30 Apr 23

As it is only a short-ish drive to Seattle, we slept in a bit. We finally got going about 08:30 and, after a quick breakfast at Mountain Goat Coffee, we headed west. At Randle, we decided to drive up toward Mount St. Helens. We went 15 miles up the road, but could not get to a view point, so we headed back down. We pulled into the Staypineapple (University Inn) at 14:00, but our room was not ready, so we called Ashley. She came down and we went to Taste of India for a late lunch. Then, she drove us around the U of W campus and town for a while; the weather is gorgeous today. She got us back to the hotel about 17:00 and we got all checked in, in time to watch the 2nd half of the Phillies @ Astros game;  

Log = 200 miles; Sum (2023) = 2592 miles

1 May 23

Two years ago today, I was in Bermuda getting ready to help deliver a yacht to the Azores. We grabbed a to-go breakfast from Starbucks and headed up to La Conner to check out the boat. First, I called Marine Safety Services to see if we could pick up the life-raft and EPIRB, but the life-raft is still at Avalon in LA - curses. I finally got hold of the guy in Avalon and they found the life-raft and said they would attempt to get it serviced and sent back to Seattle, even though they are really busy; serious bummer. I guess I should have checked with them all during the winter. We got to La Conner about 11:00; the boat looks good on the outside, but the inside is still torn up. Brandon has just finished installing the dripless stern gland and John just now brought along the teak inserts to fill the slots formerly occupied by the original stern boarding ladder. We agreed on how to finish fitting the new boarding ladder. Terri and I got the bimini sections installed on the frame. We had a long chat with John about the wet rot on the bulkhead between the galley and the engine compartment. He said that to do a proper repair/replacement of the bulkhead, we would almost certainly have to pull the engine and disassemble the cabinets around the the fridge; so, a cost range of $5 - 7.5k, which I think is probably a serious underestimate, or would only be applicable if I was doing most of the work myself. He does not think (and I agree) that it is a structural issue; so, we both agreed that it could simply be left until such time as we either 1) change out the engine or 2) sell the boat, in which case, if the inspector notices it, we can drop the sales price to let the new owner deal with it. Not ideal, but such is boat ownership. John has installed a very nice piece of teak trim to hide the observable stain on the galley side of the bulkhead. Then, we grabbed a quick lunch at The Slider Cafe in La Conner, and drove up to Anacortes to check out the storage locker and booked a spot for our car storage for the summer. After that, we drove back to our hotel in Seattle, booked a table at Christine Restaurant and waited for Ashley to pick us up after her jazz piano lesson; dinner was excellent. Astros beat the Giants 7-3. Ashley dropped us off at the hotel about 21:00. We were in bed before long.

2 May 23

We were up again just after 07:00. After breakfast at Starbucks, we headed north to La Conner again. On the way there, I called Avalon again and they confirmed that they were going to open the life raft today and see how it looked; they will get back to me when they have assessed it with an estimate of the ETA in Seattle. We got to La Conner about 10:30 and I spent an hour getting the remainder of the cockpit enclosure installed. In the meantime, Brandon (with Chrisi’s help down in the locker) got the new transom boarding ladder bolted to the transom; it looks good and we should be easily able to deploy it with the dinghy hanging in the davits - a crucial safety issue. Brandon also replaced the generator exhaust hose, which was looking a bit suspect in the stern locker. We left about noon and stopped for a quick lunch in Stanwood, then drove on to Cabella’s (east of Tulalip) and then REI in Lynnwood, trying to find a replacement jacket for the one that Terri accidentally left at Dot’s house in Taos. For dinner, we went to The Blue Star Cafe and Pub, for a couple of excellent salads. In the meantime, the Astros lost to the Giants 0-2. Another early night; for some reason, we are both just really tired.

3 May 23

We slept in a bit, then had a quick WhatsApp call with Laurie to arrange to meet them for dinner in Anacortes on the evening of the 9th. Then, we had breakfast at Starbucks at Green Lake, and drove up to La Conner. Brandon had just finished off installing the damaged generator exhaust hose and testing it for leaks; all good, although we had a spot of bother starting the generator until he found a loose wire that had apparently been knocked loose during the work. Just after lunch, the boys got the boat in the slings and lowered her into the water to test the new shaft seal. Everything seems to be working fine. We got back to the hotel about 18:00, then Ashley picked us up and drove us to Noi Thai Bistro for an excellent meal. Meanwhile, the Astros lost to the Giants 2-4.