7/12/2023
We have been busy - the last couple of days in Prince Rupert have been a flurry of activity… We got groceries for the next 3-4 days (we don’t want to stock up too much before dealing with US customs), we did laundry, we refilled our propane, we refilled water, we got Oakley into the vet, we did a huge shopping run to the local marine store, and we completed some much needed repairs on the boat (eg re-mounting the toilet!). Turns out Oakely cracked one of her teeth - and the inside of the crack became infected. Her body fought off the infection (which is why the swelling went down) but it’s highly likely to become infected again so we need to get it removed. Fortunately, we were able to get her into surgery tomorrow and hopefully everything will go smoothly.
We spend the day doing all of the errands - with the exception of fuel which I think we will end up doing tomorrow. We purchased 2 five gallon jerry cans to increase our fuel capacity - not the prettiest thing (they need to be tied to the outside of your boat) - but I expect it will increase our peace of mind significantly. We also upgraded our nav station by getting Navionics charts - which we hope will allow us to view tides/currents right on the chart plotter and help prevent future mixups with the current tables - which we will still use as backup. We went out to lunch (and dinner) and enjoyed spending time off the boat as much as possible.
We took our dinghy into downtown several times - which was easier when we were doing laundry/groceries. On one such trip, we saw the most American scene on top of one of the boats… I guess we really are on our way back to the USA!
7/13/2023
Today was Oakley’s tooth removal surgery. It ended up being a whole day affair and we were worried about her. We did our best to distract ourselves - lots of hiking (like we hadn’t had enough walking over the last few days) and exploring the museums/parks of Prince Rupert. Sara got lots of playground time - which she sorely missed - and we spent some time trying to relax which has been lacking the last couple of days. I finally picked up Oakley at 5p and walked her back to the boat with a backpack full of meds. She seemed to be doing well, so hopefully a good sign for a quick overall recovery.
We hiked the Rushbrook trail which was about a mile and a half from our marina to the Seal Cove Salt Marshes. The hike followed the coastline on an old railroad ROW (which I am basically an expert after the Palouse to Cascades trail). It was quite scenic and there was a fun cafe at the other end.
7/14/2023
Our day of departure! We called ahead to Ketchikan and submitted our entry request to the USA via the app. We were getting a late start since we didn’t get a chance to fill up on Diesel yesterday and they don’t open until 9a. But after getting some fuel, we were on our way… by 10a… :)
After passing through the small northern channel out of Prince Rupert, we made our way out into the open bay that is Dixon Entrance. We weren’t planning to make it all the way across to Foggy Bay today (we got too late of a start) and decided to spend the first night in Brundige inlet on Dundas Island. Angela was still recovering from Prince Rupert, so she got some good reading/napping time while Sara and I guided us up the strait and into the inlet.
About halfway up the inlet, we passed by Green island - a tiny little island on the charts - and we found another fancy, big lighthouse. I expect this will be our last Canadian lighthouse on the way north and I had a feeling that Alaska’s will all be automated/no longer manned - but I guess we will see!
The anchorage was well protected, but quite a ways into the inlet - about 30 min to get into the anchorage from the strait.
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The guidebook warned that Brundige Inlet was full of agressive black flies - and we thought they were wrong when we got there. There were these tiny black flies, but nothing like the big flies we saw at Eucott. It didn’t take us long to discover that these tiny black flies were deceptively agressive… I had purchased a fishing pole in Prince Rupert and I promised Sara we would go fishing at our first anchorage. We were fishing on deck and the little flies were all over me - I kept asking Sara if they were biting her and she said they weren’t… Turns out they very much were. Sara ended up with a half dozen very painful fly bites. She just wanted to fish so much that she didn’t feel it!
Other than the flies, Brundige Inlet was a pretty fun place. We hiked around the small island in the middle of the bay and found some crabs/starfish/fish/other sea life along the shore. Sara and I spent about an hour hiking around (this time with bug spray and hoods/hats on) and came back to the boat where Angela had fully recovered - just in time for a game of Unexploded Cow!
7/15/2023
We intended to make a very early start for Foggy Bay today - Angela had been reading that the best time to see wildlife is in the very early morning - like 4 am. We did our best, but the exhaustion of our Prince Rupert days was still there and we didn’t end up getting underway until 7am. It was about 5 hours to Foggy Bay - with glassy seas and calm winds. We saw tons of porpoises and lost of Salmon jumping. I think I saw a whale doing a fluke up dive in the distance, but we didn’t see him again so I can’t be sure.
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We ended up getting into our anchorage just a little after noon. We had a delightful “build your own salad” lunch (with hot dogs on the side) and got ashore for a walk around just before the rain set in.
We anchored in about 30 feet of water, so perfect for the crab pot. We have done reasonably well with the crab pot on this trip, but even when we don’t get crabs we end up picking up some fun sea creatures for Sara to inspect up close. This time it was urchins.
After playing with the crab pot a bit, we headed ashore for some tidepooling. The tide was low, so there was lots of space for the three of us to explore. Highlight of the trip was a florescent blue starfish (which I forgot to take a picture of…)
The following morning we made for Ketchikan - with a very early start of around 4am. Angela was quite pleased at the activity of all of the wildlife this early - sea otters, sea lions (catching a fish), sea birds, etc. No whales or bears, but all of the wildlife we did see was very active. We pulled into the Tongass narrrows around 1p, fueled up, and made for the marina.
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As we were making our way past the fuel dock, guess who I saw! The M5! I thought surely we had lost them in the Broughtons, but here they were.
Ketchikan is a relatively small city, but they get a lot of cruise ships - 6-7 per day which makes the town seem much busier. We managed to find a mexican place to get lunch (Angela’s dream) and finally found the SE Alaska guidebook (Douglass Guide) we were looking for. We got a slip with power this time, which meant unlimited hot water for showers and we used it. We also did a full provisioning run - 8 bags of groceries! Pretty efficient afternoon…
Sara and I took a hike while Angela was napping - there’s a trail that runs along the backside of Ketchikan called the Rainbird trail. It was about a 15 min walk through town to get there and then a 30 min hike that comes out in a different part of town about 10 min from the marina - making it a loop trail. The trail itself was pretty - although steep and not super well maintained. I expect the rain and aggressive growing periods makes it tough to keep up a trail like this. It also didn’t look heavily used - despite it’s proximity to town.
The highlight of the hike however, was the Salmon berries. Sara and I picked probably a half pound of them to put in pancakes in the morning.
We are planning an early start tomorrow to get to Meyers Chuck - which we have heard good things about. No amenities to speak of - similiar to Ocean Falls - but a chance of Cinnamon roll delivery directly to the boat in the morning! :)