Pictures--First Installment

Butedale Falls, B.C.

Waterfall along Princess Royal Reach, B.C.

B.C. Ferry in Grenville Channel

Grenville Channel tug

Ketchikan tour boat

Cruise ships in Ketchikan

Merlin in Shoalwater Passage

New Eddystone Rock, Behm Canal

On beach in Wrangell, Alaska

Our entrance to Bottleneck Channel

Canal Time

On the sunny morning of May 20^th, we left Ketchikan. We were caught up on laundry and grocery shopping, and Rod had found what he needed at the local True Value hardware store to fix our shower. We had also filled our water and fuel tanks. We backtracked down the route we had approached Ketchikan and entered the Behm Canal and into the Misty Fjords National Monument, a huge natural area approachable only by boat or seaplane. We saw only two other boats today—tour boats carrying cruise ship passengers. Misty Fjords is noted for its majestic fjords, of course, but also for its towering granite walls, many waterfalls (especially this time of year), and abundant wildlife (both in the sea and on the land). Our anchorage today is in Shoalwater Passage between Winstanley Island and the Alaskan mainland. We were able to tie to a National Forest Service buoy and dinghy to a darling cabin on shore that you can rent from the USFS. The cabin had wooden beds, a table, cupboard, and wood stove. It smelled like fresh cedar as it was newly built. There was also a lean-to with lots of firewood already cut and a fire pit. There are 14 such cabins in the Park. Fishermen love the Behm Canal, and we hope to do shrimping and crabbing while we are here.

On May 21^st, we had two very exciting views. The first was New Eddystone Rock, a 230’ shaft of rock rising from a sandy shoal out in the deep water of Behm Canal. It was one of the weirdest rocks we had ever seen in the middle of a passageway and we took lots of pictures, one of which I hope I can include in a blog post.

The second view of the day was our anchorage for the night, described in our cruising guide as the quintessential place to visit in Misty Fjords. Called Punchbowl Cove, steep granite walls surrounded us as we entered with beautiful waterfalls cascading down the striated cliffs. We almost felt that we should proceed at a slower rate and be very quiet in this awesome place. The Forest Service had conveniently put one buoy in a protected cove near a beach. Xanadu tied to it and we side-tied to them. We decided to do a lunch hike on a maintained trail up to Punchbowl Lake. The trail was good at first, but soon deteriorated as fallen trees and other debris nearly blocked our path. Finally, we had to turn around, return to the beach and have our lunch there. We did see recent signs of bear—fresh poop and many rocks overturned on the beach as they had looked for food. We kept an eye out while eating, although the sight of four humans and a dog would probably keep a bear away, I am told.

It rained that night, appropriate for a place called Misty Fjords, and after a quick kayak trip to shore for Katie’s benefit, we were on our way again, heading further up the Behm Canal. Today’s trip was only three hours to the next indentation in the eastern shoreline named Walker Cove, another beautiful fjord with almost perpendicular, mile-high granite walls and many ribbon-like waterfalls. Once again, we had one forest service buoy to tie to which we shared with Xanadu, and once again, there were no other boaters. We are thinking that we might be the only pleasure boat in Misty Fjords this week! Rod and John put out our shrimp pot in water over 300 feet deep. The next morning as we left the bay, we picked up the pot. Alas, we only had 7 prawns in it, but they were huge and we enjoyed them that night at Happy Hour.

On May 23^rd, we rounded the top of Behm Canal at mid-day and stopped for the night in a beautiful, quiet anchorage called Bailey Bay in Bell Arm of the Canal. Once again, there was one buoy which the two boats made use of. A lovely surprise was a Forest Service hike on shore. We kayaked in and started hiking. We had our swim suits with us as the hike was supposed to end at a hot springs. (Not exactly a spa, but knew we would have the place to ourselves.) Unfortunately, we had to turn around at a cascade of water that blocked the trail.

The next day’s journey of about four hours brought us to our last anchorage in the Canal—Naha Bay, not far as the bird flies from Ketchikan. This time we were able to tie up to a public dock (i.e., no charge!). Up until now, recall, dear readers, that we have not seen a single boat or person for four days! Just as we were putting on our hiking boots to do a 5-mile trail, a big boat pulls in with about 60 fifth-graders and their leaders who were starting a 4-day outdoor education outing to the same destination as our hike! Needless to say, we shared the trail and were happy to see these excited kids.

From Naha Bay, it was not far the next morning  to the northern end of the Behm Canal and into Clarence Strait, one of the bigger bodies of water in S.E. Alaska and therefore sometimes an area of big seas. No wind or waves today though as we crossed to Prince of Wales Island to explore new places.

Sorry there are no pictures. Maybe when we get to Wrangell, we will have a strong enough signal to send. They are certainly piling up.

Signing off,

Susan, Rod, and Katie

Correction

I signed off incorrectly in my last post. The ones on our boat are Susan, Rod, and KATIE! (although Patrick would love to be here too!)

Finishing up previous post

I got cut off on writing my post. Just wanted to say that I am having some trouble uploading pictures so only two will appear in my last post and we will try again in the future to send more.

Signing off,
Susan, Rod, and Patrick

When in Doubt, Turn About!

Boardwalk at Hartley Bay

Old cannery ruins--Butedale, B.C.

We had a good time in Prince Rupert, our last town to visit in B.C. Left very early on May17 to try to make our second open ocean crossing into Alaskan waters. The water was calm up until we left the shelter of the western islands. Then it got very roly-poly. For the ladies in my BookGroup, this was the "motion of the ocean." Both boats decided that we really didn't want to keep going, so turned back and anchored in a very quiet cove for the night called Brundige Inlet on Dundas Island. Good choice. In the morning Dixon Entrance (our ocean crossing area) was like Bellingham Bay on a good day and we made an easy crossing on the 18th.

Now we are in Ketchikan, Alaska. We made it back to the U.S.A.! We are docked about 50' from the cruise ship dock and have watched 3 cruise ships come and go and a 4th arrived at 7 this morning. Ketchikan is a wonderful little town and we are staying an extra day here.

Takes a Lickin', Keeps on Tickin': Near Disaster at the Laundromat

              On May 9^th, we had a lovely trip on the sometimes difficult Johnstone Strait as the winds were lower than predicted. Our next stop was Port McNeill, a good stocking- up and departure point for our crossing of the open ocean north of Vancouver Island. Many services were a short walk from the boat docks, including a laundromat which Roxie and I decided to use. As I watched the water filling one of my machines, I was horrified to see my almost new Kindle IN THE MACHINE! Roxie was able to pry open the door enough so the machine stopped while I ran across the street to get someone from the auto parts store  to help me. (They own the laundromat.) After getting my wet Kindle out of the machine, I didn’t have much hope for it. However, we let it dry out overnight and it worked just dandy in the morning.

             We stayed an extra day in Port McNeill as the winds were too high to do our ocean crossing on May 10^th. On the 11^th, we left the docks at 5:55 a.m. with the forecast for light winds all day. For the next four hours, we were still in the lee of western islands protecting us from ocean swells, and by the time we were in open waters, the sun came out and the winds were indeed quite light. From all reports it was a great day for our first time around Cape Caution, and eventually into the lee of Calvert Island. There were ocean swells, sometimes as high as 6’, but they were far enough apart that we seemed to float over them. This crossing was a personal challenge for me (Susan) as I have never wanted to take our own boat out into the ocean, and it was a long day for both of us, but we made it! Also, the reward at the end was anchoring in a beautiful cove called Fury Bay that was calm and peaceful. We kayaked to a white crushed shell beach with the ocean waves crashing on the other side of a narrow spit.

                Our next day’s journey up Fitzhugh Sound and beyond showed us what the words "Inside Passage" really mean. We experienced calm waters and pleasant cruising while a near-gale was blowing on the other side of the adjacent island (nearest the ocean). Also, there was also always a cove or inlet to duck into if the weather did get nasty. Very reassuring!

               

                As we made our way up the Discovery Coast (as some cruisers call it), we found many interesting names for the various coves, inlets, passages, and nooks. Besides the ones named after explorers and those with words from Native languages, others are whimsical or downright amusing. Try Fish Egg Inlet, Mantrap Inlet, Gee Whiz Nook, Remotesville Cove, Bitter End Cove, Fancy Cove, Alarm Cove, Poison Cove, and Split Head. We were pleased  one day to pass by Dean Channel and go down a passage between Roderick Island and Susan Island. That evening we stayed in Bottleneck Inlet (shaped as such) and walked on Roderick Island! To complete it all, we traveled the next day in McKay Reach. (Rod’s full name is Roderick McKay Dean.)

                Our next few days were spent moving up the inner coastal waters. We got up early each day to enjoy the calmest water and anchored in lovely coves each evening. There was always a little beach to take Katie for a time, although there were no trails to really do a good walk. For our boating friends, we did stop at Butedale, a former cannery that is in shambles, for about 30 minutes and took a quick tour of the property with Lou, the caretaker, and his assistant, Corey. The word is that all of the buildings will be bulldozed down this June. We’ll take a peek on our way back south. We saw many waterfalls along the way, as the snow is finally starting to melt.

                A fun stop for the night of May 14^th was a Native village called Hartley Bay. It’s on the B.C. road map, although there are no roads leading to it and the roads in the village are all boardwalks. The friendly residents all seem to have 3- or 4-wheelers with which they tear around on the boardwalks. One was even fitted with a snowplow! We were all thrilled, probably especially our dog, that we got to take a short hike to a lake, where the town’s road (boardwalk) ended. The weather just keeps getting nicer and some of our group wore shorts that afternoon. It was also great to see some other cruisers and chat with them.

                The last night before we got to Prince Rupert was Klewnuggit, an inlet off the Grenville Channel and a marine park. Just like always, there were no other boats anchored. For the first time, we got somewhere by noon and enjoyed an afternoon of kayaking, reading, and napping.

                I hope to send this post at Prince Rupert. We have only had phone contact briefly since leaving Port McNeill, so we have been electronically deprived. I apologize for this post being so long and will try to shorten up the next ones.

Signing out,

Susan, Rod, and Katie

               

               

                 

How to Comment

It has come to my attention that it is difficult to comment to our posts. Here is what you do. You post a comment by going to the bottom of a post that we have made and click on the word "comments." It will have a number preceding it (like 0 if no one has made a comment). Our boating partner, John, has determined that you cannot comment on our most recent post, but only older ones. We can't seem to work it out how to fix this. In any case, I would love to hear from you!
I have also attached the bear picture in case you couldn't pick out the bear in the first one I sent you.

You might also be interested in following our boat buddies' blog. Their address is http://www.xanadulove.blogspot.com/. We are sharing photos back and forth so you might see identical ones on their blog.

Signing out,
Susan, Rod and Katie