June 23, 2011

A Memorial Totem

The Helmut Warn by the Chief that Defeated the Russians

Totem at the Main Entrance

David with the Totems

Totems & Cruise Ships

Sunny.  Betty rented a van so we all went sightseeing.  Out to the Sitka National Historical Park, many totems in among the trees.  Natives were having a little protest.  Seems the park has terminated the need for totem carving on site. David and I went into the Jackson Museum.  Rev Jackson collected a large amount of Indian relics a very long time ago.  I’ve never seen clothing made of whale gut before.  They also have the chief’s hat (raven skullcap) that he wore when they attacked the Russian’s fort here in the 1800’s.  Went to Bayview Restaurant.  Good food and friendly. By chance we met fellow BYC member Chris Barratt whose boat is “Up Spirits” is also here in town.   Ladies got the washing and groceries done locally.  We had a great Chinese dinner.  Granma really spoiled us.  Did you know that there was only one hour and thirteen minutes of darkness last night!

June 22, 2011

Sitka Sunset

Fishboats on the Hard

Sitka City

Sitka

Old Tug on the Beach

Taking on the "Fairweather" at Narrowest Place

Eagle Dropped his Fish and Flying Away

Eagle Swimming with his Fish

Wonderful day.  Over 60 degrees.  Heading for the real Peril Straits, which is a very narrow pass with names like Kakul Narrows, Neva, Deadmans Reach, Salisbury Sound, Whitestone Narrows and Serguis Narrows. Put that together with a huge Alaskan Ferry called the “Fairweather” coming right behind you at the very narrowest point and it’s very exciting.  Meanwhile we’ve seen an eagle swimming with a large fish, a whale sounding and sea lions harassing our dog.  There is never a dull moment.  Just before arriving in Sitka we saw local children swimming in the ocean.  Harbour Master gave us easy spots and we walked the dogs and went up to pay the thirty-five cents a foot.  Met the Harbour Master a delightful fellow with lots of information.  David and I launched our motorbike and toured around town.  A pleasant place with lots of friendly people.  We all went out for dinner.  Don’t ask David about the dinner.

 

June 21, 2011

Bob up the River

Calm Seas

Leaving Warm Springs

Sunny. Some dissention regarding our fishing derby.  Conflict as to whether it was applicable to U.S. or Canadian waters.  Seems Tony has caught a couple of large salmon in Canada on his way home.  Left Warm Springs to head north on Chatham Straits then west on Peril Straits.  Glassy calm water surrounded by snowcap mountains.  “Ladner Lass” anchored for us all in Appleton Cove.  A large lagoon, with several other boats anchored as well. Saw a large doe on the shore.   The wind came up, but managed to do a bit more work on our teak.  Gunked up the river, but too shallow.  Bob caught some crab. 

June 20, 2011

Rub a Dub Dub All in the Hot Springs

Signs at Warm Springs

Boardwalk & Waterfall at Warm Springs

Another magnificent day.  The temperature has been around 50 degrees Fahrenheit.    Got some Cetol on our teak.  Long talk with Dennis about our route to Sitka.  Marko having trouble with his knee.  Mike, Betty, David, Jamie and I went up to the hot spring.  Very hot!  Took a short walk on to the Lake, big and beautiful.  We ladies met a resident that has lived here for many years.  Home schooled two kids.  One now a lawyer and the other in medical school.  She also runs the little store.  There are only twelve houses in the community.  There are five salmon runs in this locale.  Jamie really enjoyed the big wooden hot tub at the head of the dock.  Mike got a good fire going in the community fire pit and made hamburgers for all.

June 19, 2011

More Eagles

Pretty Close to Shore

Raining over night and for a little this morning.  Underway in low cloud.  West on Stephens through Frederick around the corner to Chatham Sound.  Sea otters off Murder Cove.  Sunny now.  Found moorage on the dock at Warm Springs Bay on Baranof Island.  Jim & Christie on “Noeta” (no ETA) helped tie us up and Dennis and Mary Lou on “Mary L” are here too.  The little blue roofed cabins are still falling down the hill the way they were the last time we were here.  Looks like they were pushed down the hill by a landslide.  We ladies went for a walk up to the hot springs.  The water was very hot and right beside a massive cold waterfall.  We had dinner early so we can go to the hot spring, but we just didn’t make it.

June 18, 2011

Big Old Black Bear at Chapin

Devil Club and Moss

Boats pretty close to shore at low tide.  Well, there it is the first grizzly in Alaska and right on the shore in front of us.  He’s big!  Next on the other side there’s a momma black tailed deer with a very tiny fawn.  Sunny.  David went over to talk to people on a Coast Guard Auxiliary boat, Dennis and Mary Lou on the Mary L.  It’s a small world as they are friends of people we met in Warm Springs three years ago.  We girls went for a long walk on the beach.  Mostly plastic buckets and bottles. Mike caught a salmon today, while the rest of us went gunkholing Eliza Harbour, the bay we passed coming in.  Beautiful country, with lots of grassy shores.  Saw a big black bear, but only fleetingly.  Another amazing meal.  Feels like being on a cruise ship. 

June 17, 2011

Waterfalls Over 3000' High

David on Shore Duty for Scupper

Mountains With Holes in Them

Tony & Gayle left very early. Overcast.  Big roller came in from a cruise ship. Out between the red and green buoys.  More whales and porpoise.   South on Stephens Passage around the south end of Admiralty Island and heading toward Chapin Bay. Interestingly we have not seen any land animals in all our travels since we crossed the border.  Chapin has a couple of other boats anchored.  We did a two anchor stern line thing.  Close to a nice slopping beach for the dogs.  Bob off “On the Edge” caught a nice salmon.  Another great dinner.  Liked Bob’s version of how he met Pat. “When he was doing grade eight for the third time.”  Lots of fun stories.  Then off for a gunkhole around the bay.  It sure stays light late and is dark for just a couple of hours.

June 16, 2011

Going Out with "Disney Wonder"

North Sawyer Glacier

Fabulous Scenery

Bergs and Birds

North on Endicott passed Sum Dum Glacier and out through the swirls at Harbor Island to watch the “Disney Wonder” coming through the narrow gap behind us.  More whales here. Found anchorage in small cove at the entrance to Tracy Arm.  Should tell you that the charts in Alaska lack a lot of detail and there are many uncharted things!  Those along with drifting icebergs make for a lot of excitement.  The bay was shallow at the entrance with rocks and deepened as we got into anchor.  All separately this time.  Then away we go in our dinghies past huge bergy bits in relatively rough seas.  Twenty-one miles each way!  The scenery is spectacular and out of this world.  Can’t really describe the beauty; only wish you could be here too.  We almost forgot how bumpy it was.  Didn’t go into North Sawyer glacier, but continued on a long way through chunks of ice to where we could see South Sawyer.  The Disney ship is completely surrounded by ice.  What a sight!  We celebrated our trip and let the “Wonder” break the ice so we could get out.  Passed many seals and pups.  Very rough seas again before we got safely back to the comfort and warmth of our boats.  Goodbye party for “Gulf Island” who are heading home tomorrow morning early.

June 15, 2011

Marko & Jamie at Dawes Glacier

Bob, Pat, Tony & Gayle

Shaman Next to Bergy Bit

Dragons Too!!

Ladner Lass

Gayle on “Gulf Island’s” birthday today.  Misty, but turned to sunshine for our trip by dinghy to see Dawes Glacier, which is 26 mile from the entrance of Endicott.  Wow, Wow! All through the icebergs, every shape, size and colour.  We were able to get right up to the face of the glacier.  Only a couple of calfings and loud cracking noises.  The “Orion11” a small pocket cruiser, has launched several boats to let passengers enjoy the glacier.  Very friendly and on their way via Haines to Japan.  Back for lunch and a nap after four hours gunkholing (travelling in our little boats).  “On the Edge” left the raft with all but Betty and us to go out to catch the last Canuck game.  No cell, TV or email here.  David & I went through the rapids to explore.   Stunning waterfalls.   Back before the rapids really start churning.  Canucks lost the Stanley Cup, but we had a great party to celebrate “Gayle’s” birthday. 

June 14, 2011

Rapids At Fords Terror

Rafted Behind the Rapids

"Shaman"at SumDum Glacier

It’s raining.  Little Foggy going north Stephens Pass and SE wind and waves building.  Close to so many whales.  The Humpies and Gray whales really entertained us at Harbor Island.  Entering Endicott the south arm of Holkham Bay. Not many bergy bits at the entrance.  Passed Sum Dum glacier. Decided to carry on to Ford’s Terror.  Stopped at blue bergy bits for photo op at Rock Point.  We set three anchors and two stern lines in a corner of Ford’s Terror and a raft of all five. We are all soaked from the rain.  The spit off the rapids gives us protected anchorage.  Corn beef and cabbage on Ladner Lass.  Think I’m obsessed with food.  Our boating friends are all great cooks.

June 13, 2011

Low Tide at Petersburg

Fishermen Working on Their Boats

Another overcast day, smooth seas.  Hugh tides here.  See how far the tide goes down. There are lots of sea lions on the red bell buoys. We are going north on Frederick Sound to Port Houghton.  There are abandoned villages, whales, waterfalls and more sea lions.  We came close to grounding (charts don’t show all the reefs). “Sea Wolf” whom we have met in several ports is also going to Port Houghton.    All travelled up Sandborn Canal, but ran out of water.  Turned back and anchored.  We gunked and found there was less that 2’, but once we got through that it deepened.  However, we all turned back, just didn’t want to miss the Canuck game.  Probably should have!  David & I went to the end of Houghton.  Huge tidal bore.  Lots of whirlpools, but no bear. 

June 12, 2011

Sea Lions on the Bell Buoy

LeConte Glacier

Our Gang at LeConte

Jet Boat Like Ours in the Bergy Bits

Beautiful Blue Iceberg

My sister Nickie’s birthday.  At 9:30am we all boarded a Breakaway jet boat for our tour to the LeConte Glacier $175.00 each.  Absolutely spectacular!  Every size and colour bergy bit (floating ice bergs). Surrounded by them, but we couldn’t get very close to the glacier as the channel was completely blocked.  What an experience. 

Yesterday I emailed our boat’s previous owner’s son here in Petersburg.  His Mom Irene (Lloyd & Irene Roundtree owned her when she was called “Copesetic “for sixteen year until 1996) came down for a visit.  She’s only ten years older than me and is a delight.  We had a lovely visit.  They bought Copesetic through a broker in Seattle.  She was on the east coast of USA and belonged to a church group.  They had her shipped by truck on all the back roads from Florida to Seattle and brought her hereto Petersburg where they both were raised.   They kept her in a boathouse in front of their house.  They had started Alaska Island Air where Lloyd’s favorite plane was a Grumman Goose.  He wanted a boat to relax on.  Lloyd was diligent in upkeep and care of his planes and “Copesetic”.  Every summer was spent on her fishing and in the fall duck hunting all over Alaska and had been to many of the places we have been to. When Lloyd passed Irene kept her for awhile and sold her to the people who owned her in Tacoma.  Irene had heard that she had burnt and was pleased to see the GB magazine showing that “Copesetic” (now “Oceanaire”) had been saved by us.  Our similarities in life were unbelievable. Irene comes from a family of five girls, me four and she has two girls and a son, same as us.  Stacey (her daughter) came down to visit later.  She was feeling very sentimental, and reminded us our daughter Tracey. 

What a wonderful day, and we topped it off with our boating friends and Chinese dinner from a local restaurant.

June 11, 2011

"Sea Wolf"

Another Wooden Boat

Downtown Wrangell

Chief Shakes Longhouse

Two Tree Island

Overcast.  Still trying to arrange a tour to LeConte Glacier.  Want to take us to Petersburg and then to glaciers.  Too long.  Had a delicious breakfast at local café.  Really busy! Checked out all the stores.  Perfect timing for us as this is only one of two days where there is no sales tax in Wrangell and some of the stores had twenty percent off everything too.  (There’s my Scottish blood coming out again.)  Paid for our moorage around twenty dollars.  Fuelled up at $4.34 per US gallon and we are on our way to Petersburg.  Up Wrangell Narrows.  Very long, narrow and shallow.  Just have to follow the buoying system. At Petersburg we stayed at the Government dock C-602.  Good spot not to far from the ramp. 

Met John, a retired 747 pilot, here working on computers for the Coast Guard from Seattle, he came aboard.  He used to own the same boat and same year as ours when he lived on the Eastern Seaboard.  Loved it too.  He and David knew every inch of their boats, so they had lots to talk about.  Out to dinner to celebrate Pat & Bob’s 45^th anniversary.