Don/Clearing
07/31/2011, Foggy Bay

This morning Debbie took some photos of our marina and while she was out, snapped an eagle who had just picked up a salmon. After she got back to the boat, she and Dave handled the line and we left Ketchikan about 7:45. It took us a bit to get our boat sense with all the navigation gear we have. We went south down Tongass Narrows, headed for Foggy Bay. Don turned to the port a bit soon down the Nichols Passage and we tracked back on our path to get to Revillagigedo Channel. We stopped short of Foggy bay, just north, to try fishing for halibut. Don caught two rockfish that we kept for bait. While we were fishing, Dave spotted a humpback blowing near a herring ball. It reminded us of the time in Queen Charlotte Sound when Dave and I were fishing a herring ball and a humpback came up, right underneath our little dinghy and swallowed the entire herring ball up with 5-10 feet of us. We had a laugh at the memory.

We headed around the corner, into Foggy Bay and carefully picked our way through two very narrow and rocky passages to get in. We dropped anchor in 45 feet of water and let our about 250 feet of chain in a mud bottom, very secure.

We let Rubber Ducky down with the davit and Barb and Dave went for an exploratory boat ride, up a tidal rapids and back while Don took a nap. That evening, we grilled brats on the stern and had a wonderful meal while the sun was setting. We even saw a pair of Sandhill Cranes fly by to their nest in some trees. They made a very distinctive sound. After dinner, Dave fished from Change of Latitude, casting a spoon, while I rigged up the rods for a big day of fishing tomorrow. I also got the downrigger out from the flybridge storage and set it up in Rubber Ducky. We were ready for the Summer Salmon tomorrow! (I hope!). And, it is also the Swiss National Holiday, tomorrow, too.

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Don/ Wet
07/30/2011, In Ketchikan

Debbie and I flew to Dallas, then to Seattle, then to Ketchikan where we met Barb and Dave. We spent our first night in a hotel, where I got up very early and completed the edits on the theoretical chapter. Then, we spent the day provisioning the boat, getting everything loaded and stored. We also had to sort out a number of items aboard. Charterers never leave things where we like them to be. I unpacked all the fishing gear and made the aft cabin bed while Debbie, Barb, and Dave went shopping. I also got the refrigerators and freezer going to get cold and filled up the water tanks and put the cover on Rubber Ducky. After loading everything and putting things away, Don and Dave went back to the grocery store for a few final, "man food" items missed on the first trip: beef jerky, licorice, Margarita mix, heavy cream (for chowder), cookies, breakfast strudel, bacon, summer sausages, addition Jiffy Pop popcorn, and other important items the ladies had missed on their trip.

We ordered pizza and had it delivered to the boat for dinner to save time. It was great! I showed Dave the new Furuno navigation system and we plotted our course to Foggy Bay. We plan to leave in the morning and spend an extra day down their looking for the annual summer salmon, halibut, crab, and test our new shrimp pot puller. The other boats will come down the next day.

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Don / Hot
07/29/2011, Waterford, CT

Oh, how we have been dreaming of this trip! We are taking our boat, Change of Latitude home after it has been playing in Alaska on the Mother Goose trip with Northwest Explorations. Now, she is in Ketchikan waiting for us to take her home. I have been hard to get a ton of things done so I could enjoy this month on the boat with Debbie and her sister Barb and brother-in-law Dave: getting a large, federal research grant in shape so all would be ready for the start of the new school year; helping my doctoral students advance their dissertation research; recruiting school districts for participation in our research next year; completing a very important theoretical chapter on new literacies for the sixth edition of Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading (thanks to all my co-authors and to the editors, Norm Unrau and Donna Alvermann!); dealing with a few doctors about health matters; and giving a few talks this summer. Now, it is time to enjoy!

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05/15/2011, Roche Harbor, WA

Waiting for dinner at Roche Harbor.

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05/15/2011

Here is the line up of Grand Banks at the dock.

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05/14/2011

Yes, that is a power saw they are using!

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Don / Cool
05/13/2011

The owner of this older Lagoon model cat, built in the US, lives in Victoria. His boat is a bit like my brother Dave and Mary's, Leu Cat. They are in Fiji now, sailing around the world. So cool!

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Don / Cool
05/13/2011, Prevost Harbor

We spent a night at this wonderfully quiet place.

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05/13/2011

Caity and I put these on.

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Don / Cool
05/11/2011, Pleasure Bay

We took Paula and Brian out to Pleasure Bay and had dinner on the boat.

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