The guy who came in last place in this year's "Race to Alaska" (R2AK), was docked nearby in his 15-foot sailboat rigged for rowing: a 40-ish guy with great biceps who rowed 80% of the way from Port Townsend, WA to Ketchikan, AK, approx 750 miles over 22 days, because wind and channels are rarely suitable for sailing.
We slept in this morning and departed after Bob made a run to the hardware store to fill one of two propane tanks. These fuel our galley's stove which was (happily, we feel) changed out from the original electric stove by Ralph, a previous owner. Much better for anchoring without having to run the generator for electrical!
And the sun was out.
46 miles later we turned into the difficult-to-find entry off Grenville Channel leading to Watts Narrows for the Baker Inlet anchorage. Watts Narrows is 80 feet deep, only 30-50' wide, (Phoenix's beam is 15'), currents run up to 6 knots, and it has two blind dog-legs, so prudent boaters call a "Securite" on VHF Channel 16 as there's no room to turn around or pass another boat, especially at low tide when we entered.
The 58-74-foot deep anchorage (16-foot tide swings tonight, bigger at new or full moon) is well-protected from wind, and scenic with 3000' granite peaks rising above, and noisy streams running down through the forest. Our 225' anchor chain is barely long enough to make us feel comfortable sleeping with just under 3:1 scope. We may add another 75' before next season.
Lovely evening sitting in the cockpit with wine, prawns (gift from Greg and Terry in Ketchikan), kale, music and books.
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