low tides at penrose point
Date: August 11, 2022
Time Start: 12:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Cruise To: Penrose Point State Park
Engine Hours Start: 1460
Engine Hours Finish: 1463
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny, light clouds, minus 3.4 tide, 82 degrees
With a super low tide, the cormorants have a high perch on the channel markers as we leave on a cruise to Penrose Point for four days of summer fun. And what a smooth cruise today, lovely! From Budd Bay to Pitt Passage, all of the scenic spots shine on this perfect day.
Time Start: 12:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 3:40 p.m.
Cruise From: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Cruise To: Penrose Point State Park
Engine Hours Start: 1460
Engine Hours Finish: 1463
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny, light clouds, minus 3.4 tide, 82 degrees
With a super low tide, the cormorants have a high perch on the channel markers as we leave on a cruise to Penrose Point for four days of summer fun. And what a smooth cruise today, lovely! From Budd Bay to Pitt Passage, all of the scenic spots shine on this perfect day.
It's always sad to see this nice waterfront home on McNeil Island boarded up and unoccupied because of the presence of the state prison. Geese on the beach seem to be the only residents there today.
We are in luck. A buoy in Mayo Cove is an easy grab for us. We have a nice evening enjoying the golds as the sun sets. The tide is high, and a lot of algae is floating on the surface of the water. I play with the long green strands with my paddle, calling it "mermaid hair".
The super low tides are here for a reason. Tonight there is a super moon, meaning the moon is closer to Earth than normal. The full August moon rises over the trees and shines on the cove.
Date: August 12, 2022
Penrose Point layover day
Weather: Sun, winds from west and southwest, low 70s
Shades of pink tinge the sky and reflect in Mayo Cove as the day dawns. Another low tide, a minus 3.0, exposes the spit alongside Penrose Point. The beach is the place to be today, and beach combers are out. The "mermaid hair" from last night seems to be covering the beach today, turning it a bright green.
Penrose Point layover day
Weather: Sun, winds from west and southwest, low 70s
Shades of pink tinge the sky and reflect in Mayo Cove as the day dawns. Another low tide, a minus 3.0, exposes the spit alongside Penrose Point. The beach is the place to be today, and beach combers are out. The "mermaid hair" from last night seems to be covering the beach today, turning it a bright green.
We do our share of walking the spit and exploring.
What do we notice? We see a lot of fine shell debris next to rocks, and where there should be barnacles on the rocks, we see scars from where they were attached. What has happened? The answer is that there have been several super low tides this summer along with some extremely hot days. The exposure to the heat caused the barnacles to die and their protective shells to drop off the rocks. Something I didn't know: the shells of barnacles consist of several plates, they don't have a solid one piece shell.
There is life on the beach, like these anemones that can stay cool in the substrate. Other animals like small crabs can move to places with water or hide under the algae. And animals like sea stars stay at depths that won't be exposed by the tides.
The spit stays busy until the tide comes in and it disappears under the rising water.
The afternoon is windy, and we stay tucked in on NORTH STAR while our "buddy boats" bounce on the waves.
The full August moon rises again.
Date: August 13, 2022
Penrose Point layover day
Weather: Gray, cooler, S.W. winds, 70 degrees,
And yet another minus tide, -2.2, exposes the spit.
Penrose Point layover day
Weather: Gray, cooler, S.W. winds, 70 degrees,
And yet another minus tide, -2.2, exposes the spit.
We take the dinghy with the Torqeedo for a look at the Lake Bay Marina at the head of Mayo Cove. The marina is currently closed. Hopefully the new owners will be able to get the funding and proceed with needed restoration and renovations of this historic resource for boaters.
With constant winds, we make this a hang out day, time to read and enjoy the cabin of NORTH STAR. Skies clear enough to enjoy the moon rising once again.
Date: August 14, 2022
Time Start: 2:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Penrose Point State Park
Cruise To: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 1463
Engine Hours Finish: 1466
Weather/sea conditions: Clear, calm, 80 degrees, best day of the cruise!
Finally a summer morning, the water is calm and skies are blue. We have a cormorant spreading its wings on the next buoy. It's a feel good kind of day!
Time Start: 2:30 p.m.
Time Finish: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Penrose Point State Park
Cruise To: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 1463
Engine Hours Finish: 1466
Weather/sea conditions: Clear, calm, 80 degrees, best day of the cruise!
Finally a summer morning, the water is calm and skies are blue. We have a cormorant spreading its wings on the next buoy. It's a feel good kind of day!
The "boat buddies" get put to use. Paddling on calm water is so nice! And the captain goes for a swim, replacing the prop zinc - it has disappeared again. Didn't we just do this task in July with a hired diver? Yes.
Our Penrose Point visit comes to an end as we cruise back to Olympia, enjoying the skies, mountain views, water.
The marker in Budd Bay looks like it is wearing socks as the barnacle and mussel clad legs are exposed by the low tide.
Cormorants raft on a log, and dragon boat crews are gathered on the sea plane dock at Swantown. A race with model sailboats is taking place off that same dock. Swantown is lively today!
We need fuel, and we need a pump out. Oh, do we ever need a pump out! Our vent filter isn't doing the job, and NORTH STAR has a stench. She will be getting a new filter pronto! For now, we pump out, fill the tank with water, and pump out again - doing this several times over.
On the fuel dock is a really interesting vessel, a fire boat built for use on a river in England in 1904 that has been converted to private use by the grandson of the original owner. Historical in parts, quirky in parts. The water nozzle remains, but the original steam engine is gone. A trampoline meant to catch people jumping from burning boats or buildings acts as a canopy over the cockpit. And, the paint job is a giveaway as to the origin of the vessel. She is called the "Sarah Elizabeth Banks" after the current owner's wife.
On the fuel dock is a really interesting vessel, a fire boat built for use on a river in England in 1904 that has been converted to private use by the grandson of the original owner. Historical in parts, quirky in parts. The water nozzle remains, but the original steam engine is gone. A trampoline meant to catch people jumping from burning boats or buildings acts as a canopy over the cockpit. And, the paint job is a giveaway as to the origin of the vessel. She is called the "Sarah Elizabeth Banks" after the current owner's wife.