Petersburg, May 29-30, 2015

Approaching Petersburg

“Little Norway,” or Petersburg, as it is officially known,  is located on Mitkof Island and  was founded by Norwegian fisherman.  And they take their heritage and fishing seriously.  The harbor is filled with large fishing boats and many of the town’s buildings have the traditional "rosemaul" Scandinavian designs painted on them. 

Housing for summer fishing fleet employees

  But for a town of approximately 3,000, they have no evening restaurants to speak of.    

There is the pizza place, it closes at 8PM – no alcohol served;  the taqueria stand with only outdoor picnic tables for seating - they close at 7 PM;  and finally, the fish taco shack, with only outdoor picnic tables, and they close at 8 PM.  

Taqueria

Bingo on Friday Nights! After Hamburgers

 

 

 

This is a big topic of conversation among the boaters who visit.  When I asked the harbormaster why there are no restaurants she explained it this way:  “Everyone believes that their mother makes the best fish cakes, so I don’t want to eat your fish cakes.”   I actually don’t want to eat anyone’s fish cakes but still,  what happens when you get sick and tired of always having to make the fish cakes?  “We go to the Elks Club on Fridays for hamburgers.”

 

Slacker Seals

But fine dining is not what brings us here, nor the sporadic cell phone coverage or the intermittent internet, no, it is fishing, natural beauty and nearby LeConte Glacier.  

LeConte Glacier

Bergie with Seals

 This glacier is 21 miles of the bluest ice you can imagine.  The bay leading to the glacier is strewn with bergie bits (chunks of ice,) some as large as a Volkswagen, that “calve” off the bottom of the glacier and then pop up in the bay, glittering like diamonds.  Seals birth on the cold ice bergs and eagles come to feast on the afterbirth - at least someone is getting fine dining.  

Meyers Chuck, May 26, 2015

Meyers Chuck

Magical and enchanting – that is the only way to describe this rocky peninsula accessible only by boat or float plane.  Located about 30 NM north of Ketchikan, it is remote and the 20 or so residents like it that way.  Houses are perched on a hill connected by a single-file trail skirting the edge of the peninsula -  the only passage to explore this area – so we march past the owners’ property – we think – boundaries here being a very loose concept.  We pass a closed art studio/store in a small painted shack.  A sign posted on the door states that they’ll open if you call the phone number listed, but that is not necessary to see great art – whimsical sculptures are scattered everywhere.

We have our friends Rich and Shari with us for a week and the four of us head for the woods, following the well maintained trail, and reach a clearing between the trees.  The evergreen canopy is thick and although it's dark, we immediately spot the rustic playground nestled here.  Like second graders at the sound of the recess bell, we rush for the slide, its shinny aluminum surface burrowed in the hill, and shoosh down, landing with a thud on the forest floor.  Maybe we ought to stick with the 40 foot log teeter-totter which merrily bounces us until our backs scream “get off.”  We wisely pass on the rope monkey bars.  

The head of the peninsula near the dock used to have a pay phone, but it’s gone, only a bulletin board remains, posting items for sale.  The post mistress – yes, there is an official post office, reachable by dinghy - used to moonlight as a baker, creating fresh cinnamon rolls and delivering them at 7 AM by dinghy - but her sign is gone too.  Disappointed, we trudge back to the boat and comfort ourselves with fresh baked banana bread – boating can be a real hardship.

 

Evening in Meyers Chuck

Ketchikan Alaska, May 19 - 24, 2015

Leaving Venn Passage - So Bleak

 

Dixon Entrance - calm, but still bleak

It’s 5 AM and no fog!  This is the first morning of the past three without fog and I, in particular, am very happy we do not have to navigate Venn Passage, a narrow, twisty, very shallow and sharp turns kind of passage – like so many of them are – in the fog.  Now we can actually see our scary passage and be appropriately frightened.  But it goes well.



We're Not Alone

Next we face our last large crossing of turbulent waters – Dixon Entrance.  It is glassy calm...  and that goes well. 



Eight hours later, as we approach Ketchikan, the sun bursts out, a choir of angels sings and the celestial heavens chime in….  well, at least that’s what it feels like now that we have safely and successfully made it here.  The first things we notice are the snowcapped mountains, which we never saw in 2012 due to all the rain and fog.  But here they are, beautiful. 



Approaching Ketchikan

We've been here for 5 days, all of them warm and sunny.  Unfortunately, I didn’t plan on sunscreen.  Plus, all my short sleeved tees and sandals are buried in the bilge, waiting for August in the Gulf Islands and the Sunshine Coast.  Where is the atmospheric rain for which I have boots?  The cold for my cute fleece-lined leggings.   It’s so warm and sunny I feel like I’m in southern Florida. 
 

Ketchikan

One night we actually have rain and a thunderstorm. With lightning! “Unheard of.”  The lightning sparks a forest fire in the rain forest. “That never happens,” says the National Forest Ranger we meet – and he should know, as his department oversees over 17 million acres – yes, million, in SE Alaska.  They can’t even send in some hunky Smoke Jumpers to get the fire under control because it is so remote and inaccessible.  They are monitoring it.



Cruise Ships Galore

The main thing about Ketchikan is the cruise ships.  This town, of approximately 13,000, created an entire economy based on them. The downtown is completely and exclusively geared to the tourists.  The local newspapers print the daily schedules of the ships, including the passenger count of each one.  If the 3 - 5 daily ships are in, stores are open. When all the ships leave for the  day – anywhere between 2 PM –  5PM -  the streets roll up and the lights go off.  You’d think you were in a ghost town. 

 

 And how do the locals feel about this intrusion?  This bumper sticker sums it up.  Clearly, like a lone deer in the middle of the field on the first day of hunting season, we must camouflage ourselves.  No camera draped around our necks, no waving around a street map, no asking where anything is.

I must be successful at this because within 24 hours of realizing that my life depends on not being identified as a tourist, a local I am casually chatting with tells me she can’t wait till August when the tourists leave.  Or maybe she knew full well I am one of those people.  But for the most part, the residents seem very friendly.  One local man even offered to let us use his truck to pick up our guests from the airport.  I don't think he has any bumper stickers.



Tide In

Some readers have asked if we have heard anything from the couple whose ship was sinking. We are happy to report that they are fine.  The Canadian Coast Guard towed them (for 8 + hours) to safety.  Parts were ordered, parts were delayed, but ultimately the ship was fixed and they arrived in Ketchikan yesterday.  We had a lovely dinner on their boat last night - margaritas and shrimp enchiladas  -  celebrating their arrival in Alaska.


Tide Out

Sunset in the Ketchikan Harbor

Prince Rupert, May 17 - 19, 2015

Prince Rupert just before the sun breaks out

 

“Rainy Rupert,” is the last city in BC before reaching Alaska.  The population here is approximately 13,000, and their claim to fame is rain: 240 days a year.  But we arrive to sunny skies.  In fact, all three days that we're here are sunny and warm.  We are even able to eat dinner on the deck of the Cow Bay Café.  I would make this whole trip just to eat at the Cow Bay Café,  the food is that good.

Prince Rupert  is one of my favorite stops on the BC coast.  The town is very colorful –  all the primary colors are represented on the buildings and even on the local fishing vessels - a fact  I attribute to an overreaction to the gray skies. 

The city was decimated by the loss of the logging and commercial fishing industries, but has remade itself into charming tourist town with some very good restaurants.  Additionally, its deep water seaport and  commercial harbor is closer to Asia than any other North American west coast port, making shipping an  important industry. 

Our stay here is restful , plus they have the best internet connection on the coast.  The only thing marring this scenic paradise is the troubling early morning fog that has been rolling in…every morning.  We must traverse Chatham Sound and cross Dixon Entrance early tomorrow, both notorious for rough sea conditions, and I am nervous we will be doing it by radar.  I'm hoping for the weather gods to intervene.

 

 

 

 

 

Sunset Prince Rupert

 

 

 

 

 

Baker Inlet May 14-16, 2015

On the way to Baker Inlet

 

Entrance to Baker Inlet

Magical!  That is all I’m going to say about Baker Inlet, one of our favorite anchorages in BC.  Well…, okay…, maybe I’ll say harrowing too.  Not the inlet, but the entrance.  First, you announce a Securite῀ warning on the radio - alerting anyone coming the other way - since it is a blind entrance.  

 

 

 

 

Hairpin Turns

 

 

Once you turn the corner, you are facing several sharp hairpin turns, skinnier than a New York runway model.  Our boat barely holds a course with swirling eddies pushing us around like a plastic bathtub toy.  And did I mention the rock ledges on either side? 

 

 We traversed through here in 2012 but the passage was drenched in fog and I guess we didn’t actually see the dangers looming – or maybe we went through during slack tide –as recommended – but not this time.   For all the rapids we worried about on this trip that turned out to be flacid water, this was not one of those crossings.  It was a nail biter requiring four eyes focused on the passage.  But it is so beautiful, I take my two eyes and head to the bow to photograph the natural beauty, leaving Jim to his own navigation skills.

 

Several miles back into the inlet it ends in a cove

The Cove

surrounded by tree covered mountains and snowcapped mountains in the distance.  It is rumored that bear, wolves and deer can be seen roaming the shore.  But all we saw were hungry seagulls.

 

 

                                                                                                                                                      

The next morning we awake to fog and it is even more beautiful.  I think the sun is too loud and showy for this place.

 

We finally spot a bear and we jump into the dinghy and head over to watch him forage grasses.  

                                                                                             He is none too happy to see us but he seems amenable to a quiet stand-off.  Later, we hear loons calling as they swim by and a bald headed harbor seal pops his head up to check out our presence.

 

 

 

 

Hitch Hiker

 

 

 

Remote, peaceful, filled with nature – magical.

 

 

 

Sunset Baker Inlet

Finlayson Channel to Bottleneck Inlet, May 12-13 , 2015

Seaforth Channel to Finlayson

Emails are unread, bills not paid but we need to push on, leaving  Shearwater at 7:45 AM. Our destination in Finlayson Channel is Bottleneck Inlet and the waterway leading there is a hazard.  Where in the past, the water has been littered with logs 30 - 50 feet long that we have had to swerve around, this time we are dodging a few Orcas and  actual trees, stumps and all.  Many, many trees.  For many, many hours.   We were told to expect this as the area experienced hurricane winds two weeks earlier but we didn't think it would be like playing Demolition Derby.

One of Many

 

 Bottleneck Inlet, as the name implies, is a narrow entrance, only about 200 feet wide at one point, with a rock shelf extending into the passage-way from the south shore.  At zero tide it is only one fathom deep but we make it through and are rewarded with a scenic cove.  There are already two other boats in the bay and Sea Bird hails us on the radio, inviting us and Fire Fly over for cocktails.  Yes!   I am so ready for these cocktail gatherings.  Rainforest crackers with goat cheese and fig raisin chutney.  I even have cute serving dishes.  Unfortunately, we can’t go because I have a case of food poisoning that has me down for the count.

Orca

We spend a quiet evening and just as we are about to go to bed, we spot a sailboat coming through the narrow entrance.  He is hugging the south shore, exactly where the rock ledge is, but he has a man perched mid-way up the mast as look out.  Apparently his theory is to stay close to shore so he can spot the rock outcropping as he hits it, although this strategy is flawed as it is dark out.  But the sailing Gods are with them and they make it safely in.

Finlayson Channel

The next morning we are the second boat to depart at 6:45 AM, leaving behind Sea Bird.  We make it about 10 nautical miles north when we get a radio call from Sea Bird telling us they have a leaking shaft seal and are rapidly taking on water.  We immediately turn around and hightail it back.  This is every boater’s nightmare, magnified by being in a remote area with no one nearby to help.  The Canadian Coast Guard monitors radio calls (no NSA here) and intercepts to find out the extent of the emergency.  They continually keep check on Sea Bird and us as we rush to help.  Forty-five minutes later, while Sea Bird’s First Mate Linda has been continuously hand pumping water overboard, Captain John stopped the leak. We raft off their boat, which is anchored in Bottleneck, and Jim clambers on board to assist.

Buddy Boating in Finlayson Channel

It is decided that we will buddy boat with them until we are all sure everything is operational.  We make a head start while they raise anchor and within 15 minutes they call – they are again taking on water and this time they are out in Finlayson Channel.  We turn around rush back, if you can call 8 knots rushing, it feels more like a lazy putter.

 Once back, we have to position our boat precisely next to a moving/drifting boat, being carried by the winds and currents, and raft off.  Jim leaves this dangerous and delicate maneuver to me. All food poisoning discomfort has been replaced with adrenalin injected terror.  I manage to gently sidle up next to their boat with no deaths or dings.  Jim heaves over with tools and repair materials while Linda and I make sure our boats drift along in sync.



It has been determined by the experts, a CPA and a physicist, that having finally stopped the leak, the fix will not hold if they run their engine. Adrift in Finlayson Channel, the Coast Guard dispatches a rescue vessel.  They will be towed back to Shearwater.  This is not our first experience with the Canadian Coast Guard whom we have found to be highly helpful and reliable.



Waterfall in Finlayson Channel

After wishing John and Linda an expedient repair so we can meet up in Alaska ,  we resume our journey, three hours later and now with the current and tides against us.  I wish the Canadian Coast Guard could do something about that.

And yes, not a single picture of Bottleneck Inlet as I was too ill to hoist the camera.