South Puget Sound, Part One

Cruise to South Puget Sound, Part One

June 25 to July 1, 2013

         The trip to South Puget Sound would be one of our longer ones for the summer.  In fact, I took so many pictures and have so many stories to tell, that I decided to separate this adventure into two parts.

        We left La Conner on June 25, heading south down through this cute little town on Swinomish Channel.  Just across the channel is the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community.  In 2011, this community hosted a Canoe Journey, and the waterfront park was all spruced up for the event.  These big shelters, resembling traditional Indian hats, were part of that “sprucing”.  We were fortunate enough to see and participate in a canoe journey in British Columbia in 2011.  It’s quite an interesting event.  This information is from the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and will give you some history: 

         Tribal Journeys began in 1989, intending to coincide with the bi-centennial celebration for Washington State. A total of nine canoes participated in the ‘Paddle to Seattle’, and in 1993, 23 canoes participated in the ‘Paddle to Bella Bella’. Since 1993, ‘Tribal Journeys’ or ‘The Paddle’ has been held on an annual basis, with various tribes serving as the host tribe.  [No Author.  (n.d.).  History, Paddle to Swinomish 2011.  Retrieved July 6, 2013, from http://paddletoswinomish.com/history.]

         The Swinomish make their livelihood primarily by fishing and crabbing.  The crab season was soon to open, so there was lots of activity across the channel as everyone was getting their crab pots, bait, and boats ready.  Even the little boat in the photo was loaded down with crab pots.  There is nothing in my growing-up-in-Illinois experiences to compare with the fervor of crabbing!  Everyone crabs…except us.  Since Jerry is allergic to shellfish, that sport is off the table and sometimes I think that’s a good thing!  Crabbing is certainly a messy endeavor.

         We made our way through the narrow, shallow part of the channel and appreciated the recent dredging that had been done.  As we approached the end of the channel we heard a Coast Guard call over the VHF radio, reporting a sailboat aground off Whidbey Island.  Really?  The boat captain simply must have not been looking at his charts!  There is lots of room and lots of water!  Ah well!  High tide will rescue him soon enough.

         We departed in rain and overcast but soon the skies cleared.  Our route took us all the way down the east side of Whidbey Island toward Seattle.  I’m always on the lookout for the photo of things quirk, whimsical, or just plain funny.  This pier at Sandy Beach, full of small pleasure boats, made me wonder at the why and how! 

         Tonight’s destination was Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge Island, which is just across Puget Sound from Seattle.   As we approach the harbor, we had glorious views of Seattle across the water. 

         Eagle Harbor, and the small village of Winslow, has ferry service from downtown Seattle.  Bainbridge Island is a very desirable address!  We moored at Harbour Marina, thanks to the resident attendant Fred.  He gave us excellent directions to find the guest dock:  “Just, look for the big yellow umbrella and park underneath.”  Yep, perfect!  

     The umbrella sat on the deck of the restaurant overlooking the marina, which is where we found dinner.  I had a poutine (a common Canadian dish made with French fries, topped with brown gravy and cheese curds) made with sweet potato fries, Monterey jack cheese, sour cream, black beans, and mango.  Yum!!!

         After dinner we strolled along the waterfront and through a little bit of town…quite charming!  This would be a fun place to spend some time and we’ll add it to our list.  But, we were eager to keep moving south, so early to bed and off again on Wednesday, 6/26.  We encountered fog, and a Washington State Ferry as we departed Eagle Harbor.

         The route on Wednesday, 6/26, took us down Colvos Passage, Gig Harbor, and through Tacoma Narrows.  We came through Tacoma Narrows as the tide was flooding and got a good ride.  At one point we were travelling 10.2 knots at 1390 RPM!  Although our passage thru the narrows was uneventful, we remembered that Tacoma Narrows is the site of the famous “Galloping Gertie” bridge that collapsed into the channel november 7, 1940.  This bridge had problems even during construction, having an obvious rolling, vertical motion in the wind.  The day the main span collapsed, a 40 MPH wind blew through the narrows and that was the end of the bridge.  The remains of the bridge still lie in the channel, below the new double span, creating an artificial reef. For more information and a history of the project, here's a great web site:  Tacoma Narrows Bridge: "Galloping Gertie" Collapses November 7 ...

     After a 5½-hour cruise we arrived Anderson Island and caught a mooring buoy.  Dale and Anita Neifert, the owners, are boating friends from Anacortes.  The last time we stopped at their beach home, in 2010, we anchored here.  The mooring buoy was a nice addition.  We plan to return to Anderson Island later, after the Fourth, for a good visit.  Cosmo Place looked very pretty sitting in this little cove.

         No time to dawdle here!  We were off with the afternoon tide on Thursday, June 27, on the final leg of our cruise to Olympia.  We were booked to attend the Olympia Jazz Festival with Dick Shirk and Vicki Stasch (old friends from Visalia who now live in Anacortes).  We had a lovely cruise around Nisqually Reach (site of the first Hudson’s Bay Company fort in the Northwest) and down Budd Inlet.  The approach directions for Swantown Marina say to “point your bow at the capitol building”.  Cool, huh?

         We had intentionally arrived a day before the festival so we could explore Olympia.  We were about 1 mile’s walk to the best Farmer’s Market I’ve ever seen and the northern terminus of the DASH (free shuttle bus through downtown).  Our first destination, the evening of our arrival, was Fish Tales Brewing.  Notice that the glass says the beer is brewed in the “Republic of Cascadia”!

         The next morning, (Friday, June 28) we hopped on DASH again and rode to the other end of the line to explore the capitol building.  We arrived just in time for the tour, led by a delightful ex-schoolteacher who knew her stuff.  We were able to watch both the Senate and House as they worked to pass a very tardy state budget.  Of course we heard lots of history and learned about the architecture of this building.  Much of the marble came from Marble Island in SE Alaska, in an area where we had cruised last summer.

         We had a group of Chinese students in our tour group who were studying in Bellingham for the summer.  Our last stop was the outer chambers of the Governor’s office.  Just outside the Governor’s Office our tour guide was in the process of dismissing us when here comes the governor himself, Jay Enslee!  I think he’d heard about this group of Chinese students and came out to greet them.  How nice!  Sadly, he didn’t shake our hands though…and we had voted for him!

         Friday evening, Dick and Vicki, along with Bruce and Kathy Borrud came to the boat for cocktails.  We’ve known Bruce and Kathy for 30 years, from Christ Lutheran Church in Visalia.  Dick and Vicki had known them forever, too.  As you can imagine the conversation, reminiscing, and stories flew fast and furious.  Eventually we made our way to Anthony’s Seafood Restaurant for dinner, which is where this photo was taken.

         We had a wonderful time at the jazz festival, in spite of record-setting high temperatures (high 80’s).  Dick and Vicki picked us up at the marina each day, since we were about 5 miles from the venue.  The festival was held at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, providing great auditoriums and excellent student assistance.  Although Jerry and I aren’t the most knowledgeable jazz enthusiasts, we know great music when we hear it.  The High Sierra Jazz Band, out of Three Rivers performed – the one group we knew.

         Even being at the marina was interesting and entertaining.  Two small yacht clubs were on the long guest dock the weekend we were there, so we didn’t lack for “boaty” conversation.  The sunsets were amazing.  We were moored next to the boat ramp and watched all sorts of boats (even a big one who came in on a tractor trailer) launch.  Several rowing groups came and went from the breakwater opposite our dock.  You might not know this, but rowing is a hugely popular sport here in the Northwest…for young and old alike.  There are several rowing groups in Anacortes, although the boats they use aren’t nearly as big as this one.  Unfortunately, each morning the first rowing group arrived about 0630 to noisily prepare to launch.  They were an effective alarm clock for us, though.

         The festival was over Sunday afternoon but we had planned to wait until Monday to depart.  Because it was so hot, we did something we had never done before!  We turned on the boat’s air conditioning.  Mooring at the dock, we could plug in a second thirty-amp power cord and let the cool air flow!  Wonderful!!  A setting of 75 on all three zones’ thermostats made life much more pleasant. Rather than spend a hot Monday night out on the hook, we signed up for another day at the marina and planned our departure for Lakebay on Tuesday.  In the photo you can see Jerry sitting in the shade of Cosmo Place, keeping cool.

         In the next installment, I'll tell you about our adventures in Lakebay for the Fourth of July and beyond.