Look closely for the sea plane in the photo of the large cliff, shows the size of the place.sea

5/27/13 It’s been only a couple days since we left Ketchikan but we have seen a bunch and have had a great time. We cruised up to Carp Island upon leaving Ketchikan and had a very pleasant and secure anchorage stern tied to the island. A small fishing boat was there, turned out they were a couple hunters who were stalking a big Brown bear at the head of the inlet. Were hoping to get him in the next day or so. We took No Debt to the end, Steve and Michelle borrowed our inflatable and we took a 20-mile tour to the end of the two large bays. They were nice but nothing compared to what was to come. Nat tried fishing, no luck. They had Dolphins following in their bow wake but we never saw them. Tried crabbing no luck. Did not put down a shrimp pot everything too deep. Fascinating rock formation called Eddington Rock in the middle of the channel just outside of the Punch bowl. It is a 100 or so feet high old volcanic core that rises from 1000 feet from the sea floor. The cinder cone has long ago washed away and all that remains is the tree-covered pinnacle, like something out of the movie Avatar. 5/28/13 Punch Bowl was one of the highlights so far. Chris and I took off in No Debt to tour the huge fjord. It has rock cliffs soaring 3000 feet straight up with waterfall after waterfall cascading down to the water. It's a long multi fingered Fjord. Nat and Glen decided to hike the steep and slippery trail to the lake while we toured by Dinghy, from all reports we made a good decision although they had a great time. We were checking out a pretty green glade with a river mouth when Sophie went nuts, barking and snarling so we knew she had smelled something and sure enough there was a large beautiful black bear right by the waters edge eating fresh grass shoots. He seemed to not be the least concerned about us even though we were floating just 20 feet away. We watched for a good 30 minutes taking video and photos and trying to keep Sophie quiet Look carefully to see the plane. The entire Fjord is amazing, every turn revealed new vistas and amazing waterfalls. It is a very popular place for cruise ship tours. Seaplanes were flying in and landing every few minutes and they would set down and let the passengers get out onto the floats to take photos. The fjord is so large that the planes were really not any kind of distraction from the beauty of the place. That evening we had a spectacular thunder and lightening storm with just a little rain, Nat and Glen got back from their hike just as the rain began. 5/We headed north and made a 12-mile detour into Walker Bay, which is another incredibly beautiful Fjord of similar nature. When we came out the wind had picked up a bit and it clouded over for a bit of a weather change. We had following seas of about 2 to 3 feet that made for a bit of steering but the boat did fine. Nat managed to get his tow-rope caught up in his rudder while nosing into a water fall, minor screw up # 2. His first was hitting the overboard pump for his holding tank while we were anchored a few nights ago. Oops, that was quite a smelly mess for those around him . 5/29/13 Anchored in Klu Bay last night, end of Shrimp Bay. Very secure anchorage. Lots of logging activity from the past but all the clear cuts are filled in and its very pretty now. Double bear sighting at the head of the bay, once again got to within 20 yards of one for a great photo op before he wandered off into the woods after giving us the evil eye. The other took off long before we got close. Took a hike up to a nearby lake on a typical muddy and steep forest service Alaskan trail. There is a cabin at the lake that is well maintained and the lake was very pretty. We were the first people to visit the cabin since last August and they were fly in fishermen, so the trail does not get much use. Found a boat and rowed back to the head of the lake with the ladies and cut off about a mile of muddy hiking for them on the return trip. Lots of fresh bear sign on the trail, paw prints and fresh dug up skunk cabbage roots. Sophie was using here nose a lot so the scent was fairly fresh and strong. Carried the shotgun but never saw a bear while hiking. Our bear sightings came later that afternoon when we got back to the boats. Lots of shrimp, I pulled about a hundred in three pulls. Others were getting a dozen at a time. But everyone else got crab I got none. Go figure, same spot same bait just different traps. Same with shrimping, all within 100 yards and I pull full ones and they pull one or two? Anchored in Naha Bay tonight. Glen and I were here in 2008 and liked it. We are all rafted together in the outflow stream from Roosevelt Lagoon. Keeps us pointed upstream, no swing. My anchor is in 6 feet of water, I am in 30. Hiked the boardwalk for about 2 miles before Chris had to turn around. Much nicer hike that the last two. Steve, Michelle, Glen and Liz went all the way to the Church Camp and bear viewing area. We got back and could get into the lagoon as the tide was high enough to allow passage across the outlet. Went and picked up Liz, the rest finished the hike out. Liz and I spotted a bear just 100 feet up stream from the dock where we were to pick up the hikers and we scared it up the hill right onto the trail. Had to be real close cause the came out to the dock within 2 minutes of the bear sighting. They said there was real fresh bear scat and bear tracks on the trail. Yep 2 minutes old fresh. Finally we have dismal gray sky and rain.

We're back in connectivity so just a quick update as we pass by Ketchikan on our way to the east side of Prince of Wales island. Misty Fjords was amazing and well worth the trip. Had perfect weather, sun and limited wind. Amazing scenery. If I can get my computer to connect will post a full blog with photos.

Left Prince Rupert yesterday for a totally uneventful crossing of Dixon Entrance. flat calm, no wind no rollers, sunny sky. 8 hour run across to Ketchikan, Re got through customs no problem, went shopping for supplies and are headed for Misty Fjords National Monument this afternoon. Will be out of communication for the next 4 or 5 days. Weather is gray today, no rain, no wind in the forecast.

Bears, shrimp, sunrise, shrimp, currents, views and sunsets. That is our cruising life right now and for the next 3 months.

5/19/13 Motoring north in Mathieson Channel headed for Jackson Narrows. Goal is Alexander inlet. Five boats still together, Pete's moved ahead to keep to his schedule. We're doing 40 to 70 miles a day. Fuel consumption is good but will need to add some at PR to cross Dixon Entrance. Second whale sighting. Not very active. The first was off Codville Lagoon and he came half out of the water once then we never saw him again. This one surfaced twice and was gone. Big greys. 5/20/13 Miscalculated distance to PR. Will need fuel so I hope Hartley Bay has some. Stopped at khutze Bay. Beautiful day until dinner when the wind picked up considerably. Had to anchor at a different spot from last trip. Another creek just out a bit further from the river mouth. Glen dropped anchor in 80 feet and backed to within 20 feet of the steep rocky shore and stern tied. Current was amazing right next to shore. More than Nats bow thruster could overcome. Took Glen pushing with the dinghy to get the boats together. I had to put out my anchor as a third because of the force of the current, two was not enough and also my stern tie which ended up tight as a bow string. The current kept swirling all night, first one way then the other. 100 feet off shore there was no current. Very strange. Took a trip up the river a short distance by small boat. Did I not get far. Definitely this is bear country. Had steak and prawns for dinner. Pulled a full pot of shrimp this morning from Alexander inlet. 300 feet seems to be the sweet spot. I had full pot but Nat had a few and Glen had only four and we were all within 100 yards of each other. Weather next few days calls for gale force winds in Dixon entrance. Pete will have to wait for his chance to cross. We are likely to catch them before they cross. Pulled the crab pots and had 16 good sized crab. 5/21/13 Left about 1130 and had a pleasant but breezy run past Buttedale. To bad this historic site is just falling apart just like Namu. Steve contacted Hartley Bay and they have fuel. Third whale sighting, two or three off in the distance. Again not very active and not close enough to get photos. Both Dave and I need fuel. We decided that we had adequate fuel for a 20 mile side trip to Bishop Hot springs where we anchored in 30 mph winds that quit once we got secured. Sunny all day, just breezy Spent an hour relaxing in the hot springs. Very pleasant temperature. Dinner of crab and gooey duck chowder garnished by a few remaining prawns. A lot more debris in the water now, must be some really high tides last few days. Everything is floating. Caught three small lingcod off the boat, to small to keep and no big ones biting deeper. 5/22/13 Beautiful sunny day, blue sky and the sun is warm. no winds. Off to Hartley Bay for fuel for Dave and I. We're at a quarter tank remaining. Would be cutting it close to wait for Prince Rupert. We're moving less distance cause the forecast for Dixon crossing is not favorable till Saturday. Lowe Inlett tonight and Baker the next. The views are spectacular as we run down Ursula Channel. High steep mountains with large snow fields ending in huge cirques carved ages ago by glaciers. Both sides are just small islands rising from depths of 500 feet and soaring to 3000 feet or more. Pete is in Ketchikan! Fix may be quick. Sounds like parts may be available in Ketchikan. Took on 200 gallons of fuel at Hartley Bay. Small First Nations village at the southern end of Grenville Channel. $1.68 per liter. We have put 40 hours of cruising since the last fuel stop burning about 360 gallons which means if my calculations and fuel burn are accurate i had about 70 gallons left in each tank or about 15 hours of cruise time, so in theory we should have made it to Prince Rupert but it would have been very close. The village is neat and clean with raised boardwalks for roads. There is no road to it so all the cars are for local use and are small smart cars or super Mimi sized or they use little all terrain vehicles. Their food all comes in by ferry, there is no store so each family orders what the need. There was a snack shop so while Dave and I fueled the boats Mary and Chris went to check out the town. they came back with a really good ice cream bar. Should have bought several, they were that good. The drinking water is straight out of the river and is clean and clear unlike the rest of the rivers up here which are brown with tannin. We filled up our tanks though we really did not need to. We have been very conservative with our water usage. Last fill up was at Port McNeil. Just a short run up Grenville to Lowe Inlet. Should see bear up here. Rendevouz on the rocks. Ok the beans have been spilled by Pete. Back at Pruth Bay Pete managed to find a big rock in the middle of the bay to park his boat on. Not good. Got him off ok with Glens help, the rest of us were out of position to be of any help. We checked out the damage with my underwater camera and the prop and rudder are toast. Pete left the group next morning making best speed on one engine. He hauled at Shearwater and confirmed it was major damage and would be a lengthy prospect in Shearwater. He chose to put back in and head for Ketchikan. He arrived today and it looks like all the work and parts may be available there. Lots of work but may be not as long as initially thought. Nothing that money cannot fix. Oh by the way, the rock was marked on the chart. Lesson, give charted rocks a wide berth. Bear in the grass. Just across the bay from us is a large black bear. We took the dinghy to get a loser look and watched as he stood on his hind legs and scratched his back on a tree. Glen and Nat hiked to the lake, not so easy as it sounds and not as close as you think. They came back a bit worse for wear. 5/23/13 Pulled the crab pots, nothing. Pulled shrimp pots and mine was full! Anchored in Baker inlet tonight, really nice place, well protected. 8 boats in Lowe last night, 7 here tonight. 5/24/13 Rain today. More shrimp in the pots. Mine anyway. Wind has died down and the trip to Prince Rupert was non eventful. Smooth sailing tomorrow for Dixon Entrance, wind forecast is for light winds minimal s

5/18/13 Caught up on emails, did laundry fixed little broken stuff and got to bed late after a dinner of fresh caught shrimp. Headed north about 20 miles to Alexander Inlett. From there we will travel to One of several little snug anchorages before reaching Prince Rupert in three days. We then wait for the right weather to cross Dixon Entrance to Ketchikan on the 22 or 23 rd. only 180 miles to PR. Then another 80 to Alaska.

5/15/13 Left Port McNeil about 4 pm after a couple startup disasters. Pete discovered he had put in to little fuel so he had to return to the fuel dock at the height of the wind to top off. Blew him sideways right onto the dock. Leaving against the wind required judicious use of power to get turned around. He and Glen shoved off and the rest of us started up to follow but Nat blew apart his starting battery, blew the top right off. So we all stayed to help clean up and replace the battery. It took all of us to get it out of the cramped engine room without dumping all the acid out. Got the new one in and decided to wait until the electrician could come down and ensure the new one did not suffer the same fate. Turns out Nat has an old style charger and it just cooked the battery and a spark set off the excess hydrogen gas kinda like a little Hindenburg. The winds were still blowing hard if not harder than when Pete and Glen left so we waited till about 3 when we all decided it was go time. Everyone started up and cast off then it was my turn and the port engine battery was dead. Started with a parallel switch combining both battery's but all my co2 alarms went off and my electronics were dead, no radio, radar or auto pilot.? No charge going in either? Took a bit to figure it out and Steve and Dave came back to help. No charge going in to either battery from genset or alternators? Connect the dots. Yesterday I removed the charger to replace the hot water heater tank. During that progress I shorted out the battery cables going to the charger. That blew the circuit breakers for both the port and starboard charger and once I looked at the panel hidden behind the engine room door it was obvious what had happened. Close the breaker, alarms stop and charge goes in. CO2 Alarms are designed to go off with a dead battery. The attempt to start the engine was enough to draw it down to dead. Got underway at 4 and arrived and Bull Harbor about 815 in the evening. Wind died down and the waters from port Hardy to Bull Harbor were flat calm. This is the jump off for tomorrows run around Cape Caution and is also the jump off point for rounding Cape Scott at the north end of Vancouver Island if circumnavigating the island like I did with Fran and Jeff 2 years ago. Early start tomorrow weather permitting, 0600 up, anchors up by 0700 headed for fish egg inlet about a 40 mile run. 5/16/13 crossing Queen Charlotte Sound 6 am internal alarm clock woke me up to fog but no wind. Check of the weather reporting stations shows all is good in the sound. Pine. Inland 15, Cape Scott calm, Egg Island calm and West Sea Otter reporting SW swell at 1.5 meters. Go! 7 AM d departure. In moderate fog. Visibility as low as 1/4 mile at times. AIS showing nothing, not sure it's working or if there is just nothing out there broadcasting. It's working, finally got a signal from Irish Mist, which is running a parallel course to mine. Sounds like Pruth Bay is our days destination which is fine since it is a new place for us. We have 8 to 10 days to Ketchikan, we can slow down and enjoy the trip now. Only Dixon Entrance left to deal with, the next several days are in protected waters. 3 hours from Bull Harbor to Cape Calvert not bad. Blue sky greets us. It's been a few days since we've seen that. Arrived at Pruth Bay and we continued past it and around to an outside anchorage recommended by Nat. Very beautiful but feels very exposed as were right off Queen Charlotte Sound and a bit of the ocean swell finds its way in here. We got 4 of us anchored and stern tied, miners debt, Nelsea, Panacea and Reflections. A bit of a circus as it is a bit confined and rocky which made Chris a bit nervous with 4 boats milling about. Dropped shrimp pots and crab pots. We went hiking to one of the sandiest beaches I have ever seen, just amazing. From Pruth bay it's just a short hike out to the ocean. Picked up crab pots, no Luck. 5/17/13 Left Pruth Bay for Codville Lagoon. Neat spot but very wet. Hiked to the lake about a mile on a muddy root covered boardwalk to a very pretty red sand beach. Dropped pots in 300 feet and pulled a bunch of nice shrimp. All boats rafted together. 5/18/13 Cruised Via Gunboat Passage to Shearwater.

We're still in Port McNeil. NaT blew the top off his battery when he started his port engine. A big mess. Helped get the old one out and cleaned up and a new 8d installed. Waiting for an electrician to come down and trouble shoot to make sure it does not happen to the new one. Wind still blowing hard but Glen and Pete left before the explosion and they say its not to bad so once we get the all clear for Nat we will go north. Added steve and Michelle,s blog to links.

Miner's Debt Sunrise at Roche Harbor on Day 3 of the trip shipping and Fog crossing US Canadian Boarder at Turn Point Port Harvey day 5 Pete and Lindas boat at Port Harvey at sunrise first bear on the beach behind our anchored boats

May 14, Day 6 and 7 We left Port Harvey and cruised slowly through Chatham Channel to Lagoon Cove in a hard rain. Kept going and found a spot to anchor near Mound Island in the Broughton Islands. Glen dropped his anchor and stern tied to shore and Steve and Michelle and Chris and I tied either side of him. By the time we got settled the weather calmed down and the rain let up considerably. Enough that Glen and I took out three crab pots and two shrimp pots. Caught one crab and about 2 dozen Shrimp of various sizes. this morning while setting up a fishing rod I looked up and there was a small Black bear on the beach about 50 feet way. Chris got lots of photos. Today, May 15th we left about 1000 and cruised up to Port McNeil where we met up with the rest of the group. My hot water heater was in so we picked it up and removed the old one and installed the new one in about 3 hours. Everything seems to be working. Tomorrow we head up to Bull Harbor to wait for better conditions to cross Queen Charlotte Straits. Thursday and Friday seem like the weather forecast is very favorable so wish us luck. Shoal Bay, stayed here day 3

Day 5 We made it through Dent Rapids last night at 7 and pulled into Shoal Bay at 8pm. Had a fabulous dinner with Steve and Michelle and talked with the owner Mark MacDonald for quite a while. This is a great place even when it is gray and raining. Got up and left at 0800 to get a push through Green Point and Whirlpool rapids with the increasing ebb current. At 1700 rpm's which is normally an 8 knot cruise speed we were at a steady 11 knots sometimes as fast as 14. I am sitting at Port Harvey on the dock writing this as a small squall blows over otherwise we have had a fabulous beautiful day. The waters on Johnston strait was smooth as the wind and current were going the same direction as we were. That all changed when the tide changed direction The others did not go through the morning tide like we thought and are just now going through Dent rapids and will be bucking a large tide against them all the way. Could be a far different ride for them Raining gotta go. photos to follow when we have a better connection. Day 4, just south of Lund. Furthest point north for Hwy 101. From here you have to fly or go by boat. It has been a long day but we still have another several hours of cruising. Were going to go through Yaculta and Dent rapids tonight instead of getting up at 4 am to catch the change of tide from Flood to Ebb. Up here the outgoing tide, Ebb flows north while the flood or incoming tide flows south through the rapids. We want to catch the north bound ebb tide otherwise we will be bucking an ever increasingly strong current as we go north. The favorable tides are either early morning or evening. We will pass up the others this way and they will catch us tomorrow. Looks like my hot water tank may have a leak and will have to be replaced. Will do some checking on that at Lund where we can hang out for about an hour before we have to keep going north. Probably have to have one delivered at Port McNeil if they do not have one there. Happy with how everything else is running. No debt is towing nicely even in the lumpy seas we experienced today. The crossing of the Straits of Georgia were somewhat lumpy. Wind out of the SE created 2 -3 foot rollers from the stern quarter. Steering was a bit of work, had to manual steer because “Auto” our auto pilot was unable to keep up with the waves pushing the stern to one side then the other. Couple hours of that and then we were behind Texada Island and going was much smoother. Right now just some ripples on the water off Powell River. Gray day today, no rain yet but no sun either. Rain forecast for tonight and tomorrow. Not as wet as the last time we were at this spot in 2008. Spoke too soon, its now raining. We stayed at the Nanaimo Yacht Club reciprocal dock last night, cost all of 5.00 for power. A little exposed to idiots who blast from one side of the channel to the other to get to the dinghy dock pub. Rocked us good a few times but it all settled down by midnight. Did some shopping, picked up a bit of booze and fresh veggies for the remainder of the trip thru BC. Customs was not a problem. They had to come down because of my shotgun but they were very polite and we were thru in about 30 minutes. Not concerned at all with any of our produce or meat in the freezer. This morning the first cruise ship of the season pulled into Nanaimo. Apparently they have been stopping there for the last 7 years. Did not know that.

We made it to Roche today about 4pm. Left Kingston in moderate fog, light wind at 9 am about 2 hours later than we wanted. Outgoing tide pushed us almost to Port Townsend and the incomming tide pushed us up Haro Strait at one point pushing us to 16 mph at our normal cruise speed of 2000 RPM which normally pushes us at just 10 MPH. Fog cleared as we got to Mosquito Pass and it was sunny and warm in Roche. We grabbed the RHYC outstation while Steve and Michelle grabbed a spot at Seattle Yacht Clubs outstation on Henry Island. We topped off both boats with american fuel, just 3.96 a gallon so we can make it most of the way through Canada without fueling. Steve can do that I cannot. Will have to get fuel at either Shearwater or Prince Rupert. Cruised over in No Debt and had dinner on Steves boat. Pleasant evening sunny and warm. There is a Grand Banks rendevous here at Roche with the old docks full up. Getting an early start tomorrow so we can make Dodd narrows by 1100 slack and do customs there. Saturday is still looking good so we will most likely go all the way to Cortez bay and catch the rest of the group the next day at the Tidal rapids or somewhere beyond. No posts till we get back to some form of civilization after that where they have WiFi.

Day 2 of the adventure. Woke up to fog at Kingston and Gale warnings on the straits. Was going to depart at 7 but waiting to see if wind trends down at Smith Island otherwise were going the inside via Deception pass. Promised wife no lumps and minimal excitement on this trip. Gale and small craft warnings fall into both categories. Exhausted last night after a long day of loading the boat, checking out the fishing boat overheat issue, finishing the bathroom tile and cleaning up the house so it is not a disaster when Chris flies home in July. The boat is a total mess, stuff everywhere and were finding things we really do not need so we will drop the excess stuff off with my parents today when we see them in Friday Harbor. No its nothing we brought down, just stuff we did not take off after the winter. De cluttering would be a good thing. The little fishing boat will be dubbed No Debt, tender to the "Miners Debt" Nelsea and No Debt from our boat off Brownsville Washington.