Friends at Sea

Departure: 2:30pm Sept 8, 2007
Return: 6:30pm
Weather conditions: Sunny with 17+ mph winds
Tide: flood tide
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: 6 (Andersons, Davis' & Brewers)

Isn't it interesting how no two people have the same experience in life. For instance, one person on a boat can be screaming with joy and exhilaration, while one person next to him (or her) is puking over the side and another is cowering in the cabin or frozen, white-knuckled on the lifelines. We're all on the same boat, in the same winds doing the same thing, but having completely different experiences.

I've been putting off writing this entry because I really wanted to do it justice, but now time has passed, and my memory has faded and I'd better just write something so it's not lost.

We had a full complement of guests on this outing. We had three couples including my wife and I. The other two couples were friends from church who purchased the "Adventure" in a fund-raising auction. In other words we had a full boat.

We also had clear skies and a stiff breeze - stiff enough that the club manager said he'd reefed his sails earlier that day during a class. It really couldn't be better. Everyone arrived on time, and the boat was already set up for us because Dave (the manager) had had it out earlier. All we had to do was climb aboard, stow our gear and take off.

The wind was everything that Dave said it would be. It was quite strong, and we had fewer people, I'm pretty sure, I'd have reefed the sails right away. As it was, we managed okay with full sails. The waves were probably the largest I've ever sailed in which made for quite a bit of excitement. Most of the guests were thrilled; my wife was scared to death. I felt bad, but there wasn't much I could do.

The passage across the mouth of Colvos passage was the roughest. Once we were in the lee of Vashon Island, the winds lightened up. We figured that was the best place to eat our dinner so we hove-to and enjoyed some nice finger foods. Being stationary in the large swells made one of the guests sick. The swells were still large even though the winds were light in that spot and this made her very queasy. She ended up pumping her bilge over the stern. After we ate, we got back to more sailing.

Our sick guest did best when we were sailing to windward so we tried to do that the most, but it was still dampening her experience. At the four hour mark, I confessed to them that I had the boat until dusk (another 2 hours) and that one of them would have to be the "party-pooper" and say it was time to go in. Immediately the ill guest said it was time; and it had been a nice long afternoon.

After bringing the boat in, we enjoyed more of our meal, and a sunset, at a table on the dock.

It really was a great day of sailing. Even our the guest that got sick said she had a good time.

And that's it.

Blake Island Camping: Day 3

Departure: 11:30 am
Return: 3:30 pm
Weather conditions: Cloudy and calm
Tide: flood tide
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: Family (6)

This is it! D-day. Departure day. Our oldest is anxious to get going and really jumps in to help. She folded up all the bedding deflated the mattresses and swept out the tent. She was in a hurry, but not the rest of us.

Picture 1: If you enlarge the photo, you can see the "wildlife cans" near our tent. This is where we kept the raccoons and deer during the night. Okay, actually, that's where we kept our food so they raccoons wouldn't get into it.

We still took time for food. We had a great breakfast of pancakes, sausages and eggs. We also prepared sandwiches, chips and treats for our lunch on the way back. Everything was cleaned and then we were ready to pack.

At least when I pack, I have the excitement of the trip to encourage me. Nothing is more tedious than packing after an adventure to go home. By the time we were done, it was almost lunch time. We left the dock at 11:30.

I should mention that the weather was gray and overcast, but not foggy luckily. There was a slight breeze blowing across the island all morning, but there wasn't much to it when we finally left.

I decided to loop around the western side of the island since we'd never been that way by boat before. I found it interesting, but the others were too busy huddling under blankets and sleeping bags to notice or care. When we rounded the northwester corner of the island we picked up some good wind so we cut the motor and proceeded under sail. This only lasted about a mile however, before we were back to the "iron genny" (sailing slang for a boat motor. A genoa is a large foresail and is sometimes called the genny. Thus, an iron genny would be the motor). It stayed completely calm all the way down colvos passage until we rounded on the entrance to the harbor.

As we rounded on the entrace, we hit a strong westerly, with some large choppy waves. It was exciting, if not brief. By the time we entered the harbor, it was calm again.

Once in the harbor, we were all ready to be finished. We did stop at the public dock to use the restrooms, and to put two of the girls in the dinghy for a tow. Near our dock, we cut them loose and let them row in. It was definately worth the entertainment. We circled around outside the docking area until we could see they were safely in and then we were done. Another adventure.

I hope you enjoy the pictures.