Alaska in a 16 Cruiser?

[marco422]

Has anyone done Prince Rupert to Glacier Bay return in a 16 Cruiser? Is that a foolish idea?

[AJF]

In the 3 decades I've been cruising SE-Alaska I've seen all sizes of small boats cruise the inside passage (Hobie cats, row boats, skin kayaks, etc.). Most have a safe trip, some turn back, not so much because of the size of boat but more from not practicing good seamanship. The weather can change rapidly, the tides are strong, fog can set it quickly and it can be miserably cold and wet in the summer as well as hot and dry. But if you pay attention to the weather and the tides, plan your days journey knowing where there are safe anchorages along the way (and there are a lot) and know what your comfort/tolerance levels are, the size of boat is not the big factor. The other thing that will make or break this trip in a small boat is the amount of time you give yourself. I would have to say that you need time to sit out weather, do repairs, calm down when it gets tough. Do not do this trip on a tight schedule in a small boat.

[AJF]

I forgot to mention something else that has become more important for Canadian vessels cruising in SE-Alaska and that is the "Pleasure Boat Reporting Requirements" http://www.customs.gov/xp/cgov/travel/pleasure_boats/boats/pleasure_boat_overview.xml . Make sure you understand these requirements as the enforcement of them has become more active over the last 2 years. Also make sure your safety gear meets US Coast Guard requirements as spot checks throughout SE-Alaska has gone way up as well. Not understanding these to aspects of foreign boats traveling in Alaska and then getting caught can turn into a very bad day. Also in the main cruise ship areas there are rigid inflatable patrol boats usually mannered by 3 sailors armed with a very large machine guns who also can do random spot checks, and seeing one of these boats coming towards you can be very unnerving if you don't know what they are.

[Hunkydory]

Other than Glacier Bay not being one of my destinations of choice the idea of doing it in a 16 Cruiser sounds good to me. Casey made much the same trip by his lonesome in a open 17 footer. As AJF states I think the comfort level and maybe even a few risk acceptance factors may have to be adjusted from the norm here. Think the "Do not do this trip on a tight schedule in a small boat" to definite. For me if the choice due to work or other considerations were no go or a tight schedule to go then I would go. All our cruises and explorations so far have been in 22CD or smaller boat(think 12 foot RIB or small motorized canoe) and none of them would have been made if I made that a determining factor. On the other hand will most certainly be more relaxed and enjoy more this coming summer forward with being retired and having limited time not be a factor.

Think the best advice would most likely come from those who have cruised much of this area in a 22CD and larger boat and who have also had experience in the same waters with the CD16 or similar size and capability boats. Such as Casey.

Jay

[journey on]

The trip up the inside passage is one of the great trips going.

There are 2 ways to di it: fast and slow.

The fast trip cruises between the "bigger" ports and completes the trip in a week or so. You can do this in almost any power boat, with good weather. Just wait in port for good weather and adjust your schedule as needed.

The right way is the slow way, doing about 30 nmi/day. There are some wonderful places to spend a safe snug night anchored out. This includes Foggy Bay, Meyers Chuck, Tracy Arm. The anchorages in Behm Channel are magnificent.

If you anchor out remember to take camping gear and be prepared to spend several days there if the weather changes. TAKE HEAT. It's cold there in the summer. Also take tide tables, or (better) a computer with a tide and current program on it.

Boris

[AJF]

Glacier Bay is worth seeing, but I'm afraid the big cruise ships coming in destroyed the appeal for me. There are so many other cruising areas such as the outside coastlines of Prince of Wales, Baranof and Chicagof Islands and Prince William Sound plus the Aleutians that I've never bothered to go back to Glacier Bay after visiting them

[Hunkydory]

Alf

Even though I've never been to the Glacier Bay's controlled area I have explored Dundas Bay located in Glacier Bay park. I take your's and many others word that it is well worth seeing, but it's like you said there's just to many other places that can be destinations the equel in wonder and beauty with as much wildlife without jumping through the hoops that are required to enter and then the continuing look over the shoulder of what you can and can't do while there. Would think it a great place to go as a tourist on someone else's boat. Sounds like you were lucky enough to see it when it was much like the other places you mentioned are now.

Jay

[Casey]

As Jay mentioned, my first trip on the Inside Passage was in 2000 in a 17 Boston Whaler "Montauk." It was a great trip, with no mishaps, but marginally comfortable. Would I do it again in the 17? ...probably not, but that has to do with comfort rather than safety. (But B/W now make a 19' Montauk - Hmmm, that might be Fun!

As previously mentioned, I think a few items are paramount:

(1) do NOT do the trip if you're under a time constraint (but that's also a factor in a larger vessel as well). Being able to take your time makes the trip Much more enjoyable, and you can wait-out bad wx and not feel pressured into going out when you shouldn't.

(2) be thoroughly familiar with your equipment. Choose what you want to take very carefully. Certain items may be nice to have, but not really necessary. Frankly, planning and anticipating the upcoming trip is a large part of the whole experience. Plan carefully, but don't overload. Be comfortable and safe, but some items simply are not unnecessary.

(3) Once you've identified your cruising equipment - take a long shake down trip. Outfit your boat just as you planned for the IP and see how it works out. You may very well make some adjustments. (In my case I took the Montauk to Lake Powell and spend a week going up to Hite then a week back. It was time well spent.) One of the items I found that I needed was an extra couple of books ... getting layed-up for wx can make having some extra food and a good book much easier!

(4) This relates to Item 2. Know your vessel, motor, fuel system quirks, refueling from can's, anchoring, sleeping aboard (I didn't beach camp in AK). Know your fuel consumption/range with accuracy. For trip's like Jay and Jolee have done, you may actually NEED that extra 60 gallon's of fuel. If you need it fine; if not don't bother with it (but make sure you have a comfortable reserve).

(5) Do a LOT of "map reconning" beforehand. Have an idea of where you want to go, the distances involved, and research where you might find backcountry floats to tie-up-to, good anchorages, etc. Read everything you can get your hands on beforehand, make notes.

(6) When you get to Ketchikan, reward yourself with a "Seattle burger" from the Burger Queen, and take it across the street to the Arctic Bar and eat it with a cold Alaskan Amber. Say Hi to Paula (the owner) but don't be offended by her language. She's ...aah, colorful. Seriously, occasionally reward yourself when you're in town.

(7) Lastly - Have a GREAT Time. While in Juneau I met Renee Hemingway-Douglas (author's of the Excellent IP cruising guides.) They were very gracious, and commented (from the bridge of their NordHaven...) that "...the smaller the vessel; the greater the Adventure."

As you get closer to your first IP Adventure please begin another thread on C-Brat's (or PM us directly) for other specific ideas. LOTS of C-Brat's have spend time cruising the whole area, and I'm sure they'll have and endless list of things to consider in the planning. (Again, pre-trip planning can be darned near as much fun as the trip itself.)

Best,
Casey

[NewMoon]

We wandered all over SE Alaska for two months in our 22 cruiser. Our max range on a tank of fuel was 160-170 nm (running it dry). If you have any less range than that you might have trouble - it's 125nm or so from Petersburg to Juneau, with no fuel along the way. If you detour up the gorgeous Tracy Arm along the way, this adds another 60nm or so. We weren't able to do the Tracy Arm in our 22, for lack of range.

From Bartlett Cove up to the Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay is about 110-120nm, IIRC. I can't recall the numbers, but it's a good distance between Juneau and Sitka as well. And of course you need a fair amount of extra fuel to deal with tough weather conditions, unplanned stops, etc.

Lots of good advice has been posted. One of your distinct challenges will be to have what you need and not more on board. We made good use of lists for planning and loading. If you've done 2 week or longer trips up into the Broughtons, or even better beyond Cape Caution, you should have a very good idea of what to expect. The potentially tough stretches are longer and often tougher than most south of Cape Caution. If you haven't spent much time north of Desolation Sound in cool rainy conditions, I would definitely recommend working up to SE AK by doing so first.

Do you have a kicker? Backup propulsion would be highly desirable. Spare prop at the very least.

[toyman]

Folks talk about fuel, warm clothes and food, yet no one mentions potable water ?? I've considered that trip also, and potable water supply is my concern. I think if my trip ever comes to fruition I'll have some kind of a catchment system on the Fan-C-Dory.

[NewMoon]

New Moon has a watermaker, and it's very convenient. But since high-quality water is available in all the larger communities in SE AK it's not too hard to do without it, if your FW tank is large enough and you're frugal in water use. Depends also on how long you wish to spend at a time without coming back into port. In our CD 22 we found that we needed to return to port for water roughly as often as we returned for fuel. We also returned to port to get a hot shower.

We've often thought that a cachement system might be the hot setup in such rainy country. But then there are oddities like last summer - in two months we had only 6-8 days of major rain.

[AJF]

Water has never been an issue in SE-Alaska as long as you are frugal with your use when you travel outside the main areas. Many of the small communities will have water available somewhere (it might not be at the docks). What has really changed over the years is many of the smaller communities, no longer have fuel for sale or the the basic food items as it's just become to expensive for them to support these services. Even the floating fish buyers in many cases no longer will sell you fuel unless you're a commercial fisherman. But if you just stay on the main cruise ship routes none of this is an issue. We always carried enough supplies to be more or less self sufficient. If you do get stuck it's amazing how easy though but expensive it is to get something flown into you. We bent a push rod on our engine, at the bottom end of Chatham Strait I was able to radio a message to a dealer in Juneau who found a part in Chicago and had the part flown out to me on a float plane in 4 days.

[bjidzik]

Lots of good advice here.

My wife & I cruised a lot of local waters around Juneau the past two years in a 16' Cruiser "Cachita". We loved it for the day trips we made. Sorry to say, we never quite got out there due to time constraints. Amenities and fuel were also an issue. If you're planning extended cruises in SE Alaska, I'd really recommend either a 22' or 25' Cruiser.

I've never felt unsafe in the 16', but it was quite cramped even for two average sized folks and their gear. We just traded up to a 25' Cruiser "Betty Jean" in October. We're really looking forward to extending our cruises next summer.

[marco422]

Thanks for all the good advice. I know the 16 is pretty cozy for two-- even if they are tai-chi experts! I try to plan a solo journey every summer to really appreciate my 16 and the camperback certainly helps.

So I am ordering my Marine Atlas, Volume 2 and considering alternatives to Glacier Bay. I have a friend who kayaked from Salt Spring Island to Skagway and he tells me there are several other calving glaciers outside the Glacier Bay area. I certainly prefer to avoid cruise ships. Those wakes can be a bear!

My wife and I are considering a two-week trip to Gwaii Haanas as a trainer. Either that or a reprise of the Central Coast out of Bella Coola.

[marco422]

BTW, what is the preferred anchor in the Alaska panhandle? I recently replaced my Guardian Danforth-style anchor with a Delta Fastset. Is that a good design for the area?