May Day at Mc Micken Island
Date: May 1, 2015
Starting Time: 4:00 p.m.
Finish Time: 6:10 p.m.
Cruise From: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Cruise To: McMicken Island State Park
Engine Hours Start: 129
Weather: Partly cloudy, upper 60's, nice May Day!
It's a beautiful May Day, the first day of the month, and we are off to enjoy a nice weekend on South Sound. It's been a dry spell of no boating while we enjoyed almost a month in Hawaii vacationing with our daughter and three of our grandchildren.
Ranger Tugs Customer Service Rep Ivan has been to visit NORTH STAR, taking care of items noted in our shakedown cruise. We have a new window in the bow on the port side, the water gauge has received attention, a faulty outlet now works.
It is just us and some rowers on Budd Bay today, one and two person shells with oars dipping rhythmically as they cross the bay. A seal is resting at the surface, its flippers raised in a salute as we pass by. Mt. Rainier is visible. It's a beautiful short cruise to McMicken.
Starting Time: 4:00 p.m.
Finish Time: 6:10 p.m.
Cruise From: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Cruise To: McMicken Island State Park
Engine Hours Start: 129
Weather: Partly cloudy, upper 60's, nice May Day!
It's a beautiful May Day, the first day of the month, and we are off to enjoy a nice weekend on South Sound. It's been a dry spell of no boating while we enjoyed almost a month in Hawaii vacationing with our daughter and three of our grandchildren.
Ranger Tugs Customer Service Rep Ivan has been to visit NORTH STAR, taking care of items noted in our shakedown cruise. We have a new window in the bow on the port side, the water gauge has received attention, a faulty outlet now works.
It is just us and some rowers on Budd Bay today, one and two person shells with oars dipping rhythmically as they cross the bay. A seal is resting at the surface, its flippers raised in a salute as we pass by. Mt. Rainier is visible. It's a beautiful short cruise to McMicken.
A buoy awaits us at McMicken Island. We have time to enjoy the evening with a dinghy ride, and then watch as the full moon rises over the island and plays hide and seek with the treetops and clouds.
Date: May 2, 2015
Weather: Clear blue skies, sunny, upper 60's to low 70's
A beautiful sunrise heralds a sunny day at McMicken. We hear an eagle. Three boats are rafted together, a sailboat is on a buoy, and then there is NORTH STAR. No complaints about crowds here!
Weather: Clear blue skies, sunny, upper 60's to low 70's
A beautiful sunrise heralds a sunny day at McMicken. We hear an eagle. Three boats are rafted together, a sailboat is on a buoy, and then there is NORTH STAR. No complaints about crowds here!
It's the perfect day for beach combing with the tide dropping low around noon. We take our time to enjoy one of or favorite beach walks. The tombolo connecting McMicken with the shores of Harstine Island gets exposed by the low tide, providing lots of beach to explore.
Today's prize discovery is a lovely blue (purple!) sea star, a treasure to see as the starfish population in Puget Sound has been decimated in the past year and all but disappeared due to a wasting disease. I name this sea star "Hope".
We are also thrilled to see large beds of thriving sanddollars. A year ago we only found dead ones here.
Gulls fish and forage in the exposed tide flats. A heron stalks a meal. Two legged foragers arrive by canoe in search of oysters.
We see the siphons of piddock clams in the shallow water, tube worms that look almost like blades of grass rising out of the sand, piles and piles of shell debris from mussels, clams, barnacles, and oysters. This is one rich area for marine life!
Then there are the architectural wonders created by the moon snails! What elaborate structures they build to encase their eggs! These collar shaped cones are plentiful on the shores of McMicken. A predator of shellfish, Dan shows me the holes they bore in clam shells, zeroing in on the perfect spot of the shells to make them open easily.
It's time to head back to NORTH STAR and relax, do some visiting with other boaters. The buoys fill for the night, all boats are from Olympia. Lots of moon jellies float by. The tide rolls in. The moon rises full above us once again. Another stellar day ends.
Date: May 3, 2015
Starting time: 3:00 p.m.
Finish time: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise from: McMicken Island
Cruise to: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Finish: 134
Weather: Sunny, low 70's, lovely
I awake in the wee hours of the morning to a magical moment. The full moon, still bright against the dark sky, is beginning to set to the west. At the same time, a red glow illuminates the horizon to the east as the sun begins to rise. It is a time to savor!
We row ashore for another beach combing excursion as the tide drops even lower today. Several clam diggers arrive to seek their quota of shellfish on these rich beaches where every rock, shell, and piece of seaweed seem to act as nurseries for the abundance of marine life found here.
Starting time: 3:00 p.m.
Finish time: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise from: McMicken Island
Cruise to: Swantown Marina, Olympia
Engine Hours Finish: 134
Weather: Sunny, low 70's, lovely
I awake in the wee hours of the morning to a magical moment. The full moon, still bright against the dark sky, is beginning to set to the west. At the same time, a red glow illuminates the horizon to the east as the sun begins to rise. It is a time to savor!
We row ashore for another beach combing excursion as the tide drops even lower today. Several clam diggers arrive to seek their quota of shellfish on these rich beaches where every rock, shell, and piece of seaweed seem to act as nurseries for the abundance of marine life found here.
There is so much to see, so much life when we take time to look closely. We are happy to see several more starfish today, increasing our hope that they will recover and make a comeback from their wasting disease.
Dan finds a friendly dog to play with on the beach. As always, we find lots to photograph while we just enjoy our surroundings. We love visiting McMicken.
The feeling of relaxation that comes from being on our boat begins to saturate us as we soak up the pleasures of being here - the gentle breeze, the warm sun, the sounds of waves lapping against the hull of NORTH STAR, the mellow voices of other boaters drifting across the water, occasional wild sounds of birds. What a world! It's been a stellar weekend cruise to McMicken.
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