We've been living aboard in the Eagle Harbor Marina this winter and have thoroughly enjoyed it. There are several other couples here and a couple of single guys too. The Harbormaster is a cool old guy named Doug who has a ton of boating and kayaking experience and even kayaked around Vancouver Island over a three-summer period.
I guess we were lucky to have such a mild winter with only a little snow and a couple of freezing periods. The water system never froze up or anything. Just had to be careful of slippery conditions on frosty mornings when I took Elsa up to pee. Thankfully our hydronic heating system chugged along without a hitch and kept us comfy.
We are also lucky to have a family beach cabin here on the Island to hang out in when we need to get off the boat. It's not insulated so I turned the water off in November and kept it off until March. Now we are staying in the cabin while we get the boat ready to head north for the summer.
We took a car trip in April to the canyons of Utah and Nevada, with a trip through Monument Valley and Death Valley to boot. It was a nice change...dry warm weather! Elsa stayed with our friends Dave & Dawn so we were able to hike in the National parks a little bit. We spent a whole day in Arches and an afternoon in Canyonlands, and a day in Death Valley. An awesome trip.
We plan to leave around May 15th which is two weeks earlier than last year, but with no set itinerary it doesn't matter too much. A week in the San Juans, a few days in the Gulf Islands, then probably a trip into Princess Louisa Inlet. After that we'll just meander northward and explore as we go with the goal of spending time in the Broughtons.
More on that in future posts.

Well dear reader, you may have guessed we aren't in Ketchikan anymore and you're right! Our trip back to Puget Sound was relaxed, beautiful and relatively uneventful although we saw our first and only Orca pod near Alert Bay BC. We stopped at many of the same anchorages on our way down including Shearwater, Nettle Basin, Horsefly Cove, Safety Cove and Port Neville. In Prince Rupert the Wifi was down at PRRYC and our stop in Campbell River was a short one so no time to post and the blog sort of lapsed after that.
From Campbell River we headed east to Desolation Sound for about ten days. We stopped at Rebecca Spit for the first time and really enjoyed it. It's a nice park with plenty of places to walk, good protection and good holding. There were quite a few boats at this popular spot, but there's plenty of room. The anchorages in Desolation are popular too in August and there were plenty of boats (over 50 in Tenedos Bay,) but for the most part people were cool. We spent a few days in the San Juans after checking in and then made our way back to Puget Sound.
Since our return we've been on Bainbridge Island tied up in Winslow enjoying the live-aboard life. We went back to the San Juans in late September for ten days visiting Spencer Spit, Sucia Islands and Reid Harbor. It was nice to be up there and not in a hurry be anywhere. Aside from that trip we've kept busy with little repairs including a new starter on the Perkins, a new pump in the shower sump and detailing the cockpit.
What's next? A bimini and solar panels are on the list with some winter cruising thrown in to keep it fun. We'll keep you posted.

Got here yesterday afternoon after a nice run down from Meyer's Chuck. It's a cool little settlement of cabins built around a small inlet along Clarence Strait. The cabins are primarily summer homes; only two couples are full time residents. (Sorry Kopi, Steve and Patsy were both gone when we were there.) There is an actual Post Office and a state dock and we were lucky enough to get a space to tie up.
We also stopped for a night at Kindergarten Bay on Etolin Island which was a nice little cove protected by some rocks and islets. A troller also anchored in there for the night but they were gone when we got up.
Today is sunny and beautiful here, low 70's and a bit of a breeze blowing up Tongass Narrows. Very pleasant. We did boat chores and laundry today; a new fan belt on the motor, tightened some electrical connections and pumped the holding tank (a skippers favorite task to be sure!)
Tomorrow we'll make an early start and head to Prince Rupert. The forecast is good so we have to take advantage. Misty Fjords will have to wait until next summer.

I have a good Wifi connection today, so I posted more pictures in the Southeast Alaska Gallery to the right.
We've been out cruising for five days more, this time to Portage Bay and Baranof Island. We anchored in Red Bluff Bay on Baranof which is about the most spectacular place in Southeast. There were peaks all around us with snowfields clinging to them, a huge waterfall and the ruins of an old cannery. Of course Phyllis managed to spot a mother Grizzly with two cubs so there was plenty of bear watching to do.
Last Sunday was sunny and beautiful so Phyllis got out her kayak and paddled around the bay and met some fellow boaters. She also went up to the head of the bay where the bears had been, but stayed in her boat!
We are heading south tomorrow, down Wrangell Narrows and back to Ketchikan. Will post again when we get there, (I hope.)
T

We've been out for the last six days exploring Seymour Canal and Endicott Arm. We met up with Cliff and his crew Tera on the Tia at Windfall Harbor and Cliff made us and awesome dinner.
The next morning we stopped at the bear-viewing spot at Pack Creek and watched a mama Grizzly dig clams for her two cubs. There were a couple other Grizzlies there too, but the cubs stole the show chasing Ravens and playing with each other.
Our second night in Seymour we met Tia in Mole Harbor, had another awesome meal (Cliff is an awesome cook,) and explored the bay in the dinghy. Phyllis spotted three more grizzlies on the shore that evening.
The next day we motored over to Endicott Arm for a close-up view of Sumdum glacier and some icebergs. Sumdum hangs up in a mountainside over you as you enter Endicott and it's spectacular. The highlight was watching two Humpbacks "lunge-feeding" on herring in a little cove there.
We took two days getting up to Seymour and two days back, stopping each time at Fanshaw Bay. It's a nice little anchorage with the ruins of a settlement and a good beach for walking Elsa.
I'm having trouble downloading pics, but keep an eye on the Southeast Alaska Gallery for some fresh pictures.

We've been in Petersburg for the last four days visiting our friend Cliff. The weather has been cool and wet so it definitely feels like home (in the fall that is.) This is a great little town and the people are friendly and helpful. Not much has changed since I was here fishing in '91.
We had a good trip up from Ketchikan, although it was rainy, with a stop in Ratz Harbor the first night and a stop in St. John Bay the second. Got up early last Saturday and caught the incoming tide through Wrangell Narrows and rode it here to Petersburg, arriving about 10 AM. We stopped at the fuel dock and got 22 gallons of diesel and then parked the boat in North Harbor. This was a little tricky because there are no breakwaters here and the current flows right under all the piers and through the marina. Had to keep our speed up to maintain steerage and when I turned in to the stall I was thankful to see a boat neighbor there to catch our lines. When we reverse the engine to slow down our stern always swings to port due to "prop-walk" and that put us a little sideways. We got tied up all right with no crunchy noises.
Cliff has had us up to his house for dinner and to do laundry which has been great. We're all set now as far as clean clothes go, and tomorrow we'll take off to explore the area. Most likely we'll head to Seymour Canal and then maybe Juneau. Phyllis is eager to see some whales up close and Cliff says they are all over in Seymour.
I'll put a few more pictures in the Gallery to the right, so check those out.