San Juans 2012 underway

[bmacpiper]

Once again thanking everyone for all the advice on the previous "getting to the San Juans" thread.

Got a late start from Bainbridge this morning, with a less than perfect weather forecast, but figured we'd get to Pt Townsend and have a peek into the Strait and stay the night in Pt T if needed. Small craft advisory for east Strait this afternoon and evening. We got underway at 10:48.

The sound up to Pt No Pt was easy money, just a light following chop. Made the left turn at Pt No Pt and it became glass. Passed the entrance to Hood Canal and had to slow a bit from there to Pt Townsend. As we got to Pt T (13:05), the swell was just so, no wind waves to speak of, flood current in Cattle Pt until 16:00 or so, it seemed like conditions were very approachable.

We put Pt T to the rudder and made an easy 18 knots all the way to Partridge Point. As I was admiring the parasailers there, I went over some kelp and noticed depth had shallowed to about 150'. As if someone had flipped a switch, the seas suddenly went from easy swells to an angry and very confused 7-9' chop. It was bizarre. Turned left to consider going back to Pt T, and could see smooth water maybe 200' west. Headed for that, and as suddenly as the turbulence had started, it stopped again. We could still see it--and I definitely took better care to avoid shallows thereafter.

As far as I can tell, when I asked the other day, "what is a tide rip?", I think Partridge Pt heard me and decided to offer a little lesson...

We headed on to Cattle Pass with new respect for how gnarly it could become. The wind was building a bit, but we were committed by now, and though it was a little lumpy, nothing that made me feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

We had to crab heavily to the west to hit the deepest part of Cattle Pass, but were rewarded with a relatively easy crossing and smooth waters the rest of the way to Friday Harbor, where I now sit on the deck with a coffee and an iPhone with which to regale you with my little tale. Arrival in harbor at 15:10.

I stumbled upon nainu's "cautionary tale" just now, and am glad to have read it. A good reminder that wind and sea usually trump my plans...

Best to all, more when we get around to it.

Ben and Kathryn aboard Big Blue

[dotnmarty]

Nice write-up. Good whale watching between Cypress and Lummi on Tuesday. Hope you have a great trip.

[rob bauerle]

Good job! Hopefully I'll be taking my maiden san juan trip this fall

[JamesTXSD]

Welcome to Friday Harbor. With the usual south wind, you'll have plenty of easy options for the rest of your travels around the San Juans. Have fun!

Best wishes,
Jim B.

[hardee]

Nice write up. For crossing the Strait of Juan, tomorrow will be even better Glad it went well for you. Oh, that tide rip thing, it can easily baptize your bow, if it catches yhou by surprise that is. Good to keep a eye out all around. (don't have to ask how I found that out) Have a good time, watch for the wales, and for Wild Blue and crew, it'll be the one with the "welcome Kitty" on board.

Harvey
SleepyC

[bmacpiper]

P.S. there are a PILE of C-Dorys up here, as well as Sea Sports and Hewes.
b

[BaseCampAnne]

Sounds like a great trip getting there!

Seeing the large waves as you moved away from the kelp is a reminder of why kayakers are told to head for kelp when possible if the waves become large...much nicer in there, although paddlers need to be immediately ready to cut away the kelp if accidentally capsized. That need to be ready to whip out a sharp knife and be ready to cut away always sounded ominous to me and I felt it could be a "pick your poison" situation unless staying calm and focused.

I have not yet experienced 7-9 ft. waves and that sounded quite gnarly. It was good to hear that it was just a very small section!

Enjoy the beautiful islands!

Anne

[bmacpiper]

Forgot one fun tidbit from yesterday (dripping sarcasm here). Around Partridge Point, there had been a Trophy gaining on us for a few miles and he finally caught us. He passed to starboard, about 100 yards to our side. He started edging over, closer and closer, until he was only 40-50 feet to our side and still closing. I had continually been adjusting my course to the left, but finally, running out of options and not wanting to go to Japan, I backed way out of the throttle for a moment. At which point, you guessed it, said Trophy promptly turned left directly across my bow and headed for Port Angeles. With no exaggeration, if I hadn't gone full to neutral, I would have run right into his left side. Forgive me if I'm obtuse, but it would seem to me that with miles of open ocean around us, not another boat in sight, this jackass could have simply turned left anytime before he got to me. Or he could have backed off and turned left behind me. Or passed me properly and turned left with even, say, 100 feet of clearance. But no... I am always amazed at how stupid people can be. There is no such thing as "common sense"--I call it "uncommon sense".

Anyway, enough bitching--back to vacation...

best,
bmc

[bmacpiper]

Had good fun today. Conditions were glassy all day, with a fair bit of sun also. Did a loop over to Lummi and Cypress, but no whale love. Back to Friday Harbor for fuel, then followed whale boats around to the west side of SJ Island to see some orcas. We saw many from a distance, and then started to head to a different spot. Suddenly saw a fin to starboard, and killed the motors. Kathryn and I headed to the bow, and got to watch four orcas swim by, about ten feet in front of us. It was the highlight of the day, to be sure. Pictures once I get home--thumb typing sucks!!

Shortly thereafter, we were approached by Sea Lion, a whale charter, which was being captained by none other than Jim/Wild Blue! Very cool to run into another c-brat. Also waved at Soulmate, a 25 cruiser, but don't know if they are on this site/forum.

Dinner in Roche Harbor, and now sitting on the hook there as well. Beautiful spot, and I think all the 100-foot yacht owners have Dory Envy.

see you tomorrow,
bmc

[JamesTXSD]

Hi Ben and Kathryn,

You two looked like you were having great fun out there today! Quite a show, huh? We had a lot of very happy guests on the whale watch boat today.

Looks like our weather may turn a bit wet tomorrow... not a big issue for those of us with an enclosed helm.

Enjoy the rest of your time in the San Juans and I look forward to when our paths cross again.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

[DaveS]

[bmacpiper]

Re-reading my post this morning, it occurs to me that it sounds like we were flagrantly violating the whale rules. Not the case--what I was trying to say was that as we headed from one group to another, both at far distances, a third group surfaced nearby. Wanting to be sure we didn't hit them, we killed the motors and waited.
Best,
bmc

[JamesTXSD]

Hey, Ben. When we saw you out there, it sure appeared that you were being very cautious and respectful of the distance rules.

We see some inconsiderate (even illegal) stuff happening out there. Not the case with you. Have fun, stay safe. I look forward to some photos when you get the chance.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

[bmacpiper]

Day 3: cruised over to West Sound Marina, bought three gallons of xd100 (1 for this trip, one for running at home, one so I don't ever run out again...), then to east sound. While in West Sound Marina, we had the unexpected pleasure of seeing "Natural Blue," our first c-dory. Sorta sloppy and the dock in East Sound was full, so we headed back to Rosario. Slip is pricey ($45 for our 22), but includes power and spa access. After the yachts of Roche, this marina is just our speed.

Discovered this morning that I didn't think about water treatment in the onboard tank (again, filed under "don't know you don't know"). While not terrible, we both have the trots a bit and were glad to find some pepto in Roche before departure. All is well again, but not a fun morning. Clorox when we get home...

Today we bid farewell to the sun, but once the seas subsided, the misty fjords in east sound are beautiful. Like what I imagine Alaska is like, only smaller (and having never been to Alaska).

One more day tomorrow, then back to reality on Monday. Then bailing out again to the Columbia for sturgeon on Thursday. Life is good.

All best,
b&k on big blue (with red wine)

[bmacpiper]

Day 4:
After morning coffee on the boat (with purchased water, thank you very much...), we wandered up to the mansion at Rosario to have breakfast. Afterwards, we went upstairs and walked through the mansion--it is nothing short of stunning. The craftsmanship is that of a bygone era, and hard to fathom even with it right in front of your nose. A definite must-see. There is a Tiffany chandelier in the midst of a room with the largest pipe organ ever installed in a private residence (they played a concert too, amazing). Giant barrel hinges on doors, dovetailed everything, tile, 2" thick doors on everything, etc. etc. Kind of mind blowing.

With mixed weather on the forecast, we headed over to the Shaw store, then to Blind Bay and Blind Island. The island (via dinghy) was super-cool, and worth the trek. I had taken the ferry to Orcas Landing when I delivered Natural Blue to the Volk's, and at the time remember thinking "I need to bring Kathryn here at some point", so we went there next, and had fantastic ice cream cones with the sun on our faces and a fantastic view of water, land, ferries, and waves.

Weather was starting to blow up, so we headed for Blakely Island Marina for fuel, and then for shelter from the storm. Was already up to about 3 feet, and we were glad to tuck in behind the breakwater and ride out the gale that followed.

Day 5:
Our weather forecast for getting home was once again less than ideal, with lots of small craft advisories about, and most of them starting around 11am. We had decided to go back via Saratoga Passage, which necessitated Deception Pass (which we wanted to see anyway). I had read everything I could find on the pass, and it all said "beware of strong ebbs with westerly winds". Slack wasn't until 9:35AM, and we needed to be well beyond the pass by then, so we decided to get there early and have a look, and then be willing to wait if necessary. We hit the pass at about 8:30, with 5 knots of slack current still in our faces. There wasn't another boat in sight, and we kept on the throttle and headed in. It was glass smooth, with lots of whirlpools/eddies which made for a bit of Maytag effect, but nothing worse than an average day on Agate Pass. I had a serious case of butterflies, but it was over as soon as it started. Though we had an easy passage, I can definitely see where it could get very nasty in there with the right conditions.

We had also read warnings about tide rips in the south end of Rosario Strait during a strong ebb, and the strait didn't disappoint. None were really nasty, but definitely got out attention. We learned a lot in this respect on this trip, i.e. what conditions (tide, bottom, depth, etc.) lead to this phenomenon and how to avoid them.

Skagit Bay gave us some lumps, but after that it was an uneventful 1-2' following sea all the way to Bainbridge. Total time was 4 hours on the nose, and a very scenic ride home.

We called the trip a huge success. We learned a lot about the lay of the land, the currents, the weather, the ports of call, etc. Can't wait to go again...

Thanks one last time for all the collective knowledge that made this trip so easy and rewarding! Glad we didn't have to re-invent the wheel.

best,
bmc