And On to Juneau
This morning we all rose early ( well, Denis rose at his usual time but I got up before the coffee had a chance to cool down) so we could prepare to leave our very quiet little bay. The sun was shining and it was an absolutely glorious morning. Mr Gardner the engine started up after we wished him a good day and hoped he had a good run ( there have been a few glitches on this trip, rumour has it more than usual, maybe it’s the crew, maybe not, but I wasn’t taking any chances so I said good luck to Mr. Gardener the engine too).
Lines loosed, we headed off. Out in the strait there was fog over on the other side, but it quickly burned off. Any talk of winds and seas quickly faded, as we settled into a very comfortable ride up Lynn Canal to Juneau. It was supposed to be a long day but I think we may be tying onto a dock somewhere in Juneau a little earlier than anticipated!
And as we headed north, I spotted the cutest old fish style boat that I sort of recognized – wishing I could get closer. Denis said to me later that it was the David B, a boat that I had been hoping to see on our trip. They charter out of the San Juans but come up here for the summer and do charters from Juneau, and the end of their charter coincides with us being there to drop me off!
Unfortunately she’s way behind us, but maybe I will get lucky when we dock or get closer to the bustling megalopolis.
Meanwhile…
this is a beautiful, gorgeous ride. The mountains in the backdrop are spectacular, I can see glaciers rumbling down to the sea, picturesque lighthouses perched on points…
we turned fro Lynn Canal into Stephen’s passage, and found to our delight a humpback whale entertaining what looked like a day-adventure boat ( whale watcher?). The single youngster just was having a gay old time, leaping and breeching and broaching, and the people watching were hooting and hollering and enjoying the show. I don’t know who was having more fun, the whale or the people. We were further away, but close enough to get a nice view and some decent pictures, and the show was pretty spectacular. The whale probably played around for five minutes, it was fantastic. Then another pod of Humpbacks started coming down the channel towards us , and we thought oh boy! another show! but they did a few tail flips, there were probably at least half a dozen… then all at once, as if someone had given a signal, they dove back down. We looked and looked and didn’t see them again, so they must have sounded and gone for a long swim.
The other thing we saw was tan otter hanging around on the surface, totally unconcerned. I hadn’t seen any yet and was pleased, although they are notorious for stealing crab so they aren’t always in our good books!
We are now happily tied in Juneau, not the most beautiful view from the dock but it’s warm and sunny and who cares! After a celebratory beer, we did some chores – paying for the slip, organizing power, and getting rid of garbage. ( my job). I ran into some of the other Nordhavns, and was regaled with more tales of the fantastic fishing in the first bay ( the one we opted to miss). I still say we had to select our fishing days carefully, didn’t want to fill up the freezer too fast! besides, we had some incredible anchorages to explore!
Now we are trying to figure out where to go for dinner, within walking distance – and then I have to organize a cab and get my stuff in order! I wish I had another two days here, there is a lot to do and no time to do it in. Maybe tomorrow morning before I leave I will run into town and check out the shops. My flight isn’t until 2:10 so I do have SOME time for shopping. Maybe.
Meanwhile…
Here is a poem that Mary wrote for me, for my trip – it pretty much says it all!!!
the only thing she missed were the cinnamon buns. We bought some in Petersburgh, enough to last about four days… and we bought some in Tenekee…. also enough to last four days ( 1 1/2 buns is enough for three of us). They were superb. Photos to follow. However, the Petersburgh buns were considered the best.
Penny’s Adventure with Teka III
Petersburg had folks, food, and fellowship
With lots of crew from Nordhavn Ships
Celebrating life on land and water
Having more fun than anyone oughta.
In Cannery Cove checked crab and fish there
Got skunked on both so studied where
We could try again for either one
Like the Cable Guy says, “to get her done!”
On to Red Bluff through a large pod of whales
Who swam quite close then showed us their tales
As they traveled around looking for something to eat
Watching them doing their thing gave us quite a treat.
In Red Bluff and Warm Springs we watched water falls
Sat out some rain; hiked; jigged up orange coveralls.
Successful at Crab Cove across from Tenakee
Then visited village but skipped bath house, golly gee!
Freshwater Bay fishing netted salmon, halibut and rockfish
And at anchor Penny got another wish
A young grizzly on shore provided the show
For us in the boat and folks near shore out for a row.
A nature cruise we enjoyed a lot
spent time looking for the halibut hump spot
Eagles flew over; otters swam by
And clams at low tide spit at the sky.
No sunset or sunrise phenomena
For nature enthusiasts to go A-HA!
Beautiful anchorages, each one different somehow
On the scheme of things, a giant WOW!
Written in Juneau about the trip from Petersburg in July 2016
by Mary Umstot