The 2 Stooges boat the San Juan Islands

Time for the annual (although missed for the past several years) boating trip. This year we decided to rent a Grand Banks 36 out of Bellingham, Washington. This is the "Slow Dancer".  

 In order to do safe boating you need a competent crew.  Despite outward appearances, Mike is extremely good.

The San Juans are simply spectacular.  This is Reid Harbor and we timed our overnight mooring perfectly.

        

  

Despite the place being polluted with blow boats, it's tucked up a mile into a gorge surrounded by mountains.  This turned out to be a blessing as during the night, a storm raged with 35 knot winds.  We didn't feel a thing and the rain washed off the salt spray.

The boat came equipped with a crab fishing pot. The first time we heaved it overboard we got crab BUT, they weren't in the pot.  They were sitting on top. Mike had done his internet research well and realized that the bait holder (the plastic jar with the orange lid) was connected to the top of the pot.  We reattached it to the bottom of the pot.

  

At Reid Harbor we hit the jackpot!

We caught 10 Dungeness crabs!  5 of them (coincidentally the limit per day) were of legal size.

Notice how Mike is wearing leather gloves in the above picture.  Right before I took this picture he tried the same pose without the gloves. One of the crabs pinched the living crap out of his finger. It was a solid pinch, but the swearing and dancing were epic. I laughed so hard I almost fell overboard

Shortly thereafter he got his revenge.

   

Nothing can compare with crab pot to cook pot Dungeness crab. I'm almost (but not quite) sorry I ate the crab - because normal grocery store/restaurant frozen crab will never be as good. I'm spoiled for life.

The next day we struck out on crab and were forced to eat steak.

Did I mention the San Juans are beautiful?

Navigation is pretty straightforward, however, the tidal currents change on an hourly bases. In a boat that cruises at only 6 - 8 knots (Grand Banks are displacement boats known as "trawlers") a 2 1/2 knot current will screw up your plotted course in a hurry.  An 8 knot current will deny you passage.  This is Deception Pass (and it is aptly named).

Underneath that bridge an 8 knot current is either draining or filling the sound behind it.  I had to time our arrival to the minute as the Slow Dancer can only get through it at slack water. If you miss-time your arrival you will be in for the ride of your life (assuming you survive).  The anchorage we chose on the other side was worth it.  The next morning we were treated to prolonged view of a coyote foraging for food.

        

Normally you only catch a glimpse of a coyote (as it jumps your neighbor's wall with their cat in it's mouth).

Instead of going back through Deception Pass (which would have meant we would have had weigh anchor at 6 AM - not happening) we went up the back way through Swinomish Canal.  There are a few nice little weekend get-away cabins overlooking the canal.

   

Not all of them have been so well-maintained.

When entering the curving canal you need to stay vigilant.

Right around this bend we encountered this.

  

This is the North West after all.  Log rafts are common (and have the right-of-way).

Soon you come across the picturesque town of La Conner.

Later we motored around the "back" side (western coast) of Orca Island.

Turns out, Orca Island is well named.

The goofy things are all over the place. This year they're raising 4 babies.  You can see one on the left (close to mom - look for the small dorsal fin right behind hers)

The whales are feeding close to shore, but the water here is over 800' deep.

   

 

We weren't the only ones around.                

Despite being far from cities, we weren't out of data range.  Note what Mike is doing.

        

It's not what you might think.  He's watching (in real time) his youngest daughter (Brooke) play college volleyball.

(after losing the first two games, they came back and won the next three!)

The San Juans are home to several world-class resorts.  They were dumb enough to let us dock at a couple of them. Rosario has on display the figurehead from the clipper ship America.  It was carved from a single piece of pine in 1874. In the nautical art world this is a famous piece.

                                            Shouldna told us that.    

In case you're wondering, yes, we tried fishing.

Problem is, neither of us knows the first thing about fishing. 

One thing important to fishing is patience.  This is Mike 5 minutes after the line went in the water.

Sound asleep.

Mike (uncharacteristically) got into photographing the scenery.

   

Hazards to navigation (besides the treacherous currents) abound.     

Like aviation  

  and ships (really scary as they move much faster than you might think)

Still, the place is awe inspiring and the sunsets are spectacular.

In 6 days we traveled approximately 185 nautical miles. We did it on only 57 gallons of fuel (the Slow Dancer holds 400).  God love a single screw, small engine, trawler. If you ever get the chance to boat the San Juans - GO. If you don't get a chance - make one.