Pelican Passages

We left the Foss yesterday, amidst the tall ships in Tacoma for Festival of Sail. Spent the night at anchor in Gig Harbor and then  met my dad and two of my sisters for a quick boat ride and lunch. Happy Father's Day!

Today, Wednesday, is day 14 and our final day of this cruise. We are just rounding Browns Point and the Foss is in sight. We've seen more wildlife the last couple of days than we saw further north, including this tiny seal pup floating on a log. (Taking photos with a phone from a moving boat is challenging.) It's back to work tomorrow (in fact, Nick has to drive to Cispus this afternoon!) but we will be back aboard the Pelican soon! Glorious.

Boaters tend to be very generous. We landed in Kingston and met up with Ray again, who along with his lovely wife Sharon, delivered a gently used shrimp pot to replace the one we lost. And a bottle of wine. And then we got an email from one of our dock mates at the Foss Harbor Marina, Jim. He has fresh salmon and halibut for us when we return! (We don't appreciate the gifts of very large wakes. There's always that guy ...) We had our last dinner of the trip aboard...grilled filet mignon. We would usually rather cook our own meals, especially in nice weather. Up and out early Wednesday morning for the last leg of this wonderful trip.

We left Friday Harbor early to catch calm water through Cattle Pass and the straight. (Family members will know Cattle Pass as that particularly turbulent stretch of water that we watch boats churn through while we sit at Shark Reef.) We hit a patch of rough water as we entered the straight but all in all it was fairly smooth sailing. Many boaters travel together...something we had not done until this day from F.H. to Port Townsend. The photo is one Ray took of Pelican as we followed in his wake. Port Townsend has a lot to offer to those who enjoy shops, galleries, and restaurant choices. It was a bit windy but a really nice day, ending with dinner at Doc's. (Thanks for joining us, Ray and Sharon!)

It feels like an old haunt at this point. Friday Harbor is a place we visit each year on our usual trek to the San Juan Islands. This year we encountered two forms of wildlife. Both were looking for scraps but were eventually bored to tears and went their separate ways. (JKLOL Ray!) In all seriousness, Ray enjoys his Ranger 25 and is a wealth of experience and info that we greatly appreciate. Weather is very nice, with more to come as we continue heading south toward home.

We took a shuttle from Poets Cove to the local farmers market, and then walked to the village. Nice diversion and a chance to stretch our legs. We never tire of watching for wildlife. Otters and a heron hang out in our "back yard" and I spotted a small pink thing in the water off the dock. A new boat friend who does underwater photography (www.stevezedekar.com) said it was a horned nudibranch. A type of sea slug and not all that common. (Not a great photo but you can see it just below and to the right of the reflection of the net.) We ended the day at the factory-sponsored BBQ...in the sunshine.