We didn’t plan to leave Wrangell until 11:30 a.m. or so to get the timing right for Wrangell Narrows, so we took advantage of the late departure time and dinghied back into town for some breakfast and grocery shopping. We grabbed breakfast at J&W’s Fast Food (now serving breakfast) and it was really good — breakfast burritos, french toast, captain’s platter with eggs, potatoes, and sausage or bacon, hot coffee.
We had a beautiful cruise into Sumner Strait towards Point Alexander, then into Wrangell Narrows for the 20nm or so to Petersburg. Wrangell Narrows is one of the most fun sections of the Inside Passage. It’s narrow, shallow, winding, and busy with commercial fishing boats, ferries, tugs and tows, sport fishing boats, and more (in today’s case, “more” included a humpback heading south on our port side!) Strong currents add to the excitement. We like to time our transit to take advantage of the current as much as possible. Since the current floods from both ends, the theory is to ride the flood in to Papke’s Landing, arrive at high water, and ride the beginning of the ebb the last eight nautical miles into Petersburg.
The theory worked perfectly today. We had a nice boost—more than a knot—all the way to Papke’s Landing. We arrived within a few minutes of slack, and quickly picked up a little boost from the freshening ebb.
The scenic approach into Petersburg never gets old, especially when it’s clear enough for a view the mountainous landscape behind town.
We gathered for dinner on Safe Harbour tonight. Laura made crab spaghetti with lemon gremolata, half made with spaghetti, and half made with zucchini noodles (with plain noodles for the two who don’t eat crab). Sam made some garlic bread and Dan and Eileen brought a salad. We didn’t starve, again!
Tomorrow we’ll take two of our five boats out for a day trip to Le Conte Glacier!
Today’s total: 39.8 nautical miles, 5 hours 11 minutes
Flotilla total: 841.1 nautical miles, 114.22 hours underway
