine trouble and were dead in the water in McKay Reach! They commented that it might be a fuel problem as both engines quit running. We talked about going back to help, but heard several other boats offer to help on the radio. Since we are only 37 feet, we would have had a hard time helping an 80 foot yacht, plus we were at least an hour away, so we were glad that there were others closer. Boaters will usually try to help each other, because you never know when it will be your turn to need help. That area is near where the Canadian ferry ran aground and sank a few years ago. Rumor has it that the helmsman and a crew mate were in the pilot house and failed to notice that the trees on the island were getting awfully close! There are several stories as to why they did not notice, but we will leave it to the story tellers! The Indians at Hartley Bay were the only people that heard the mayday that early in the morning and headed out with all their skiffs to try to help. All the people on board were saved except for two people that were never found when the ferry sank. We plan to stop in Hartley Bay on our next trip north.

A TYPICAL DAY ON THE WATER IN NORTHERN BC

We continued south to Khutze Inlet. We have always been lucky and managed to get the best spot behind the spit near the entrance and we did this time too. We promised ourselves that we would take the 5 mile trip to the end of Khutze Inlet to see if it is as nice as they say. When we are just passing through, we are reluctant to motor the additional 10 miles (5 miles in – 5 miles out) just to see what’s at the head. For now, we will trust the glowing reports in the cruising guide and save that for when we don’t get the spot behind the spit. There ended up being 4 other boats anchored around us by the end of the day and it was pretty bouncy. The wind was blowing which can make a pretty good chop in this anchorage. Up early again, we headed out of Khutze and were dismayed to see there was a pretty good south wind and lots of waves when we got into the channel. UGH! Being anxious to get out of the area, we toughed it out and found that it got better the further we went (yeah!). We stayed in Tolmie Channel toward Klemtu to get out of some of the chop. We have decided that the Canadian and Alaskan currents and tides that are listed in their tables are no where close to the actual tides and currents. No matter how we tried to plan our trip to catch favorable currents, we ended up fighting them most of the time. On our way into Lowe Inlet, we had 4 knots of current against us and the tables said we should still have them in our favor. When you go only 7-1/2 knots, 4 knots against you does not leave much headway. This was the case for most of our trip down to Oliver Inlet. We stayed there instead of Rescue Bay as it was closer to Seaforth Channel. It can get a little rough in Seaforth and we planned to get up early and hoped to have favorable wind and waves to get to Shearwater. We were smart and called a day ahead to get a spot n the dock as they were turning boats away shortly after we docked. We got the laundry done and some much need provisions for our next trek south around Cape Caution and on to Port McNeill in the next few days.

We plan to be in Port McNeill by August 4th as Ron’s cousin, Bob and his wife Karen, will join us on the 5th to head toward Nanaimo. They are predicting favorable winds through Sunday, so we will join the herd of boats heading south tomorrow.