Days 21 – 23 | 2023 Flotilla to Alaska | Wrangell to Petersburg

Day 21 – We left Wrangell this morning to time the current at Wrangell Narrows so we could ride the flood in and the ebb out, but we were a little early and we had a pretty good current boost most of the way through (2.8kts at one point!) and we arrived in Petersburg with just under a knot with us. Wrangell Narrows was relatively traffic-free (well, traffic-light at least)…no … Read more

Day 20 | 2023 Flotilla to Alaska | Thoms Place/Quiet Harbor to Wrangell

Airship and Free Solo left Quiet Harbor this morning after an early night (which may or may not have included a cocktail after yesterday’s alternator drama) and headed for Wrangell. Earlier in the morning there was a solo humpback hanging out at the entrance to the harbor, but we didn’t get any photos. Conditions were calm and gray along our route around the north end of Etolin Island, through Chichagof … Read more

Day 14 | 2023 Flotilla to Alaska | Lowe Inlet to Kelp Passage

Before we left Lowe inlet this morning, Airship pulled our crab traps and had a couple of nice keepers – after several consecutive days of empty traps. There will be crab dip tonight. We left Lowe early to find the calmer winds in Grenville Channel, and to catch the currents at a more favorable time. The wind part worked. The currents – not so much. Grenville currents are complicated and … Read more

Airship | Campbell River to the San Juan Islands

We left Campbell River late in the morning to so we wouldn’t have to slog through 7-8kts of current against us…we had a little until we were a ways past Cape Mudge, but it wasn’t much of an issue. The weather was glorious, and again with the calm calm conditions on the Strait of Georgia. We decided to stop for the night just behind Sandy Island, which is a little … Read more

Airship | Shearwater to Campbell River (with Cape Caution in between)

We left Shearwater late morning with perfectly clear skies and calm waters. Today we planned to stop just this side of Cape Caution and then go around in the morning to Skull Cove. Our destination today was originally Big Fry Pan Bay (since the BC Parks’ website says Fury Cove is still closed for anchoring due to Covid, which seems weird, but okay). However, after looking at chart a little … Read more

Airship | South from Prince Rupert: Whales, and More Fun Challenging Anchorages

We left Cow Bay Marina in Prince Rupert in thick fog, which cleared gradually as we made our way south. We cruised through Ogden Channel around to the west side of Pitt Island, and stopped at Newcombe Harbour for the night. The weather was quite rainy most of the time, so we didn’t do much besides music and dinner and a movie. The next day we were originally aiming for … Read more

Airship | Ketchikan to Prince Rupert

More sun as we left Ketchikan! We stopped at the fuel dock and filled up all of the things — diesel, dinghy gas, and propane — and then continued on our way. The night before we left Ketchikan, we grilled up the last of our king salmon and served it over rice with soy sauce, Japanese seaweed paste, green onions, and a side of sautéed zucchini. Yum! Normally when we … Read more

Airship | Around Ketchikan: Exploring Revillagigedo Island

We had originally planned to head south at the end of last week (Thursday/Friday after Labor Day) but we had a few more work things we wanted to get done while we were in town with solid internet, and one more package to pick up that was yet to arrive, so after checking the weather to learn that we would probably have another good window for getting south of Dixon … Read more