May 1 – 5
Hi All,
We did leave Skagway on Wednesday May 1….still sunny with some foreboding high clouds….heading south along Lynn Canal. We left early, ~7:45amish, to avoid stronger South winds in the afternoon and did 45nm to William Henry Bay…conditions pretty calm, but a foul flood tide kept our speed <7.5kts. We arrived ~2:00pm, anchor down in 80+’, passage beers open by 2:30pm!!! We were on high critter alert in this gorgeous bay with ample meadows and salmon stream, but were disappointed….lots of birds and one river otter gnawing on some fish along the shoreline.
John…..we have a WHALE (said with a shriek!)….yep, that is what I awoke to very early the next am….so one leg in a sweat pant et al I climb the stairs to the pilot house and sure enough….a Humpback whale was in the anchorage…in fact, about 100-200 yards off the bow coming towards us….and kept coming….finally about 20 yards off the starboard bow it dives showing tail….we have the picture….ODG, I’m awake now…better than coffee for sure!!!!
Thursday, May 2: We did leave around 7am to head further south….we thought about staying another night but the forecast for Friday looked iffy so weigh anchor we did….traveled 59nm to Taku Harbor south of Juneau along the Stephen’s Passage…arrived around 3:15pmish. Conditions were calm…<10kt SE….until the last 10nm in Stephen’s Passage after we rounded Douglas Island…then 15-20kts on the nose, 2-3′ seas, wind against tide crap, lots of spray and hobby horse motion….ugh!!!! But in earlier and calmer conditions in the north part of Stephens Passage and the west side of Douglas Island/Juneau, we saw 4 more whales….awesome…looks like they are arriving now from Hawaii….famished for sure!!!
Taku Harbor has 2 transient docks maintained by Juneau, a 1900 Cannery long abandoned, and a few scattered buildings/homes. We moored along an unattached floating dock on the south side fairly protected from the strong winds!! And, the weather turned dismal/gloomy…..foggy, windy and rainy….stayed like that all day on Friday as well…ugh!!!! But, late Thursday afternoon after my nap I was doing some chores outside….dropped a crab trap off the dock….not sure that is kosher but why not….too rainy to take the dinghy out….Kathy was rinsing off Mystic and we both saw a good size wake and just thought another boat came in. Eventually we saw another whale on the far shore….and no boat came in so that wake was from the whale….wow, one whale in the William Henry anchorage and now another whale in Taku Harbor….2 in one day….whales in anchorages rarely happen for us…yep, we felt blessed for sure!!!
Happy Hour: We had met a young couple in Haines that were fixing up an old sailboat, sv Murrelet, to take to Petersburg. During that rough stretch coming into Taku Harbor we passed them as they were struggling against the waves, and wind against tide…..they ended up taking shelter in a small cove and then came into Taku Harbor around 10pm and tying up on the opposite side of the dock we were on. We had them over for happy hour…..Elsa, Colin, and Alissa (their friend). Three young people in their 20’s on an adventure….and are involved in the Lynn Canal Conservancy…..good for them. Else grew up on Prince of Wales Island and thinks maybe the reason we are not seeing any bears is it is hunting season in May….hmmm…and ugh!!!
Saturday May 4: We left Taku Harbor around 8:15am for a 16nm run to Gilbert Bay in Port Snettisham….very calm conditions, <8kts SE and a flood tide keeping our speed <7.5kts. Whale Blow….1, then 2, then 3 then a little one. We were treated with a fine Humpback whale show as we entered Port Snettisham….3 adults and 1 juvenile. And, they were diving deep so great tail shows as they dove…..impressive for about 15 min or so!!
Gilbert Bay has a very long, maybe 1/2mile long mud flat, then abruptly drops off….we are having 17-19′ tides so we anchored in 100′ only to have it go to 55′ when we turn and are blown towards the mud flat. We had to anchor twice as the first time we got to 17’….like we would be aground at low tide…ugh!!! I did fish a bit….zilch…and set 1 crab pot….and drum roll, got two large males…one 7.5″…yea!!!
Sunday, May 5: We decided to leave Gilbert Bay after one night as the winds were forecasted to blow 20kt+ on Monday and we were pretty exposed in the anhcorage….so up at 6am, 2 cups of coffee, emails and Predict Wind gribs, pickup crab pot, do the happy dance for 2 large males and let 2 females go, then raise dinghy, anchor and get underway….all within an hour…whoa….record for us:)))
The passage to Windfall Harbor way up the Seymour Canal was 63nm….first you go south in the Stephen Passage for 30nm and then you go north in the Seymour Canal for 30nm….ugh:))). The weather was again dismal….very foggy, rainy but not much wind….<10kts against us and <1′ wind chop so a good ride but against that dang flood tide again. Of course, when we turned the corner at Point Hugh and started going north with the flood tide we were doing 8.5-9.0kts…yeah!!!! And as we turned the corner at Point Hugh….4 whale blows but then we got distracted by a pod of 10+ Dall porpoises….look like miniature killer whales….black on top, white bellies…they decided to come play with Mystic and we were treated to a great show….has been a while for us with dolphins/porpoises so indeed a treat!! Then a little bit later we saw a pod of Humpbacks…~8 with lots of tail shows….wow, the first 15nm of Seymour Canal was a critter show!!!
We were headed to Pack Creek just north of Windfall Island. There is a bear viewing area and has a Ranger station. During our time in Juneau in June 2006 fixing our broken mast, Darrell, Sandy, Kathy and me took a seaplane over for a bear viewing….we saw only 1 bear but the scenery was awesome!! We get to Pack Creek, hail the Rangers and nothing….hmmm, you do not need a permit until 6/1 so maybe no one is there yet??? So, since the winds are predicted to blow tomorrow, Monday, we decided to go another 3nm to Windfall Bay for better protection….and, drum roll, as we approach we see a Brown bear….walking the beach, oh, then running and pounce…he caught and ate a duck…whoa!!!
OK…will stop the blog here….it will continue!!!
Critter Stats:
Dungeness crab: 13 total; 2 large males in Gilbert Bay
Prawns: 4 Spotted
Whales: 40 total; saw 6 more in Lynn Canal/Stephen’s Passage; saw 4 Humpy’s in Port Snettisham, 3 adults and a small juvenile; saw 4 more Humpy’s as rounded Point Hugh into Seymour Canal and then saw 9 Humpy’s in Seymour Canal, 37 Humpbacks; 3 Orcas
Salmon: 0
Bears: 4 Browns, saw 1 as came into anchor at Windfall Bay; saw 2 more that evening
Wolves: 5
Otters: 700+, ~50% with pups; note…have not seen any since Glacier Bay….curious
Mountain Goats: total 42; saw 15 more along HWY 98 after White Pass
Dall’s Sheep: 3, along HWY98 after White Pass
Moose: 1, along HWY98 after White Pass
Alaskan Husky sled dogs: 60 at Michelle’s place
Stellar Sea Lions: ~450; saw 100 more in Chilkoot Inlet and Lynn Canal feasting on the Hooligans; saw a few more in Gilbert Bay
Hope all is well!!
John
Mystic Moon
Windfall Harbor, Seymour Canal Alaska
GO MYSTIC GO!!
Position: 57 50’09.23 N, 134 17’39.01 W
Course: Stopped.
Position: 19-05-06 07:27:56 -0800
http://maps.google.com/maps?&ll=57.8359,-134.2942&q=57.8359,-134.2942&z=16
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P
