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After our adventures in Wrangell Narrows we
were ready for a quiet night's anchorage in Deception
Point Cove at the south end of Wrangell Narrows.
Then we had an easy cruise over to the town of
Wrangell.
In years past we have been unable to find dock
space here. One year we found fishing vessels
rafted five deep. Not so anymore. The new harbor
south of town now is home for many of the local
folks. It's big - and has water and power. It's
a bit of a walk to town, so we hoped to get in
to the main harbor.
Not a problem. The Wrangell-Reliance dock had
plenty of room for us. It's the long side-tie
dock to the left of the fairway in this picture.
We left Wrangell to head south in Zimovia Strait.
Zimovia is a really beautiful passage and I was
hoping for some pictures. But they weren't likely
to happen (and didn't) because it was so rainy.
However, as I looked back towards Wrangell I
gasped, then grabbed the camera. I was seeing
a HUGE ghost cruise ship headed for Wrangell.
Well - yes - it doesn't look real. And it wasn't.
But my imagination was in high thrall and having
great fun with the vision.
OK, so I'm into
ghost-like ships. But this one was real. I
caught it slipping by while we were docked
at Meyers Chuck.
There was nothing
ghost-like about these ELEVEN purse-seiners
fishing like mad at Niblack Pt (on our way
to Ketchikan).
Here's what one
looks like up close. They stay fairly close
to the shore. That and their large size (50-60')
along with their highly visible boom and accompanying
skiff makes them fairly easy to spot. And to
avoid.
We made our usual
overnight at Bar Harbor in Ketchikan. Groceries,
laundry, dinner at Ocean View restaurant, and
a haircut. The weather sounded good for an
o-dark-thirty start across Dixon Entrance.
I looked back at Ketchikan to say my goodbyes
to Southeast Alaska and guess what I saw? More
ghost ships. They were real, just masquerading
as mirages to give me a special farewell treat.
The weather was
holding for our Dixon Entrance (open ocean)
crossing. Off we went into the lowering skies
and the multiple, long stretches of fog.
The trade-off for
the fog was the flat, flat calm seas - an unusual
condition in Dixon Entrance.
Much of the time
we had only 1/8 mile visibility, but things
lifted for just a bit as we passed Green Island
Lighthouse, just off Dundas Island.
The fog persisted
right up to the entrance to Duncan Bay where
the "North Shortcut" and
Venn Passage start. Once we were in Venn Passage
we saw that strange color up in the sky. What
was that hue called again? Oh yes, sunny blue!
We also saw an unusual
looking charter boat.
On our passage northward
in July we weren't even able to get in to the
Prince Rupert Rowing and Yacht Club even though
we had tried making reservations two days ahead.
It didn't look promising on our way back down
either. But we managed to get a spot. However,
we were really dismayed to see that the moorage
fee has almost doubled. The service was poor
(the dockmaster has changed) and things looked
messy and broken down.
Verizon service finally works in Prince Rupert
for most people. We heard again, however, that
some phone instruments (with Verizon service)
won't work. It's not a phone-age issue; I was
able to use both my new smart phone and my husband's
five-year-old Samsung. No one seems to be able
to explain what the issues are.
Before we left Prince Rupert I was able to get
a few fun turns in the Green Devil.
We listened again
to weather and especially to the wind and sea-state
conditions at Holland Rock. It's an ugly old
thing, but it's right in the middle of the
important jump from Prince Rupert to the north
end of Grenville Channel. We're glad it's there.
Grenville Channel
- or "The Ditch" coming
up.
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