End of Downriver Cruise
28 May 2013 | St. Helens, OR
Captain Dave / partly sunny
From Dave:
We had a great 6-day cruise with Freddi and Flo, and were very sad to see it end. The weather was not so great -- typical May weather in western Oregon -- but that did not slow us down too much. After 6 days on the boat, the girls had really settled into life afloat. We were afraid they would get bored, but they really seemed to enjoy the trip and life aboard Elara. What's not to love? The trip was enriched by the company of Andy, John and Leslie on Meriwether, Andy's Grand Banks 42. Dinners aboard Meriwether each evening were full of fun and laughter. Our trip out to the Bar was awesome! The weather that day was mostly sunny, and the waves were modest. We loved the sea lions on Buoy 8, where we turned around to face 5 knot currents all the way back to Astoria! Last night at Batwater Station was excellent -- Karin and Michael were great hosts. Kayaking in Rose Pond was the best -- full of wildlife. The stop is just around half way between Astoria and St. Helens, so it is a perfect place to spend the night. Now we are back at work, and once again Dreaming of Sailing!
From First Mate Mari:
It was a sad day, indeed, leaving the sweet Elara and saying good-bye to the swabs, "Ready Freddi" and "Go with the Flo". After spending 6 days on a boat in the rain, with every article of clothing and every towel soaked, I ask myself how the trip could have possibly been so much fun? There's just something about being on a boat that makes you smile, in spite of any adverse conditions. Those grins from Captain Flip-Flop and Captain Andy are contagious! We shared so many special moments with the whole gang, so many smiles and laughs. There is a feeling on a boat that you can't escape: Don't Worry, Be Happy! And sharing the week with Freddi and Flo was an absolute dream! We are going to miss those girls so much!
A part about boating that always impresses me is the generosity and the "lend a hand" attitude of other boaters. There are those who will run down a wet and slippery ramp to take the bow line when they see us docking in a tight space. There is the teamwork of all crew on board to just make things happen. There was Mr. Kiwi, who invited us to go out on "Miss Molly" to experience the servicing of the huge cargo ships who enter the port. We got to ride on his boat while enjoying hot coffee and home baked cookies, just because we were in the right place at the right time. We learned a lot about the shipping industry and got to hear boating stories from Mr. Kiwi.
There were several highlights on the trip, an obvious one being the friendship and camaraderie shared with our swabs and the Meriwether crew. Every dinner aboard Meriwether was an absolute hoot. Kayaking with the girls in both Astoria and Batwater station was also a riot. I think the girls paddled twice as far as we did as they ziz-zagged around, paddled through the tall grasses and ran into pilings. There was the walk in the tall, wet grass to find the beaver dam, only to find that the grass was too tall to really see anything. We stood on top of the beaver dam and fortunately, none of us fell through the dam, where we could have been eaten alive by a ferocious beaver!
Sailing out beyond Buoy 8 was definitely a thrill, as this was our first "crossing the bar" and we got to share the moment with our friends. Buoy 14 was the furthest we had gone in prior adventures. Yes, the waves were modest, but still big. "Big Waves", as Mari would say! As we enjoyed dinner at the Wet Dog Cafe later that evening, the table and the world around us was still rocking from our day of sailing.
And Oreos, I must discuss Oreos. Did you know they were invented in 1912? Well we had such an Oreo addiction going on that we actually walked 6 miles in the pouring rain (that's no exaggeration) to buy more Oreos. OK, we had some other things on the shopping list but it was an opportune time to stock up before leaving civilization. Obviously, we didn't know how far away the store was or we might have had second thoughts.
All in all a fabulous week. Freddi and Flo did a great job of capturing many of the fun and funny moments we shared in their blog posts below, so please read on (start at the bottom of the page).
Freddi and Flo -- you're part of Team Elara now and we hope you'll come back and join us for some sunny sailing.