passage to Oregon

After a layover day in Port Angeles, got underway at 0630 on Saturday, with Jon and Caroline from Victoria as crew. Thick fog, with viz sometimes down to 1/8 mile, kept us glued to the radar all the way out the Strait. We rounded Duntze Rock Buoy about 4 PM, and within a few hours we were in the clear. Conditions on the outside were very mild, and we had an uneventful night under the waxing moon and a starry sky.
Soon after sunrise on Sunday, we were able to kill the engine, and we sailed wing and wing most of the rest of the distance to the Columbia River Bar. The air was very clear, and the Olympics were clearly visible most of the way. The wind picked up as we neared Cape Disappointment, and especially after we rounded up to a port reach, but we kept sailing across the Bar on a gentle flood tide. Spent the night at Astoria. John on Fairanne was just a few hours behind us.
Monday we got underway about 0730, but unfortunately an offshore breeze kept the motor running all the way to Longview. At least we had a lot of shipping and scenery to occupy our attention. After turning the corner, we had the usual N wind and ran under the genoa to Martin Slough, where we anchored for the night. The depth sounder showed as little as 2 feet under the keel near the entrance to the basin. After watching the sun go down, we realized that we should check the tide for morning. Uh-oh! The tide program showed a 6ft drop by the next morning! I knew that couldn't be true, and occasional glances at the sounder confirmed there was little fluctuation. All the same, we decided to get underway at first light. The depth hadn't dropped even a foot since the night before, and we made it back out without touching bottom. Sailed to St Helens, where we filled the fuel tank, then tied up to the Sand Island dock and made breakfast. The last few hours to Portland were a mix of sailing and motoring. The railroad bridge obligingly opened before we had a chance to sound the horn, and we tied up in Tomahawk by 3 PM.

Port Angeles

Took the picture of Adventuress at the dock in Friday Harbor after yesterday's post was already finished. Got underway from Friday Harbor this morning at about 0745, motoring south through Cattle Pass. About an hour across the Strait, the wind had risen enough to kill the engine and sail on a close reach toward Green Pt, east of Port Angeles. The fog soon settled in around me -- thank God for radar. As I neared the inbound/outbound shipping lanes, I checked in with Seattle VTS. Later I hailed the tug Elisa Ann to make sure they had me on radar. Once I closed the coast, the fog lifted and I motored the last 6 miles to Port Angeles. Layover day here, new crew tomorrow, outbound for Portland Saturday morning.

One more time around the block

Took Amtrak to Anacortes on Saturday, leaving poor Vicki to face the start of another school year. Spent Sunday getting the boat ready, and headed out on Monday with high school buddy Greg. We had fair winds to blow us all the way to Sucia, where we picked up a mooring in Fox Cove and enjoyed a lovely late summer afternoon. Where are all the people?
On Tuesday, we motored over to Patos, and then let the ebb carry us down Boundary Passage toward Stuart, hoping for orcas. Nope, but another nice day. We rounded Turn Pt, cranked up the engine and motored the last bit to Reid Harbour. Instead of doing the usual walk to the lighthouse, I hiked the trail to the "Tiptop" of Stuart, with a fine view SW over Haro, and of course no camera to prove it. The best reward was seeing a large pod (~40) of orcas coming south from Turn Pt. Their breathing was clearly audible, and several of them were spyhopping and jumping out of the water.
Today, we floated down San Juan Channel with up to 2 kts of current and about the same amount of wind! No rush, not too far to go. We picked up a mooring at Turn Island, and dinghied over to Friday Harbor for lunch, email, etc.
Tomorrow Greg will take the ferry home to Anacortes, and I'll singlehand across the Strait to Port Angeles, awaiting new crew Jon and Caroline for the passage back to Portland.

Anacortes

We have had a hard time figuring out how to end this trip. We had left our car in Bellingham, so we had hoped to find a temporary moorage there, or at least stop and pick up our car. But there are no slips available and the Customs and Border Protection folks reminded us that we have to clear in at one of the 5 designated ports of entry, which doesn't include Bellingham. So we have ended up in Anacortes for now. We had a nice visit with friends Greg and Dina and their granddaughter Kendall before heading on down the road for home.

Last night in Canada

We went over to Boat Passage in the morning to watch the current flooding out of Winter Cove and into the Strait of Georgia. I tried to convince Vicki to let me con the boat through at high slack in the early afternoon. She was having none of that, so we went the long way 'round Saturna to Reef Harbour between Tumbo and Cabbage Islands. We had a nice sail out of Plumper Sound, but then the wind died and we motored until Tumbo Channel, where we had a last short reach under sail before turning in to the anchorage. This is one of our favorite anchorages, and seemed like a nice way to finish off this summer's time in BC. The winds stayed light in the PM, so I kayaked all the way around Tumbo and Cabbage Islands, seeing a number of river otters and harbor seals along the way.

Winter in Summer

Today (Saturday) we had a short easy sail to Winter Cove on Saturna, thanks to changing out the 140% genoa for the 80% jib. We spent the morning at the Ganges Saturday market before heading out. It was sobering to sail past the wreck of the Roberts II on Minx Reef at the entrance to Winter Cove. We had seen it last year just a few days after it went on the reef. Now its barely recognizable.
Shortly after we put the anchor out, it started raining, and it rained until almost dark. We were treated to a nice sunset at least.

Upwind to Ganges

We should have changed headsails before we set out. Winds in Trincomali were blowing out of the SE, so we had to tack to get to our planned destination, Ganges on Salt Spring. One reef, then two, then we finally dropped all sails and motored from near Porlier Pass the rest of the way to Nose Point. Once past Nose Point, we had an easy reach and run to Ganges, under genoa alone.