summer: the home stretch
Date: July 18, 2017
Time Start: 11:40 a.m.
Time Finish: 6:20 p.m.
Cruise From: Friday Harbor
Cruise To: Skagit Island, Similk Bay
Engine Hours Start: 658
Engine Hours Finish: 663
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and calm, then windy, 60 degree day, cool
It's a nice morning to for a stroll in town and along the docks of Friday Harbor. We discover a great little seafood market right in the marina. Dinner for tonight, a fillet of fresh salmon and a baguette, are hard to resist.
Time Start: 11:40 a.m.
Time Finish: 6:20 p.m.
Cruise From: Friday Harbor
Cruise To: Skagit Island, Similk Bay
Engine Hours Start: 658
Engine Hours Finish: 663
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and calm, then windy, 60 degree day, cool
It's a nice morning to for a stroll in town and along the docks of Friday Harbor. We discover a great little seafood market right in the marina. Dinner for tonight, a fillet of fresh salmon and a baguette, are hard to resist.
You can tell how large and busy this marina is just by looking at the long row of trash bins!
Noon is check out time, and we are on our way. It is so busy in the waters surrounding Friday Harbor! We need to stop at the fuel dock, and need to wait our turn. It is a happening place. We see the sailboat "Carlyn" on the dock (she is a training vessel, Dan and our grandsons have been out on her). The Seattle Clipper, a ferry, whale watching excursion boats, sea planes, and working and pleasure boats all converge on Friday Harbor.
Today's cruise takes us between Shaw and Lopez, past Decatur and Center Islands, and across to Bowman Bay to wait for the slack through Deception Pass. Sights along the way:
We arrive at Bowman Bay at 3:50 p.m. and tie onto the park float. Slack is around 6 p.m., so we have time to relax and enjoy our surroundings.
At 5:30, we release the mooring lines and are on our way for an easy and lovely evening transit through the pass. This is one of those breathtakingly beautiful places for boaters, and we pass through all too quickly.
We don't go much further today, stopping in Similk Bay where there are two park buoys next to Skagit Island. It's windy and cool here, and we need to break out fleece jackets. The island has high rock bluffs and then forest and isn't easily accessible. We can just make out the bridges of Deception Pass in the distance.
Date: July 19, 2017
Time Start: 7:30 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Skagit Island
Cruise To: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Engine Hours Start: 663
Engine Hours Finish: 671
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and calm, then S. winds and choppy, 70 degrees
Dan gets us off before breakfast on smooth water. The winds pick up again as we cruise between Whibey and Camano Islands. Today must be the day, Ranger Tugs are heading north, one after another all through the day! It is Desolation Sound cruise time! We must see at least 20 or more as we head in the opposite direction. What fun they are going to have! We have been on that cruise a couple of times, made lots of new boating friends, and learned so much about cruising and fabulous places to visit.
We are in familiar waters with familiar sights - the Olympics, the Seattle skyline, ferries, and iconic Mt. Rainier rising above all.
Time Start: 7:30 a.m.
Time Finish: 3:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Skagit Island
Cruise To: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Engine Hours Start: 663
Engine Hours Finish: 671
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and calm, then S. winds and choppy, 70 degrees
Dan gets us off before breakfast on smooth water. The winds pick up again as we cruise between Whibey and Camano Islands. Today must be the day, Ranger Tugs are heading north, one after another all through the day! It is Desolation Sound cruise time! We must see at least 20 or more as we head in the opposite direction. What fun they are going to have! We have been on that cruise a couple of times, made lots of new boating friends, and learned so much about cruising and fabulous places to visit.
We are in familiar waters with familiar sights - the Olympics, the Seattle skyline, ferries, and iconic Mt. Rainier rising above all.
Anchor is set in Blakely Harbor with its view towards Seattle. I discover that one of the reserve water jugs under the V-berth has tipped and leaked, soaking some of the clothing in my luggage that is also stored under the V-berth. NORTH STAR now has clothes spread everywhere to dry. We had some good wakes hit us today, probably to blame for the jug spilling (combined with a valve that wasn't properly tightened).
Water is a balmy 66 degrees, and of course we swim! Yes, it is cold, but so refreshing after a day of cruising. This is most likely the last dip of the cruise that is ending all too soon. We have our last dinner aboard, enjoying the sunset views of boats and city.
Water is a balmy 66 degrees, and of course we swim! Yes, it is cold, but so refreshing after a day of cruising. This is most likely the last dip of the cruise that is ending all too soon. We have our last dinner aboard, enjoying the sunset views of boats and city.
Date: July 20, 2017
Time Start: 9:50 a.m.
Time Finish: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Cruise To: Swantown, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 672
Engine Hours Finish: 679
Weather/sea conditions: Partly cloudy, breezy, mid 60's, choppy water
A bank of clouds sits over the Seattle skyline this morning. The tide is low and we need to move the boat further out into the harbor to avoid grounding. Fish leap out of the water, herons and gulls are foraging.
Time Start: 9:50 a.m.
Time Finish: 5:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Blakely Harbor, Bainbridge Island
Cruise To: Swantown, Olympia
Engine Hours Start: 672
Engine Hours Finish: 679
Weather/sea conditions: Partly cloudy, breezy, mid 60's, choppy water
A bank of clouds sits over the Seattle skyline this morning. The tide is low and we need to move the boat further out into the harbor to avoid grounding. Fish leap out of the water, herons and gulls are foraging.
A treat awaits us, two sea lions are on the buoy at Decatur Reef.
The water is rough today, but gets smoother once we are in Colvos Passage along Vashon Island. Seagulls are enjoying the tidal rip off of Point Defiance, and we get a five knot boost through the Narrows, speeding through at 18 knots! Must be a record for us!
The Olympics appear as we round Devils Head. And then, the sky is gray, a somber welcome from Olympia after a fantastic twenty five days of cruising. Fittingly, we are listening to "The End" with The Doors!
The cleanup begins, along with dreams of the next cruise. September can't arrive too soon!
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