Well, it was an epic summer. Great cruising around SE -- Ketchikan, Misty Fjords, Naha, Thom's Place, Juneau, Tracy & Endicott Arms, Baronoff Warm Springs, Sitka, Elfin Cove. Great buddy boats to cruise with -- Westerly, Shearwater, Honu & In Your Dreams. Great guests aboard DE -- Kate, Darrell, DJ, Bob & Sharon, Jordanne, Tjasa, Aiden, Anders, Christina, Ditte, Anne & Craig. Wonderful visits with friends around SE and of course loads of the sights that make Alaska visually stunning day after day -- whales, glaciers, otters, bears, the rare Sitka flamingo, orcas etc etc.

But now it's not summer. DavidEllis has been on the hard in the Wrangell boatyard since late September and is currently under a shelter that may or may not survive the gusting winds and heavy snow of the next several days. Virtually everything that could be unbolted, unscrewed or disconnected from the exterior has been and is stored away in a shipping container sitting at the top of a stack of three or is under the boat in bins. We've been through three rounds of spot sand-blasting to scour away rust issues then coated with Dimetcote and epoxy primer. The rest of the hull and wheelhouse are sanded and ready for an overall primer coat. Grateful to be past the sandblast part, down my back, in my hair, up my nose,tracking it into the boat, into my bed!

December / January, the ever-lovely Miss Dorothy and I were granted a month's parole and used it to see if our kids, grand kids and Seattle, Sonoma County friends were still talking to us and I'm happy to report that they are. Rusty and Rascal also appreciated a break from the long dark days on the boat in SE Alaska with mom and dad off the boat working all day and only a small run morning and evening. During that same period, I flew to New Jersey via a night stuck in transit at O'Hare, Chicago, for my Uncle Jim's funeral. Got the chance to hang with three of my siblings as well as many Nagle cousins. We also had a short but good visit with granddaughter Jenna who will be moving to Seattle in the spring to pursue her education in graphic arts.

Hopefully, the sandblasting was the low point of this process. We still have a great deal of work ahead of us before we are once again cruising about Southeast. Dorothy stays busy working in the boatyard office, helping out on DE and working out with the Garnett Grit Betties Roller Derby Team, for whom she referees and of course any number of knitting and quilting projects. Her derby name of course is "Knitty Gritty". Her birthday is tomorrow and she is getting a wood hand-turned yarn bowl to mark the day (from Jim Wright at Stonekettle on Etsy).

I seem to be snake bit since getting back to the DavidEllis. First a cold/cough/ache thing, then a few days ago injuring my shoulder and doing some damage to the bicep muscle. I'll see an orthopedic doc on the 16th in Ketchikan for these and other such silliness.

But first a whirlwind trip to Las Vegas for the World Rugby Sevens series. It's not Hong Kong, sadly, but it is Sevens, so looking forward to that, busted wing and all.