Victoria and Beyond

[Stella Maris]

It’s 5:30 in the morning. The sky has yet to begun to show any signs of a new day beginning. I have been up since five preparing a pot of coffee. While I wait for the water to boil, I prepare Destiny for her trip North to Anacortes. The shore power is unplugged, the cord stowed. Anything that can fall is stowed. Breakfast is prepared and set. Once underway, I will enjoy my breakfast of cold cereal and fresh fruit as another new day begins.

Last evening I prepared my navigation table with all the tools I would need for my solitary journey north. The charts are laid out, the binoculars at hand. The camera at the ready in the event the need should arise. While we have a chart plotter we also carry all of the paper charts needed for our journey.

I will take Destiny north this morning; Maureen will fly into Seatac this afternoon and catch a shuttle to rendezvous with Destiny and I in Anacortes this evening. Tomorrow morning we will depart Anacortes at first light bound for Victoria where Herb and Willie on Willies Tug as well as Lyman and Janeane on Zuma, will join us for the weekend. From there Destiny will head north while the two Tugs head south for the 2012 PNW Ranger Tugs Rendezvous in Bremerton.

Once the coffee is done, I cast her lines ashore and slowly bump Destiny forward out of her slip. While it is still dark and chilly, I will navigate Destiny from the comfort of her pilothouse. Once the sun makes its debut for the day, I will move up to her fly bridge.

I make my way out into Puget Sound and catch the beginning of an ebb tide. The current will give me a two-knot boost all the way to the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Once on the straits, the currents will turn and push me into Guemes Channel and Anacortes.

I sit at the helm enjoying a freshly brewed cup of coffee as the sun paints the sky with streaks of gold, lavender, and pink. Just before the sun breaks the horizon, there are burst of oranges and reds that make you wonder why more people are not out on the water enjoying this incredible scene.

It promises to be another beautiful day here in the PNW. A light breeze ripples the water as a seal lion pokes its head up to check out this great creature passing it by.

A solitary tug with its tow makes its way to Seattle or points further south. A great container ship glides slowly up behind me until at last it passes. I love to imagine where these mariners are off to. Is it Alaska, Hawaii, or the Far East? Will it be a seven-day trip or twenty-three days?

What a life Maureen and I lead. Traveling throughout the Western US every week with our jobs, to allow us the opportunity to experience the incredible beauty as well the outstanding people of the PNW. Oh, what a life we lead…. We would not trade it with anyone.

Sitting at the helm of our own vessel while the autopilot steers a course for our next destination is incredible. I plot a course to keep Destiny and I just east of the northbound shipping lanes until the sun comes up. No sense in crossing the lanes in the dark if there is no need. While these great ships appear to be moving very slowly, they are in fact traveling at 20 to 25 knots. At that speed they will overtake Destiny quite rapidly since we are traveling at a mere nine knots.

 

[Jake]

Enjoy reading of your travels and seeing the related pictures of this beautiful area. Serious question from a novice, traveling at 9 knots, how do you ever get anywhere? I picture the PNW as quite a large area, are all these points of interest that close to one another?

Jake

 

[Stella Maris]

You must always remember, it is not always the destination that counts, but the journey along the way. Currently due to a 2 knot current on the nose, I am down to 5.3 knots. We normally only travel at seven knots (1480 RPM's). This give us a GPH of 2.5 with a range of 1,000 miles on full tanks.

While the PNW is large, you plan your trips accordingly and try to take advantage of the currents. If all works out, 2014 will find us in SE Alaska. Now imagine that at seven knots.....

 

[JamesTXSD]

Enjoy reading of your travels and seeing the related pictures of this beautiful area. Serious question from a novice, traveling at 9 knots, how do you ever get anywhere? I picture the PNW as quite a large area, are all these points of interest that close to one another?

Jake

Not to take anything from Destiny's discussion, but part of the attraction (for us) with this area IS the fact that there is so much to see and do, in relatively close proximity. It is about 22 nautical miles from Anacortes to Friday Harbor... and SO MANY great places in between. From Prevost Harbor on Stuart Island (in the San Juans), it is only 4 miles to check in at Canadian Customs in Bedwell Harbour (in the Gulf Islands). In 25 miles, you could pick dozens of great places to anchor out or find a marina.

When we first got our boat, we ran everywhere at 20 knots. It took us a couple years to get completely comfortable with the premise of slowing down... taking time to enjoy the trip as much as the destination. Stretching the fuel dollar to get maximum SMILES per gallon.

There are plenty of people out in this area on sailboats. They are traveling everywhere at 6 or 7 knots. The big difference is: they don't have the choice to go faster if they choose. And when the weather turns crappy, they are going to be out in it... well, at least the person at the helm. Those in the cabin will be "down below", unlike the pilothouse cabins in our boats that allow a great view for everyone in the boat.

It is the journey... and the destination... and, for us, it is the time we spend together on the boat.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

 

[Nellie Too]

Love you guys. You couldn't have stated it any better.
Bob and Nita

 

[Dog Islander]

David, you and Maureen keep good company. I'm jealous of your trip this weekend to Victoria (and points north). The Harbour in Victoria will be spectacular, and the journey there will be enhanced by the awesome weather forecast. We have had to learn to throttle back a bit to learn the benefits of cruising at a slower speed compared to our Cape Cruiser. Still, at 12-13 knots we can cover quite a bit of water if we need to get somewhere at a relatively economical rate. After 6 months enjoying our R-27 we are very pleased with our new vessel and the Tugnuts family we have become a part of.

Enjoy your time here in the PNW.

Ray

 

[kjgregson]

David and Maureen, enjoy your weekend in Victoria with great company! It was about this time last year that we had the great pleasure of meeting up with you in Victoria and enjoying the weekend there.

We wish we could be there now, the weather is supposed to be great this weekend, but alas, Keith is in Halifax getting our youngest daughter settled into her first year of university at Dalhousie and I am in Toronto with our oldest daughter working on a real estate transaction.

Keith and I will meet up at the Vancouver airport late Sunday night and head out on Sand Dollar II first thing Monday morning, starting our journey south to Bremerton, exploring some new destinations (for me at least) along the way.

It really is a pretty great life isn't it. The beauty, the tranquility, the people you meet along the way and the friendships that grow.

Cheers!

 

[j&lgray]

Sorry we couldn't join you all this year, as the trip to Victoria sounds wonderful! We'll definitely plan some Seattle or points north trips with you and Maureen later this fall - after Banff and after Europe. Life is indeed good and John and I wouldn't trade our lives either!

Laurie and John

 

[Stella Maris]

My journey to Anacortes was uneventful with flat seas and no winds what so ever. I arrive just as scheduled at 1:15 to be greeted by Herb and Willie on the dock. As I back Destiny down into her slip at Cap Santé Boat Haven, Herb grabs her stern line.

That evening cocktails are taken on the fly bridge with Bob and Nita joining us. Then it is off to Village Pizza in downtown for a bite to eat.

Maureen arrives from Denver right on time at 9:15 via the airport shuttle. What a great deal this is. $30.00 one-way from Seatac to Anacortes. A cab from Seatac to Downtown Seattle will run you $45.00 and that is only 15 miles!

The plan is to depart Anacortes at 7:00 on Friday morning. However, at 6:30 I hear a toot of a horn. I look up and see Herb and Willie idling off of Destiny’s bow, they are ready to go. Since Destiny was prepped for her trip to Victoria the prior evening, this is not an issue. It is a matter of simply pulling the shore power cord and then casting off. Within ten minutes, we are underway.

The trip to Victoria took us along the southern ends of Lopez and San Juan Islands. While there is no wind chop to contend with, there is a swell out of the south that makes for a “rollie” ride. Nothing we can handle, just not the flat ride you hope for…

As we approach Victoria, we have to make a course adjustment and head south to allow a freighter to make his way into Haro Strait. Once we clear his stern, we once again set our course for the Victoria Harbor Entrance.

Entering Victoria Harbor is an incredible experience as you have large ferries, seaplanes, mega yachts, and numerous smaller pleasure boats to contend with. It is however a very orderly harbor as the seaplanes uses the greatest portion of the northern edge as their runway. If a plane is landing or taking off, there are a number of white lights that flash to alert boaters.

We make our way toward the Customs dock to stand off until our estimated arrival time. We have already cleared customs via our Nexus Cards however, you are still required to come into port and stand off at the customs dock in the event they want to take a closer look at your vessel.

Our arrival time comes and goes so it is off to Wharf Street Marina where we will spend the next two nights. Maureen takes Destiny in first followed by Herb and Willie. Lyman and Janeane will join us on Zuma later this afternoon. What a glorious day it is. Brilliant sunshine, a light breeze blowing, boats all around, and great people that you enjoy spending time with!

Currently sitting at a table on the sidewalk in Victoria with Lyman and Janeane. What a great way to spend a day! Tonight it will be cocktails on the fly bridge while watching all of the traffic in Victoria Harbor!

 

[Stella Maris]

Victoria to Bedwell Harbor

After spending two days in the hustle and bustle of Victoria, it is time to start heading north. We cast our lines ashore at 6:00 to allow us to catch a flood tide up to Bedwell. The air is still with nary a ripple on the water. We follow Willies Tug out through the Harbor and into the Straits of Juan de Fuca. While we will head north, Willies Tug will head south and make their way to Shilshole.

We could not have asked for a better day, very little breeze with no chop. Abundant sunshine and moderate temperatures. As we make the turn north into Haro Straits, a large container ship makes his approach. We give him plenty or room hugging the western side of the shipping lanes.

We keep an eye out for whales but never do see any. We do however spot numerous dolphins as well as harbor seals and sea lions.

While traffic is fairly light out on the straits, once we enter Bedwell Harbor it picks up. Pleasure boats of all sizes going in all directions at all speeds. Poets Cove Marina is packed full, the anchorage is also packed with boats of all sizes. Zuma takes the lead going in first looking for the ideal location. They take the west side of the anchorage; while Maureen takes Destiny to the east. We located a spotted back in a little corner that will offer the most protection from any wind or chop that may stir. Once the hook is down and secure, we give Lyman the go ahead to come alongside. He carefully nudges Zuma into place alongside Destiny.

Once all is secure, the girls head off to the Spa for the afternoon while Lyman and I take Zuma’s tender for a cruise through the harbor.

A small boat with a young couple and small child comes in and drops their hook off of our stern. You admire their adventurestic attitude, as the boat can be no more than 18 feet in length with a small cuddy cabin in the bow. It is obvious though; they are experienced at this as they have their bicycles secured on the bow along with a stroller. You have to admire people like this. While their means may not offer them the ability to afford a larger boat, they obviously bought the most boat they could afford and got out on the water! From such humble beginning great things grow. It brings back memories of the days when Maureen and I first married. We would camp on the beach next to the pristine alpine lakes in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. While we spent our nights in that small two-person tent, we spent the days sailing those cool clear waters on our Super Sunfish. My, what a long way we have come….

After the girl’s return from the Spa, we fire up the BBQ and prepare a dinner of fresh Salmon and salad. Of course, dinner will be accompanied by a bottle of wine or two. After dinner, we move to the fly bridge to watch another great day on the water come to an end. The sun paints the sky an incredible array of colors as it drops below the horizon.

Tomorrow, we will head to Annette Cove on Prevost Island.

Annette Cove

We departed Bedwell at 11:30 bound for Annette Cove. While Lyman takes Zuma on his own, Janeane joins Maureen and I on Destiny for the short cruise. Lyman takes the lead in Zuma. Janeane takes the helm of Destiny and falls in behind Zuma. We cruise at 1480 RPM that should give us a speed of 7.5 knots. However, with a favorable current, we make 8.5 knots.

The cruise to Annette takes us just two hours. Zuma enters first while Maureen takes the helm of Destiny and heads over to check out Selby Cove just around the corner. We determine that Selby will not afford us the protection from the NW wind that is blowing so turn and head back to Annette. Lyman has found a suitable location in the large pool area at the end of the cove. We drop Destiny’s big Rocna in just six feet of water. The tide is at the bottom for the afternoon so we have no-where to go but up. Tomorrows low will be a half-foot lower still giving us plenty of water.

Maureen and I spend the afternoon relaxing on the fly bridge while Lyman and Janeane take Zuma’s tender out for a cruise. What a great way to spend a day! Our plan for tomorrow is a short cruise “somewhere”. We are not quite sure where we are going to drop our hook; we just know it will not take long to get there…

Garrison Bay

With Lyman and Janeane having to head south for Bremerton on Wednesday, we make the decision to head back down into the States. We clear US Customs via the Nexus call in number while Lyman and Janeane must report to the US Customs dock in Roche Harbor. While they clear customs, we replenish our water supply and tidy up Destiny. Once the tanks are full, we head out through Mosquito Pass to Garrison Bay.

Garrison Bay, the location of English Camp, is a popular anchorage with excellent holding. English Camp was the site that the British were garrisoned at during the 1859 Pig War. The U.S. Park service has restored a number of the buildings as well as the Captain’s Wife’s garden. You can walk the grounds and visit the structures that have been restored. Hike up to the top of the hill where the officers living quarters were located and take in the view of the bay.

While there were numerous boats already hanging on their hooks when we came in, we were able to locate a spot in the SE corner. You must be careful in this area as it shallows quite rapidly.

We spent the afternoon wandering the grounds of English Camp taking in the scenery and history. As we made our way back to Destiny and Zuma, we took a tour of the bay via Zuma’s Tender. There are a number of homes lining the bay ranging from the multi million-dollar variety right down to one of the original 50’s era homes.

Upon our return to our “floating homes” on Garrison Bay we prepared our evening meal as well as bring out a couple of bottles of wine. Friends of the Boyd’s join us. Dean and Theresa are swinging on their hook around the corner in Roche Harbor.

The evening is one of the calmest we have had all week. Not a breath of a breeze stirs the water. After dinner, we sit on the fly bridge watching the thousands of stars overhead make their appearance. This will be our last night together. Tomorrow, the Boyd’s head south while we will head to Stuart Island. From there we plan to head to Patos and then Sucia. Then it will be time for us to point Destiny’s bow south and make our way to Seattle.

Reid Harbor

Lyman and Janeane bid us farewell. It is time for them to head south to Bremerton, while we will remain in the San Juan Islands for an additional four days.

Todays journey will be a short hop over to Reid Harbor on Stuart Island. It is a mere six miles. We pull Destiny’s big Rocna from the bottom at 11:30 and begin to make our way out into Mosquito Passage. While I had read all of the “horror stories” of transiting Mosquito Passage, the shallow depths and treacherous currents, they do not stand true. While you do have to remain between the markers and watch your set from the strong tidal currents, it is straightforward navigation.

We make our way past busy Roche Harbor and across Spieden Channel. We enter Reid Harbor carefully as the entrance is a bit narrow with rocks on the east side. We make a turn to the west and start the run down the mile long natural harbor toward the marine park at the west end. We circle through the park buoys and make the decision to drop the hook in a great little nook just east of the park boundaries. It quickly becomes apparent that we have selected the preferred location to drop your hook as we have a number of boats that come in close to drop their hook thus leaving a tremendous amount of room wide open in the center of the harbor.

Once all is secure, we take the dinghy to shore and hike a number of the park trails. It is a very short hike over to Prevost Harbor that is situated on the north side of Stuart Island. This is a location we would definitely come back to. The park has a number of buoys as well as three docks, two of these floats in the center of the harbor, as well as a linear moorage system.

Once back aboard Destiny we simply laze about the fly bridge watching boats come and go. A family of four otters play in the shallow waters along the bank. A majestic Eagle soars overhead looking for a tidbit of food.

We enjoy dinner on the fly bridge and then move down to the cockpit. With riding on single hook, the bow is pointed into the breeze giving us a very pleasant evening in the cockpit. While we sit and enjoy each other’s company, we hear a “splash” just off the stern. I peak over the edge of the transom to come face to face with a Harbor Seal that has chosen our dinghy as his evening resting place. We quickly chase him away but to no avail. He returns again. We haul the dinghy to the roof and figure this will discourage him. Wrong again. He decides our swim platform makes for a nice perch. We decide to allow him to join us for the evening. Once again, we are treated to another spectacular sunset with just a light breeze blowing.

 

[Stella Maris]

Sucia Island

We departed Reid Harbor at 9:30 bound for a quick stop at Roche Harbor to top off our water tanks. Once all was full, we headed northeast bound for Patos Island.

While we make our way northeast through Boundary Passage, Maureen spots a pod of Orca’s. Unfortunately, they only surfaced twice not allowing us to capture them on film.

As we make our way up Boundary Passage, we encounter winds of 20 knots on the nose accompanied by four to five foot seas on the forward port qtr. While the going is rough, the wind blowing hard, water breaking over Destiny’s bow, we did not ever feel unsafe or uncomfortable. In fact, she was riding so smoothly, we did not realize we were taking water over the bow until; I went below to get us a drink. From the flying bridge, we could not see the water spraying the windshield!

Patos is a small island on the southern fringe of Boundary Pass. It is as far north as you can get in the San Juan Islands before you cross the border into Canada. There are only two mooring balls and room for one vessel to anchor in the small cove on Patos. The entrance is small and strewn with rocks. Tidal currents can be strong and tricky setting you toward the rocky shore. Our arrival found all of these things going on. We watched as a local boat proceeded in ahead of us. We could see that the two mooring balls were already occupied so we would have to anchor if we chose to head in. We watch the two moored boats roll in the wind swell that is entering the opening. We decide to leave Patos for another time and head southeast for Fox Cove on Sucia Island.

Upon our arrival at Fox Cove, we find both mooring balls are occupied along with long steady rollers coming in. Once again, we make the decision that this is not the place for this evening. We proceed around the south end of Sucia and make our way into Echo Bay. We make our way to the back end of the Bay looking for just the right location to drop our hook. We find a nice spot and release the anchor in 28 feet of water feeding out 120 feet chain.

The bay is quite full but due to its size, it is not uncomfortably full. We enjoy a peaceful night on the hook with thousands of stars dancing overhead.

James Island State Marine Park

We depart Sucia at 10:30 bound for Watmough Bay on Lopez Island. This will be the perfect jumping off point to cross the Straits at first light Saturday morning. Unlike yesterday, the seas are flat with just a ripple from the light breeze. Along the way we cruise between Barnes and Clark Islands to check out the marine park. While the charts and cruising guides all indicate mooring buoys on the west side of they are no longer there. While there may not be any mooring buoys, it would be a nice place to drop your hook in calm weather.

We continue our journey south along Orcas Island. As we approach Lawrence Point we are greeted by the bow of a very large tanker headed north. We make sure we give him plenty of room. As we near Thatcher Pass, we have to deviate slightly from our course to give way to one of the Washington State Ferries bound for Anacortes.

We decide to take a peek at James Island Marine Park on our way to Watmough. We make our way into the small pass between Decatur Island and James Island we are surprised to find a beautiful little bay. On the west side of James Island there is a small dock just big enough to hold two boats. Unfortunately, there are already two secured to the dock. As we start to depart the bay, the folks on the smaller of the two boats reposition themselves to allow us to come in behind them. We squeeze onto the dock and temporarily tie to the last twenty feet of dock. Destiny’s bow is hanging over the end, but no worries. The smaller boat is only here for the day and once they depart, we will slide back and secure for the night. Once again, the charts and cruising guides show a single mooring ball in the bay, it too is gone. There are however, three mooring balls on the east side of the island. This area though would be subjected to the wakes of passing ships and boats. It does have a benefit though, a beautiful view of Mount Baker.

James Island has a one-mile loop trail that takes you around the south end of the island. The trail gives you a number of great vistas to take in the sights. While the trail is well maintained, I would suggest a good pair of shoes. There are points on the trail that are quite steep and would be a hazard if you were wearing the wrong shoes.

We enjoy a nice evening chatting with Doug and Val who are overnighting also on their 32-foot Island Gypsy. It always amazes me how you can pull up to a dock such as this one, not know a soul, and the next thing you know, you have made yourself new friends.

Once the sun dips below the horizon, we bid our new friends a good night wishing them good weather for their cruise of the islands. For we will be departing at 5:30 tomorrow morning bound for Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge. There we will replenish our groceries, and then head around the corner to hang on our hook in Blakely Harbor.

Blakely Harbor


The sky is inky black laced with thousands of twinkling stars as we prepare to make our way south. Today we will make the 60-mile journey from James Island here in the San Juan Islands to Blakely Harbor on Bainbridge Island just west of Seattle. Once the coffee is ready, it is time to make a final check to insure all is ready. We check the cabin to make sure that anything that can fall is stowed. Since we will be making the first hour of our journey in the dark, I visually check all running lights. Maureen takes the helm as I take care of the lines. We slip away as quietly as possible as to not disturb Doug and Val aboard their “Puffin”.

We slip out of the little bay and point Destiny’s bow south. The surface of the water is just like glass. Stars from above reflect off the surface. To the east, you can just see a hint of light as the sun makes its way west. It won’t be long and we will be treated to another beautiful sunrise. We are not disappointed. The eastern horizon starts with a very deep lavender and progress from there to pinks, oranges, and red. Mount Baker is afire with color as the early morning light reflects off of it permanent snow and glaciers. What a great time to be alive! Coffee in your hand, in a great boat of your own, with the one you love!

As we enter the straits of Juan de Fuca, we are amazed as to how calm it is. The only disturbance other than Destiny’s wake is the long ocean swells that make their way to the far east end. Destiny is slowly lifted from beneath as the swell approach and then slowly slides down the backside. If you were not looking out the window, you would never know this was going on. There is virtually no feel to it, you must see it.

We keep our eyes open for whales but are not treated to any. We do however have the company of dolphins all around.
Our crossing takes us a mere two hours cruising at nine knots. While the motor is turning RPM’s that should deliver us a mere 7.5 knots, we are able to achieve 9 knots with the push of the tide. Upon entering Admiralty Inlet, the tide has turned and we continue to get a nice push all the way to Seattle.

We make a brief stop into Eagle Harbor to pick up a few groceries as well as a couple of bottles of wine. Then it is off to Blakely Harbor where we will hang on our hook for the night.

We drop the hook in thirty feet of water along the southern shore. This location gives us an incredible view of downtown Seattle. We spend the afternoon in the cockpit enjoying our view, tomorrow we will make the short trip over to Blake Island to enjoy the last night of our vacation with friends.

Blake Island

We arrive at Blake Island at 9:30. The “overnighters” have yet to depart so we tie to the marina host dock as they are out until Monday. Once a space opens up, we will move. In the meantime, I take advantage of the fact that this is the only dock in the park with a hose and give Destiny a quick rinsing. While we maintained her through out the trip keeping as much salt off as possible, it is impossible to keep it all off. Once she is rinsed and wiped down, we move over to our location for the night.

It is not long before the crews of Nellie Too, Moondance, Tradition, Island Ranger 29, That’s It, and Zuma join us. It seems we have a party in the making. And a party it is. Fourteen of us in Destiny’s salon and pilothouse! The party carries on well into the evening with the last guests departing at just before midnight.

Tomorrow it will be up early and back to Shilshole. Once all is secure, it is off to the airport so Maureen can catch her flight to Denver. For me, I will spend the rest of the week working here in the PNW. Maureen will join me Friday night. Saturday morning will find us heading to Andrews Bay on Lake Washington.

What a way to live, great people that you call friends, great boats, and incredible water waiting to be explored. What a great life it is we lead!

The entire commentary as well as photos can be viewed at our website: http://www.helmsman-ph38-destiny.com