July 6th, 2009 Auke Bay and Tenakee

We’re on our way back to Juneau as I write this. We got a late start this afternoon, (more about that later), so we won’t get to Auke Bay Marina until the wee hours of July 6.

We, (Sam Floyd, Phyllis, Will and I), left there on the afternoon of the 2nd, planning to return to Juneau for the fireworks at Midnite of the 3rd. We motored about 5 hours South, down Chatham Strait to Tenakee Inlet, up that inlet to Saltery Cove, as recommended by someone we met in the Marina. Without that recommendation, just looking at the charts, it probably wouldn’t have occurred to us to give it a second look. Anyway, we got in there by 9:30 pm, and found it to be one of those truly beautiful places that we know are all over SE Alaska, but are just learning to find. The cove was about 1 ½ miles long by ½ mile wide. Totally sheltered with good holding sand/mud bottom and, most important, totally uninhabited by all but a few bears. On the 3rd, we thought about going back to Juneau for about 5 minutes, then decided to stay for a couple more days.

On the afternoon of the 3rd, we did leave our little cove for a couple of hours to try our hand at salmon fishing. The reason it was only a couple of hours, is that it only took that long to catch dinner. (Downriggers at ~100ft, running 2 kts on the Yanmar wing engine, with a flasher and a hootchie). We wanted to get this one cleaned and in the oven without delay. It made a bountiful, wonderful, dinner! As you can see, Willy wasn't so sure. The head tail and entrails went into the crab trap, and although clearly picked over, the pot came up empty.

The 4th, we just exercised our dinghy around the cove. There was a pretty interesting trout stream feeding it and we went quite a ways up it, until the dinghy outboard began dragging its skeg. Beautiful scenery, but none of us wanted to find out if the mosqutios and noseeums were as bad as expected to try flyfishing. Maybe later. Frankly, we just wanted to take the day off and enjoy, which we did.

The 5th, today, we are nearly out of good coffeemaking water, (we'd chlorinated the freshwater tanks before we left and it tasted awful), the dinghy is nearly out of gas and there is some sort of cross between a horsefly and a bee that has found us in considerable number, (later learned to be blackflys). Accordingly, we thought we’d leave for Juneau in the early afternoon after cleaning up a couple of projects Phyl and I had started.

About 3, we weighed the anchor and in a remarkable example of maladroit seamanship, promptly fouled the prop with the dinghy tow line. (We’re towing it because we’ve got some minor rigging changes to make to enable us to get it aboard gracefully). I had optimistically set it up on a long bridle, planning to weigh the anchor and move out smartly forward. Unfortunately, tide and current conspired to require me to back away from the shoals and . . . I quickly wished I’d tied the dinghy up short until we were really underway.

The good news is that my brother Paul had donated an oil-less air compressor and a wet suit, (way too tight for this fat man, by the way). We’d bought all the rest of the parts for a hookah diving rig and had it all aboard, although it had never been assembled and tested. Hooray! It worked like a charm. I wore the “farmer john” bottom half of the wet suit, fins and a helmet and over the side I went. (water cold, but not as bad as I’d feared). If I’d had to free dive it, it would have taken many,many, trips down to unsnarl the mess. As it was, it took an hour to put the hookah rig together, (and for Phyl to help me squeeze into the suit). It took only about 5 minutes to cut away and unwind the poly rope. No damage done, otherwise. Thanks, Paul!!!

Tonight, we’re motoring along in a calm sea, with a gorgeous full moon on our stern and a huge cruise ship ahead of us.

We’re feeling pretty blessed.