kinetic race as we leave pt 10-3-08

once again i'm sitting in safeway in order to get online. at least i'm not sitting next to the donuts this time. it's been raining off and on today and we're getting ready to leave pt. townsend and head home. we've been monitoring the weather since thursday because of high winds from the south (not good for us as that's the direction we'll be going). we plan on leaving at 3am sunday in order to get to cape flattery by daylight (it takes about 13 hours). then we might have to wait until tuesday to get out in the ocean when there will be a break in the weather. we have two excellent guys for crew and it will be an interesting experience to be the only woman onboard.

i wish i had more time to blog but i still have to get more groceries and walk back to the boat so this will need to be a tease of things to come when i get home and can share many more pictures and comments with you. for now it's random stuff since returning to pt.

october 2 journal entry: this is an example of why i love pt. we walked into town at dusk to eat and go to the movies. nifty fifty's was closed so we went to waterfront pizza for a couple slices. along the way lots of shops had big pink balloons outside to celebrate girl's night out. one shop had a keyboardist playing jazz while someone was modeling in the window wearing a big red wig. at the pizza place they were broadcasting the debate between palin and biden. while i sat savoring my wonderful greek pizza (feta, artichoke hearts, onions, olives) i could listen to the debate and the jazz simultaneously. totally satiated we walked over to the theatre to see "the edge of heaven" (they play first run indie films here). i noticed the new lecture series posted, intellectual discussions on science, history, spirituality. the birds were flying into the trees. it was a brisk fall evening and people called hi to each other.

october 3 after breakfast at sea j's we walked downtown to watch the kinetic skulpture race http://ptkineticrace.org/. what a hoot. first the parade, then the brake and float tests. all human powered manner of travel, they had to get up the hill, then come down, be able to stop, and then go over to the marina and ride into the water to float. i'm sorry we'll miss the obstacle course of sand and mud tomorrow. i got lots of interesting pictures but can only tease you with a couple. it reminded me of burning man but everyone was dressed.

i look forward to sharing more pictures and info with you once i'm home and logged on to a fast computer that won't fight me for internet access.

more to come.

duplicates, sunsets and much more on sucia 9-27-08

Sucia island
It’s one of the most northern islands in the san juan island group, shaped like an open hand. For thousands of years it was used for seal hunting by native American Indians. In the 1960s most of the island and its cluster of tiny islands became a state park thanks to the efforts of local yacht clubs. It’s considered the most visited of all the islands, around 100,000 boaters annually. Because it was early fall, we almost had the place to ourselves. There are plenty of tiny driftwood-strewn beaches, little coves and tidepools galore. The shoreline is between 9 and 14 miles depending on which tiny islands you include. I gave myself a personal challenge to kayak alone around the whole island and it took me about 3.5 hours. It was exhilarating and a little scary on the outside where the winds and waves tested my agility to navigate. Coming back up the channel where we were anchored was the hardest part going against current and wind, but I did it. And it felt great although it took me the rest of the afternoon to warm up.

There are also about 10 miles of hiking trails and we did two different loops at each end of the main island. There are microclimates along the trails with spectacular views of beaches and shoals. Imagine walking on narrow paths of soft forest decay, stepping over tree roots, climbing over fallen timber, walking under arches of madrone and feeling the temperature change from cool and moist to dry and hot. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I’m so glad we waited to visit this island last to have as my most recent memory.

pictures above are first anchorage in echo bay, next is anchored in fossil bay, then there's mt. baker in the distance at sunset, our kayaks waiting for us, one of the many sunsets and the last one is another outbound boat anchored next to us our first night there. it was so weird, it's 46 feet, so is ours, they got it this past april, we did 2 years ago, AND their names are jim and linda. how weird is that?!?

next blog entry will have snaps from the hikes. there's just so much to share from our stay on this island.

roche harbor sculpture garden sept 28 08

the westcott bay sculpture park was amazing. http://www.wbay.org/. it's 19 acres of assorted woodlands, wetlands, fresh and salt water, meadows and a pond. scattered around are all sorts of sculptures and mixed media installations. my favorite was an installation called passages. it was totally unexpected to find pieces of cloth hanging like prayer flags when i explored a narrow path through the woods.

tall grasses had been crushed down in gentle swirls where most likely deer and fox had settled down. along with the man-made sculptures i discovered natural designs of madrone tree limbs and mushroom or fungus growing. this truly was the highlight of our stop here.

roche harbor plays hello dolly sept 27-28 08

reluctantly leaving fulford harbor on salt spring island we motorsailed over to roche harbor on san juan island to clear customs. this place had a totally different feeling from the other places we've visited. it feels like a resort not a harbor. first off i didn't see many sailors but i saw a lot of well-dressed power boat owners. the women had manicures, hairdos and purses. all the trappings of that other life. everyone was dressed in kakhi shorts and white polo shirts. oh and i saw a lot of dogs, mostly goldens and poodles. it's not often we feel dwarfed by other boats but here you can see in the marina shot it's hard to spot chesapeake among the big big boats.

some history on roche harbor if you're interested. used to be the world's most valuable supplier of limestone. the lime was mined and baked in large kilns and one you see in the top photo. the mine was sold to john s. mcmillin and he turned it into his own little company town. the small downtown had brick streets, i'm assuming made from the lime & cement they manufactured there. another thing they're noted for is the ritualistic flag-lowering ceremony of U.S. and Canadian flags during which both national anthems are played on the church bells. just before we left the next morning the bells were playing dave brubeck's "take five" and then "hello dolly". now that was weird in a sweet way.

for me the best part was visiting the westcott sculpture garden which i'll put in the next blog entry. so more to come.

still more fulford shots 9-26-08

okay i took a lot of pictues of fulford harbor. sorry but i just found the place so incredibly beautiful. or interesting. i think i'm posting them for selfish reasons. i want to look at them again and be reminded of the great time i had there.

the top photo was probably a one-of-a-kind vehicle i'm guessing was just left on the lawn at the pub in town. it looks like it was supposed to work on land and water.

so much moss on our walk and this bent tree just caught my eye.

the shell with seaweed just looked different.

fulford harbor in salt spring feels like fall 9-26-08

more pictures from salt spring island, specifically around fulford harbor. you can tell it's turning to fall and we could feel it in the air.

i love salt spring island 9-24-8

we had an incredible motorsail from sidney spit to salt spring island. lots of houses tucked into forests and plenty of seals spying on us. we watched ferries cruise by and except for their wake the water was smooth as glass. we headed to fulford harbor at the far end of a long bay, almost like a fjord. rainy and misty. we had to wait for the ferry to leave before getting a slip. it's a sweet tiny marina and the whole area reminds me of marin. i felt instantly at home and didn't want to leave. we walked uptown to Morningstar Bakery and the owner insisted on giving us a free half loaf of her artisan rye bread. this is my kinda place with interesting books and Deva Premal's cd playing "moola mantra". other cute shops across the street and then rock salt restaurant http://www.rocksaltrestaurant.com/. oh my gawd their menu is amazing and so was dinner. salmon with caper aoli, garlic mashed potatoes and onion marmalade. big yum for this place. we were told people come to salt spring just to eat at this place. we can see why.

we were back the next day (thursday 9-25-08) for breakfast. then we walked our legs off down morningside road and explored a beach that was part of beach front property for sale. lots of very expensive homes built right down the hillside to the water. it rained off and on all day.

just after sunrise friday morning (9-26-08) a big blue heron flew past me. water is like glass and i got mesmerized by the large jellyfish gently floating by. i could tell it was low tide because starfish were exposed on the pier pilings. breakfast again at rock salt restaurant, this time a smoked salmon fritatta. good music on the radio. i love this place. i guess i said that before. it stopped raining early in the morning so we had a few hours to wander around before leaving for roche harbor on san juan island. i'm really sorry to leave this place and i truly can't wait to come back.

so many pictures to share. yikes. what you're seeing top to bottom is interesting gates on our walk, cute sign on fence, the marine dwarfed by the ferry, chesapeake at the dock, red building is rock salt restaurant, 2 different shops, then the bakery.

some facts about salt spring. it's 20 miles long and 8 miles wide. first settled in 1850 and became a major sheep-farming area in the 1900s. now it seems to be a haven for artists.

victoria to sidney sept 22-23

monday sept. 22 arrived in sidney on vancouver island about 6pm. marina office wasn't open so we just pulled into an available slip. tuesday morning got a tip from someone that a good breakfast place was 3rd street cafe and boy were they right. a real yummy feast then a walk down the main street. it felt like downtown mt. view. stopped at a few consignment shops and a bakery and we were gone by 1pm over to sidney spit where we anchored for the night. kayaked around the lagoon and that was it. the only noteworthy thing was the laundry room at the marina which had leather chairs/ottomans and tvs!

as for the pictures, the first one is what borders sidney marina, taken at low tide. second picture is from their historical museum found in a 1940's kitchen. i've never seen one before and thought it was cute.

leaving victoria sept 22 08

we visited the royal bc museum sunday. they had a spectacular display of local history and we had the pleasure of watching a young storyteller bring local legends to life with his orations. afterwards he gave us some local bits of information. the empress hotel was originally built on a shallow part of the bay originally a dump and now it's slowing sinking.

monday i saw my first "suit" in a long time. a man dressed for work. my first thought was oh they still wear those? it's been a long time since i've been in a cosmopolitan city. as we walked through the city i head languages i couldn't identify and saw a real mix of cultures. as we left the harbor we had to contend with lots of traffic from small water taxies to pleasure craft, ferries anda seaplanes. the pictures here show the traffic, a wonderful car created in the 1940's, a truck carrying hanging baskets, and marina shots.