Cruising SE Alaska out of Skagway, 2018.

H

Hunkydory

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We left our home in Wyoming on 5-19-18 to trailer our boat to Skagway, Alaska to start our 8th cruise in SE Alaska. This year we took the route up through Kalispell, Montana, the Ice Parkway through the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks, then up the remote Cassiar Highway to where it meets the Alaska Highway & then another 300 miles to Skagway. On the way we saw more moose & bears than on any of our previous trips. 18 black bears, 4 Grizzlies & 5 moose. Arrived in Skagway on 5-22 & following boat preparation for cruising, we headed out to Haines & spent the night there at the marina.

5-23, with a forecast of rare sunshine & lite winds for the Lynn Canal, we were up at 3 am & off shortly after with enough daylight to see any hazards. We went the first 75 miles on plane & then slowed to displacement speed for the rest of the day. Following a quick stop at the Hoonah Marina for showers we headed up to the head of Port Fredrick to look for bears & whales, while also enjoying the spectacular scenery. Many bears & humpback whales to see with the last bear by us in South Neka bite, where we anchored for the night. It was 9 pm by the time we anchored, so having started out out at 3 am it has been a long, however extremely enjoyable day. It's wonderful to be back cruising in these areas with so few people & much wildlife. Today we cruised by the site where on previous cruises here, we watched filming of the Alaska Bushman series. No sign of there ever having been here now. Can't say they are missed. 131 miles today & 147 total.

5-24-18. This morning we cancelled plans of cruising down Chatham Strait towards Warm Springs Bay today, due to higher winds then we cared to head into, so after slow cruising back to Hoonah, topped off our fuel & groceries to be ready to head south when the weather breaks. Felt good about our mileage so far with 40% being on plane, we still averaged 4.5 mpg. With gas here at $4.41 per gallon, displacement speed at 6 mpg or more will be the future mode, like past trips, unless weather or other happenings dictate otherwise.

We had a little more intense whale watching experience, then desired today while heading back from our nights anchorage to the Hoonah Marina. A pod of humpbacks were shallow bubble feeding, while moving in the same direction we were headed at about 4 mph. With us being off to their side of travel direction about 200 yards, we felt plenty safe, but suddenly the bubbles stared appearing all around us & we knew what that indicated. I quickly moved the boat forward & they shot up just where we had been. It was more excitement than wanted at that moment.

Tonight we're tied to the dock at the Hoonah Marina enjoying a quiet evening with much larger boats all around. 15 miles today & 162 total.
 
Wish I was there with you, but enjoying a much more leisurely pace here in the BC Gulf Islands. Which motor do you have? On plane speeds I can only get about 3.3 or so mpg with my Merc 115? Colby
 
Colby, yes it would have been good to see you here, but glad your having a great time where you are now.

We have twin Honda 40's. Normally when running on plane here & being so heavy we get about the same mileage as you. Between 3 & 3.5 mpg. At displacement speed it improves greatly to 6 mpg & better depending on wind & tide. Our yesterdays 4.5 mpg was a average of displacement & running on plane. On past cruises here with the majority done at displacement speed we have averaged about 5.5 mpg for the entire cruise. When the majority was on plane it would drop to about 3.5 mpg. On past years when still working we cruised much more on plane. Since retiring I prefer displacement speed unless there is a actual need to speed up. The mpg increase & cost savings are good, but the main reason for displacement speed cruising for us is to increase range between fuelings. When fuel is topped off with 87 gallons our range can be over 400 miles & we have actually done that in the past. There are fuel stations spread out enough to easily go from Marina to Marina, but if wanting to exteslively explore off the beaten path more range than the normal CD 22 tanks running on plane is mandatory.

Jay
 
Jay, great to know you made it up safe. Great wildlife count and glad you got out of those bubbles. That could have been hairy at best. Stay safe, and enjoy. Will be following as I can.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon
 
5-25 & 26 following a leisurely morning at the Hoonah Marina transient dock, we slowly made our way back up Port Fredrick, while watching the small pods of Humpback whales doing their group bubble feeding on the way. There are more whales here then in past years & seem very used to & not bothered by our boat as we pass them by. They for the most part are staying near shore & doing more shallow water feeding, which has them spending much more time on the surface, where we can enjoy seeing them.

After spending an hour or so at anchor in the Neka inlets area, we cruised back to the area where the Bushman Alaska series was being filmed here in previous summers. Those episodes were far from reality, but one thing that wasn't fake at all is the high number of bears in the area, where they supposedly lived. As mentioned before, all signs of the large family staying there are gone, but in one mile from where the house was located, we saw 10 different bears. We tied up to the forest service dock there to spend the night & in the morning we had whales on one side & a bear shore on the other.

Today we made our way back to Hoonah & found directly off shore from the fuel dock a pod of whales feeding. I managed to get several photos of them as they made their way down & in front of the cruise ship terminal & old reconditioned cannery. They really put on a good show for us & the locals. The tourist on the cruise ship missed it as the ship had pulled out just before.

I can only down load the photos to our newer iPad & only get on the Internet with the older one, so posting these photos will have to wait. The only photos I can post for now are those taken with the old iPad.

Tonight we are back at the Hoonah Marina dock. It has been raining most of the time for the last few days with some strong winds today & more tomorrow, but then it appears we're in for some exceptionally good weather starting in a couple days. We have been having a great time even with the cold & rain, so sunshine & light winds will be icing on the cake.
46 miles & 208 total.
 
Steve, yes I should, except my older 2010 iPad doesn't do airdrop. My iPad Pro does & It uses Verizon for Internet connection. The older iPad is connected with AT&T, which has the best coverage here. Verizon seems to be the best for me everywhere else. My phones are both old style phone only & AT&T.
 
Just curious for future reference, when you mentioned the Forest Service Dock with bears and whales, where was that at? Keeping notes for next summer! :) Colby
 
colbysmith":2nle1tiu said:
Just curious for future reference, when you mentioned the Forest Service Dock with bears and whales, where was that at? Keeping notes for next summer! :) Colby
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Colby, of course you never know where the whales or bears will be for sure on any given day or trip, but this year they were near the forest service dock we spent the night & added photos to in our album & located 11 miles up Port Fredrick from Hoonah to the narrows, then to the port side one mile up Salt Bay. The other forest service dock & rentable cabin is to starboard 3.5 miles up 8 fathom bite.

I will try & add photos of Delorme In Reach to make it more clear

Jay
 
Colby, this shows Hoonah & Port Fredrick in relationship to Juneau. Some of our tracks this year are in yellow.
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This shows where we are now in the Hoonah Marina & the blue square is the location of dock in Salt bay

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In the upper left where most of the tracks meet near shore is the location of other dock near cabin.
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Don't go up into the Salt Chuck near low tide. Between the dock & Salt Chuck is where the Bushman Alaska family had there supposed home.
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Discovery":2o78ol4k said:
We're following you here and on your Facebook page. Brings back memories of 2015 when we did the trip with you.
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Many memories of that trip here too & especially in areas we shared together like here today.

Best wishes to you two,

Jay & JoLee
 
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