22 Jul 21

After a very pleasant night’s sleep, we were up before 08:00 to be ready for an 08:45 departure to catch the last of the ebb current at Rich Passage. We had the anchor up on schedule and motored all the way down Port Orchard, turning into Rich Passage right behind the Bremerton - Seattle ferry, with 1.5 kn of current behind us. We picked up a mooring ball on the west side of the island at 10:50. After lunch, we spent the entire afternoon working on plans for Ashley’s visit in late August. We agreed that it will be too much hassle and too much travel to work in a trip to Canada (and back) during her 9-day visit. But, we will still have a fine time in Washington. The Admiral and I will probably sneak in a quick 2-week trip to Canada, starting on 9 Aug, when the border is supposed to open for non-essential travel. We have to be back in Seattle on 26 Aug; I’ve already made reservations at Bell Harbor Marina for a couple of nights.  

47-32.320’N, 122-30.125’W; Log = 14.5, Sum (2021) = 130.2 N-m; Eng. hrs = 2.4, Sum = 2759.6

23 Jul 21

We were lulled to sleep by the gentle thrum of the idling engines of the 3 container ships anchored in the bay. After a lovely breakfast in the warm solarium, we spent the morning planning for Ashley’s visit. We have reservations at Bell Harbor for the night she arrives in Seattle and a reservation in Anacortes for the night before she leaves; we will get our car out of storage to drive her down to an airport hotel on the night before her early flight. We also did some planning to visit our friends in Canada starting the 9th Aug, when the border is supposed to open; we have a reservation in Sidney, BC on the evening of 9 Aug, as well as a dinner reservation at Sea Glass. So, finally, the summer cruise is starting to develop some depth and breadth. Hopefully, the Delta variant will not cause Canada to change their mind; John also advised that the contractor who does the grunt work for Canadian customs and border protection has not had a contract for 3 years, so this is the perfect time for them to go on strike to push for a better deal - if it ain’t one thing it’s another. We also ran the generator for a couple of hours. After all that fun, we rowed ashore, and walked all the way around Blake Island, including a stop at the visitor center for some souvenirs and an ice-cream sandwich. The solar shower was just the right temperature when we got back for a quick, refreshing shower. Lovely dinner on board followed by a cloudless sunset, followed by a full moon-rise. A very good day. 

24 Jul 21

It was chilly again last night, but the full moon was beautiful. Apparently, we lacked ambition again, because we decided not to move, again. About 10:45, I started up the generator and then spent a couple of hours varnishing the starboard-side cap rail. After lunch, we spent literally the entire afternoon trying to figure out how to get a Covid-19 PCR test on 6 Aug, so we can go into Canada on 9 Aug. Most of the usually available test sites, like CVS and Walgreens, are drive-up only; i.e., you cannot just walk up to the pharmacists window inside. And, not many places in NW Washington actually offer the test. And, we still don’t know exactly what the requirements are for getting into Canada, because you cannot fill out the complete entry forms on-line until 3 days before arrival. There are still a few bugs to be worked out with the system, so 9 Aug may be a long, boring day of waiting and trying to figure out the new system

25 Jul 21

Last night, we found out that the Astros are playing a 3-game stand against the Mariners in Seattle on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, so we booked a slip at Bell Harbor on Monday and Tuesday nights. Woody finally got in contact, is back on this side of the border and ready to work on our solar panel system (except that the panel was damaged in shipment and has to be replaced), so we are trying to meet up with him some time in the next 2 weeks before we go to Canada. We finally found a Walgreens in Bellingham that will let us walk up to the drive-in window to take the pre-departure Covid-19 test before we head to Canada; we will stop in there on the evening of the 6th Aug, do the test on the morning of the 7th and start heading toward Canada, planning to get there early on the morning of the 9th. US CBP also confirmed that no Covid-19 test is required to get back into the USA. We had a Zoom call with Dan, Hank and Joyce after lunch; it was good to see them all, especially our grand babies. Then, we went for a short walk - 2 miles - on Blake Island and got back in time for a quick solar shower and Captain’s Hour.