Day 33 | Flotilla to Alaska | Couverden Island Cove to Taku Harbor

Although the wind wasn’t quite as gusty as yesterday, we awoke to breezy conditions. The forecast called for 15-20 knot southerlies, and as soon as we left Couverden Island Cove we felt the wind and waves. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. Thankfully, within just a few miles, we crossed a tide line and the conditions improved dramatically! Today’s cruise was uneventful and a bit of a blur. … Read more

Day 31-32 | Appleton Cove to Couverden Island Cove

We got an early start–about 6:00 a.m.–for a longer-than-expected day to Couverden Island Cove. Originally we planned to go to Pavlof Harbor today, about 25 miles south of Couverden Island Cove. The weather forecast called for good traveling weather this morning, but worsening weather beginning in the afternoon and continuing for at least a day, so we decided to go a little further today to a super-secure anchorage and then … Read more

Day 30 | Flotilla to Alaska | Sitka to Appleton Cove

Sitka skies this morning were mostly gray and cloudy, but the wind was light and it wasn’t raining. We left the harbor by about 6:30 a.m., timing our arrival at Sergius Narrows for near slack (9:48a.m.). On the way into Sitka, we’d jockeyed with lots of traffic from Sergius Narrows all the way into town. This time, we enjoyed nearly empty waterways and light traffic. As we continued east in … Read more

Days 28-29 | Flotilla to Alaska | Sitka

Our time in Sitka has been spent visiting museums and restaurants, shopping, riding bikes around town, walking the trail in the Sitka National Historic Park, and just generally getting some off-boat exercise! Oh and also doing chores like laundry, groceries, refilling dinghy fuel and propane, etc. Some of us went back to Beak for brunch on Sunday morning, and shared a few of their fabulous donuts as an appetizer. This … Read more

Day 27 | Flotilla to Alaska | Deep Bay to Sitka

We had spectacular weather today for our 30nm cruise into Sitka — not a cloud to be seen in the bright blue sky. We pulled anchor in Deep Bay around 6:00 a.m., arrived at Sergius Narrows within a few minutes of slack, and had no real current to speak of. Navigating the traffic through Neva Strait and Olga Strait and into Sitka proved more demanding than Sergius Narrows. State ferries, … Read more

Day 26 | Flotilla to Alaska | Takatz Bay to Deep Bay

After a relaxing, wildlife-rich several days on the east coast of Baranof Island, today we motored eight hours towards Sitka, from Takatz Bay to Deep Bay. Our route leads to progressively smaller bodies of water, from huge Chatham Strait to Peril Strait, and eventually to Sergius Narrows, the bottleneck just west of Deep Bay that can only be transited near slack. Other than a couple photos of the gorgeous light … Read more

Days 24-25 | Flotilla to Alaska | Warm Springs Bay to Takatz Bay

Over the last few days the pace of the trip has relaxed. Today, we had our shortest day yet: just nine miles, followed by a day sitting at anchor in Takatz Bay. The truth is we could have spent several days at each of the anchorages we’ve visited this trip, but the distances are too great and the other destinations too tempting to linger. Occasionally, though, it’s nice to catch … Read more

Day 23 | Flotilla to Alaska | Red Bluff Bay to Warm Springs Bay

After yesterday’s wildlife extravaganza, today’s trip up Chatham Strait was a little boring. We did see a few humpbacks as we left Red Bluff Bay, but after that we struck out. The water was reasonably calm, though, and the Baranof Island shoreline is so mountainous, rugged, and snow-capped that the lack of wildlife didn’t matter. We just focused our attention on the scenery. Usually we can squeeze in somewhere on … Read more