July 8 – 23
Hi All,
Before I get to the grandkids, on Saturday 7/9, 2 days before they arrived, I get a phone call from Ludvig’s…the best bistro/restaurant in Sitka bar none…..almost impossible to get a reservation. They have changed the way to do reservations….all online now….so I went online and looked at every date we were going to be in Sitka until the end of August and they were all booked….really….so I put ourselves on the waitlist. That Saturday they had a table for 2 at 7pm. Now, we were both a bit tired having worked hard since the 4th to get the boat ready, but we both just shrugged and said, date night!!! Wow, I’m so glad we sucked it up…..great dinner….I had ciopinno and Kathy had a pasta dish with sausage and a predominate goat horn pepper….all with an Italian Montepulciano, which is the grape grown in the vineyard outside our house in California….this was one of the best meals we have had in a while!!!!!
https://www.ludvigsbistro.com/our-story
We also had a visitor…a dear Selene friend from the past….Richard from RediscoveryII….we first met Richard & Jane in 2007 on the FUBAR, from San Diego to La Paz Mexico and buddied boated with them off/on all through Mexico, Central America and into the Caribbean…wow!!! Richard, who is 80 years old now and looks great, as in hasn’t aged at all, was here in Sitka with his two sons to do some charter fishing. We all met at the Mangiare’s at the Sitka Hotel for a wonderful dinner catching up on good times!!!
Wow, oh wow….did they have fun or what!!!! And success…..no one fell off the boat or docks….seriously, all of our worst fears…the water is 55*F now…still too cold to fall in!!!!!!!
Dave, our youngest son and his wife, Dana, and our 3 & 5 year old granddaughters, Kennedy and Roxie, came onboard on Monday July 11 thru Tuesday July 19th….and indeed the games began….pretty much nonstop unless the kids were allowed to use their laptops to watch a show for a little bit. The kids learned the boat quickly and soon had touched just about every button on the boat….such young inquiring minds:))) And they did every engine room check with me and always helped with filling water from the docks….I could learn to have crew:))))
The next day, after opening ceremonies the night before with Kathy’s crab bisque soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, we took a boat ride out into Sitka Sound….we were looking for whales and if calm enough maybe do some salmon fishing by Vitskari rocks….well, struck out on both….there had been a strong storm the last few days and the swell was 4-6′ and the whales were not too be found….bummer!! But, the girls loved the boat ride and Captain Papa let them touch almost every button and turn the wheel (well, the autopilot was engaged thus disengaging the wheel:))) So, we walked downtown, looked at some shops and had lunch at the pub!!
The next day Dave and I had contracted with Tad Kisaka to go fly fishing in one of the rivers. The girls went to the Bear Sanctuary and the Hatchery and had lunch at the Hotel. Our guide was named Bob and we went to the Katlian river about 10 miles north of Sitka. In all, we caught 22 Dolly Vardens….the biggest about 20-22″…..I won’t say who caught the most, but give it up to the old guy:)))
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolly_Varden_trout
The next day we started a 4D/3N cruise….it was supposed to be for one more day/night but we had to come back a day early due to a big storm….plus we needed to off load all the fish we caught for processing for Dave to take home. We fished Salisbury sound for 2 days and then inside to Deadman’s Reach by Ushk Point for one day. In all, we caught 5 kings, 1 Coho, and 1 Pink salmon and 1 which we think was a Coho got away at the swim transom as we were letting the 5-year old reel it in and the fish took a run and shook the hook!!! But, she reeled in a nice King so all was good. Two of the Kings were too small and threw back so in all, Dave took back 5 fish, totaling 37-lbs. The biggest King was 18-lbs, 33″ and one King had white meet, a rarity and the best of the best!!!
We anchored in Saint John the Baptist, saw 1 Brown bear, but caught no crab, in spite of the girls doing a very inspiring crab dance:))) The girls are now expert crabbers, can pick the right spot and drive the dinghy…with Papa close by:)))!!! Dave fileted the King we caught….we ate half and then froze the other half….ODG….a culinary orgasm for sure…we did it over an alder plank on the BBQ…yummers!!!
The 2nd night we anchored in Ushk Bay, a DDG bay with a large surrounding meadow and salmon stream. Still no bears fishing in the stream yet. But, we did see 4 more very big Brown bears. It was partly cloudy with enough sun to warm up the FB enclosure so we ate upstairs….the girls wanted ribs….so indeed we cooked up a batch of baby back ribs…yummers!!! We loved Ushk bay and the next morning we caught 8 crabs, but only 3 keepers!!!
Of course, all these meals were with some excellent red wines…..from 10-16 year old and from Australia and California!! And, of course, some wee drams as well….Dave had given me a bottle of Very Rare Middleton Irish Whiskey for Father’s Day….so all 3 of us….Dave, Dana, and myself (Kathy stayed with wine:))) were treated to some of the best Irish whiskey I have ever tasted!!! Of course, there was a bottle of Balvenie 15 year old Scotch, some Ron Zacapa Rum and a few Grey Goose martinis as well!!!!
Our last night at anchor was in Deep Bay….one of our best crab bays….but very weird, there were no other crab pots in the bay….hmmmmm…..we did end up catching 5 crabs, but only 1 keeper. Dave, who is an excellent cook, made a very yummy pasta and prawn dinner with prawns we had caught earlier this season…..again warm enough to eat on the Flybridge!!!
On Sunday there were 20-25kt winds so we got up early, got the crab pots, lifted the dinghy and made Sergious Narrows by 8:15am and were in Sitka by noon. We were protected from the winds/waves most of the time with only brief periods of 1-3′ wind chop!! But, it was raining pretty hard, and we were all a bit tired so naps for most. We then had steak Oscar…..Dave/Kathy had cooked the crab and then Kathy did most of the picking assisted by Dave and Dana. We had Costco prime Ribeyes for the steaks all topped with Béarnaise sauce….CO and YUMMERS!!!!
Our last day: Dana went power shopping while the rest of us went to the Raptor center….the girls loved the owls and some huge bald eagles. We then found a super kid playground by the Hatchery and the kids got to run to their delight after 4 days on the boat!!! They are now official Alaskan’s as all that was done in the rain:))) We then met at the Westport for lunch….actually quite good…much better than in years past….and Dave closed the visit with Duck Farts….well, it was supposed to be all around but it was just Dave and me:)))
Last night: Pizza and a movie….yep, wore their/our asses out:))) We watched Cats and Dogs, a very appropriate kid movie….Dave remembers he and I went to the theater when it came out in 2001.
Boat projects: John-boy: changed Gen & Cummins oil & filters, changed out a kinked hose on GEN raw water thru hull to strainer, replaced a leaking/corroded Cummins muffler lift tank drain plug….messy and took me too many hours…yep, doing my cold yoga…ugh!!! Washed boat!!
Kathy: 12 loads of laundry….I think a record, restored all the guest blanket/comforters, cleaned/vacuum boat, provisioned!!!
The plan: We hope to leave Sunday, July 24 for a 5 week cruise. We will start by going on the West side of Chichagof Island which is exposed to the open ocean. So, we need to be very careful with weather….wind and waves. We will go up to Kalinin Inlet in Salisbury Sound on Sunday and then into Slocum inlet on Monday, about 20nm north. That inlet will be quite protected and we will spend maybe a week or so in several anchorages. We hope to catch a few more salmon and of course, more crab & prawns!!
Hope all is well!!
John
Mystic Moon
PS: some really good pictures of the family time on the website:
https://www.mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/main-album/dave-dana-kennedy-and-roxie-visit-to-sitka