I've always liked the Space Needle. It's very cool, especially up close like this.
Spencer and Jack swam in the pool. There was a lot of chlorine though. Our eyes were messed up.
The bow is a fun place to hang out.
Donna assuming the position. This was her spot when we were underway.
Channel separator. Check out that current.... And this was mellow. We were going to that low lying island on the right of the picture for our first night.
Look carefully and you can see Mt. Baker in the background.
Dinghy fun in Fossil Bay of the Sucia Islands (that's sue-see-ya). The boys had just finished their lesson on dinghy operation. Jack was graciously allowing Spencer to drive.
We're anchored and you can see that Donna is still assuming the position. Tell that girl that she can get up and move around!
Got any food?
A view from land at Fossil Bay. That's Canada off in the distance.
We're off on a hike. We made our way across the island to Echo Bay. Further than expected for our feeble sea legs.
Echo Bay. This was really quite lovely. Maybe we should have moored here.
Echo Bay again. Mt. Baker was always present.
A very energetic Jack and Mom. They had a race to the far side of the picture where they weren't allowed to touch the ground (i.e. only walk on driftwood). Not sure who won.
Everyone was sleeping the next morning as I creeped about.
I was trying to be very quiet as I went around taking pictures. The early mornings were so peaceful.
Glass
Another picture of the sleepers.
Faster... Dad faster!
Traffic
When do I get to drive?
Our first crab. Of course this wasn't a keeper.
The boys logged a lot of time in the dinghy. Better get fuel in Roche Harbor.
Donna on the other hand, couldn't be coaxed into the dinghy. Here she is trying to be cheerful about driving.
It was a gorgeous evening. Donna and I went for a walk on Stewart Island. So quiet on a hill overlooking the anchorage.
Roche Harbor... we fueled, showered, snacked and checked out the sights before moving on.
An amazing sculpture garden at Roche. We needed to catch the tide so we couldn't dilly dally as much as we wanted.
Strike a pose...
The boys choking down some cherries. The cherries were a delightful change from the sea biscuits and rum.
Phew! That was close. This guy actually gave us five blasts of his horn. A signal that he wasn't too happy about how close we were to his course. We got the message and cleared out of his way.
My navigation aids and constant companions.
Jack in repose.
We were fortunate to hook up with a pod of orcas. This one went right under us.
The whale watchers were out in full force. We put our sails up so the engine wouldn't spook the whales.
This was a full fledged breech. How lucky could we be?
Jack steering us through the rough spots. Our speed through the water, six knots. Speed over the ground... 13 knots. Now that's a current. Fortunately it was behind us.
No caption necessary.
We caught one. This poor guy was legal.
That had to hurt.
A leisurely departure from Fisherman's Bay. Dad! Check your depth! Donna on the other side of the boat for a change.
Sea plane taking off from Fisherman's Bay. They were doing this all day.
They were actually this close.
Team Nightmare on the loose.
Another legal crab bites the dust.
Serious predation on Antares.
See... we actually did have our sails up sometimes.
Sponge Bob
Our two sweet hearts... Donna and Brenda.
Lunch stop at Deer Harbor with Bob and Brenda.
The view from our hike.
Deer Harbor in our wake after lunch.
When you have a sailboat, you get all the babes.
The explorers returning from a mission.
Is this guy salty or what?
Morning sunshine can make you sleepy. Spencer in Friday Harbor.
Friday Harbor.
Trent and Spencer messing around while....
...Jack sleeps. He's not a teenager yet but it won't be long.
Donna returning from the shower.
SUFWE... Spencer Ugly Face With Eyebrows.
Friday Harbor
Headin' back to Bellingham. Mt Baker in the distance.
Fuel stop.
Mt Baker with main sheet winch in foreground. Very inconvenient place for this winch.
The boys returning from the beach at Inati Cove.
On the beach it was crab shell city.
SUFWE again. Kinda gives you shivers. Poor Jack.
This was the most crabs we caught in one haul for the whole trip. Unfortunately none were legal.
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum. Jack driving.
Are we there yet? Donna with mixed feelings about heading back to Bellingham.
Me and Mt. Baker.
There he is again!
Messin' with your big brother is serious business .
Look out!
Free Willie!
Hot day, cool water.
At the airport, headin' home. I wish we had it to do all over again. Can't wait until next year....