Don and Dorothy Peterson's visit

August 23, the day after Jill and Bob left, we drove to Sea-Tac to pick up Donald and Dorothy Peterson.  Dorothy is Jerry's aunt, although she's about 6 months younger than Jerry, so really more like a sister.  They were scheduled to be with us about 12 days, so we had big plans to be on the water quite a bit, and even take a trip into Canadian waters and see if we could figure out customs.

We departed on Wednesday morning, 8/23, and grabbed a buoy in Eagle Harbor on Cypress Island for lunch.  The water was amazingly clear, the day was sunny, and Mount Baker was watching over us.  A very auspicious way to begin our cruise!  We'll have to come back here with kayaks and do some more exploring.  This would be a great place to spend a weekend...next year probably!  We still don't have the kayaks figured out.

We arrived at Deer Harbor on Orcas Island about 4 PM.  We planned to anchor here 2 nights and explore the island.  This is the largest of the San Juans (yes, really!) and has real communities, farms, and even a bus service.  We'd done some shopping at the fish market outside of Anacortes so the plan for tonight's dinner is shrimp...for everyone but Jerry, aka Mr. Allergic.  We got talked into some pretty little cooked shrimp.  They were good but a whole lot of work to peel!  They looked more like big bugs and we tossed most of them to the harbor seals!

The next morning we took the bus to Moran State Park on Mt. Constitution.  Our plan was to hike to the top, zoom back down and meet the bus, which would then take us to the Rosario Resort in time for the organ concert.  The bus driver warned us it was quite a hike to the top, but we were crazily optimistic.  Dorothy soon decided she wasn't interested in this folly so she turned around and we agreed to meet her later at the resort.  Jerry, Donald and I had some beautiful views, but we figure we didn't make it quite half way before we realized it was time to head down the mountain so as not to miss the bus.  RATS!  

Once we were back at the park entrance, we realized we had over an hour before the bus came, so decided to hike down to Rosario Resort.  It was supposed to be an easy hike (which it was) and the only directions we had were to "go downhill every chance you get".  Well, this is good advice if the trail is clear, but once we had walked around the lake, by the lagoon, beside the dam, and reached the road the trail disappeared.  Well, okay, better to take the road to the resort anyway!  The problem was the road to the left and the road to the right both went uphill.  Somebody's gut said go left so we did.  Nope, more uphill and more uphill and turning away from the direction of the resort.  We flagged down the second car that came by and met a wonderful guy named Dave.  He was a retired minister and his wife worked at the reception desk at the resort.  He had picked up Dorothy on this road earlier in the day and had given her a ride down the hill and he gave us a ride, too.  I have to tell you, I was not sad to have a car ride down the hill for the last 4 MILES!! of our hike.  We spotted Dorothy as we pulled up to the resort entrance and discovered that the organ concert for that day had been cancelled due to a wedding in the music room.  Oh well, batting two for two today!
We caught the island bus at 1830 and took it back to Deer Harbor.  We had planned to eat at the delightful Deer Harbor Inn for dinner, fortunately!  I don't think any of us would have had the strength to cook.  We all slept like the dead that night!

Friday, August 27, we awoke to clearing skies (it had rained over night) and after a leisurely breakfast, we hauled anchor about 1100 for Prevost Harbor on Stuart ISland.  We had stayed here with Jill and Bob and knew it to b a lovely place to anchor.  We travelled through John's Pass and arrived at Prevost about 1300, and anchored in about 40 feet of water...sweet!  Jerry, Donald and Dorothy dinghied to the dock and hiked to the schoolhouse and the museum on the island.  I chose to rest my knee (the native one) and recover from the hike of the day before.  On the way back they dinghied to the south entrance of this little harbor, where the seals hang out.  Just as they were approaching a seal and debating whether he was floating on his back or resting on a rock, CRUNCH!!!  They hit a submerged rock with the bow of the dinghy.  Fortunately they were going so slowly that no harm was done, nor was the motor struck  However, it was a good wake up call for more caution in shallow rocky water!

We saw lots of harbor seals as we BBQed and ate dinner.  Afterward, we sat on the bow to watch the sun go down and the seals finish they final tour before bed.  Even Smokey joined us.  What a pretty evening!  What a nice place to be!

Smokey has turned out to be a pretty good boat cat, and took a real shine to Donald and Dorothy.  Something about unconditional head-scratching, I suspect!  She usually takes a lap or two around the boat about dusk and is happy to be outside whenever we are.  She seems to be fascinated with the water and I sure wonder what's going through her head..."Where's the grass?" or "What's up with all this water?"  or  "I wonder what a harbor seal tastes like?"  Perhaps I'm giving our sweet little cat too much credit, but I'm pretty sure she's thinking every minute!

The next morning we weighed anchor about 1030 for our transit of Haro Strait, Canada and Customs check in at Tsehum Harbor, just north of Sidney on Vancouver Island.  We were anxious to make this an easy border crossing, so we ready with passports, a binder full of boat information, and even Smokey's vet records!  It could not have been easier...just a phone call from the Customs dock.  No one even came to see us.  We didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed.  We were done in about 45 minutes!  Interestingly enough, whether we enter Canada or the US, the rules are very clear.  Only the boat captain can step onto the dock (tying to the dock excluded) and the remainder of the crew must stay onboard ship until Customs is cleared.  Canada will not allow any food with "pits, seeds, or eyes" to be brought into the country, which really reduces the amount of fresh produce we could have onboard!

We weren't sure how long it would take at the Customs dock, so had made plans to cruise to Fulford Harbor, a short hour away on Saltspring Island.  Fulford Harbor is a nice deep harbor with a BC ferry landing about 2/3's of the way up.  We anchored well beyond that point and didn't anticipate any problems.  Waggoner's, one of our boating bibles, said this quaint little town would be interesting to explore, but we decided it really was a haven for aging hippies...check out the photo!  Lots of tie-dyed clothes available for those with such a bent.  You'll notice that this shop caters to the tourist traffic.......
We did have our first "anchoring event" soon after we arrived.  We dropped anchor in about 30 feet of water and were well set, so we shut things down and started working on lunch.  I happened to glance to the rear of the boat from the galley and noticed that the sailboat that HAD been 100 feet away from us was now about 10 feet off our stern!  YIKES!  We quickly fired up the engine, pulled up the anchor and moved further into the harbor, well away from that crazy sailboat.  So, what happened?  The guys insisted we had not moved.  Our GPS coordinates were unchanged from our anchored position, but that sailboat was still out there in the same spot the next morning....  Scary!

Sunday, August 29, Donald and Dorothy's 40th anniversary!  We awoke (at 0830...what slugs!) to another beautiful day.  We decided to head for Ganges Harbor, around the corner on Saltspring Island.  We'd heard many good things about this little town, and we were ready for civilization and internet connections!  We stayed at the Ganges Marina, where they already knew our boat, thanks to the prevous owners, Ron and Kap. We loved all the little shops and even found a store that rivaled the Exeter Mercantile for the variety of their wares!  We had a wonderful dinner at the Oystercatcher Restaurant at the harbor and had many toasts to the happy couple!  Our only disappointment was in the quality of the marina.  We had NO internet service, even though they advertised WiFi.  The docks were a mess to the point that 2X4's were coming loose at the base of the  bull rail - as we tried to tie up in some serious winds, the stern swung free!

We were ready to boogie the next morning, Monday, August 30, to our next destination.  Our La Conner slip neighbors had recommended that we go to Montague Harbor on neighboring Galiano Island.  Again this was not a far destination, so we decided to do a little sightseeing before anchoring for the night.  We cruised north along the eastern shore of Saltspring Island and turned south through a pass among the Secretary Islands between Norway Island and Mowgli Island.  We then headed south down Trincomali Channel along the west side of Galiano Island.  The water was flat, the sun was shining, and we had a beautiful cruise.  You might be interested to know that when we headed south, we reached our furthest north and west point to date:  Lat. 48.59.460 north and Long. 123.36.337 west.  By this point, Donald had become a fairly proficient boat pilot!

Montague Harbor is a wide, spacious harbor with lots of anchorage, a provincial park at the north end, and about 30 buoys to tie up to.  We anchored among some lovely, vintage wooden boats, one of which was the Olympus, a gorgeous wooden boat once owned by the governor or New York.  At this point in our trip, and at this point in this narrative, we (and I) were out of superlatives...lovely, beautiful, fabulous, incredible, WOW!  Forgive me if this starts to sound redundant, but WOW...what a beautiful place.

We jumped in the dinghy and went to the provincial park for some beaching combing and wandering in the woods.  Apparently the beach is a well-known midden site of ancient First Nation people.  The beach was thickly covered with shells.  We saw lots of kayakers enjoying the calm, clear water.  Yup, need to get some for us, too!

After a couple of hours of wandering, we hopped in the dinghy to get ready to go to dinner at the Hummingbird Cafe.  Our La Conner neighbors recommended this place, too, and said to be sure to ride the bus to the restaurant.  (Good thing, it would have been a several mile hike!).  The bus is well-known for it's colorful driver, who must have a clause in his contract that says he must play "Blueberry Hill" during the ride.  We had a great dinner on the patio but no hummingbirds, just bees!  I'd recommend this restaurant to you when you go.  Can't miss with any place that has gargoyles!

Let me describe our evenings on the boat.  We don't have TV, didn't think to bring DVDs to watch (yes, I know), and no internet.  So we played good ol' board and card games.  Jerry's family are rabid pitch players and my family has a long history of incessant board games...so the competition was hot and heavy.  Jill had brought us a couple of new ones...Phase 10 was a particular hit.  Beth had given us Mad Dash for Christmas and when we were feeling snarky, we played that.  But, mostly we played pitch and never had a boring evening.  In fact, sometimes it was hard to quit and go to bed!

When we awoke on Tuesday morning, 8/31, the weather was rainy and windy.  We listened to the marine weather radio station and learned that it was a mess out in the Strait of Georgia and Haro Strait.  This would not be a good day to return to the US.  So, we had a "day at sea", as the cruisers say.  It rained most of the day, but wasn't very windy so we felt very safe and secure.  This was our first time to have plans changed due to weather, but no one cared!  We read, napped, played games, ate, and watched the rain.  One of the wonderful things about cruising on our boat is that the four of us were quite comfortable, warm, and could enjoy the rainy day.  What a unique way to celebrate Jerry's birthday!
Wednesday, 9/1 (our 42nd anniversary!  I was 12 when we married, of course!), arrived with clearing skies and a forecast for calms seas across Boundary Pass.  We departed at 0830 and arrived at the US customs dock in Friday Harbor at 1140.  Once again, we were curious to see how the process would work, as we returned to the US.  Unfortunately, we did not have a current customs sticker for Cosmo Place so we knew we'd be delayed somewhat as we settled that purchase.  We pulled in to the dock behind "Crazy Ladies" a good looking trawler we'd seen anchored in Montague Harbor.  The boat captain helped us tie up and said he, too, was waiting on a customs sticker.

We cleared customs by 1220 and departed for La Conner by way of Thatcher and Deception Passes.  Slack water in Deception Pass was at 1515, so we were right on schedule.  By the time we arrived there, we had a beautiful sunny day.  This route back to La Conner has become a tradition, so, of course, we took a souvenier photo of Donald and Dorothy as we approached the Deception Pass bridge.  
Back home at our slip in La Conner by 5 PM with lots of great pictures and memories!  Since it was our anniversary, we decided to go to our current favorite La Conner restaurant...the La Conner pub.

Thursday morning arrived bright and beautiful so we decided to take a road trip to Mount Baker, along rte. 542 and we were so glad that we did!  The views are comparable to those of Glacier Park's Road to the Sun, just fewer peaks to see. We stopped at Nooksak Falls for lunch, along the way.  About half a mile off the route we found this amazing set of water falls.  At one point along the road we stopped to take photos of the Three Sisters, but when we turned around, there was Mt. Baker looming above us.  Amazing! 

Once we arrived at the end of the road, we walked out to Artist's Point and took lots of beautiful pictures.  In the photo, Donald and I are standing in front of Mt. Baker on one of the piles of snow that had been pushed off the parking lot last spring.  Still there on September 2! 
On the drive back to La Conner, we decided to go down Chuckanut Drive, a scenic route following Padilla Bay south of Bellingham.  The route eventually takes us to the farmland and small towns on the mainland east of Fidalgo Island.  One os these towns, Edison, is quite picturesque and has one of the most interesting biker bars (yep, biker bar!) in the area.  This is where we decided to have dinner...great greasy food! 

Dorothy, ever watchful for a new adventure, took a look at one of the Harley's parked out front, but decided a new motorcycle would be too hard to pack!
Friday we did a little touring around the area with Don and Dorothy, caught up on the mail and they packed to go home.
Saturday morning we were off to Sea-Tac bright and early for Donald and Dorothy to catch their flight.
We certainly hated to see them go.  We'd seen beautiful new country, conquered customs, and cruised to the Gulf Islands.  Wow!  This retired life in the Northwest is amazing.  
That's all for now.  Our next adventure will be with Don and Sally, Jerry's brother and sister in law.  They're due on September 14 so we'll have lots of time to clean the boat and re-provision.  Our hope during their stay is to go to Victoria, BC...more new places to learn about!