anacortes, langley, blakely harbor, and home
Date: September 20, 2018
Time Start: 12:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 5:10 p.m.
Cruise from: Blaine (Semiahmoo)
Cruise To: Cap Sante, Anacortes
Engine Hours Start: 924
Engine Hours Finish: 929
Weather/sea conditions: Cloudy, cool, showers, calm water, 55 degrees
Happy Birthday to granddaughter Skye! She is eleven years old today! After a morning session, Dan's conference is ended and we are ready to start the cruise toward home. We say goodbye to Semiahmoo.
Time Start: 12:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 5:10 p.m.
Cruise from: Blaine (Semiahmoo)
Cruise To: Cap Sante, Anacortes
Engine Hours Start: 924
Engine Hours Finish: 929
Weather/sea conditions: Cloudy, cool, showers, calm water, 55 degrees
Happy Birthday to granddaughter Skye! She is eleven years old today! After a morning session, Dan's conference is ended and we are ready to start the cruise toward home. We say goodbye to Semiahmoo.
Rain drops fall as we make our way south, crossing a series of bays - Semiahmoo, Birch Bay, Lummi Bay, Bellingham Bay, parts of Samish and Padilla Bays - and all are riddled with crab pots. We encounter crabbing activities all the way to Cap Sante in Anacortes, at times picking our way through the maze of pots and getting wakes from the boats out tending them. And just look at the part of the marina where we moor for the night, right amidst the fishing and crabbing vessels! They really are picturesque and fascinating, each one full of stories of adventures, successes, failures, and hardships.
Dinner is in town, at the Rock Fish Grill. We get a walk in the rain.
Date: September 21, 2018
Time Start: 10 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Cap Sante, Anacortes
Cruise To: Langley Marina, Whidbey Island
Engine Hours Start: 929
Engine Hours Finish: 9334
Weather/sea conditions: Cloudy, S.E. winds, low 60's
Breakfast on this first day of fall is aboard NORTH STAR with my newly dubbed "prince", taking in the views of the fishing fleet surrounding us. We need a pump out before continuing south, and meet a young couple on the float who are actually neighbors in our marina in Olympia! Kyle and Ashley are enthusiastic new boaters, on their first long cruise, and are putting a lot of energy into fixing up an older boat. We share some tips with them and hope to see more of them in Olympia.
Time Start: 10 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Cap Sante, Anacortes
Cruise To: Langley Marina, Whidbey Island
Engine Hours Start: 929
Engine Hours Finish: 9334
Weather/sea conditions: Cloudy, S.E. winds, low 60's
Breakfast on this first day of fall is aboard NORTH STAR with my newly dubbed "prince", taking in the views of the fishing fleet surrounding us. We need a pump out before continuing south, and meet a young couple on the float who are actually neighbors in our marina in Olympia! Kyle and Ashley are enthusiastic new boaters, on their first long cruise, and are putting a lot of energy into fixing up an older boat. We share some tips with them and hope to see more of them in Olympia.
On our way to the Swinomish Channel, a group of seals are gathered on the same sandbars of Padilla Bay where we saw white pelicans earlier in the summer.
Things are quiet as we pass La Conner today. Once through the channel, we see "Night Hawk", the fishing vessel that was on the docks of Cap Sante yesterday. It is a vessel that buys seafood from the fishermen/crabbers and hauls the product to port for unloading to the next distributor. As usual, there is a tug working the log storage area outside the Skagit Bay entrance to the channel.
A large vessel, "National Geographic Venture", is docked next to the Langley marina, along with a passenger ferry. We learn that the vessel is brand new, was built by Nichols Brothers on Whidbey Island, and some 200 workers have been brought in to finish the interiors. The ferry is awaiting repairs.
Unable to contact the marina about a slip for the night, phone calls and radio calls unanswered, we decide to enter the marina and tie up in a slip that says "open". We learn that the staff went home early on a slow, and that there is no problem in our staying the night.
Heading to shore for a walk, we meet Marilyn, driver of a free shuttle between the marina and town. She is a wealth of information about Langley and should be working in tourism, she is a terrific promoter of the town. Needing some exercise, we pass on her services today and walk up the hill to town.
Heading to shore for a walk, we meet Marilyn, driver of a free shuttle between the marina and town. She is a wealth of information about Langley and should be working in tourism, she is a terrific promoter of the town. Needing some exercise, we pass on her services today and walk up the hill to town.
Town is quiet today, and raindrops fall as we return to NORTH STAR.
In spite of the clouds, the evening is warm, and when the raindrops stop, we enjoy being out on the dock.
And then we get some REAL rain!
Date: September 22, 2018
Time Start: 9:50 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Langley, Whidbey Island
Cruise To: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Weather/sea conditions: Windy! Clouds, warm, mid 60's, 70 in Blakely Harbor
Clouds are whipping by overhead on a super windy morning, with small craft advisories posted for S.E. winds gusting up to 25 knots. We start our morning with a walk into Langley for lattes and scones at Useless Bay Coffee and a little window shopping before the shops are open for the day. It would be easy to spend some serious money in this town!
Date: September 22, 2018
Time Start: 9:50 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Langley, Whidbey Island
Cruise To: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Weather/sea conditions: Windy! Clouds, warm, mid 60's, 70 in Blakely Harbor
Clouds are whipping by overhead on a super windy morning, with small craft advisories posted for S.E. winds gusting up to 25 knots. We start our morning with a walk into Langley for lattes and scones at Useless Bay Coffee and a little window shopping before the shops are open for the day. It would be easy to spend some serious money in this town!
It's time for us to brave the wind-whipped water of Saratoga Passage as we continue south toward home. And it is lumpy! And the winds shift, from S.E. to S.W. and back to S.E. We zig and zag to follow the lee shores, but manage to get wet wherever we are, with waves ranging up to four feet.
A fishing derby is underway at Edmonds, with at least a couple hundred small boats on the water, all rocking and rolling with the wind chop. It is one of those big sky days, a real Pacific Northwest kind of day!
Things smooth a bit as we make our way into Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge, hoping to find moorage for tonight. We find the historic schooner "Adventuress" on the dock, as well as a number of ferries, but there is no moorage available for us. One ferry appears to be new, and there is a celebratory party happening aboard.
We opt to anchor in Blakely Harbor. It is windy, but not sloppy, and the air is warm. There is even some sun! We have a great view of the Seattle skyline in the distance, and are surrounded by nice homes on the shore. We have always enjoyed this anchorage.
NORTH STAR is encrusted with salt from today's cruise. We do our best to wipe down the surfaces in the cockpit and clean the windows. She will have to wait a day for a full bath.
Today's dramatic skies continue, with sun and clouds and changes in lighting effects.
And then the moon rises, with the lights of Seattle in the distance.
Date: September 23, 2018
Time Start: 10:40 a.m.
Time Finish: 5 p.m.
Cruise From: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Cruise To: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 940
Engine Hours Finish: 947
Weather/sea conditions: Sun and scattered clouds, breeze, mid 60's, a nice day
Tinges of red spread across the sky at sunrise on a beautiful morning in Blakely Harbor, with a shadow skyline of Seattle across the water. We're ready for the final leg of our journey home, forty miles to go today.
Time Start: 10:40 a.m.
Time Finish: 5 p.m.
Cruise From: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Cruise To: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 940
Engine Hours Finish: 947
Weather/sea conditions: Sun and scattered clouds, breeze, mid 60's, a nice day
Tinges of red spread across the sky at sunrise on a beautiful morning in Blakely Harbor, with a shadow skyline of Seattle across the water. We're ready for the final leg of our journey home, forty miles to go today.
The tide is low, and we decide to take a look at Blakely Rock to see if there is any wildlife on the shores. A few seals rest on exposed rocks, but the main life today is two legged. A kayaking group has gone ashore.
Sailors are enjoying the breeze, and then we get some fun glimpses of wildlife. Sea lions are on the buoy, and cormorants are occupying an exposed rock ledge. Can you imagine what the conversation between the two sea lions is about? It's hard to tell if this is a mom and pup, but that is my thought.
We're enjoying the cruise today, with water sparkling in the sunlight. "Evensong", a sailboat that was also at Blakely Harbor last night, passes us. We are seeing all of the familiar sights that mean home is near. And then we are home. Another wonderful extended cruise comes to an end.
It is nice to arrive home with the sun shining and with enough daylight hours to tend to NORTH STAR. Our final thought: September cruising, so rewarding!
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