June 30 – July 5
Hi All,
Woke up Sunday, June 30 and knee was somewhat sore, maybe 80%, and made the decision to leave Sitka!! We first went to the fuel dock for 802 gallons of diesel ($3.21/gal, last March is was $3.15/gal but better than the $3.44/gal at Auke Bay)and 15 gals of dinghy gas!!! We first went to Biorka Islands…..one of the better spots for salmon….about 12nm away…..unfortunately the conditions were so so….windy and choppy so could not get to the ideal fishing grounds….tried for about 2 hours and nothing…..arghhhhh. Continued on another few miles to Goddard Hot Springs and anchored around 2pm!!
Goddard Hot Springs was wonderful….good soak for what ails you. They have built 2 huts with large (6-8 people size) tubs that have gorgeous view of the bay….we had one just for the four of us….it certainly helped with the knee and other pains:)))
West side of Baranof Island: Well….it is very rugged looking…..like the outside rocks get pounded a lot with huge storms. There are some 3-5k’ mountains which are impressive when the sun is out but are often obscured in the clouds/fog. And, disappointingly, not many critters…..a few birds, ducks, some otters, seals, sea lions and very few whales, although Koinonia had a Humpback surface about 100 yards of their bow….we had high expectations of very abundant wildlife:((((( Beautiful forests although there is a lot of yellow cedar kill…..we reported about this earlier….the kill is due to lack of snow cover and the shallow roots freeze. Yep….Alaska is in a long term warming trend with much higher temperatures and lower rain/snow amount…..ugh!!!
On Monday, July 1, opening day for King salmon for commercial fisherman….in this area the total quota is 58,000 fish…..when that is caught the season closes…..maybe 10-14 days. We went 23nm to Dorothy Cove in Necker Bay….the weather was pretty calm…blowing 10-15kts and 2-3′ waves…..a little beamy until we turned south then all behind. It was sort of like “oh, hello Mr Ocean, I’ve missed your gentle motion”….emphasis on gentle:)))) Dorothy Cove is a beautiful anchorage and very sheltered…..but again devoid of wildlife….a few eagles, a lone seal and a few ducks but some beautiful bird song in the trees!!! We stayed 2 nights…..the 2nd day we took the dinghy out for a look at Secluded Cove and up to the head of Necker Bay….maybe 4-5 miles round trip….beautiful 2-3k’ mountains, some very steep sheered cliffs/walls.
WE GOT PRAWNS…..yes, and about time. Mark and I set our prawn traps in about 350’…..first day I got 11 big Spotted prawns and the 2nd day 16…..with what we already had, we treated Mark & Roseanne to a New Orleans style shrimp boil….potatoes, corn on the cob, onions, celery and prawns, garlic bread and a salad…..yummers!!!
July 3: We left around 9am after we brought in the prawn traps and headed for Whale Bay….about 15nm away…..we first checked out Yamani Bay at the mouth of Necker Bay as we saw a charter trolling there the other day….but, conditions were too rolly so on we went to Whale Bay. Three trollers were there…good, must be a good spot….one was our new friends Dan and Marsha on f/v Solstice. We went up into the bay about 5nm and turned around to start fishing….it was still a little rolly but doable…..I was having a little gear issue but finally got one pole down….in about 10 minutes that sweet sound of a spooling reel….I fought/played the fish for about 10 minutes…it had taken out a lot of line….when it got to the surface it dove 3 more times…..finally tuckered out, Kathy gently netted it…..AND, drum roll please…..we had a nice 20-lb, 33″ King salmon….YES, YES, YES!!!!! And it turned out to be a white King….the best…..cooked a big slab on an alder plank
on the BBQ…..ODG, very moist, perfect smoke from the alder plank, just flaked right OFF, mild flavor…..one of the best salmon dinners we have ever had….YUMMERS!!!!
We anchored in Still Harbor and watched some of the fishing boats offload their salmon the next morning. Another gorgeous bay, well protected but a lot of kelp/seaweed in the water….yuck!!!
The next day, July 4th, we fished again….we have 2 licenses so as nonresidents we can keep 1 King per year/license…..and saw a Minke whale feeding as we left Still Harbor….nice!! Went to the same spot and bam…..hooked another King…..but smaller…so we measured…it’s only 27″….legal is 28″…..we tried so hard to stretch the final inch but no joy….gently put him back in the water…..whaaaaaaaa. Then about 20 mins later bam…..oh joy…..but this guy fought hard and yep, broke the line…..WTH….lost the hot lure:((((( Came home empty…..whaaaaaaaa!!
We anchored in Kritoi Basin…..DDG…..the sun had come out so we could see these 3-4k’ tall mountains all around the bay and well up both arms of Whale Bay…..gorgeous!!! Solstice also came in and we had dinner on Koinonia to celebrate the 4th…..Roseanne made crab risotto with a salad…..yummers!!!! Then around 10:30 Solstice gave us a nice fireworks show…..sweet as!!!
July 5th: Marsha and Dan on Solstice are doing well on their commercial King fishing…..they offloaded 49 Kings and some Coho on the 4th to a tender….they averaged ~15.5 lbs/fish and they got ~$5.5/lb…..so a nice check for 4 days of work. This opening though closed at midnight on the 5th so they will try their luck on Coho over the next month or so. Per their advice we took the day and fished off/on on our way up the Great Arm in Whale Bay…..fishing was slow….no salmon, just rockfish….sure miss that “hot” lure:(((( But the fiord was DDG…..it started out foggy but soon lifted and we had gorgeous views all day….still somewhat hazy from smoke from all the fires in the Yukon and Kenai Peninsula….still getting north winds bringing in the smoke. We made it back to Kritoi anchorage after checking out a few coves along Great Arm that were DDG but too deep.
Weather: And just like that the rain, mist and fog stopped when we got to Sitka…..beautiful sunny days…..and warm….like almost 80*F….but, then the marine layer would come in and cool things down. It’s been the same so far on Baranof island…..marine layer comes in late in the day and stays to mid-day, then sun and warm temps but a few days it never burnt off…..sweet as:)))) No rain now for over 13 days. And, we are getting some haze from various wildfires in the interior of Alaska and BC…..whoa!! We have friends cruising Prince William Sound & Seward and the smoke got so bad from fires on the Kenai Peninsula that they had to leave….wow!!!
Critter Stats:
Dungeness Crab: 73 total; still not crabbing
Prawns: 95: 81 Spotted, 14 Coon Stripe; 27 in Necker Bay
Whales: 163 total; 144 Humpbacks; 11 Orcas; 8 Minke: 1 Minke in Whale Bay
Salmon: 1: 20-lb King in Whale Bay
Bears: 54 Browns;
Wolves: 5
Otters: 810; 10 around Biorka Island, 5 around entrance to Still Harbor
Mountain Goats: 42 total
Dall’s Sheep: 3
Moose: 3
Alaskan Husky sled dogs: 60
Stellar Sea Lions: 839;
Hope all is well!
John
Mystic Moon
Kritoi Harbor in Whale Bay, west side of Baranof Island, Alaska
Position: 56 35’23.33 N, 134 59’14.34 W
Course: Stopped.
Position: 19-07-06 07:44:39 -0800
http://maps.google.com/maps?&ll=56.58981,-134.9873&q=56.58981,-134.9873&z=16
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