Port Orford, OR . We set out of Coos Bay, OR thinking that we’d either stop in Crescent City, CA or Eureka, CA if weather allowed. It was a high pressure system, clear skies, and unseasonably warm temperature most of the day. The girls were mostly bored and didn’t know what to do. I haven’t been able to get Sophia to take another turn at the helm since leaving Jones Island, when she shrewdly observed that “the boring thing about steering is…
Hanging out in Charleston-Coos Bay, OR . Bus ride into town for a grocery run. For a 20 min ride, we spent 1 hr getting to Safeway. There we found a recycled can and glass compartment. It’s Anna’s great fascination with making money with no-investment: take Washington bought canned goods and recycle it for 5 cents a can in Oregon. I believe there was fairly popular episode of Seinfeld where Kramer went all over NY with cans from a…
Arrived in Charleston Marina near Coos Bay, OR Boy were we happy to see a dock again! We toiled over 10 hrs trying to stabilize our boat from swells and resultant bow lurches. Leaving Grays Harbor, WA we knew that we’d be dealing with 5-10knots of southerlies. The night started out clear with surfacing of a bright crescent moon around 9pm. In a moment, I looked down into the cabin and then looked up to find no moon, no stars,…
Looking around Westport Marina in Grays Harbor We ducked into Grays Harbor waiting for the next good weather window to head south. We are likely to depart on Sunday Oct4th for probably a 36 hr shift at the helm. With 10 kts of northerlies, we hope to test out our hydrovane. Again, Grays Harbor like Neah Bay is a fishing marina. They tout that Westport Marina of Grays Harbor has the largest fishing charters on the west coast. At…
Arrived in Grays Harbor Although we planned to end our shift at the helm in Astoria the decision was unanimous to head into Grays Harbor primarily due to our desire to be off shift, enjoy some sleep, gourmet food, and play with our girls. Downside of being on shift is that one can’t do much other than tend the helm, navigate, or sleep. Meanwhile the girls’ attempts at occupying themselves and pestering Cutip waned and their need for our attention grew,…
Leaving Neah Bay heading toward Grays Harbor Looking east out of Neah Bay’s Makah Marina Seal Rocks remind of the Sea Lions sunning at the docks. We left Neah Bay around 4:30 PM with much indecisiveness about whether we should leave or stay another night. With rougher weather report for Friday, we had about 36 hrs of motoring ahead of us targeting Astoria. This leg was to be the BIG COMMITMENT, thus the back and forth and a…
Left Port Angeles to Neah Bay Arrived in Neah Bay. All day motoring with a bout of sea sickness (only Monica), we were tired. We were met with warm sun and many sea lions that are permanent residents of Makah Marina. This is the last protected stop of the San Juan’s according to the navigational guides, Charlie’s Chart. It says we are committed once we round Cape Flattery. That sounded like a good advice. As a result we are staying…
Stayed another night at Port Angeles We found Queen of Angeles for mass at 11AM. We made it to mass after about 35mins of trekking. I have never been that determined to find and make it to mass on time. Clearly, our trek to Queen of Angeles was to be a pilgrimage of some kind. The homily started out with, “I didn’t lose my leg because I sinned.” The priest was in a wheelchair but I didn’t realize that he…
Left Jones Headed for Port Angeles Leaving Jones Island and into the fog. Untied from the mooring buoy at Jones Island. Left the island with some fog that became thicker by the minute. Our fog horn system automatically sent off its blaring honks every 10 mins to let others know that we were coming in the fog. Good to know these safety features Jeff installed were working. The girls are happy to be at the bow watching the waves. It…
Departure Day When we woke up this morning we weren’t completely sure that we’d be able to pull off the dock. There were so many things to take care in terms of the house, affairs, cars, boat, provisioning, and schooling that the end did not seem to be an imminent reality. But, our gathering and cleaning frenzy took off and our house started getting empty while the boat started to weigh heavier. We met with Roger and his wife to…