Family Time
Pouring down rain does not inspire a voyage, but when your family is coming in from out of town for the weekend, you take what you get when it comes to the weather. Besides, we are naturally water proof. My mom and favorite son Jace travelled on Friday from Spokane and they encountered some unpleasant traffic which added hours to their trip and left them exhausted. We decided not to try to leave the dock late on a Friday in the rain so we planned a Saturday morning departure. Crew for the voyage was the standard Captain and First Mate plus youngest daughter (Morgan), favorite son (Jace), my mother (Susie) and her favorite child (Abbey – the dog).
Saturday morning came and it was still raining. Jess and I headed out to the boat ahead of the rest of the crew to get the boat ready to leave the dock. I worked on stowing the provisions while Jess did routine engine checks. Sadly, we were low on oil so we had a bit of a scramble and some quality time on Google to figure out what needed to be done. In fairness, I was focused just on the provisions while Jess solved all the technical difficulties. Naturally, Jess sorted it out and we were ready to leave the dock. The wind was blowing pretty hard. I was seeing 16-18 knots in the marina while I was on the helm. When the crew was ready, I backed her out. Our neighbor on E dock (behind us) came out on the stern of her boat with a GIANT bumper. Some vote of confidence! To her credit, when I expertly got the boat out of the slip (with assistance with the dock lines from the crew), she did say, “Nice job, Captain.” Some day she won’t even bring out the bumper.
As soon as we left the dock, the rain stopped. The wind was blowing and the sea state was … exactly what you would imagine it would be with 20 knots of wind and miles and miles to fetch. It was a fun ride! With the wind blowing that hard we were all excited to sail so the sails went up and we sailed. As is usual, the wind was coming directly from the place we wanted to go so after we tacked back and forth for hours, we gave it up and motored directly to Sucia where we grabbed a mooring ball so that we could be closer to the beach to make it easier to take Abbey to shore.
We usually depart with Troy (dinghy) on deck which means that when we arrive we have to deploy it. It didn’t take long to get it ready and Abbey did a good job holding it so she made it to shore to do her business. Abbey is a great boat dog. She is super chill and unfazed by the boat heeling. She likes going in the dinghy which requires her to be handed down a long way from the stern of the boat to the dinghy. She takes care of business quickly when presented the opportunity. She just has to be taken to shore before bed and first thing in the morning, which isn’t too bad.
Jace volunteered to cook dinner – which was grilled pork tenderloin and salad. Then we played a game of 5 Crowns and called it a day. It rained a lot overnight. In the morning it was still raining and I laid in bed for quite a while hoping it would stop so that I could take Abbey to shore. It didn’t let up so Jess and I just took her to shore anyway. Almost the instant we got back to the boat, the rain stopped – which was nice. Most of the crew was sleeping but we decided to get under way and head to Friday Harbor because we knew that the current was going to be against us and that it would take longer to get there. There was minimal wind and certainly not near enough to get the big girl moving so we motored the whole way.
The day dock at Friday Harbor was full when we arrived so we anchored and snagged a spot close to the dock. Just as we got the anchor set another boat came in and tried to drop their anchor pretty much on top of ours. I went on deck to give them the stink eye, which worked and they moved and anchored in a better spot. Troy has capacity for 4 people and we had 5 plus Abbey so we had to shuttle to shore. Morgan and Jace were dropped at the dock and then mom, Abbey and I were taken to the dinghy dock. We headed to San Juan Brewing because we knew they had outdoor seating so that we could have Abbey. There was quite a wait but we got to hang out in the beer garden and so it wasn’t a big deal. After lunch we walked around town a little and then headed back to the boat because we were against the current again going back to Sucia. We were able to snag a mooring ball in Snoring Bay – which was really cool. Only two mooring balls in there and it is a snug little place with high rock walls. Jess dropped his crab pot for the night and then we went to bed. It was a long day of motoring.
Monday morning I had to work and had two back to back early calls (starting at 6am). The boat was full so I took them sitting in bed and tried to be quiet. When the calls were done Jess and I took Abbey to shore. The tide was way out and the beach was slimy so we headed to a rocky area to tie up the dinghy and then made our way to a good spot for Abbey to do her business. Back in the dinghy we were rowing back to the boat (had to row because it was too shallow for the outboard) and we were watching a family of otters. We were able to get pretty close and it was so cool to just watch them. They made Abbey anxious but she didn’t bark … just whined a bit. Once back to the boat we needed to head back to the marina because Jace had to drive all the way back to Spokane that day. It was a really nice boat weekend with the family and we were excited that we could share our boat. Can’t wait to head out again!
