June 10-17
Hi All,
Wayne and Sharon left on Monday the 10th…. we went 8nm across Tenakee Bay to Crab Cove….we had such a good time but we were pooped…..took a 2.5 hour nap, read, emails, then an hour nap, popcorn, movie, then slept 10 hours…..much, much better the next day…..but, did about 3 hours of putzing and exhausted again….so, read, another long nap….had Mark & Roseanne over for crab bisque and grilled cheese sandwiches (once again Kathy has perfected this recipe…yummers) and worked on itinerary for the next few weeks!!!!:))))
Weather: ok, enough….it has rained hard at times for 3 straight days….ugh. The gribs call for 25G35kt winds in Chatham Strait but we are well protected in Crab Cove with <5kts of wind…yea!!!!!
And, we finally had some decent bear viewings….I say decent….kind of hazy with all the rain so not good pictures….13 sightings in all, 1 the 1st day, 8 the 2nd day and 4 the morning we left. One afternoon 2 big Brown bears were playing in the tall grass for many hours….hmmm…..we think another round of bear porn:)))) And the morning we left a mama and 2 big cubs!!!!
Crab Cove lived up to its name….caught 8 in just one trap….6 keepers!!!
June 12: We left around 8:15am for Takatz Cove off Chatham Strait….56nm….got in around 3:30pm….long day….pretty gray, misty, with some rain….even turned on the radar….saw 3 whales in the distance and ~50 Stellar sea lions hauled out on some rocks. Another DDG cove….waterfalls and snow capped mountains surrounded by lush forests….wow….2 other boats in the anchorage so other cruisers are now in the area!! And the Bay is full of big Lion Mane jelly fish…..whoa!!!! Kathy said no more crabbing:((((( We stayed for 2 nights….Mark set crab traps…..no joy….pretty rocky bottom….we both set prawn traps….I got 3.5, Mark 3…..the 0.5 was half a shrimp….just the head….tail and meat gone…..the trap was full of krill…..ate all the bait and I guess the one shrimp…..arghhhhhhh!!!!
June 14: We left around 9am for Red Bluff Bay….about 26nm down Chatham Strait…got in around 12:30pm…..fought a foul flood tide for a bit….had a increasing 10-15kt headwind which was ok with the flood tide but got a bit bumpy when it turned slack just before we got in. Saw ~6 whales….all in the distance so not great viewings….although I did see one fairly close when I went to pull the prawn trap that morning. Another DDG anchorage…high snow capped mountains….well, just a little snow left, coming down to lush valley with a salmon stream. As you come in you go by some impressive, red hills….thus Red Bluff….must be a lot of iron:))) Still not allowed to crab but did set the prawn trap….nada the 1st day. We stayed for 2 nights….had dinner on Koinonia one night….yummy spaghetti…..the 2nd day we watched it rain….this is one of the most scenic anchorages but much was hidden in clouds and rain….arghhhhh…..getting somewhat tired of the low clouds, mist
and now rain (forecast to to rain now for the next 3-4 days…..ugh!!) Set a prawn trap both days….yield=1……arghhhhhhh!!!
June 16: HAPPY FATHER’S DAY TO ALL!!!! We left Red Bluff for Baranof Warm Springs around 8:15am…..21nm, had the flood tide with us…..but dense fog….ran the radar and fog horn….wow!! We can now fish for King salmon but the conditions were not conducive. Plus talking with various fisherman it is spotty at best!!! We arrived at the public dock around 11:30amish…..room for Koinonia and then Mystic rafted to her….yea!!! Wow….with all the rain the waterfall….maybe 150-200′ high and plenty wide was roaring!!! Early afternoon the four of us walked up to the hot springs in the rain, maybe 1/2 mile…..ODG….what an experience to soak in a natural spring with champagne and good friends….nice Father’s Day treat for sure. We then capped it off with an excellent rib eye dinner on Mystic…..of course, BBQ’d in the rain….with a Hentley Farms, Barossa Valley, Australia, 2013 Shiraz….Hentley Farms won Australian’s Winery of the Year award and is one of our favorites…
..what a wonderful day and dinner!!!
Kathy and I got up the next day and went for a soak….ODG….private baths overlooking the waterfall….a soak with coffee….hmmm….we were a bit knoodle-legged after that one:)))) But, we carried on…left about 9:30amish for…..well…..we could not decide…..too many options….we first went to Ell Cove near Hidden Falls, about 11nm ….gorgeous but maybe not big enough, pretty rocky and no meadows for good critter viewings, maybe good for one night….Kathy wanted somewhere to plop for a few days….so, we continued on to Point Moses/Hanus Bay about 8nm inside Peril Straits…..again, no go…too small and a south wind turned east as it wrapped around into Peril Strait….ok, 3rd choice…..the head of Rodman Bay….in all, 46nm…..got in around 3:30pm right before it started to rain hard….ugh!!!! Only one whale showing for the day…..where did they go????
Weather: Well, in one word….it sucks…..whaaaaaaaa…..for over a week now it has rained, low clouds, drizzly et al….but, temps are in the 50’s so not that cold….but definitely getting tired of all the rain. OTOH, SE Alaska is in a drought so the rain is much needed, especially for all the salmon streams!! Sunrise now at 4am, sunset at 10pm….18 hours of sunlight!!!!
Boat Stuff:
Washer: oh geez….the 2nd day of our quiet time after W&S left the washer stops draining…oh no…we don’t need that…but we think it was just a large washer blocking the drain tube…..played with it for a few hours and all seems ok…dodged a bullet on that one!!
Leaking Fuel /Injector: For over a month now we were intermittently getting mysterious oil on the diapers under the Cummins…..could not trace it to anything….it was clear so thought it was transmission or hydraulic oil. Finally with Wayne helping to look one day we caught a whiff of diesel and sure enough, the fluid was diesel on the diapers…..evidently the diapers did such a good job of absorbing the diesel it reduced any smell. So, the search was on….eventually found one injector slightly leaking….I think when we increased the rpm’s on occasion as when we went to Dundas Inlet and fought the current for hours, the leak increased and soaked the diapers. At our normal 1600 rpm, the leak was small and evaporated before it ran down onto the diaper. On a cloudy/rainy day in Red Bluff I went to change the injectors but did not have an injector puller….really thought I had one but no joy…..neither did Mark…..but, I did take on/off all the diesel rails…both inlet a
nd discharge fuel lines to the injectors and put on new washers on the return lines. After 2 runs and ~50nm, no leaks….the next test will be at higher rpm’s!!!!
GEN: Changed oil & filter and changed the raw water impeller.
Critter Stats:
Dungeness Crab: 73 total; 6 in Crab Cove
Prawns: 26: 12 Spotted, 14 Coon Stripe; 1 in Red Bluff
Whales: 154 total; 136 Humpbacks; 11 Orcas; 7 Minke: 3 in Chatham Strait going to Takatz, 6 in Chatham Strait going to Red Bluff; 1 going to Rodman Bay in Chatham Strait
Salmon: 0
Bears: 50 Browns; 13 in Crab Cove; 2 in Red Bluff
Wolves: 5
Otters: 795;
Mountain Goats: 42 total
Dall’s Sheep: 3
Moose: 3
Alaskan Husky sled dogs: 60
Stellar Sea Lions: 839; 50 in Chatham Strait
Hope all is well!!
Cheers,
John
Mystic Moon
Rodman Bay Alaska
Position: 57 26’51.77 N, 135 23’49.61 W
Course: Stopped.
Position: 19-06-18 07:13:32 -0800
http://maps.google.com/maps?&ll=57.44771,-135.3971&q=57.44771,-135.3971&z=16
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