Saturday, September 14, 2013

     The wedding was a great time with lots of carefree dancing late into the night. The reception was outside in the back yard of the bride’s family home beside the North Platte River. It was a warm evening with cooling breezes. The mood of this wedding was completely laid back. There was time to visit and have fun without any pressures.

      We were back in Friday Harbor on Tuesday evening. The weather was hot on Wednesday. It felt like July instead of September. Thursday was equally beautiful. We spent the day sailing up and down San Juan Channel with Boyd and Lovel who live on the island. They have been graciously letting us park our car at their place. We may have converted our friends into the sailing world. It couldn’t have been a more pleasant day for sailing.

      Yesterday dawned foggy so we waited until noon to leave for Port Townsend. The weather forecast was for sun and a little wind in the afternoon. Well this was one of those times when the forecasters were totally off about the weather. The skies never cleared, the sun shone for a minute or two through overcast, the wind never materialized, and we had poor visibility on and off, crossing the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We had to cross several shipping lanes so we had the twenty year old GPS and radar systems on. Boaters are always supposed to have their radio tuned into channel 16/Coast Guard for any important updates. Yesterday they came on twice, announcing poor visibility all over Puget Sound and the Straits. That was pretty obvious to us. Just after one of those announcements someone on a small “craft” asked the coast guard for an update on any freight traffic. We found out they are happy to oblige. So Mike was on the radio checking in for any “traffic” every time we had to pass into a shipping lane. That reduced our anxiety during the moments of poor visibility. We could see Point Wilson for a long time, off in the distance, the top of it was shrouded in fog. As we came closer it got foggier and Mike announced that if it got bad he would give me steering directions while he watched the GPS and radar (down in the cabin). I truly am a luddite, because I have to say, I don’t feel comfortable being dependent only on machines for my survival. Granted, machines and humans both fail. I suppose all we can do is use both to the utmost and the rest is out of our hands. In our  situation with the visibility level fluctuating every ten minutes or so, we put our running lights/navigation lights on, Mike called the ferries to find out when a ferry would be landing in Port Townsend, and I used our high powered binoculars every time I thought I saw something in the fog.We ended up in fairly thick stuff for about thirty or forty minutes. One could still see another vessel as a dark shadow through this “damp blanket” for about a quarter mile perhaps, maybe a little more maybe a little less but the land was totally invisible. Through the fog I caught a glimpse of the towers off Point Wilson. I was on my toes, peering this way and that when the buoy just north of Point Hudson appeared. What a relief but it also meant we would be passing the ferry lane soon! After another five minutes everything changed like magic, the world became clear again, we could see Port Townsend in great detail, we could see the giant Washington ferry leaving and we could see the other one coming in. What a gift! Like Annie Lamot says, there are three kinds of prayers she uses  all of the time, “Help me, Help me!”, “Thank you, Thank you!” and “Wow!*”. 

      This morning we awoke to Mike’s cell phone ringing and a fog shrouded harbor. When he checked to see who had called at 7:30 a.m. he found a message from our friends in Friday Harbor. Apparently a sail boat was run over by a ferry yesterday and he wanted to make sure we were okay. Well, with the help of my non luddite son, Brendan, and our cell phone, we found out who, what, when, how, and where, the accident happened. There were no lives lost, negligence on both sides, sailboat and ferry.

Monday, September 16, 2013 -- Port Townsend

      These foggy days continue. Only on Saturday afternoon did it clear up and the sun came out. Yesterday Kieran arrived with Lily, Vince, Marianna, Jon Karl, and Hannah. Kieran flew into SeaTac the night before and Vince picked him up. Marianna, our neighbor in Santa Fe came out to visit her daughter and son-inlaw with her brother and his friend who are visiting from Holland. We had a wonderful afternoon of some easy sailing with moments when we lost our wind completely. After the sail we spent the remainder of the afternoon eating pasta and shellfish and drinking wine outside in the cockpit. Lots of jokes and catching up on news from New Mexico and Holland. Jon Karl is a sailor of twenty some years so we shared a lot on that level too. Then it began to rain and thunder and lightning so we went down into the cabin. Mike and Jon Karl are like two naughty little boys when they get together so everyone can imagine how raucous things got at times. Vince writes songs and plays guitar for a hobby. At one point he and Kieran disappeared for a bit. When they returned it was with musical instruments. Vince, Lily, and Kieran on the violin, played and sang their hearts out to us. That was truly the frosting on and the raisins and nuts in the cake for the whole afternoon.

      Today we are in the Port of Port Townsend Marina. It is foggy and damp. Kieran has gone into town on Mike’s bike to do some work on line for a CPR course he is taking in Seattle later at the end of the month. Mike is working on upgrading the Head (toilet).Yea! I’m off to do errands in a bit.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013       

Back in Port Townsend- Let’s see, what happened last week? We left Port Townsend on Tuesday, headed in the direction of Port Angeles on the south side of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We were moored at a dock and Kieran talked me through the maneuvering of the boat out of the marina. I was very nervous but there was no wind then, so it went smoothly enough. At the mouth of Port Townsend sound we had wind but had a difficult time getting past the current at the mouth of the sound. We just didn’t have enough strong wind to counteract the effect of the flooding current. We wanted to do it under sail but just as we’d make some head way a freighter would come along and we’d have to get out of it’s way and we’d lose ground doing so. Finally we motor sailed past the current and managed to sail a bit before our wind died down to nothing. We decided to head for Sequim Bay since it has a reputation for nice anchorage in a gorgeous setting. Getting into the bay was stressful the first time because of several shallow places one has to avoid but they were well marked once we came up on these spots. Our day had been a mixture of sun and cloud but in the evening we had lovely light, then stars and a full moon reflected on the water by the time we went to bed. 

      Wednesday morning dawned clear. I went up on the deck to find Kieran sitting reflectively in the sun. He had mentioned going for a walk on the beach the night before so I asked him if he wanted to lower the dinghy off the boat. He game so we lowered the dinghy into the water and got it set up. Then I went to wake up Mike, to see if he wanted to come along. He semi reluctantly hauled himself out of bed and off we rowed to the shore. The tide was out and there was mud before coming to a shell and rock shore. We spent an hour or so walking along the shore observing all the life left by the outgoing tide. Our field biologist son was able to fill us in about most of the creastures, most of them living in some kind of shell or partly hard like a shell. Kieran turned over an old washed up stump and there were small eel like creatures wiggling around madly, trying to hide. There were large rocks, as big as a loaf of bread and larger that had broken in half revealing a perfect circle of rock on the inside. We came upon a good fishing net that must of washed over board and a net bag full of oysters. It was all very interesting to observe with someone who knew what was what, chitons, Barnicles, mussels, clams, oysters, limpets, and something that Kieran didn’t know of, buried in the mud and shell debris that kept spitting streams of water straight into the air as we walked along. Needless to say we had a late breakfast and an even later start. We sailed out with very mild winds to the tip of Dungeness Spit and the New Dungeness light house. Then the wind disappeared. We thought about staying the night in Dungeness Bay but it isn’t very protected from winds to the south. So we motored back to Sequim Bay for the night. 

     In the evening we decided that the next day we would cross the Strait and depending on our mood, gradually make our way back to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. Our car had to be brought back to Port Townsend because this is where our boat would be hauled out onto land for the winter. Kieran and I would sail the boat back to Port Townsend and meet Mike there.  

     In the morning we had to stop at a fuel dock. This was my second time driving the boat in a marina. It wasn’t much fun. I will need lots of practice before I feel comfortable “parking” a boat in a marina. However, even though I was terribly nervous, it wasn’t a big catastrophe or anything because Kieran (who is used to teaching teenagers these maneuvers) was step by baby step talking me through the docking process. Plus Mike was there to untie the lines while Kieran guided me at the helm.   

      Once passed the shallow waters that are Sequim Bay"s trademark we were welcomed with wind on our faces. Up went our sails and happily we were averaging between five and six knots an hour with the wind out of the northwest. We needed that kind of speed if we hoped to cross the Strait of Juan de Fuca by early afternoon in time to take advantage of the incoming current. The day was partly cloudy but cleared up around noon. Around half way across the wind began to wane so we decided to eat lunch. As we were getting lunch makings out on the deck Mike sighted something big in the water, then there were two and they were blowing water into the air! Kieran identified them as Humpback whales. They were far enough away so we didn’t have to worry about being too close. They hung around for about a half hour and then were gone as the wind began to pick up again. It was Mike’s birthday, all morning he’d been getting phone calls from folks, then the whales! 
     The wind kept up and we crossed the strait by 2:00 or 2:30. Kieran was at the helm as we sailed through Cattle Pass on a flood tide. It was pretty cool. At one point Kieran said it felt more like river rafting as he worked on avoiding these big eddies but also kept the boat sailing. It wasn’t easy but he seemed to be comfortable doing it. Of course if we’d needed more power we could have turned on the diesel motor. There was another sail boat ahead of us motoring along without their sails. When they saw we were sailing they turned around and followed us for a while. We couldn’t figure out why they did this. Maybe they wanted to see if we had our engine on. They didn’t try to hail us on the radio either. 

     After Cattle Pass we kept sailing up San Juan Channel and decided to anchor a little northeast of Friday Harbor in the cosy and well protected Parks Bay on Shaw Island. There were only two other boats anchored there. Kieran fixed dinner and I made a cake in honor of the birthday guy! The full moon rose through some ragged clouds and I felt like autumn was just around the corner.

     The following morning with the engine idling and a gentle breeze in the bay we raised the anchor under sail. This is something Mike and I would never have attempted on our own. It went well with Kieran there filling the role of a well experienced instructor. Once we were out in the channel the wind was light but we decided to practice “man overboard” rescues under sail first and then when the wind fizzled out we did the drill with the motor. The procedures are quite different under sail from what one does using the engine. However both “man overboard” scenarios are the same for the final pick up part of the rescue; that is: the boat has to stop and drift towards the person in the water. It is essential that one doesn’t run over the person while coming close enough to lift them out of the water. I’m glad we did the drill. It is something I need to practice on a regular basis.

     By late afternoon we were in Friday Harbor for the night. We called both sets of friends. Boyd and Lovel brought our car down but couldn’t stay for dinner. Beth and her brother Joe were able to come for dinner. Kieran and I threw together a stew. We had a fun evening with them. 

     Mike decided to take one of the earlier ferries across Rosario Strait to Anacortes. At 6:00 a.m. the morning was clear but around 8:00 the fog came in for a couple of hours. Kieran and I didn’t know if we’d get out by noon or have to spend another day there. We decided to act like it would stay all day and headed for a coffee shop to check our e-mail. Finally around 10:00 it started to lift enough that we could just make out the shore on Shaw Island, across San Juan Channel. By 10:30 we were motoring down the channel. There was fog on the west side of the channel but on the east side it just kept clearing as we moved south. We came through Cattle Pass and it was clear and sunny. As if in welcome, three large seals or perhaps they were sea lions, were blowing water and frolicking in the water up ahead of us. We slowed down and watched them swim joyfully past us. Within the first half hour we were sailing. A light wind stayed with us for a couple of hours with our boat averaging 3 knots. At about 2:30 we were three quarters of the way there, the water was glassy. We turned the motor on and met Mike at the fuel dock in Port Townsend at about 4:30. We anchored beyond the breakwater of the marina by a paper factory. It has been our usual spot to anchor when not in the marina. The weather was supposed to get bad Sunday morning so the anchoring was done with that in mind. Sure enough, early the next morning the wind started to pick up. Kieran and Mike let out more rode (anchor chain or line). The wind and waves were doing gusts of 35-40 mph. The boat was rocking madly and every time a big wave hit hard the boat would jerk and creak loudly. Mike went out to the bow to check the anchor one more time. As he was bending over a big wave broke over the bow and drenched him in salt water. After a couple of hours of reading my book below decks, Kieran wanted to go out. He pointed out that it would be a lot more comfortable sailing than being yanked around in that particular anchorage. Mike was a bit worried about the old rigging holding up. Around noon some wind surfers came and were giving us a wonderful free show. They sailed in the shallows because they were always capsizing when it came time for them to turn. An hour later the wind didn’t seem quite so strong as it had been in the morning and Kieran had his way. Out came layers of clothing, rain gear, socks, rubber boots. Bringing the anchor up with Kieran lending a hand wasn’t nearly as difficult as I had envisioned it to be. Because we were squatting or kneeling most of the time while we worked, losing my balance wasn’t an issue. Also the waves weren’t breaking over the bow any more either. I found the weather very invigorating in spite of the blowing rain. Once the anchor was up and stowed the rain quit. We got under way with the mainsail on it’s second reef and the jib reefed to half its size. As we sailed down the sound  the waves and the wind decreased and we were able to let out the whole jib with the boat doing just fine. We had decided before hand to sail to the foot of the sound where there are better protected anchorages. The wind kept lessening as we sailed and the sun peeked through the clouds. By the time we were safely anchored in the late afternoon, the cloud cover was breaking up. By dinner time the sun was out long enough to give us a beautiful sunset. Later yet the stars came out and were reflected on the water. Kieran started talking about bioluminescence. I had a vague idea of its existence from using the head (toilet) in the middle of the night. The head uses salt water to flush and when the water is disturbed in any way it sparkles in the dark! Kieran took one of the paddles and started swooshing water around off the stern of the boat. It started sparkling like fairies from some fantasy story book! For Kieran, Tinkerbell always comes to mind. It was just amazing to see. Apparently if one is sailing at night the wake from the boat becomes a sparkling wonder!

     All of these wonders for someone who lives in a land locked state. For someone growing up out here on the water it must be a common phenomenon. It makes me wonder what I take for granted in New Mexico. I know some things I will never take for granted. For example; dry air, dry humidity- free bed sheets, clothes, walls, windows, floors, no mold growing in a closet, being able to see forever. Here in the northwest, unless one is on the water or close to shore, the view is often obscured by tall evergreens. I understand part of my enthusiasm for this sailing better now; lots of water with many living creatures in it and the wide open expanses on the water are like the wide open southwest. On the water I can see the sky and far into the distance. That seems to be a necessity to keeping me sane.

     Let”s see, where was I time line wise? Sunday night was a peaceful night (though the forecast had been otherwise, making the calmness of the night that more special). Monday morning arrived with sun, clouds, and light winds. We had thought we would just go into the marina and start on “work projects” for the day but we allowed ourselves to be enticed by the fresh morning and the wind.  This has been one of the treasures of this summer of sailing. If the day called us out on the water, we could forget about other plans and sail instead. When we were tired, we could rest if we wanted to. Of course one of the other jewels this summer has been learning to be patient with the weather/wind, rain, fog, and dying winds. Mike is completely familiar with this process since being a pilot of small planes demands this of you for survival; but for me it has been a challenge. There is a little kid still active inside me that gets impatient with the weather doing what it will and not what I want. I’ve had to learn to stop expecting the weather to be consistent and steady. I’ve begun to see that I can count on it changing and when it does I adjust my actions accordingly. Writing in this blog has been great for those days when sailing is not an option. 

     Well speaking of weather not cooperating, today is Saturday(a week later) and it is blowing and raining outside as we sit in our boat, listening to music, I am writing in my blog, Mike is writing up a list of electrical systems on the boat to be checked during the haul out. We are waiting for Kieran to arrive with his friend Betsy after taking a day CPR course in Seattle together. We were going to take Betsy sailing but this is not going to happen today. Tomorrow is supposed to be just as bad. Ah well, what was I saying about adjusting to the weather? We shall go to the wooden boat museum in town and maybe if the rain lets up we’ll go for a hike.

      Kieran leaves early Tuesday morning and Wednesday we take the boat over to the yard where she will be hauled out for the winter. Then begins the last phase of this magical summer now turning to fall. Things that broke this summer and didn’t need immediate attention will be attended to now. Also the twenty three year old rigging will be replaced, the mast will be taken down and inspected, we hope the bottom of the boat will  not need new paint, a new refrigerator motor will replace the old one that died way back in late July , then we hope to add some things to make the boat more efficient with it’s electicity. This involves making stands for a solar panel and also a wind generator. We will see how our funds hold up as we complete the essential projects on the boat.

       Today is Wednesday and this is our first evening “on the hard”. We watched our boat get “hauled out” today. It was pretty cool. This giant vehicle called a travel lift raises  boats out of the water and carries them to a place in a boatyard. The boats are then propped up with with these iron boat stands. We are living on the boat as we work on her. We have to climb down an eight foot ladder to get to the ground.

Thursday, October 3

     It is a new experience to be living on the boat but not on the water, no gentle rocking, no water sounds. We have electricity, we are plugged into the “grid” and we have our propane stove. No water, so we use the bathroom and a giant work sink in one of the workshops in the boatyard. Showers are taken over by the marina. We are within easy walking distance of downtown and uptown businesses, cafes,restaurants, bakeries, grocery stores,bars, boutiques, book stores, galleries, museums, and of course the open water!

     Yesterday we met with one of the main managers/electrician at the boat yard to go over work we would like them to do and work we would be doing ourselves. Because our boat is 23 years old all the different systems need to be checked. Some things will need overhauling and some things will just have to be replaced, like all of the rigging on the boat. Yesterday we took all the sails off. After drying them in the sun we “flaked” them (the way sails are folded, in an accordion manner) and put them away in their sail bags. The mainsail came off the mast and boom, the staysail and jib came off the furling mechanisms which are attached to some of the stays on the front of the boat. We did other little chores while waiting for sails to dry. We worked on taking off the running rigging from the sails (ropes for pulling in or letting out the sails in the wind), then stowing them. Mike worked on detaching a special pole used for the spinnaker sail from the mast.

      A workman named Matt came to work on the seal on the propeller shaft. It started to leak while we were still in the marina. I was off on some errand while for a few minutes Mike was afraid the boat would sink. Water was coming into the hull and the bilge pump couldn’t keep up with the inflow fast enough. But then it quit coming in so fast and someone from the boatyard came and put a clamp on the seal for safety’s sake. That was a huge relief! The next day we motored over to the haul out with no worries of sinking on our way over.

     Well it is time to post this latest blog. Until the next one I hope everyone is well.

        Tina

Back in Friday Harbor

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

     We are now back in Friday Harbor and off to the wedding of my oldest brother’s youngest son, in Casper, Wyoming. I am so looking forward to it because I am craving seeing family again. A couple of my four sisters will be in attendance, my niece who lives next door to us in New Mexico, Kiera Rose, who I haven’t seen since Christmas, will be there, as well as my two youngest children, Arianna and Kieran. I am going to savor this celebration especially because we’ve been gone for the last two and half months.  It is my nephew, Peter Lang who is marrying Whitney, a very wonderful young woman.

     On our way here we spent a couple nights in Fulford Harbor, off of Salt Spring Island. It is the first place we stayed and anchored at the beginning of our sailing this summer. It was nice to be back there again after all the many places we’ve anchored throughout the summer. There is a mountain at the head of the harbor with unique features which helped us find our way in the beginning of this adventure. Now we know it’s name, Mount Maxwell.  We went into the little town this time, looking for some rye whiskey, Alberta Springs, to take to my brother Chris at the wedding. We asked this kindly old man for directions. He told us we would have to hitch hike or take the local bus over to Ganges Harbor, fifteen minutes away by automobile. The bus was just getting ready to go so we hopped on. We drove through a countryside with little farms, orchards, sheep and cows. It was late afternoon /early evening and the light was soft and mellow with long shadows starting. I felt like weeping at the beauty of it all. This old woman flagged the bus down and climbed up into the front seat. She started chatting with the bus driver about the rain they had had, how wonderful it was to have some rain (it has been a relatively dry summer up here in the northwest this year), and even if you have drip irrigation there is no comparing the two. Rain is definitely the better, the best. I wanted to add my agreement to her statement but I felt shy and too much of an outsider to join the conversation. The bus driver let her off right next to her destination, not an “official” bus stop. It felt very homey and small town. We found the whiskey at a “government” liquor store, (this is Canada) and had time to sit at an outdoor restaurant /bar and drink a beer in the warm sun before catching the bus back to Fulford Harbor.

      The following morning dawned pristine. Mike slept in and I caught up with my journal and read. In the early afternoon we took the dinghy, our “donkey” and went to visit this little island near by, now a public monument. It was once the home of a couple, he was Anglo Canadian and she was half Hawaiian and half First Nation. Her father was one of the Hawaiians that the Hudsons Bay Company brought to Canada to work for them! Amazingly some of the Hawaiians opted to stay and homestead in the northwest! The island was a wonder. All the farm land that this woman’s father homesteaded/cleared is taken over again by Douglas Firs. He’d cleared a hunk of the island at the beginning of the twentieth century.The government keeps the home with it’s gardens and orchard clear for tourists to visit. I was in awe of all the hard physical work that people had to do in those days. Of course there are places in the world still like that today. The daughter/mother/wife had thirteen children and was renowned among the local people as being a very free spirit who was very hospitable to all and on top of that she loved to sail! She would whistle for the wind to blow! Visiting these places makes the area come so much more alive for me.

      Two days ago we were in another state park but within the U.S. We were anchored in Reid Harbor on Stuart Island. We had a wonderful five mile walk to the old light house on the point, now automated. Along the way we visited the old one room school house and the teacher’s quarters, now both a museum and library. It was so interesting! back then people made a living off the land and ocean in a very basic way. They fished, some raised geese and turkeys, others cut down forest and sold the wood to a limestone mine on another island, others cleared land to grow fodder for their cows and horses. So much hard physical work but they didn’t know any other way and I think they were happy for the most part. It must have been grueling and exhausting at times, I’m sure. Now we have so much that we just take for granted! How will it all end, I often wonder.

      Well we are off to Caspar, Wyoming now, the final leg. 

Until the next post, hope you are all well,

            Tina

Telegraph Harbor Once Again

Sunday, August 25, 2013

      We are in Telegragh Harbor once again. This time we are in a marina with a laundromat. After two weeks we’re ready  to do laundry. This has been a lovely week with half overcast skies and a couple of showers. The clouds have been threatening and have  made for interesting light on the water. Sometimes the sun would peak through the clouds but it would be silvery and cold feeling.The sun we’ve had has been more appreciated because of the clouds. On Thursday we left Pender Harbor on the mainland and crossed Malaspina Strait to Jedediah Islands Marine Park, between Lasqueti and Texada Islands. The anchorage was one of those where the water is quite deep and so to keep the anchor from being dragged into even deeper water, one ties the stern to a tree or a big rock on the land. It was a pretty place with only four other boats anchored in this little cove. We had a difficult time tying the stern line to the tree. I insisted on rowing the dinghy to shore but the boat was turned sideways to the shore and my rowing as hard as I could would not aim the stern to shore. I was about to give up and go back to our boat for the outboard motor when this nice man with a British accent and a gentle voice offered to help out by pulling on the stern line while I took the rope up to a tree. He also instructed Mike to let out some more chain to the anchor so that the boat could swing around better. He did all of this in a very easy manner without making you feel stupid and he mentioned that he had someone help him tie up his own stern line just an hour earlier. Talk about angels in disguise. This man certainly was. As I was getting the line around the tree I realized how hot I was. Once on the boat again I got into my swim suit and decided to swim to the island with my Chaco sandals on and go exploring a bit. The water isn’t cold at this time in the summer or at least it’s not numbing cold, just refreshingly cold. I’d read in one of the guide books that the island is inhabited by wild goats and there is an old homestead on the island. I never found the homestead but I did see some of the wild goats. The trees were huge by New Mexico standards and there was much moss everywhere. The ground was very uneven with moss and grass growing on big bolders. I found a sweet little cove with crystal clear water and gravel beach but there was a dinghy pulled up onto it and I was feeling shy so I didn’t stay to swim. Back on the boat I had a solar shower out on deck. I will never take showers for granted again in my life. 

      The next day we awoke to a good breeze. We were hoping to cross The Strait of Georgia but the weather had  “strong wind warnings for small craft” and we found a harbor on the other side of Lasqueti Island that would be sheltered from strong winds if we decided the wind would be more of a challenge than we were ready for. We had a good sail up the the northeastern end of Lasqueti and as we came around the northern most point of the island on the western side the wind picked up. We thought at first, it’s okay, we can do it. I went down below decks to do something and when I came back up Mike wanted to reef the mainsail. At first I thought he was over reacting but the boat was heeling way beyond the point of comfort. In the end we opted to go into False Harbor on the same side of the island. We both felt stupid because we realized afterwards what we should have done so we could reef the mainsail in a safe way, i.e. we should of let wind out of the jib or just taken it down. But hey, we are learning and no harm was done other than to our egos. So we had a relaxing afternoon in the harbor and decided to give it a try again the next day. We got an early start in the morning. We couldn’t get the weather station in the harbor so we decided to go have a look and listen to the weather outside the harbor. We motored out to find the wind strong but less than the day before. First we put up a reefed mainsail and our small staysail. The sailing was fine. We listened to the weather which said the wind would be less today in the Strait. That’s all we needed to hear. We put up all the sails and crossed the Strait on one tack. It was just great. When we came up on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island we sailed south to the bay we’d decided to anchor in on only a few tacks. As we started into the bay the wind lightened but we realized we could sail most of the way into the bay to where it would be good to anchor. I loved every minute of that morning of sailing. The truth is, I hate it when we have to motor. That means turning on the diesel engine and then the only interesting part is the navigation.

     We were anchored behind a logging business in the bay we sailed into. Directly in front of us was a nice long beach which we rowed over to and took a walk on. We tried some stone skipping, but there weren’t many flat stones. Then we rowed over to the log boom, (lots of logs all grouped together and floating on the water), to visit the many seals and their young sunning themselves on the logs. During our lunch we heard them making these almost human sounds. The sounds reminded me of a child before it learns to speak a language. It was so strange. As we neared the logs all of the seals slipped into the water. Some of them followed us while we rowed back to our boat. The sun came out here and there throughout the afternoon, always that cold silver light reflected on the water. As we sat eating our dinner outside in the cockpit of the boat the sun broke through the clouds full force. The light became golden, all the dark green somber pines on shore were transformed into warm juicy greens. What a wonder sunlight is especially after not having much all day. As we sat there just soaking in the light watching it change to orange then pink on the surrounding clouds, several Canada Geese flew low over the water honking as they went. My goodness, I hadn’t seen that since visiting the Bosque Apache a few years back. The wonderful part about sunsets on the water is that the light is reflected back to you. One sees a beautiful sunset twice. the reflection on the water varies depending on the surface of the water. If it is still and glassy, the reflection is like a mirror. If the water is the least ruffled the reflection is wonderfully distorted, like an impressionist painting or something.

     That was the highlight of this week. We are in the southern Gulf Islands, off the eastern side of Vancouver Island for the third time this summer. Every time we come back we find new places to explore. We are in Bedwell Harbor, between north and south Pender Islands. They both have national parks on them so we climbed Mount Norman on Wednesday afternoon when we arrived. It was a good, mostly uphill hike of an hour or so. The views made it all worth it. All these islands we’ve been sailing around this summer were down below us. It was great to see so many of them from above. Yesterday was a mostly cloudy overcast day with showers on and off. We took the dinghy to buy some ice at a marina and get rid of our trash. On the way back Mike saw a sailboat with solar panels and he wanted to have an up close look at how they were mounted. As we putt putted slowly over to the boat we realized people were on board. So we started chatting with this couple from our dinghy about their solar panels and the next thing we knew they had invited us up onto there boat for beer and nachos! They turned out to be a very friendly couple from Victoria. They were a bit younger than Mike and I with a teen ager about to start college and one already in college. We had a good time talking about sailing, children, health care in the States and in Canada. Everything is more expensive in Canada but hey, you have to pay for the health care some way or other, right?. They were very into sailing the northern parts of the inside passage and beyond. This is where we hope to go next summer so we were all ears to hear about it. There are more “rapids” to be passed through up north during slack water. For boats this size, 20-40 feet it’s a big a deal. If you try to go through these narrow passages when it’s not slack water your doomed. Yes more adventures ahead for us next year.

     

Tuesday, July 30 through August 20

         This morning dawned very foggy.There are lovely little cobwebs attached to corners where the lifelines connect to stanchions. On a foggy morning they stand out clearly, with droplets of water glistening on them. They make such a contrast to the unclearness of everything else around us in the fog. I love fog for its way of changing the world. Snow changes the world too but in a very different way. Shapes just disappear from our normal range of sight. On land I feel so mysterious and cozy at the same time. On water or if I want to be going somewhere on the water, fog just frustrates me. If we venture into the fog it causes anxiety to no end. We had to leave the marina by noon today because the slip we were occupying belongs to someone else who is due back today. The fog didn’t cooperate and lift by noon so we just came out to the other side of the breakwater and are anchored with a smattering of other sail boats until tomorrow when we try again. The weather forecast is for cloudy skies with possible rain showers in the afternoon. Perhaps it will rain in the morning. I learned today that if there is rain there is no fog. It cleared up a bit after we anchored and had lunch. The sun is shining so so through a haze and patches of fog are still lingering at the mouth of Port Townsend Channel. It is nice to be out of the marina. There are so many distractions and work that being docked in a marina bring with it. We rushed around yesterday trying to complete tasks that were not so urgent to be completed at the start of our sailing but needed attention now. At 9:00 am we rode south on our bikes to a little community with a sign shop that would make us vinyl letters that spell out Santa Fe, NM. This is where we “hale” from. The Coast Guard requires registered boat owners to put on the stern of the boat where you the owner, come from. It still says Vancouver. Vancouver will be scraped off with an old Triple A card. Then we had to buy provisions for the next leg of our sailing journey. Luckily there is a large Safeway within easy walking distance. After grocery shopping we rode our bikes into “downtown” Port Townsend to find out what we could about the care of Teak wood on a boat. There is a wooden boat building school and a museum. We heard for the fifth time that Teak is most happy when left alone, i.e. not varnished. It loves salt water to kill off any mold that might take to growing in and on it. Varnish looks wonderful on the Teak wood but at least every year, if the boat has been outside and on the water, has to be scraped off and revarnished! To me that is something that would come close to driving me crazy! There are so many things that absolutely have to be done in maintaining a boat on a regular basis; why make more work for oneself by varnishing stuff that doesn’t need to be varnished? So much for the cosmetic look on our boat. It’s not going to happen. Besides, in spite of our non cosmetic look, so many people have come up to us and told us how much they love Cape George boats, or they once owned one and you can tell they’re sad they don’t have it any more.

later.....like one and a half weeks: Sunday, August 11, 2013

      Well we were blessed with another day of fog and one of rain and fog in Port Townsend. On the second day of fog we practiced reefing the mainsail right where we were anchored. Reefing is a way to make the mainsail smaller when the wind is too strong for the boat under sail. So far we haven’t been in such conditions and I hope we won’t be until Kieran is along with us as he is a more experienced sailor than Mike or I. There was time to fix little broken things on the boat, read books, and make phone calls to family. The third day dawned to rain. We decided to go take a look at the opening to The Strait of Juan de Fuca. Out of the “hanging locker” (a small closet where you can hang clothes) came all our rain gear, rubber boots, bright yellow, rubber, rain pants and jackets. We put it all on and were glad to have it. It was cloudy with showers on and off as we headed out of Admiralty Inlet to take a look. We went out about two hours, couldn’t see the mountains and hills across the strait and decided we would go back and wait for better visibility the next day. Saturday dawned fogless with no rain, only a high overcast with the weather forecast saying it would clear up later in the day. The Strait was very calm the first half and the second half we motor sailed with light winds.  Just after we came through the “cow pass” into San Juan Channel we started taking down our sails and there was a tour boat circling around. We looked over and caught a glimpse of some kind of whale surfacing for an instant! It didn’t come above water more than it’s dorsal fin so we still don’t know what kind of whale it was. But it was way too big to be a dolphin.

      We arrived at Friday Harbor in the afternoon to heat and sunshine. We took our dinghy to shore to do errands. The outboard wouldn’t start so I rowed while Mike fiddled with the motor. I found rowing the dingy, without very good oar locks quite the challenge.  I was exhausted in no time. Luckily for me Mike got the outboard running after my uncoordinated efforts at rowing us more than half the way. Since then I’ve taken every opportunity to practice rowing. It is great exercise, and once I find a rhythm very easy, like walking. Part of the rowing trick is putting one’s back into the oar strokes and the other, to row a straight line. is to keep one’s sights on the same thing.  

      Since Friday Harbor we have gradually been sailing and motoring our way north to Jervis Inlet on the mainland side of these inland waters. We spent a lazy, sunny afternoon in Roche Harbor, the north end of San Juan Island. It was Sunday in the summer so crazy busy with speed boats, float planes coming and going, as well as motor and sailing cruisers. In regard to noise, it was awful. The sun was lovely and my mystery novel was good but if I was given a choice to go back on a weekend, I wouldn’t do it. The following day was clear but calm so we motored over to Sidney on Vancouver Island to check in with customs. Then we sailed over to Cowichan Bay and up the Sansum Narrows to Maple Harbor, Birds Eye Bay for the night. Birds Eye Bay was full of boats for long term moorings and had a no wake zone,Our evening turned into a most welcome quiet and tranquil one. Sailing through the southern Gulf Islands and Stuart Channel,we ended up the following evening in Telegragh Harbor between Thetis and Kuper Islands. We were anchored there for two days, fixing things and figuring out navigation for crossing the Strait of Georgia over to Gibson’s, north of Vancouver. It was hot and we went swimming off the boat and rinsed off the salt water with one of those black, plastic, passive solar shower bags. I also had an opportunity to practice my rowing around the harbor. We found home grown vegetables, eggs, and baked goods on Thetis island, sold in a little house beside the road. Knowone was there to take our money. It was set up for customers to use the honor system, we wrote down in a notebook what we bought and it’s price, there was a calculator and then we wrote down the final amount and put the money in a box with a slot. 

      When we left Telegragh Harbor we had fair sailing in the morning further up the channel. This meant we missed the time for slack water at Gabriola Passage between Gabriola Island and Valdez Island into the Strait of Georgia. Instead, in the early afternoon we decided to explore a small bay and anchor off of De Courcy Island. We’d read about the spot  in one of the many sailing guide books we have.  It turned out to be a good decision for the most part. Only a few families with children were in this small bay with a lovely beach where we went for a swim. Then we went for a walk on the part of the Island that is officially public park land. Right to the edge of the island cliffs and ledges there were huge pine trees and large deciduous trees with shiny leaves and red bark trunks. The sun was shining and it felt good to be walking in the shady woods on a hot afternoon. We went to bed at the end of a perfect day. The next slack water a half hour away from us in Gabriola Passage would be at 6:30 a.m. We planned on getting up at 5:00 and this would give us plenty of time to cross the Strait of Georgia and arrive somewhere in the daylight. The weather forecast on the marine radio for the next day was good. At 3:30 a.m. Mike and I both awoke to the sound of the wind whistling in the rigging and the boat rocking. The guide book had mentioned it was a safe place to overnight, sheltered on all sides except the southeast. So of course there was a thunderstorm down south from us and we felt the aftershock of it. We had no idea if the storm would come our way and one of the fears when anchoring anywhere is that the anchor might not hold and your boat might drift into another boat or the land! Needless to say, I didn’t sleep again until the wind quit an hour or so later. Then there was a quick snooze of 30 minutes and it was time to get up so we could go through the passage during slack current. We made a thermos of coffee before pulling up our anchor. Later in the morning as we motored into the strait we savored each cup of coffee.It wasn’t the greatest sailing for five hours. We went from gentle breezes to nothing to pulling in the jib and staysail and motoring. Then  again a nice strong breeze came up as we neared the mainland and it’s islands. Up went all the sails for about an hour only to have the wind gradually diminish to nothing as we came up on a narrow channel between two islands. We tried everything we knew for another half hour or so before the diesel was turned back on. So it goes when there are long distances to be covered with a particular destination at the end of the day. The Strait of Georgia is another place like the Strait of Juan de Fuca, where you cross it however you can and are grateful for no fog or “wind /storm warnings for small craft” being forecast.

     Five days later with two good sailing days behind us we are on the last leg of our journey to the head of Jervis Inlet, apparently like a fjord with breathtakingly, steep and high mountains  surrounding us. At the near head of the inlet we take a right and have to pass through the narrowest passage so far. It is so narrow there are rapids at all times except  slack water, when the current is at it’s least, when the tide is neither ebbing much nor flooding. According to all our guide books and people who’ve made the journey before, we will be rewarded at the end of Princess Louisa Inlet with a large waterfall cascading down into the inlet from the mountains. It’s supposed to be spectacular. 

Saturday, August 17

     Well we made it to Chatterbox Falls yesterday at around 5:00 p.m. after spending most of the day in rain.  We motored from an anchorage at the top of Agamemnon Channel into Jervis Inlet for five hours. Then we had two and a half hours to wait for slack tide at Malibu Rapids, just drifting around in the inlet in the rain. We had some lunch first. Then to kill time Mike decided to see if he could pull Pinniped using the dinghy and the outboard. He was able to do it just fine. Apparently Kieran had to do this under real circumstances when one of the boats he was in charge of while working in the Caribbean, lost it’s propeller. To kill more time Mike tried rowing the dinghy and pulling Pinniped. It worked but at a much, much, slower pace with quite a physical workout involved too.  We also did some yoga in the rain, fully decked out in our bright yellow foul weather gear. Finally it was time and we came through the “rapids”, the narrowest place we have had to pass through thus far (besides marinas) just fine. The water definitely was slack and we realized our anxieties were way out of proportion to the reality. As we came up Princess Louisa Inlet through rain and low clouds we were treated to waterfalls cascading down steep, 2,700 foot high fijord walls. Somehow huge pines and juniper/cedars grow on the sides of the fjord,which are interspersed with grey cliff walls. When it rains the water comes tumbling down the cliffs. It reminded me of flash floods in New Mexico only the water just dumped itself into the fjord which is already between six and eight hundred feet deep.  No worries under these conditions. Also the water wasn’t muddy. Too much rock I suppose. As we came up to the famous Chatterbox Falls, spewing water and spray at the very end of the inlet, people stopped to help us tie up the boat to the park dock in the pouring rain. 

     We spent two days at the falls, always hoping the sun would come out. It did for an hour or so each day and transformed everything with the sunshine. The water on the trees glistened like diamonds in the light and the contrast of shadow and bright light was wonderful on the evergreens growing on the fjord. My spirits lifted with the sun. That was on Saturday afternoon. I had hight hopes for a sunny Sunday but only woke up to more mist and rain. The propane looked like it was running out too. My mood plummeted. The sun came out for an hour around 1:00  and I remembered the rainy family vacations when we would be camping by a lake somewhere in upper New York state. It would be cold and wet but if the sun came out even for an hour we would jump in the freezing lake and swim around. Well I jumped in the dinghy and rowed around the falls. That helped a bit. When I got back we ate lunch and things got better after that even though it kept raining off and on into the evening. 

       Monday morning dawned cloudy/misty with rain showers off and on. Mike asked me if I wanted to wait another day in hopes of it clearing up. I had to say no. I didn’t want to revisit the mood I’d been in yesterday. It was definitely not a comfortable place to be. So   we left in time to come through the rapids at slack water although we went through a little early and we could feel the current on our way through. We came out of that narrow cloud shrouded inlet into larger Jervis Inlet and within half an hour the clouds had broken up and the sun was coming out on the hillsides. It felt good to be moving again and to have some sun, even if it was partly cloudy. We decided to spend the night in Hotham Sound at the Harmony Islands. This was a lovely spot where the mountains were high but one felt more like they were related to the Rocky Mountains, not a dark fjord in rainy British Columbia. Plus by late afternoon the sun was shining full force. We had a heck of a time finding a good spot to anchor. We tried four times and three of the times the anchored just dragged across rock at the bottom. We were starting to wonder if we would find good ground when the fourth try worked. I jumped in the water and swam around and took a solar shower on deck. It was one of the best days yet.

     

Wednesday, August 20, 2013

     Today we are back in Pender Harbor since yesterday afternoon. The weather is sunny again but it’s supposed to rain this weekend. I have to remind myself; that’s the reason it’s so green here.  We are gradually working our way south to the States once again. We have to get back in time to attend a wedding of a nephew in early September. We want to cross the Straight of Georgia with a different route this time. We’re hoping for favorable winds to Lasquetti Island tomorrow,then crossing over to Vancouver Island to a place called French Creek in a day or so. I hope everyone is well. We haven’t had a chance to check e-mail for the last couple of weeks. We are restocking our larder here and hopefully finding an internet cafe today.

     Until the next post,

                   Tina

Lots of Sailing Practice

Thursday, July 18 through Tuesday, July 30

We spent one night on the northeast side of  Lumi Island, two nights in Chuckanut Bay which is in Bellingham Bay off the mainland of Washington, one night in Judd Bay, a tiny bay at the end of East Sound on Orcas Island, three nights in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. From those days I remember watching a full moon rising over the water, big and orange then reflecting off the water at the same time. On two different mornings I saw a giant ferry being  swallowed up in the fog. Of course I was watching this from our safely anchored boat in Friday Harbor. We had our friends come for dinner on the boat. One night Lovel and Boyd came, old friends from years ago, when Mike was going to film school and then building our house in Santa Fe. Then another night two old friends who grew up on San Juan Island. a sister and brother, Beth and Joe Hudson. They met Mike in the late seventies in Guatemala. We did a day sail with Joe one day in San Juan  Channel. We had started out in hopes of making Port Townsend but the fog was too thick and hung around too long at the southern end of San Juan Channel. So we enjoyed the nice weather at the northern end of the channel and had a lovely relaxing day sail.

      Well the past twelve days have been full of many opportunities for practicing our sailing and boating skills. Nothing major broke this week, amazing! We fixed a few small things that needed our attention but weren’t urgent. We talked and tried jury rigging a jack line for the next time we are sailing in rough water and strong winds. One evening we practiced setting a second anchor, using the dingy and rowing out to another spot to drop a second anchor. I dropped that heavy 45 pound anchor without going with it over the side of the dinghy. We were then supposed to haul it back into the dinghy but we couldn’t for whatever reason. We rowed back to the boat and hauled it out from there. Quite a bit of work. It makes me tired just thinking about it.

       I am still amazed at how important it is to pay attention to the map, the compass, the wind direction, the water, the land, keeping an eye out for buoys and other boats, all at the same time! The big boats: ferries, barges, tugs towing logs; these all make me nervous. I’ve begun to be able to figure out if we are on a collision course or not, although I need more practice before I can trust my judgement.

      Today is July 29th and we are in Port Townsend since Friday afternoon. We left Friday Harbor around 8:45 in hopes of crossing the Strait of Juan de Fuca, famous for its hairy weather, earlier in the day, that way avoiding strong winds and large waves. Luck was with us and we had a sunny day with no fog and only fair winds. We arrived around 2:30. We were tired after the worry of the crossing. The rest of the afternoon was spent napping and reading, then a long walk out through Port Townsend to Point Wilson. It was cold and windy that evening, it felt like early fall in New Mexico.

     On Saturday we did some cleaning on the boat, some maintenance, showers were a joy, we filled water tanks, did a little bit of shopping for some extra docking line, a new outboard fuel tank and fittings (the old ones leaked) and groceries. We were expecting my sister Andy and her husband Jim for dinner and a couple nights stay on the boat with us. Mike discovered a brew pub about a block away from the docks and brought home two growlers of nice dark ale to drink with supper. Another boat owner who also has a Cape George Cutter like ours came by with some information for Mike. He stayed and chatted and had some beer. Andy and Jim arrived and our meal of lentil stew, good bread, and a fresh salad was just about ready for us to sit down to and eat. 

     Sunday dawned gray but cleared up in time for us to do an afternoon sail with Andy and Jim and some young friends from Seattle, Lil and Vince. We ate lunch then had a crazy time getting out of our slip. It was a bit too breezyand luckily Mike anticipated this. He said, if I didn’t have time to jump on the boat, not to worry, he’d pick me up at the fuel dock on his way out of the marina. Consequently I joined the boat at the fueling dock! We had a good sail with winds that got us going at seven knots! Everyone had a chance to help crewing. We never lost our wind the whole three hours we spent in the channel. I find moving through the water with only the wind and the sails very soothing and gratifying all at once. We had dinner out in the cockpit with more good beer from the brew pub nearby. A happy evening.

    Until the next blog everyone,

                         
            Tina

Wednesday, July 17, Point Roberts, U.S.

     On Monday we motored and sailed from False Creek (which winds its way right into  downtown Vancouver), south to  Point Roberts, six hours away when traveling with the current. We averaged about 6 knots over ground. It was another sunny day but as we motored out of English Bay the wind became stronger and the waves became bigger. Pretty soon the waves were breaking over the bow. We passed a big red buoy with a bell on it ringing its warning and I thought of Gordon Bok, the Maine singer/songwriter referring to “gong buoys”. I also thought of rocks, fire engines, sandy shoals, and the shipwreck stories I’d read to my kids before bedtime when they were young. I began to wonder how big the waves could get, the sun was shining after all. Well Mike told me later that the forecast had been for “strong winds”, which means larger waves, maybe 3 or 4 feet, forming whitecaps everywhere with spray, around 25 - 30 knot winds. The wind was stronger and the waves were bigger than anything we’d traveled through so far in our two weeks of sailing. We were glad knowing the current was pushing us south. I definitely felt uncomfortable rocking and rolling through those waves. I know from my reading of sailing accounts that one could eventually get used to such turbulence. (But how long does it take to get used to it?) As we motored out of the bay beyond boat traffic I began to wonder how the boat would do in that wind with the sails up. At one point I asked Mike if we’d put up the sails. He said he wasn’t so sure how the boat would be in that wind. After a few minutes he suggested we start with the stay sail (our smallest sail). So we unwound the stay sail without turning off the engine. The boat did fine and maybe a half hour later the wind seemed less forceful so we felt confident enough to raise the mainsail. The boat was still “thrashing” like a beast in pain but not quite as much as before. Mike asked me if I wanted to try getting the main up. I was scared but excited to try Keke’s method for raising the sail in strong winds. There are many holds on a sailboat for just such a situation and I made sure I was always holding on to something while getting that sail up. Keke’s method worked and Mike and I felt triumphant as the boat moved smoothly through the rough water, engine off, just the comforting sound of the wind in the sails and and water wooshing by. The boat actually moved better with the wind and waves under sail than with the engine.

      I felt like we had gotten through the worst of the high winds and waves. I’d been down below decks several times for different reasons during these strong winds. Things we had not put away, a newspaper. some maps,  were on the floor. I could hear the pots and pans banging around in their cabinet. The boat was rocking so fiercely I had to hold onto the handholds along the walls or fall over. After the first time below I knew I’d be sick if I didn’t get back on the deck fast! It was so disorienting the way our little “RV on the water” felt  like it and myself were experiencing a long term earthquake! I didn’t eat a thing for lunch! I had zero appetite, and it was all I could do to grab some crackers and cheese for Mike to eat while steering the boat.

      Later in the day around 4:30 the wind was almost nothing. We took down the sail and motored into Point Roberts Marina around 5:45. The U.S. customs guy was very nice. He was learning Spanish. When he saw we were from New Mexico he decided to practice. When Mike answered him in Spanish and started asking him where he’d learned his Spanish, he had to tell us that he didn’t really know that much. He had very good pronunciation though. We thought he was fluent. He just glanced at our passports and handed them back to us. What a relief! I was tired and not looking forward to a fussy customs official.

     The Marina people had already gone home so we had to call the security guard. He turned out to be a very kind elderly gentleman. We were dreading having to go into our reserved slip because there was a strong current and wind beginning to blow into the marina. It was as if he read our thoughts and told us it would be fine to stay at the customs dock for the night, they wouldn’t be expecting anyone else that evening. There was even water and electricity on the customs dock! Just dinner had to be prepared. Mike surprised me by suggesting we just go over to the restaurant and eat. So that’s what we did. My appetite was back. I was famished. Our waitress was vey sweet and young and when we asked for a scoop of ice cream, she brought us three! I slept oh so contentedly that night.

Vancouver/Reflections

      We arrived in Vancouver city yesterday afternoon to drop off the German young folks. Mike has a friendly relationship with the broker for our boat and he lives in Vancouver. He told us about a very convenient place to anchor that is situated right in downtown Vancouver. We had to be here because we needed a part to repair something that broke connecting the holding tank to a line for pumping the poo either to the tank or out into the water. It’s very important in harbors and moorages because it’s forbidden to pump it into the water. After five days of sailing, using the diesel engine for an hour in the morning to cool the fridge and get the batteries recharged and then again for an hour or so in the evening when coming into a harbor or bay or cove for the night to charge the batteries again, to cool the fridge, and also to help us anchor and operate the windlass. The batteries we have are old and not very good. We eventually want to replace them, get a solar panel and a mini wind mill to charge the batteries. Then we would use the diesel even less. But what I set out to say, is that this last week the engine has been running well without burning so much oil. So changing the oil and doing a few simple things the mechanics told us to try, really paid off. Yesterday I learned how to use the dinghy with the outboard motor. I really am a luddite by nature but  necessity is a great teacher.

     So we parted ways with Ben, Anna, and Keke yesterday, but told them if they needed a place to sleep they were welcome. So last night they were back around 9:30 in the evening. The sun had just set and we sat outside watching the beautiful colors in the sky and then an orange crescent moon slowly set as well and the stars came out more feebly than they have in the little bays and coves we stayed in the last week. We drank a schnapps or a shooter in gratitude to one another and luck for them finding a used car for a trip north to the Yukon territory and river. They plan to paddle in a canoe on part of it.

Yesterday we bought the needed part for our septic system and this morning Mike had success installing it. So tomorrow we will be heading for Point Roberts to go outside of Canada for a day so we will be allowed to return again without having to take their boat safety course. Apparently they have some rule that if you are a foreigner in Canada and boating for more than 45 days, one has to take this safety course. We have technically been here much longer than that sooo, Point Roberts here we come.

     I had my first real day of sailing in choppy waters with whitecaps on Thursday when we sailed across the Straits of Georgia from Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. It was a little ominous at first because there were lots of clouds the first hour or two and I thought, “oh boy, it’s not only going to be windy but it’s going to rain too!” But luck was with us and the clouds blew away and I had a chance to begin learning how to raise the sails when the wind is truly blowing, not just puffing gently. I learned that one adjusts the boom so the sail is raised to the top of the mast in less time and using less space. This was thanks to Keke’s knowledge of sailing. It was so much easier to raise the sail by raising the boom and tilting it a bit. Then once the sail was up we readjusted the boom so the sail was it’s normal size for optimum speed. Things are beginning to make more sense and come a tiny bit easier to me now. It’s been almost two weeks since we first set sail. Learning so much at once hasn’t been easy, it’s hard on the ego, making foolish mistakes a lot of the time, not understanding the directions given to you to do something,but with patience in myself, it gradually has become easier. All the struggle and feeling idiotic and inadequate are beginning to recede into the background. I’m beginning to have more confidence in myself because all the new stuff I’ve had to learn is a part of the daily routine. Having the young Germans has been good too, because they have been very supportive and I could watch how to do things the right way instead of Mike trying to tell me what to do while he was also busy navigating. For me the watching has been very helpful. Ben pointed out that it takes courage to learn something new and so that has been a thought I have carried with me when I really was feeling stupid or frightened about having to learn this or that. I am in charge of lowering the anchor which didn’t terrify me but definitely made me feel uncomfortable. I’ve made a lot of mistakes learning it, nothing earth rending but frustrating. I definitely need time to learn technical things, it just doesn’t come naturally. However, I know with certainty that no matter how long it takes, I will learn this stuff eventually. 

      The weather continues to be beautiful and sunny with breezes thus far since leaving Canoe Cove almost two weeks ago. I guess this is typical for summer weather in British Columbia. When there is no breeze it is still pleasantly hot although with the water reflection one needs a hat and sunglasses. I hope that soon the summer monsoons are beginning in New Mexico. Are the forest fires still raging? I miss New Mexico and everyone there but I am happy to be around all of this water. We have seen dolphins and seals numerous times, Canadian geese, Sea gulls, and Cormorants. We have yet to see any whales. Until the next entry, in a week or so, all the best to all of you readers,

Tina

Sailing with the Germans...

     So let me see, the last I wrote was last week on Monday evening, July 1. We returned to Sidney on Friday morning. The diesel was burning too much oil and after a day of “beating into the wind” (meaning we had a headwind and had to tack back and forth to make head way sailing) we spent the night anchored off Sidney Island on Thursday night. It took us three tries of anchor dropping before we felt sure our boat wasn’t going to swing into other boats anchored all around us.

     

      By ten we had motored on into Sidney Harbor Marina. It’s a man made harbor with a break water. We had reserved a slip (a boat parking spot) the day before and radioed in to make sure the space was empty at 11:00. 

Getting into that slip wasn’t too stressful because no one was “parked” next to us. Someone came to help us tie up. I was determined to tie up “with dignity and intelligence”. This was not to be, alas, I grabbed the stern line and looped it over the cleat on the dock. Mike said, “ pull in the slack”, I pulled and before I knew it the other end of the line plopped into the water! That end had not been attached to the deck as it should have been. Oh well, so it goes when one is learning, mistakes are inevitable.So many ropes to keep track of. In the beginning it’s overwhelming. No harm done except for my ego, I felt like a total idiot even though I was laughing at the same time.

      The night before coming into Sidney we called Mary, our friend in Pagosa. We had talked to her before about meeting up with my cousin’s son from Germany, he would be on vacation in Canada and later Alaska. Mary was our go-between because my cousin’s son had spent a year abroad in high school with Mary and her family. So Mary filled us in on Benjamin Raab and promised to e-mail him our whereabouts and have him e-mail us while we were in Sidney so we could work out a time and some meeting point. 

       First things first, upon arriving in Sidney, we drained the oil out of the engine and then rode our bikes over to the place that services engines for sailing boats. Mike had a dozen questions for the guy about diesel engines that burn too much oil and we had to buy more oil. It was a very good session with several of the mechanics. Mike gleaned lots of solid information from the mechanics and he explained to one of them, (after Mike mentioned that he was a pilot and the guy voiced his curiosity and lack of understanding of radial engines on the old aircraft) how they work. It was a good exchange. We bought the oil and went back to the boat to put in a new oil filter and oil with good information on getting that engine to run at it’s best. Then I checked our e-mail and found several from Ben. He had just arrived in Vancouver a few days before. Two of his friends from Germany would be traveling with him, and “ Would it be all right if they came along on the boat as well? We will only bring small back packs.” Mike and I thought, well why not, we’ll just take them out for a day and a night. If we all get along they could come longer. So we e-mailed back with a time and place to meet and awaited Ben’s reply. Back to town to get groceries. Then back to the marina for a shower and a beer at a local pub. By the time we got back there was a reply from Ben, “Many thanks for inviting them, they would be on the 8:00 a.m. ferry, arriving in Sidney around 11:00. They would find a way to Sidney and the marina.” On Satureday morning we had our Bavarian flag waving from the mast to help them find us. Around noon they showed up. They had brought some “really bad beer” but it was all they could find. So we had a beer and some peanuts before going back to town to do more errands. They insisted on buying some more food for the trip. Keke, it turned out had worked on a 150 foot sailboat! All three of them are used to working together with young people in the outdoors. Needless to say here we are on Wednesday, counting today, it is four days later of sailing with them. They have been wonderful to have along. Helpful in every way and lots of fun to have around. It turns out Ben and Keke both know quite a bit about sailing and have been keen to learn all about how to sail this boat as well as share what they know about sailing. Anna too has been an avid student of KeKe’s as he teaches her navigation and sailing skills.

Maiden Voyage

     Well we finally left Canoe Cove today, Canada’s Independence Day!  We ended up with an extra day of grace yesterday. Our neighbors in the marina were going over to Sidney Harbor to watch the fireworks last night, (done a day earlier in Sidney). They said we could pull into their slip for the night if we weren’t ready to leave. We were glad for the extra time and chance to practice coming out of our old slip and moving into our neighbor’s slip/parking place. Also Mike had wanted to clean the mainsail before leaving. It was a perfect day for such a task, hot and sunny. So we scrubbed and rinsed sections of the sail.  It surprise me to no end how all kinds of last minute unforeseen chores popped up with the extra time available. 

      We checked the weather, the tide schedule and  how the currents would be flowing. We had picked out a destination the night before but Mike got the charts out that we would need. We checked fuel and water levels. I had asked Mike to explain everything he could about my role when leaving the slip. It turned out we really needed three people to do it. Luckily our neighbor on the other side of us, (also new to boating and very enthusiastic ) helped us from the shore.I don’t know how we could have done it otherwise. This changing of slips (parking space) was so important for us to do/practice.   It gave us a huge boost to our confidence when we managed to do it successfully. 

       Once we were off, motoring out of the cove, another bright sunny morning, at 2 1/2 knots, it felt wonderful. After spending a week and a half of cleaning the boat and doing some basic maintenance like changing fuel filters on the diesel engine, checking the oil, checking sea strainers, buying as much food as we could fit on the boat (maybe 10 days worth), countless trips to town for this spare part, this extra thing to fix this or that.... I was ready to be doing something else, no matter how difficult. 

Difficult and new, big learning curve, is the way to describe our four hours on the water today. We didn’t go very far, maybe 7 1/2 miles but it felt like 200! There wasn’t any wind so we concentrated on figuring out where we were on the chart, steering a heading with the compass, watching for other boats, especially fairies! We did practice hoisting the mainsail and lowering it. My goodness, I had no idea how much strength it would take to get it up to the top of the mast. It is gigantic compared to our itty bitty day sailer! Actually lowering the sail was harder because it has to fold up kind of like an accordion with help from a sailor. Practice, practice, practice, and it will become easier. Then we had to anchor our boat. Anchoring is surely an art that we will need time to master. We think we got it on our second try. It is 9:15 p.m. and we are still in the same place since 1:30 this afternoon. Mike checks the anchor every couple or hours or so. We are so new at everything to do with sailing we are hyper vigilant. Needless to say we took a longish nap this afternoon. After all, we can set our own pace.

Canoe Cove

     We are in a marina situated in a cove with lots of rocks at it’s entrance but well protected. It’s called Canoe Cove.The moon is full tonight after a gorgeous sunny day. Today was our second day of unpacking, cleaning, and organizing everything we brought to the boat as well as what was already on the boat from the previous owners.

     So much of it is for the repair of the boat, spare parts, tools, foul weather gear and life jackets. There are some choice books for sailing, reading charts, tide tables, Mike’s papers with information on this boat, then maybe 30 books for reading enjoyment.