TUESDAY, JULY 18, 2006 – Appleton Cove to Takatz Bay
We had our anchor up and were leaving the cove at 0730. We picked up our prawn pot as we left and woo-hoo! Success at last! We had 62 of the critters and a dinner plan.
It was very calm and cloudy, but the rain had let up for the moment. At 0935, we were approaching the entrance buoy to Peril Strait when we noticed lots of whale blow just off the reef. There was a boat there, stopped and watching them and I recognized it as Explorer, a beautiful Malahide trawler that we had been admiring in the anchorage last night. We pulled up a little ways away from them, took our boat out of gear, and watched the whales.
This pod of humpbacks was very active. There were 12 to 15 whales in the pod and they were bubble-net feeding. I lost track of how many times they came up out of the water. They’d all disappear and then come bursting up out of the water in a tight circle with their huge mouths open. Then, they’d feed on the surface, capturing all the critters that they had encircled. They came up very near to Explorer several times. We were just sitting at idle, Jeanette and I on the bow, awestruck with these animals, trying to figure out where they were going to come up next, when all at once we heard a rush of water, looked to starboard, and the pod exploded out of the water, not 30 yards from our starboard bow! We were so surprised and amazed, we could only stand there with our mouths open – we could not take our eyes off the mammoth creatures. They then came back down into the water and proceeded to feed on the surface, swimming within 20-30 feet of our bow. I have to tell you, when these guys are 45 to 50 feet themselves, 20 feet off the bow is not much. Then, we all started screaming at once and hugging each other. It was the thrill of a lifetime! Actually, I am having trouble trying to find the words to express it. It was an awesome, amazing, thrilling, unbelievable, pee-in-your-pants experience! J (Actually Jeanette said that. J) And I just can’t believe that none of us got a picture of that moment.
The whales continued to feed and bubble-net while we tried to catch our breath. I was actually shaking I was so excited. The captain of Explorer hailed us and told us that although he missed the shot when the whales came up next to us, he had some pictures of the whales around our boat and very kindly offered to email them to us. Turns out Explorer is a charter boat out of Sitka. Richard Friedman is the captain and he and John talked on the VHF for a few minutes. John told him that we were headed to Warm Springs and he told us that the purse seiners were still in Warm Springs and suggested we come back to that on Thursday, since Thursday was open fishing for the seiners and they would be gone. He suggested Takatz Bay instead.
Explorer headed off to do some fishing and we stayed for another few minutes enjoying the whales. They started to move away off the reef, so we reluctantly came into the pilothouse and got underway. After a little discussion, we decided we’d take Richard’s advice and go into Takatz Bay.
The waterfalls along this side of Baranoff Island are just beautiful. We saw many and stopped and got some shots of Kasnyku Falls. It was a gorgeous ride down to Takatz Bay and we laid down our anchor at 1315 . Takatz Bay is also gorgeous. It has several waterfalls in the basin and is surrounded by granite cliffs. The water is a beautiful shade of jade green from glacial melt. We fished for a little bit and took the dinghy to explore the shoreline of the bay. The guys got the pots set for the night. We were having cocktails in the cockpit when several other boats, including Explorer, came in and anchored for the night. What a day this had been! We cooked up our prawns and several crab and had a seafood feast for dinner, and spent the rest of the evening talking about our wonderful whale experience.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 19, 2006 – Takatz Bay to Red Bluff
The guys picked up the crab traps, and Richard hailed them from Explorer. John motored over and he had made a CD with the pictures on it, including some of the whales bubble-net feeding. What a nice guy! Thanks, Richard.
We picked up our prawn pot (empty L) and took Mystic Moon out to troll for salmon. As I mentioned, tomorrow is open for the purse seiners, and it was like a parade of purse seiners headed north – kind of cool to watch, actually. We trolled until 1100, but really saw no action. It’s the first time in Alaska that we have trolled without catching anything. When we pulled the lines up, both lines had been sheared off taking hoochies and hooks with it. No one saw anything hit the lines and they were both still on the downriggers, so all we can figure is that maybe small halibut had taken the lines and bit through it.
We were cruising along, when at 1230 we spotted blow right off our bow, and then a humpback breached. Before we knew it, two whales were right in front of us. John took the Cummins out of gear and idled while we once again enjoyed whales.
It almost certainly was a female humpback with a calf, as the little guy was not near as big as mom (although still impressive). She would swim sort of lazily with the calf right by her side. They’d surface and dive together, and come up within seconds of each other. Both whales came very near to the boat several times, and the surface of the water was just mirror-like, it was so calm. Several times we could see bubbles rising to the surface, making a perfect ring. They were not bubble-netting, but I found the rings of bubbles curious. This was such a different display from the frenetic feeding we saw yesterday, at first we had thought that they weren’t humpbacks, but saw enough tail flukes to know that they had to be. Suddenly, the little guy did a great breach and we were cheering. Scientists don’t know why they do this, but it looked to me like he was doing it for the sheer joy of it. Who knows. Anyway, we continued to watch them, and all at once the little guy separated from mom and started making a beeline for us. I about had a heart attack as he came up 10 feet from the bow, took a breath and dove under our boat. Jeanette and I were shouting (you can guess what) and even went to grab onto the portugese bridge rail, and it was dead quiet on our boat as we waited to see what would happen. I only hoped the calf had been taught how to avoid boats. We cautiously peered over the railing and could see bubbles coming up all around Mystic Moon. After what seemed like an eternity, mom whale surfaced again on the other side of the boat and the baby came back up not too far from her and rejoined her. There was a collective sigh of relief on board our boat.
I really don’t think the mom came under our boat. It seemed to all of us that curiosity just got the better of the calf and he just had to come over and check out the new thing in the water. We looked on the depth sounder, and it is an amazing image. Craig got a picture of it for posterity J, and I’ll post it as soon as I can.
Mom and baby started swimming away, and the calf rolled over on his back and waved both flippers at us for about a minute. It was just too much – I know it’s not possible, but it really looked like he was waving good-bye to us. Too funny and too cute! It cracked all of us up. The whales did come back around for some more shallow dives, but finally swam off in the opposite direction.
Two pants-changing experiences in two days. I don’t think I can keep up this pace.
Red Bluff was our destination for the day and we had heard and read that it was beautiful. It was, too. The Bay is entered through a narrow passage, and you see steep granite cliffs with waterfalls streaming down them as you pass through. There are snowfields up towards the tops of the mountains that create numerous falls. When we arrived at the head of the bay, there were already quite a few boats in there, so we anchored out in the deeper part of anchorage and enjoyed the fabulous view. Prawns and pasta, followed by Bugger Bridge rounded out a lovely day.
THURSDAY, JULY 20, 2006 – Red Bluff Bay to Warm Springs
We slept in a bit this morning, so when we got our anchor up at 0915, all the other boats had left except for us and one other. We did spot 2 bears on the beach, but still no joy with the crabbing and prawning.
The winds had come up and the seas were very choppy. Fortunately, the wind and current were running with us, so the ride was not too uncomfortable. By the time we arrived in Warm Springs at 1215, the wind had risen to around 30 knots and it was howling in the Bay. We could see lots of boats on the float, but we motored down anyway to check it out.
The float was packed – no way could we fit in, and we discovered most of the boats that had been with us in Red Bluff had moved up to Warm Springs. Richard from Explorer hailed us and kindly offered to let us raft up to him, but we couldn’t figure out a way to make it work as he has a mid-ship gate and our gate is in the stern. He suggested the cove in the north part of the bay, so we made our way there and anchored in 60’ of water. The cove was very cozy and offered excellent protection from the winds, but had limited swing room, so we kept our rode to a minimum. Not too long after we got settled, the trawler Passages came in. We had heard them on the VHF several times, and they too found the float full, so came and joined us in the snug cove.
While we were making lunch, the couple from Passages came by in their dingy and told us they had come down from the opposite direction and had seen 48 knots of wind before they turned in the bay. Running into the seas and winds had been quite a ride. They also gave us the rundown on the hot springs – a very nice couple. Seems the reason you don’t really want to be here when the seiners are in is because not only is it really crowded, but I guess the guys go in the hot springs in the nude and it can be pretty, um…. interesting.
After lunch, we loaded into the dinghy and headed for the hot springs. Richard was on the dock when we tied up, so we talked with him for a while and gave him the bottle of wine we had brought to thank him for the great pictures. He is quite the photographer – the pictures were stunning, and he graciously said he didn’t mind if we included some on our website. Just as an aside, it appears that his charter operation is very professional, and he seems to be a just a great guy. If you ever consider a charter up here, you might look at his website http://www.yachtexplorer.com/.
It was a nice hike to the hot springs and the springs were just heaven! The pools are right next to the waterfall, and the coolest one is practically in the falls. We chose the second pool and Jeanette and I enjoyed the bottle of champagne that we brought and all of us enjoyed the soak.
After our relaxing afternoon, John grilled rack of lamb, and we had a great dinner and another round of Bugger Bridge. I am actually winning this time (Craig) J.
FRIDAY, JULY 21, 2006 – Warm Springs to Portage Bay
At 0700 we had our anchor up and were underway. It was dead calm when we left, but we wanted to get to Portage Bay before the weather deteriorated. There were lots of low clouds, but the visibility was not too bad, with the clouds just above the water.
By 0830, the clouds had become fog and we only had about ¼ mile visibility, although the water remained calm and glass-like. Just as we came through Surprise Bay, we noticed action in the water and stopped to watch a large group of Stellar Sea Lions catch salmon. They were pretty fun to watch, leaping in the air with the fish in their mouths, flinging them in the water. It’s violent and graceful at the same time, if you can imagine. These guys are really large, and yet they just sail through the air.
At 0900, as we entered Frederick Sound, 2 humpbacks surfaced about 100 yards off our pilothouse door. We watched them go about their business for a few minutes before they swam off into the fog.
The fog stayed with us most of the day, although the visibility increased around 1100. After rounding Pinta Point, the wind and current were against us, so the ride got a little rough as we were slogging into it.
We had planned to meet up in Portage Bay with Kasekuchen, and sure enough, we heard Bob hailing us on the VHF. By 1430, we were rafted up to Kasekuchen in Portage Bay.
It was really great to see Bob and Cheryl again. They had Dottie and Mallory aboard as guests, so we spent the afternoon catching up and sharing Alaska stories. It was still raining and cold, so the day was well-spent inside! Bob made Veal Porcini for dinner, while we contributed a salad and salmon chowder, and all 8 of us had a very fun dinner together here on Mystic Moon.
SATURDAY, JULY 22, 2006 – Portage Bay to Wrangell
We left Portage Bay at 0910 to try and make Wrangell Narrows at slack tide. Before we left, Bob gave us some ideas about Behm Canal, as we want to do it with my parents and he had been there earlier this summer.
We said our good-byes, as Bob and Cheryl were headed to Petersburg to let off Dottie and Mallory and we were headed to Wrangell to let off Craig and Jeanette. The day started off cloudy, but we found the fog before long. There were lots of fishing boats coming out of Petersburg and there was chatter on the VHF about some of the sailboats running without radar. We saw one, too. IMHO, with visibility ¼ mile or less, that’s just nuts.
We entered Wrangell Narrows right on time, and mercifully, the fog lifted. It was much quieter this time – I guess the salmon were no longer running, and there were just a few skiffs out fishing in the narrows. There were tons of eagles, though, so there must have been a few stragglers still.
By 1500, we could actually see some breaks in the clouds and some blue sky underneath – what a treat! It had warmed up, too, to 67 degrees.
At 1645 we were docked at the Summer Float in Wrangell. The Wrangell harbormaster was very nice. The gillnetters were in, so there was very little room at the docks. The Summer Float is over by the City Dock, and he suggested we try there. There was plenty of room, so we tied up. The float had power, but it’s only 20 amp which doesn’t help us much, but it did have water, which we’d most likely need since we were going to be here a couple of days.
This was Craig and Jeanette’s last night, and she had really wanted crabcakes, so we made up crabcakes with some of the crabmeat we had picked. We spent the evening reviewing the great time we have had and finished our game of Bugger Bridge (I lost – again.)
SUNDAY, JULY 23, 2006 – Wrangell
It was foggy and rainy when we awoke. Craig and Jeanette left for the airport and John and I started doing our “turnover day” stuff. He got the boat and dinghy washed while I stripped the sheets and towels, got everything washed and put back on the beds, vacuumed and cleaned the interior of the boat. I was very surprised when around noontime Craig stuck his head in the door. Apparently, the planes that fly here are not rated for instrument landings, and they didn’t have the 3 mile visibility required to take off and land. They had been waiting at the airport for the fog to clear, but it didn’t look good. They had decided to take the afternoon ferry to Juneau so they could catch an early flight from there tomorrow morning to go home. In the meantime, they were having lunch at the hotel since I was still cleaning up.
John had been at the hardware store picking up a few things and we discovered that Wrangell virtually shuts down on Sundays (except for the hardware store). The gas station, grocery stores, and liquor stores were all closed, so the reprovisioning would have to wait until tomorrow morning.
In the meantime, we had concerns about if my parents would make it in tonight. The fog would lift for a bit and then it would roll right back in. It didn’t look good for their flight due in around 1830. We finished up our chores and tried to get in touch with Mom and Dad.
Wrangell has very poor to nonexistent cellphone service. We would have a little bit of a signal for a few minutes and then nothing at all. As I’ve mentioned, the satellite service has been questionable also, so it was very frustrating not to be able to communicate. Ironically, the best way to communicate was via instant messaging because the wi-fi was great. Go figure.
I made up a new pot of salmon chowder in case they should arrive. We finally got a hold of them in Juneau and they were on hold, waiting for the weather to clear. With the access to the internet, we were able to check Alaska Air’s website and get updates about their flight. To make a long story short, they were not able to fly into Wrangell and Alaska put them back on the plane to try to make Ketchikan, which they finally did. They luckily got a hotel room near the ferry and planned to catch the 0630 ferry from Ketchikan to Wrangell tomorrow. They were exhausted, to say the least.
I put the chowder in the refer for tomorrow, and John and I made popcorn for dinner and called it a day.
MONDAY, JULY 24, 2006 – Wrangell to Berg Bay
We were up and at it at 0800. John went to get the propane tanks filled and I went to the grocery store to pick up the things I needed. We were out of all the fresh stuff, from veges to milk. He met me at the store just as I was paying, and the store let us borrow a cart to take the groceries back to the boat, so we swung by the liquor store and picked up what we needed there.
It was low tide (of course, always) so the ramp to the float was practically vertical. We relayed the groceries and liquor by hand from the cart to the boat, since there was no way we could have rolled the heavy cart down the ramp without losing it. I walked the cart back to the store while John started filling our water tanks.
After getting everything stowed, we unhooked the hoses and took Mystic Moon over to the fuel dock to get fuel. We took on 700 gallons at $3.17 a gallon, including all the taxes. We hurried back to the Summer Float and got tied back up just before the ferry came into view. I finished filling the water tanks while John walked to the ferry dock to pick up Mom and Dad.
We welcomed Mom and Dad aboard – what a heck of a trip for them. They were still tired, but game to get out and about, so we got on our way around 1300.
It was foggy and rainy (good thing they opted for the ferry – we had seen no planes take off or land again today) as we made our way toward Berg Bay. We had reservations at Anan Bear Preserve for tomorrow so we wanted to be near there in order to be at Anan fairly early. We were discussing all this over salmon chowder when I realized I ought to check the paperwork, and discovered that our reservations were actually for the 26th, not the 25th. When John had made the itinerary we had not yet gotten the reservations, and then when I’d called, they didn’t have the 25th available, so we took the 26th. Neither one of us thought about the fact that we needed to alter the itinerary to match. Well, that was an oops and a duh.
Well, being good cruisers, we are flexible J so we decided we’d troll this area tomorrow and just return to Berg Bay for an extra night, and then make Anan on the proper date.
We were just coming through The Narrows, when I spotted a nice looking motor trawler fishing the area. I grabbed the binocs to try to figure out what kind it was and was admiring the lines on it when I saw the name. It was Idlewild! I couldn’t believe it! I knew they were supposed to be back in Vancouver in August, but never dreamed we’d pass them in Alaska.
For those of you who don’t know, Idlewild is the vessel that was built in Canada, put in a river, portaged in several spots into the Pacific, then took the Northwest Passage through the Arctic and into the Atlantic and then on around the world for a circumnavigation. Check out their website http://www.idlewildexpedition.ca/index.htm – it’s a fascinating story.
At any rate, I hailed them on the VHF, confirmed it was them, and offered up our congratulations and admiration. I talked with the son, and he was very, very nice. Said they had crossed their track just recently and were trying to figure out the fishing thing before the nephews came up. They are indeed going into Vancouver on the 11th to celebrate, and were on the southbound track. He was so humble and such a pleasant guy, I was very impressed. We talked a little about boats and plans and John gave him the name of a point that was supposed to be good fishing. What fun! I am just in awe of these guys.
We arrived in Berg Bay and anchored with 2 other boats in 70 feet of water. Salmon grilled on the alder plank was a big hit. We hit our pillows with visions of big salmon on our lines tomorrow.
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2006 – Berg Bay
We had a leisurely morning. John checked all the pots and woo-hoo! we had prawns and crabs. Since we had decided to stay another night, he put the pots back out, got the fishing gear set up and we went out to troll.
One of the guys in Wrangell had said that Madden Point was a good place to catch fish, so that’s where we went. The shoreline there isn’t surveyed, so we used our depth sounder and Interphase to navigate by. We are recent converts to the Interphase ever since Brad showed us the right way to use it. It is a great tool – thanks, Brad!
Anyway, the fishing was not great, not even a rockfish took our lines. Very disappointing. We did see a large flock of Surf Scoters swimming in the bay and they were very pretty and fun to watch, but the fish eluded us.
By 1530 we anchored back in Berg Bay. It was raining and cold (we could really use a little bit of sunshine here), so we made up cocktails and consoled ourselves with a crab and prawn feast.