Why We Do What We Do....

For some it is puzzling and perplexing that Doug and I live as we do. It is not possible to explain why we would buy a boat, sell our condo and become drifters who land periodically in Deb and Ralph’s basement. But each day at sea is an adventure filled with surprises.
Have you ever seen an oyster that weighs 5 lbs and is 12 inches long? Jan found one on the beach.
Did you know that a stern tie could sing? We thought that its maker, brother Dale, had endowed it with special talents which did not include pitch nor tone. We found that when a tight rope is tied to a large rock, the rock can vibrate creating a high pitch tone.
Have you ever seen a Harlequin Duck in full mating season dress? The males are very showy. These small and uncommon ducks flirted and courted around us for several days.
And, last but never least, there is the fine dining. Can you eat your own weight up in crabmeat? That is surely Doug’s goal.
Tomorrow will bring new surprises for certain.

Heading North into Canada

Since we plan to edge further north this year our start needed to be earlier. Fortunately, we got a lot of difficulty out of the way during our preparation – if it could be difficult it was! At some point we just looked at one another and laughed. In the end we left on time and Doug readily survived the redecorating of the boat. The project turned out very well and we are happy that we did it and also happy that it is done.

Our friends, Gene and Sandy, joined us for the first leg of the journey. We spent our last day together on San Juan Island exploring Roche Harbor and English Camp. Tensions were high between the British and Americans over who had most valid claim to the San Juan Islands. The crisis came to a head with the “Pig War” which brought the two countries to the brink of war. Mediation settled the dispute and Sand Juan Island is, of course, American but the Union Jack still flies over English Camp.

After dropping Gene and Sandy we headed north toward Evan’s Bay which is one of our favored haunts. We were weathered in Comox for an extra day with the Straits of Georgia kicking up mightily. A nice bridge game with the locals made the stop memorable.