Trailering to Prince Rupert

We are interested in trailering our ranger Tug Classic 27, Kiorana, to Prince Rupert in 2027 then cruising Southeast Alaska from there. If there is anyone who would like to buddy boat with us from there that would be great. Since we are a diesel we won’t be going fast anywhere and cannot make the miles/speeds the new outboards can. Generally we travel at 6-7 knots but to cross large distances or beat weather we do go 14-15 knots. And we would like to make this a flexible cruise. If someone wishes to anchor in a different cove/bay or go a different place then they can do so. We can get together for some dinners/excursions but not everyday. In general we go out together at agreed upon conditions and times for safety. Since we have not cruised SE Alaska before on our own boat, the standard destinations are fine. But we are open to other suggestions. We likely will ourselves skip Glacier Bay as we have been there before. We have a dog that refuses to be potty pad trained and needs to go ashore. Others traveling with us may wish to go to Glacier separately.

Also, has anyone else trailered to Prince Rupert before? Any suggestions, tips, ideas? We like to sling launch/travellift our boat into the water and need a secure place to store our truck and trailer. We will be traveling from Prescott, Az and will travel thru Spokane, WA (our son lives there). We plan on leaving Prescott June 23, taking about 9 days up and being back (9 days) home Sept 2.

From what I've read, there is not much available in PR. Maybe trailer to Port Hardy or Port McNeill.

You can take a boat trailer (with truck of course) on the BC Ferry from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert if you wanted to see some of Vancouver Island on your way north as opposed to going on the Alan Highway. Of course you would need another BC Ferry ride to get from Vancouver BC to Vancouver Island.
My partner, Admiral Vicki, has done both when she worked for 8 years teaching in Alaska. She prefers the ferry from Port Hardy over the Alcan route.
Perhaps you might consider each route - one up and the other way back!
PS: At Port Hardy you are at the doorstep to the Broughtons. That’s worth a week as well in my opinion.

Hi,
I made that trip some time back in my 19' glasply cutty cabin outboard.
Here are a few suggestions:

1. The tow from Hope B.C. is a beautiful road trip

2. Launch at Prince Rupert. Make the run to Dundas Island for your 1st overnight. Great Anchorage, but have lots of bug spray.

3. Wait for good weather windows.

4. Good Marina at Ketchican.
Santa Ana inlet, north of Ketchican is a great Anchorage, good crabbing. Also just outside the inlet is Deer Island. Best halibut fishing I've ever seen. S.E. corner .

5. Watch tides carefully for passage thru Wrangel narrows.

6. Petersburg is a great spot. A side trip to La Conte is good for your introduction to navigating thru ice, but watch tides because incoming tides in LA Conte Bay will pack ice back up into bay and it can get make it exciting to get back out.

7. As you approach Woods spit keep an eye out for ice chunks.

8. Endicott arm , plan on trolling speed only if you plan on going to Fords Terror.. By far my favorite spot. Overnight at the farm end of inlet.

9. Don't forget an evening at The Red Dog Saloon.

It's an incredible trip. Enjoy
The Grouch

The grouch said:

Hi,
I made that trip some time back in my 19' glasply cutty cabin outboard.
Here are a few suggestions:

1. The tow from Hope B.C. is a beautiful road trip

2. Launch at Prince Rupert. Make the run to Dundas Island for your 1st overnight. Great Anchorage, but have lots of bug spray.

3. Wait for good weather windows.

4. Good Marina at Ketchican.
Santa Ana inlet, north of Ketchican is a great Anchorage, good crabbing. Also just outside the inlet is Deer Island. Best halibut fishing I've ever seen. S.E. corner .

5. Watch tides carefully for passage thru Wrangel narrows.

6. Petersburg is a great spot. A side trip to La Conte is good for your introduction to navigating thru ice, but watch tides because incoming tides in LA Conte Bay will pack ice back up into bay and it can get make it exciting to get back out.

7. As you approach Woods spit keep an eye out for ice chunks.

8. Endicott arm , plan on trolling speed only if you plan on going to Fords Terror.. By far my favorite spot. Overnight at the farm end of inlet.

9. Don't forget an evening at The Red Dog Saloon.

It's an incredible trip. Enjoy
The Grouch

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Thank you so much for these tips!

Your welcome.
Auke Bay was as far as I made it. Great marina. Changing weather patterns required me to head back to Prince Rupert so I could have a tail wind on the run back , especially the leg back to Petersburg.

Back in the day we did that several times. Left the truck in P Rupert going and coming, spent the summer in southeast Alaska each time.

Poppa Ron said:

Back in the day we did that several times. Left the truck in P Rupert going and coming, spent the summer in southeast Alaska each time.

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Where did you leave your truck and trailer?

Hi Cindy,

We towed from Utah to Prince Rupert and cruised SE AK a dozen times in our diesel-powered 26-footer, most recently in 2015. Traveling like you mostly at 6-7 knots. Launch ramp in PR is at the Rushbrook marina. Don't know where truck/trailer storage is these days - we're in a Nordic Tug 37 the last 11 summers.

I'd suggest the Douglass "Exploring SE Alaska" cruising guide, for the best info on anchorages. Also, I could email our list of anchorages that work for us. Here's an excerpt from my book "Cruising in a Big Way" on strategy for crossing the Dixon Entrance:

Crossing the Dixon Entrance between Prince Rupert and Ketchikan

We leave as soon as it's light enough to see wood on the water, and go slow at least until it's fully light. We go through Venn Passage coming out of PR - saves a lot of time, but we do need to follow the safe route carefully, especially as we round Tugwell Island heading out into Chatham Sound.

If conditions permit, we head from Venn diagonally across Chatham Sound toward Green Island, near the NE corner of Dundas Island, then across the open water to Tree Point, then sometimes to Foggy Bay for the night. If Revillagigedo Channel looks OK and I'm not too tired, we might skip Foggy Bay and head from Tree Point through Danger Passage (south of Mary Island), then between Ham and Walker islands, and on into Ketchikan. This is the shortest route, about 83 NM.

If non-trivial wind is from W or NW, we might cross Chatham Sound more quickly, come up along the east side of Dundas Island, and anchor in Brundige Inlet before crossing the most open water. If wind is from the Southeast and looks like it might be strong enough to bounce us a bit too much out in the middle of Chatham Sound, we stay along the east side of Chatham Sound, and cross the mouth of Portland Inlet. This is a longer route, but sometimes useful to protect from SE wind. There are a few places to anchor after crossing Portland Inlet, before we round Cape Fox and head up Revillagigedo Channel. Pond Bay on Duke Island is another useful anchorage, on the W side of Revillagigedo.


Here's how we analyze it, and decide if we're going to go. Tidal current direction vs wind direction is key.

First, the forecast should be 15 knots or less, for at least most of the duration between Prince Rupert and Ketchikan.

Second, conditions as reported at the Central Dixon Entrance buoy (Canadian WX, but also reported on US WX in Ketchikan), should be winds no more than 15 knots, seas no more than one meter.

Third, if winds are enough to pay attention to (like more than 10-12 knots), wind and tidal current directions should not be opposed when crossing the most open water, like in Chatham Sound heading up from PR, between Dundas Island and Cape Fox, or in Revillagigedo Channel up to about Mary Island. Depending on conditions, anywhere in these three areas could be challenging - wind vs current as the tide flows in and out can make seas twice as tall and much more vertical than they would be otherwise.

Sounds a little complicated, but if you're willing to wait a day or three you can usually find conditions that meet most of these criteria. On 2-3 occasions, always on the way back south, we've had to wait 5 or even 7 days . Depends somewhat on your tolerance for bouncing around. Most other places in SE AK are not as complicated to figure.

In 2017 for the first time I started using windy.com and predictwind.com. They give far more granular detailed forecasts than NOAA and Environment Canada, in more specific locations and in timing. Crossing the Dixon is a particularly good situation for them.


I'd be happy to discuss further,

I agree with your decision to skip Glacier Bay, it's a long way there and the Dawes, Sawyer, and LeConte glaciers are closer and just as interesting, maybe even more so because it seems more intimate traveling up the fjords rather then in the big open bay.

I would not recommend spending much time in Ketchikan other than a fuel and reprovision stop. Lately it seems mostly like a shopping mall for cruise ships.

From Ketchikan I like to visit the Anan wildlife observatory, anchor close to the ranger station in about 70 ft of water.

From Anan then to Wrangell. Wrangell is a great little town, lots of totems and the Petroglyph beach. Stikine inn restaurant.

Wrangell narrows to Petersburg. 60 navigation markers in 20 miles. Flood tides enter from both ends of the channel and meet near the midpoint. A helpful feature of Navionics that I recently discovered is the current forecast. Click on any of the current arrows and it will show you the last few hours and the next 24 hour current predictions.

Petersburg is another great location. Salty Pantry and Inga's Galley for meals. Nice base for short trips to LeConte Glacier and Baird Glacier. If the timing is right for Baird glacier (enter just before high tide), that is a real highlight. Anchor in Scenery cove just past the entrance bar (80 ft) and take the dinghy to the pro-glacial lake and see all the grounded icebergs.

From Petersburg I usually circle Admiralty Island, doesn't matter which way. On the west side are Red Bluff Bay, Warm Springs, Hidden Falls, Pavlof Harbor and on the east side, Dawes Glacier or Sawyer glacier (I don't have enough fuel for both). Then Juneau.

After four trips to SEAK, I still haven't been to Sitka, that will be on the next trip.