souldare

Days One and Two (Port of Everett to Roche Harbor) June 9-10, 2021

Our first day out on the water, we took the recommendation of other seasoned sailors and woke with the sun. We checked the weather report. Deftly went through our checklist, unhooking shore power, switching from house batteries to the starter battery, starting the motor, and then unmooring and gently leaving our slip, with plans to cruise from Port of Everett over to Anacortes.

First problem, Les noticed that the starter battery acted as if disconnected. Add it to the fix-it list, he tells me and turns the battery back to the house battery, which works as a backup when the starter battery fails. The motor fired up, and we walked through me untying and holding the lines, while Les backed us out and I simultaneously hopped aboard and stowed the ropes. Once we were clear, we navigated out of the guest dock, and into the harbor past a moored container ship, and a tug making an early run south to the Seattle area. It was 5:30am.

We looked at each other as we started crossing Possession Sound and said, “Good morning!” The water was relatively smooth, so I started making our coffee and oatmeal for breakfast. Our first day included going 53 miles and stopping for the day at the Cap Sante marina in Anacortes. The pine tree lined shore and occasional harbor seal popping its head out of the sea delighted us. We started out slow, and then when we had some open water we pushed up the power for an hour or so to make good time. We made it to our port exactly at 1pm, which was the check-in time. The day was sunny and in the 70s, we had yet to see any rain, instead billowing white clouds added drama to the beautiful scenery along the shore.

Once we checked into the marina, we walked to Safeway to get a few last minute groceries; our next opportunity to get groceries will be in Port McNeill in Canada. On the way to get groceries, we spotted a cute hot dog stand, and had a late lunch first. As we walked down Dock M back to our boat, we met our first dock friends, Bruce and Paula from Idaho. They were enjoying their happy hour and admiring at our boat. They were celebrating their 50^th anniversary, and were reminiscing about their sailing days, and the C-dory his dad used to own. We exchanged boating adventures, and bits and pieces of our life stories. It was refreshing to have a relaxed conversation, as the cool breeze with the sunshine made for a pleasant time out of doors.

One of the joys of boating is meeting new people, who share a common interest. Another first on this trip, was meeting Kristen in the laundry room at Port of Everett. (Les and I planned to get some laundry done before making the trip up to Ketchikan, Alaska, which will cover 750 miles and take about 10 days if we have a good weather window.) While Kristen and I talked about her boat life and her sweet dog. While we were chatting, Dawn arrived. She was having a frustrating day because the other laundry room’s washers and dryers weren’t working. We commiserated, as I had trouble getting a shower earlier. The laundry and showers are activated by credit card, and I couldn’t get any water to turn on after I swiped the card. It was lovely to meet two women who lived on their boats full time, and were enjoying life to the fullest. They inspired me.

Once again we woke up with the first light of the day, to make our way to San Juan Island, leaving port at 5:15 am and arriving at the Roche Harbor marina by 10am covering 36 miles. The winds are supposed to pick up tomorrow, and our small boat gets pretty battered by waves that come abeam the boat when crossing a bay. We need to get to Sidney, Canada to check in before we cross from Washington waters to Alaska waters. On the Canadian leg, due to travel restrictions, we are allowed to cross their waters, with the limitation of no leisure activities and no getting off or mooring at marinas. We can anchor out in Canadian waters. We can stop for fuel and have groceries delivered. It will be our first time going through this process, so we don’t want to be fighting weather and the stress of a new situation. So we will keep checking the weather and wait it out to go at the most favorable time.

Today, we continue to have a sunny day and in the 60s. We had our first fish and chips for lunch, then walked to a cool sculpture and nature park. Tomorrow, we will wait for our first encounter with potential “snotty” weather. If it’s too windy, we’ll just stay another night here at Roche Harbor.

To keep up with our adventures, consider subscribing to the blog to get updates in your email. Also check out Kel’s Facebook page where she often posts photos of the trip.

Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. (Matthew 6:33 The Message)