Okay, I've got to wrap this blogging session up. Here's a long story short:

I left Eagle Harbor Thursday morning, planning to catch a tide that would carry me upthe northeast coast of Orcas Island, past Clark and Matia Islands to Sucia where I intended to meet up with my Tyee YC friends on Sunday. That was pretty much successful, except that I called a stop to my attempt at sailing and started up the engine when a flock of swifts began to mistake Mabrouka for a tree.
Fossil Bay, the selected rendezvous, was chock full o boats, so I anchored next door in Echo Bay. There was room there, but its exposure to that evening's southerly breeze made it a bit more rock 'n' roll than I like, so I moved to Shallow Bay on the north side of the island. While there, my friend Pamela from Stimson Marina sailed in with her aunt and another friend, so we had a nice visit, a hike to Fossil Bay, and killed some crabs. Pamela only stayed for a few hours, so I was left to cap the evening off with a wonderful sunset, evidence of which you'll see below and in the Sucia Island sub-album under Local Cruising - 2013.




















I moved over to Fossil Bay on Sunday morning and had no problem picking up a mooring ball. Our yacht club gathering as a great time. If you want a nicer group of people to pal around with on the high seas, you couldn't find one.

With business to take care of before I could set off for Canada, I departed the Tyee gathering early and motored back to Bellingham for a couple of days. That's where I sit now, planning to set sail for Bedwell Harbor in the Gulf Islands within the hour. Stay tuned!