Prince Rupert

Today is an unplanned lay day so that the crew of Mother Goose can make critical repairs on the 42’ Grand Banks Change of Latitude.

Northwest Explorations is flying in parts that should arrive in the afternoon. Turns out that the bearings in the idler pulley on one of the engines seized up, causing the pulley to stop rotating. So as the engine continued to turn and the belt rode over the pulley, the heat caused the pulley to melt. No one wanted the charterers to continue across Hecate Strait on just one engine, so repairs were essential. Thus, our extra day in Prince Rupert – not a bad place to spend an extra day.

Happy crew from Deception take advantage of a shopping day in Prince Rupert

Kathy and Lance from Dream Catcher came over to visit in the morning, and we entertained them in our “jammies”. In fact, we stayed in our jammies until 10:30am, relaxing and watching the intermittent rain. You often get to know and see more about your “boat mates” on these trips then under normal circumstances. It is part of the charm of this kind of traveling.

We have been searching Alaskan Dream in hopes of finding the emergency handle for the windlass. It was nowhere to be found, and it is a critical safety component if the electrics on the windlass fail. Jordan came over and gave the boat a look, and agreed it was missing. He took the handle from Dream Catcher as a model, and went to the local machine shop to have a new one made. It would be ready tomorrow at 9am, and at $80 Canadian it was a done deal.

Jordan also worked on troubleshooting our oven burners, as only one was working. He managed to get two functioning, which is the minimum I need to cook. We had only two functioning burners on Alaskan Dream last year, albeit a different two.

Lunch was again at Dolly’s, so you know how we highly recommend it. Karen’s halibut sandwich with yam fries was really good, as was my Caesar salad with blackened halibut. I had made chili after Kathy and Lance left, so we let it simmer when we left the boat for lunch.

Karen takes advantage of the WIFI at the market

My USB hub was not working, so we took a walk into town to Data Boy to pick up a new one and visit the ATM machine. On the way back, I got a Slurpee at the 7-Eleven. This now seems to be a tradition any time we are in Prince Rupert. Unfortunately they use Pepsi instead of Coke as they do in the U.S., but I made do. Karen stopped at the Starbucks in the Safeway for her last chance at a Starbucks’s unsweetened iced tea and some free WIFI. We also found some amazing balsamic glaze with fig at a small shop called Home Work. All in all, a good day.

Dinner was at the Cow Bay Café. Recognized as the best place to eat in Prince Rupert, Karen enjoyed her freshly caught Spring Salmon with mushrooms, and my ribs were good too. I had ice cream for dessert and Karen devoured a peach, blueberry and almond fruit tart. We noticed that many of our “boat mates” also enjoyed the culinary delights at the café that evening.

Foggy Bay to Prince Rupert

The alarm sounded and we awoke to dim morning light with light rain and mist. The goal was to try to beat the worst of the forecast winds by leaving as early as feasible.

A quick shower and I was on deck retrieving the stern line and moving the dinghy to the port side of Alaskan Dream so we could maneuver. Karen followed shortly and we cast off our lines from Grand Adventure. The anchor rode pulled us away from the raft of six Grand Banks as we proceeded to haul anchor.

After the anchor was secured onboard, we quickly took the dinghy aboard and secured it for the forecast three to four foot waves.

We departed Foggy Bay at 5am, leaving the rest of the fleet to finish dismantling the raft. Our early departure was based on our plan to run a bit slower than Mother Goose typically goes, about 7 knots instead of eight. This conserves about 20% more fuel during the passage. Also, our plan was to run down the eastern shore while the fleet is planning to cross over to Dundas Island, travel behind the protection of the small islands off of Dundas, and then make a crossing at the point of shortest distance.

My take on the weather was different than the forecast on the radio, so my plan was to expose myself to any beam seas early before they had an opportunity to build.

This northern and eastern route (see Douglass and Douglass) also has a few options to run on the inside of some islands, such as Tongass Passage, if the sea state dictates.

As we departed Foggy Bay, the bay itself was full of swells approaching 3 feet with a very short period. It was not a great ride, but as we got into open water and proceeded southeast, the ride improved substantially.

Overall, my forecast of 15 knots winds and seas less than 2 feet was spot on and we were able to take the most direct route to Prince Rupert.

Alaskan Dream was the first to arrive on the docks with Patos tying up shortly thereafter. Clearing Canadian Customs was the usual quick and efficient phone call at the pay phone in front of the Prince Rupert Yacht Club. (There is a toll free number pasted to the inside of the phone booth, so no Loonies required)

The colors change every year, but you'll find these visible at low tide

Dollys Resturant

Karen takes advantage of the WIFI at the market

A late lunch was at Dolly’s, a fish monger who also serves great food. The atmosphere is simple with a slight smell of fresh fish, but the food is fresh and very good. They are a short two block walk from the Yacht Club, and they serve breakfast, lunch and dinner.

We accomplished our mission of getting wine, a fishing license, some Canadian money from the ATM, and finished provisioning at the Safeway for those items we could not bring in to Canada from the U.S.

Dinner was with Lance & Kathy at the Breakers pub - a place for a decent burger and fries.

The night was pretty calm, though Karen noted that about 2am, there was some rocking and rolling despite being tied to the dock.

Ketchikan to Foggy Bay

Breakfast on the boat in Ketchikan - Must eat the fresh fruit early in the trip

Well no surprises here, it’s raining in Ketchikan. The Mother Goose fleet is planning an 8am departure. The wind is forecast to be 15-20 knots and we expect a nice but bumpy ride. Three of the six boats are stabilized (including ours!), but the other three will experience some rolling motion today.

As we worked our way south, we saw very little traffic once we left the Ketchikan area. No pleasure boats were to be found, and only the occasional fisherman was spotted. We saw a couple of tugs with their tows, but all in all it was a trip devoid of ships and wildlife.

Cruise Ships and Float Planes? It must be Ketchikan!

The rain was on and off again all day. Not really a factor in our travels. Once we arrived at Foggy Bay, Deception made fast a stern tie and then called each boat in turn until all were rafted. The two outside 49’s were each rigged with a stern tie to shore and their anchors were carried out and dropped by Captain Rich and Jordan using the dinghy.

Deception crew sets her stern line

Building the raft

The little dinghy that could

While successful, it became difficult for the little 9.9 hp Honda outboard to pull it’s load as more and more chain was paid out. The target was 200 feet of rode, but at about 150 feet Rich and the Honda both decided that it was time to set the 100lb. anchor.

Five of Six boats rafted in Foggy Bay

Shortly thereafter, we launched the dinghy for an excursion up Very Inlet in hopes of seeing some black bear and anything else that caught our fancy. The rain would come and go, and with it our interest in staying out too long. We did manage to travel a few miles up to the first rapids. They were running too strong on our bow to warrant an attempt at running them. So a quick about face, and we returned to Alaskan Dream with the cold mist in our faces.

Karen in her favorite spot in the dinghy

After shedding the foul weather gear, I finished up making some dip for a little planned socialization onboard Deception. Every boat brought a little snack or appetizer and whatever was their pleasure to drink. We spent a nice time getting to know one another. Rich and Emmelina briefed us on the next day’s travels and also what we can expect in the Haida Gwaii, two days out.

Where we are going, called Gwaii Haanas (The Beautiful Islands) is an Indian reservation and protected area, so they have their rules and regulations designed to protect the lands, seas and wildlife. Not a problem and understandable, we just need to clarify what is expected from us in our travels. More on this as we get closer to the islands.

The fleet has a 5:30am departure time tomorrow so by 8:30 I was asleep.

Foggy Bay to Ketchikan

We knew that the rest of the Mother Goose fleet was completing their 7-day tour of Misty Fiords. Our boat was to join up with the fleet in Ketchikan. Knowing that if we let the rest of the fleet get there first, they would find slip accommodations and we could then join up with them, ensuring that all the boats were conveniently moored.  So we hung out til about 10am and then headed north to Ketchikan.

Again, it was fairly calm, and we dodged a few  gillnetters as we motored north. It wasn’t too long before the rest of the “fleet” popped up on AIS, and they were about an hour ahead of us. Perfect! We contacted Captain Bill by phone and told him our position and asked if he’d be sure to get us a slip when he brought the rest of the goslings into Ketchikan.  All organized, we sat back and enjoyed the 5 hour trip. About 15 minutes out, we called Customs to tell them that we would meet them at the Fuel Dock, so that we were able to kill two birds with one stone.  We filled up with diesel, filled up the propane tank, and cleared customs easily.  However, when it came time to leave the dock, we were wedged in front and aft, with a fishing boat’s stern sticking out only inches behind us and a nice Nordhavn tight in front. The Nordie captain and the fuel  dock attendant helped us wedge our way out by holding the bow in while we swung the aft out into the channel, and all was well.

A rare sight. Only one cruise ship in Ketchikan. That will change soon!

It was a short ride up to Bar Harbor to join  the rest of the Grand Banks fleet, and we passed some cruise ships along the way. Met by smiling faces and helping hands, we docked Alaskan Dream near Deception (the lead boat) and proceeded to greet friends we hadn’t seen since January. 

Some summary statistics: we were on the boat for 35 days. Of those days, 86% were at anchor and only 14% at a dock. When we anchored, 77%% of the time we were totally alone in the anchorage with no other boats and 13% of the time there was only one other boat with us. Definitely some solitude on this trip!

It was a lot of fun, this trip…and we left the boat in Ketchikan already thinking of where we could go and what we could do in 2012!

Brundige Inlet to Foggy Bay, AK

In my never-ending desire to avoid long days of crossings, we planned to go about 30 miles and overnight in Foggy Bay, Alaska. It will be good to get back to US waters!  Foggy Bay is an anchorage that US Customs allows boats to stop in prior to clearing Customs in Ketchikan. We had made prior arrangements to do so from Prince Rupert, so there was no stress.

We were off by 7:52, having heard that winds will be strong from the SE. We wanted to get up and going, expecting some lumpy seas as we headed north across this open body of water. Instead, we found calm conditions crossing Dixon Entrance.  Very little wind or swell. The weather gods have definitely been kind to us on this trip.

I was at the helm when we crossed the boundary line. At one point on the electronic navigation charts, the bow (and I!) were in the US but our stern (and Bob!) still in Canada!  Once we crossed into Alaska, we started to see more targets on the AIS, including the St. Jude, the same fish buying vessel (it anchors near the fishing fleet where they off load their catch and go back to the fishing grounds) we saw last year taking on Salmon in Elfin Cove.  It’s a small world!  And we also started to see lots and lots of fishing boats on the horizon.  As we approached, it was clear they were gillnetters. It took a while to “see” the picture: orange balls marking the end of nets, but which ball went with which boat? Bob took over and ducked and weaved and dodged his way forward, in very calm and smooth conditions.

We entered Foggy Bay, enjoying the smooth ride in. It was a zero tide, so we saw lots of rocks and reefs exposed along our route.  We made our way to the inner bay and were totally alone...yet again. The anchor set well and we had planned to go kayak exploring. Before we could get ready, that wind from the SE really started to come on strong. Plus, it was misting and drizzling, not the most conducive weather for kayaking. So we started to pack up all our stuff instead, anticipating tomorrow’s unloading at Ketchikan.

Late in the evening, a small gillnetter motored by and graciously offered us a fresh salmon. We had to decline, given that it was our last night on the boat and it would go to waste. What a bummer! At least we had one boat for company on our last night at anchor.