9 Aug 23

We had a very good night’s sleep in the quiet and woke to a quiet, very foggy morning. We got going just after 08:00 and motored out of the anchorage into a “pea-soupa” (as they say down East); i.e., visibility of less than 100 m. We crept along at low rpms for about 3/4 of an hour until we got abreast of Cape Fanshaw, when the fog lifted. Unfortunately, both the wind and the tidal current were against us all the way to Petersburg, so we did not get in until after 15:00. We passed a coupled of other sail boats that were sailing in the 8 to 20 kn of wind, but we were making way better headway just motoring. On the way into the marina, we topped up with fuel and propane. We were tied up at the town dock at 15:15 and were welcomed back by the harbormaster. There is a deep low moving east across the Gulf of Alaska toward the panhandle coast and a front is approaching with predicted 30 kn of wind over the next few days, so I think we will just hunker down here until it has passed. After we watched the Astros beat the Orioles 7-2, we went to dinner at Inga’s Galley, where we had a very nice meal. We also met a nice gentleman whose dinner companion was a duck - sorry, we failed to get the name of either the gentleman or the duck, but we did determine that the duck really likes french fries. Then, we had a nice chat with Theo and Eliza, from “Eelyos”, who are up here for the summer from Langley, on Whidbey Island, WA.  

56-48.776’N, 132-57.694’W; Log = 42.6, Sum = 2043.5; Eng. hrs = 6.7, Sum = 3436.8

10 Aug 23

We slept in until 08:00 and then were slow getting up. After breakfast, Terri went up and did the laundry, while I came back and changed the oil, oil filter and on-engine fuel filter; we only have 140 hours on the engine since the last change, and I have been getting 200 hours between oil changes, but we still have about 150 hour of engine time to go to get back to Anacortes, so I will have to change it somewhere between here and there. Petersburg has a nice spent-oil dumping facility at the top of the dock, so, considering we have a bit of time on our hands, this seems like a good time to do it. For a late lunch, we went up to Salty Pantry and had their Cuban sandwich, which is delicious, and a nice salad. I had a nice long phone call with Paul Britton; he and Meg are presently in Maine on their boat, getting ready to head to Anapolis for the boat show in early September. Back at the boat, I tidied up the cockpit, filled the water tanks and took a nice nap. Then it was time for Captain’s hour. It rained off and on all day long, as predicted. We went back to Inga’s Galley for dinner and fell into conversation with 4 guys from Juneau who have flown down here to collect a new (to them) boat to take back to Juneau.

11 Aug 23

The rain persisted off and on throughout the day. I am still suffering the long term effects from Covid-19 I guess; my head is still a bit congested and I have a certain lack of energy. Anyway, after breakfast, Terri went grocery shopping and I decided to tackle the bilges, which are in need of a good cleaning - I am ever hopeful of eventually cleaning all the diesel out of the nooks and crannies. That job took all morning. After lunch, Terri went up to the museum looking for gifts for young children, but they were closed due to lack of help. I had a nap. We watched the Astros thrash the LA Angels 11-3, then went to dinner at Inga’s Galley, again; where else is there. We also had a nice chat with John and Jeri on M/V “Katessa”, which is parked next to us, and their two friends, Penny and husband, who are visiting from England. They gave us some nice tips for places to stop on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island.  

12 Aug 23

Well, not much to say about today, except it rained. Then, it rained some more, and, then again, it continued to rain. It rained all day without a single let up. After breakfast, we made a run to the grocery store, in the rain. Later, we went to Coastal Storage and bought some frozen salmon, in the rain. Then, Terri went to the hardware store and book store, in the rain. Afterward, she went up to the grocery store to get some more apples, in the rain. I stayed back on the boat in the late afternoon and read and watched the Astros hammer the Angels, again. And still it rained. The low is getting close to the coast and although we had a lot of rain, we did not have any wind to speak of here. So, we are still planning to head down south through the Wrangell Narrows tomorrow to Keene Bay to be ready to cross Sumner Strait on Monday, if the wind lets up a bit, as forecast. Unfortunately, it looks like it is going to continue to rain for several days yet.