July 8, 2017

We listened to the radio in the morning and found out that the wind is coming up a bit tomorrow, so we decided to go further than anticipated and all the way into Peril Straight today. And so we ended up leaving earlier than Sleighride's 8:00am request, we left around 7:15 or so. Talking to Scott and Judy, they were going to leave early right after us as well.

Another long day but the weather was good and we had a cell signal for the majority of it which was nice. We did see some humpbacks in Northern Chatham Straight, and actually saw a group bubble feeding! (We might have a distant photo proof shot). It was a long way up and over and down again. Saw a few fishboats a long the way, but no other pleasure boats - everyone seemed to be headed south. It's certainly been a case of "what do they all know that we don't"!

Baby Bear cove is a bit of a path to get into, but was nice and protected when we got there. After sprinkling all day, there was blue sky and the sun came out! So we just sat on the flybridge to soak up the rays. Did some reading and maybe nodded off a bit enjoying the warmth.

Made a plan for going through the narrows the next day. Although it's "preferable" to go through at high slack, we decided to go through them at low slack so that we weren't coming into Sitka in the afternoon. That meant up at 5:00am and raising the anchor around 5:20. But this also meant leaving Baby Bear Cove at what was possibly a minus tide. The chart here is not that detailed and it shows that we came in through some shallow water which wasn't actually that shallow. But we hopped into the dingy and went over so the shallow spots with our dingy depth sounder and verified that there *was* actually lot's of water to leave in. Bak to Spellbound for dinner and an early night.

July 7, 2017

Ended up leaving a bit late, around 8:30. Greg picked up the crab trap - surprise! - no crabs. Had a pleasant ride down Frederick Sound - flat calm water for most of it. We stopped to see some humpbacks and some otters a long the way.

We didn't really time it right for our arrival though. It got a little windy as we entered Warm Springs Bay, and had to stop to let a humpback go by who was sitting inside there feeding. We managed to arrive at high tide, which is the wrong time. When it's high tide, the waterfall flows directly into the dock and causes some rockin' and rollin' and some current. Also, since we arrived so late, there was no room at the dock. Fortunately, a sailboat offered us to raft to them so we did. We met Scott and Judy on a sailboat called "Sleighride" from Astoria, OR. We managed to put out about 3,000 fenders and all was well. (But we had to turn off our furnace so we didn't melt their boat).



We had some lunch, and then went for a walk up the board walk to "scope things out". We walked up to the Lake where we met a nice family (and their lab Greta) who were there trout fishing. They have a cabin near Angoon and were just over on their skiff for the afternoon. They had some fishing suggestions for us and gave us some good information. We walked back down and then over to the hot pools - the "hot" one was really hot. Talking to a couple there, they said start at the slightly less hot one and then work your way into the "hot" one.

It was spritzing and then sprinkling and then raining on and off. We had dinner and then decided that we would try the "public" bath. They have 3 little "rooms" (bathhouses) where they have a locked door and a tub of water and a view out over the bay (with curtains). They have some hot water from the springs as well as some cold water from the stream. I had to add some cold to mine cause it was too hot to get in. When you're done, you take the plug out and let it drain and use the supplied brush to clean it out. Then you put the plug back in and then just turn the hot on and let it run. The "plug" is actually a tube that will drain when it get's to a certain height. Even when you turn the hot off, it still runs and everything just drains into the cove underneath the bath house. They ask for a donation for upkeep which seems reasonable.

Back to the boat we talk to Scott and Judy. They say that they have decided to only stay 1 day and want to start heading south tomorrow so want to untie around 8:00am. They have been coming to Alaska every summer for 9 years and this is the worst weather they have ever had. They're leaving early to find sunshine south. Hmmmm ……

There was a fair amount of activity around the dock until quite late. A cargo boat, "Seeker", had been unloading lumber for someone further in the bay, and so then they squeezed in and did a "med tie" on the inside. A sea plane landed and dispatched 3 people and so much "stuff", you had to wonder how it took off. Turns out it was people staying at their cabin. Then another smaller personal fishing craft came in just before bed and rafted somehow to it and another boat and let off a large group of people. It seems like we're either completely by ourselves, or in a hubbub of activity.

July 6, 2017

Long day. Left around 8:00am and got into the cove around 2:30. Put the crab trap out and then went for a dingy ride to look around. No one else there directly, but 1 boat from CA way over on the other side. There is a fishing lodge called the Pybus Point Lodge right at the entrance though and they had two skiffs out looking around as well.

Back to the boat to just hang out and relax and have a nap. Another boat showed up next to us. We did see several sea planes coming and going from the lodge. No bears.

July 5, 2017

We aimed to leave at 7:00 but it was closer to 7:30. Leaving the harbor there was low cloud and limited visibility all the way down the channel, so that meant very little wind and flat calms seas. Only 1 cruise ship passed us. We were originally going to go further south down the passage, however when we got out of the channel, the skies opened up and it was blue sky and sunny!! It's been a long time since we've seen the sun. So we decided to take the day and we we back to Taku Harbor instead. We wanted to try some fishing and enjoy a day in the sun for a change.

We got there pretty early, and then went out and put the crab pots in the water. Airship had caught 1 crab there a couple of days ago and so we thought our chances were good. Then we did a little tour in the dingy around the bay. The wind was up and quite strong coming into the bay from the north this time. Back to the boat for lunch.

Over the course of the afternoon, the place turned into a hot bed of boating activity. We had been the only boat around for so long, it was nice to know that other recreational boaters existed! A boat we saw in Tracy Arm, "Howdy", came in as did one with locals from Juneau. There was also a small boat that came in with 3 people who were staying in the shore cabin. An a Nordhavn flying a German flag anchored out. The gill net boats were everywhere, in and out, as well as their supply ship.

We decided it was time to test out the fishing gear, so Greg loaded up Bob and out we went to see if we could figure it out. It was quite rough and bumpy in the wind in Bob, but we at least eventually got the line out and the down rigger down. Greg certainly needed to figure out the routine given that there is no space to do this in the dingy. And we have this giant net leftover from charter times that takes up most of the room. So we did one run and came back in.

Then for a walk and talked to some folks, and then just sat in the sun. A beautiful older "yacht" called "Discovery" came in and docked right across from us. It does Alaska charters and was apparently stopping for the night. It was built in 1931 and was covered in varnished teak from stem to stern. Just lovely. So it was fun to watch them work and see what the guests wanted to do.

Eventually, the wind died down and it was lovely and warm. So we went out fishing again, to make sure we had the routine. It was still a little windy but not too bad if we stayed close. We trolled for about 1 hour with no strikes. Back to Spellbound and then Greg went out to check the crab pots - he had caught a flounder. We were able to sit on the flybridge again and have a beer, and then it was a late dinner. It stills cools down quite considerably at a night. The folks on Discovery were having their last night so they had a bit of a celebration - with Tequila. Fortunately, once in the aft cabin, we couldn't hear a thing.

July 4, 2017

We slept in. A lot. We ended up spending the morning working on the computers and doing some software support stuff. It rained and poured all morning. We decided to "lunch" at the same cafe though so bundled up, put my big girl rain pants on again, and off we went. We took Bella inside with us again, and ordered. Greg verified that it was OK for Bella to be inside, but the person this time was actually the owner who said, no we don't allow that. But it's OK this time since you're already in. OK.

We walked over to Foodland to finish up the grocery shopping and get some more ice. We brought the trolley to make it more feasible. Back to Spellbound.

I had exchanged some messages yesterday with a friend who works at NWE. Elvira was in Juneau for work and then taking a couple of days off afterwards. We left Spellbound all packed up again and started walking into town to do "something". I got a call from her and we arranged to meet in town for a beer. We tried a restaurant but it was closed for the holiday. Then we headed down to a place called "The Hangar". We sat and chatted with El and her friend Craig for awhile over beers. Greg and I ordered dinner but they had had a late lunch.

Walked back to Spellbound for an early evening in case anyone was doing more fireworks. Fortunately it was pretty quiet.

July 3, 2017

We talked last night about options, and one was to go to Juneau. For one thing, we were so close, it seemed just odd not to go. But we also decided that if we went, we could fuel up too. Although all our various calculations plus added conservatism said we were fine, well, it's just nice to have fuel.

The dock kept rocking all last night and the boat would occasionally slam against the lines, so Greg did not get a great sleep. We went out in the morning to talk to and meet the "AirShip" folks. Kevin and Laura run a flotilla and a Blog called slowboat.com with another person/boat Sam on "Safe Harbor". The flotilla officially ended in Sitka some time ago, but 3 of the boats including AirShip were still cruising around SE Alaska buddy boating. We knew "of" them but had never met them so had a nice chat. They were leaving to go south to Tracy Arm, Endicott, Fords Terror area. We confirmed that it was probably better ice wise to go that direction. We decided to go to Juneau at the last minute and left about 9:30.

It was really crappy leaving the harbor and we had to dodge some gill netters. It was pretty crappy out in Stephens Passage too but the wind and the swell were behind us so we just cranked up the speed and had a relatively OK cruise up towards Gatineau Channel. There were two cruise ships behind us, and then there were in front of us. We listened to them conversing on the radio for some entertainment.

We arrived at the fuel dock which is right across from the transient "Harris Harbor" around noon, and then pulled into our assigned slip around 12:45. We got all settled and then headed up to the Harbormaster's office to check in. It appears to be in the other direction from town though. We asked about the fireworks tomorrow, and found out that they were actually tonight, at midnight, right in front of the boat. Oh great. We thought about leaving on the 4th so we didn't have to deal with Bella and the fireworks, having no idea that some places to them early. Yeah, apparently it's a thing.

When we left, surprise, it was pouring rain. We walked towards a recommended coffee shop and got soaked. We were of course wearing full complete rain coats and boots, but our legs got completely soaked and of course Bella did too. Greg went inside to order coffee and lunch while I sat outside with her. But they offered to Greg that Bella could come inside if she would just sit there quietly. YES! We were able to warm up and dry at bit and use their free WiFi. Can't ask for more than that.

We walked over to the Foodland Grocery Store to pick up a couple things (milk) and to check and see what their hours were for the holiday tomorrow. Fortunately, they did not appear to recognize it

Back to the boat to warm up and dry off and clear out email. We thought about having a nap and decided that we shouldn't. Greg suggested going into town and going to the Red Dog Saloon and having a beer. A much better idea. So I put on my very fashionable rain pants (not!) and we called a cab. It was only raining and not pouring now but we were unsure exactly how far it was. Our cab driver told us that he said we were smart to go early as it was going to be busy later. He also said there were 7 cruise ships expected in tomorrow for the 4th, and there would be about an extra 20,000 people in town. He had taken the day off and wouldn't be working and was quite happy about it!




A small lineup to get in the Saloon that went quickly. The hostess spends the off season in Bellingham! They make sure that everyone has a seat in there so it was very comfortable. They had a singer / guitar player that was entertaining and certainly catered to the cruise ship crowd. It was very entertaining to sit and drink beer, have appy's, and watch. We left and walked around town for a while to case the place. It was just drizzling and fine now. We thought about having dinner but eventually just walked back to the boat. We saw people who had setup little tents to watch the fireworks and set off their own on the way back. Some folks had already started as we were walking. When we got back to the boat, Bella was listening to Enya and sleeping fine. We grabbed a light dinner and put a loud action James Bond movie on to watch. It seemed to drown out the fireworks for Bella.

I fell asleep only once in the movie, and it ended before midnight which was the main event. So we went to bed and played Enya off the computer as loud as we could. Bella was uncomfortable for some of the time when the booms happened between songs, and the main event fireworks were really loud. Then ended around 12:30 or so and so we were able to all get to sleep by 1:00.

July 2, 2017

It was a bit foggy when we first got up, but it had cleared by the time we left around 7:30. We were headed up Tracy Arm to see if we could see the glacier. It's about 25 miles up the Arm and so it's a "project". It was a bit windy when we left but not too bad. By the time though that we got to the 2nd to last bend, the ice bergs were thick enough that we had to go in and out of idle to steer around them. We reached to about the next bend where we could barely see Sawyer Island, but there was this "wall" of small ice bergs. Greg got on the bow and we nudged up to one to see if he could move it aside with the boat hook. Hah! Fat Chance. I got the turn around sign. Not *this* fiberglass boat.

We were in a narrow spot and it was even hard to turn around. Then we twisted our way back through the maze again and then eventually into slightly clearer water and then to reasonably clear. But the bergs persisted. We had flat calm glass conditions for the entire way back. We also talked to a mini cruise ship that was heading up, the Wilderness Adventures.

Back out through the channel where there was 1 big berg right smack in the middle of the channel - fortunately there was still lots of room to go around it. It was pleasant enough back in Stephens Passage for awhile, but slowly the wind came up again from the South. By the time we reached the Taku Harbor entrance, it was 20kts.



There were quite a few boats on the dock which was surprising. We have barely seen any other pleasure boats cruising around here. Low and behold, it was half of the "SlowBoat" flotilla, which is now down to 4 boats.

We tied up and immediately went for a walk on the trail to stretch ours and Bella's legs. We ran into the group at the cabin and by that time, it was raining pretty hard. Not a very chatty group, most headed back to their boats and we spoke briefly to Laura.

By the time we got back to our boat (Bella walked the whole way), it was really pouring and the wind was up again and was blowing straight into the harbor. All the boats were rocking and rolling at the dock and there were white caps inside. Not particularly fun. So we had beer and crackers and cheese and listened to the weather report. Not that great but not that bad for the next 2 days and what we were experiencing wasn't happening. The good news is that my cold is a bit better.

Short nap, reading, Blog. Dinner. Wind down a bit but still rocking.