Welcome to cruising Alaksa

We woke up to a glorious sunny day and puttered over to the fuel dock. 

We waited for the office to open amongst the other fish boats. I bet it is safe to say that everyone fishes in Sitka. 

We motored swirly with the tide pushing us along through Peril Straight and slowed down to trawl for a salmon for the last hour before our anchorage. No luck.  We tucked into the little bay and explored the beach (after we had sent out a few blasts on the air horn to signal our arrival to any bears in the area). The eastern corner was picturesque with a little stream running though a meadow. As the sun beat down on our backs we stripped off layer and collected a bucket of blueberries. Fynn loved it. Stomping around in her boots with her tee shirt off she looked like quite the west coast girl. 

Kolby and Fynn headed out to jig for a rockfish for dinner while Bowen and I started on the roasted potatoes. Kolby clipped the painter on to the last piece of kelp and the wind pushed him 10 feet back of the kelp bed. When they came racing back 40 minutes later I assumed Fynn had enough of it and they were fish less and it would be salad for dinner. Nope! Two good sized fish in a matter of minutes. I went to work madly filleting as hungry kids protested in the background. Fynn literally ate half her dinner before falling asleep in her seat, her head on Kolby’s shoulder. With both kids asleep before eight we enjoyed the sun on the foredeck (while wearing our down jackets) before tackling the huge mess of the boat. What a day! 

It feels good to be here. The familiarity is comforting and it is surprisingly nice to feel chilly. Living in the tropics was exhausting and sweaty! The long days are amazing too, but they are a bit confusing- 6 pm is a bright as 2 pm and it is really only darkish for 4 hours from 12-4.  Although I am starting to adapt to that too!