June 4-10
Hi All,
Tuesday June 4: We were up early and at the fuel dock by 8am…..300 gals at $3.44…yikes….a month ago it was $3.30….ugh!!! We made Funter Bay on the west side of Admiralty Island around noonish….~25nm…trawler like conditions except it was pretty cloudy and some showers. But we did get to see 3 whales, eagles, ducks and many Dall’s porpoises. We showed Wayne & Sharon the routine….anchor down, passage beers open, dinghy down, fishing poles in off the stern, go set 3 traps…..2 crab, 1 prawn…..done by 2pm….sweet as!!!
Mark & Roseanne on Koinonia had been in this bay the past 2 nights and had left for Hoonah with their guests. Mark gave us a good tip on setting crab pots 2 coves over in Crab Cove….well, it lived up to its name….we checked the pots at 5:15pmafter a 3-4 hour soak and we had caught 17…..9 keepers, we kept our legal 6, tossed the others back, and so the games begin…..FRESH CRAB for dinner….yummers…..good wine, good friends, fresh Dungeness crab, salad and garlic bread….LIG!!! The next morning before we left we pulled the pots and had caught 12 more…..so in 18 hours we caught 29 crab…..20 keepers of which we could legally keep 12….I was told to stop crabbing for a day or so….music to this crabber’s ears:)))))
We also set our new prawn pot….but, unfortunately the same sad results continued….caught 3….although I do like the new setup, I was not happy with the set….felt we had drifted off the rocks into a flat mud spot at 325′ so I was not too surprised with the poor results….arghhhhh!!!!!
Wednesday June 5: Wayne & I were up early….out to get the 3 traps, back to Mystic, happy dance over the crab, sad face over the prawns, lifted the dinghy and anchor, and out by 9am!!! We went 33nm to North Bight in Port Frederick, but we made many stops…..got to the anchorage around 3pm….saw 8 whales along the way, made a diversion to Rocky Point Light off Point Couverden and saw a group of sea lions hauled off on the rocks….Sharon is a masterful photographer and got some great shots….she counted over 160 sea lions…..many roaring and growling….wow!!! We also saw SV Dione in Icy Strait, friends we met in the Aleutians after their crossing the Pacific from Japan…but unfortunately we could not get their attention, so continued on in to Port Frederick. We talked to Mark some on the VHF as they were on the dock in Hoonah, then downloaded our emails et al from the cell tower in Hoonah….and went about 5nm into the Bay and were treated with 3 whales putting on a sho
w…..bubble netting! We stopped for an hour or so…..you could see the whales making the circle with bubbles under the fish and then out they came, mouths open scooping up the fish….ODG….what an adrenaline rush…..and, Sharon captured some outstanding pictures….wow, wow, wow!!!
We were pretty tired when we got in from all the critter viewings and it was somewhat cold and drizzly so we decided to not set any traps. Kathy and Sharon picked crabs….they got >8 cups of fresh meat and Kathy made her delicious fresh crab chowder…..used about 4 cups of the crab meat, every spoonful is full of crab….ODG….she has perfected the recipe and this was her best batch yet…perfect amount of spice, creaminess and crab!!!! And, she did tell me I can go crabbing again:))))
Thursday June 6: Woke up early….wanted to sleep in….but what is that light….ODG, that is sun….it was 4am….wow…..what a beautiful day….after about 6 days of rain and low clouds we were ready for some bright, warm sunshine!!! Today we headed to Dundas Bay, just west of Glacier Bay and part of the Glacier Bay Park. We wanted W&S to see some of the magnificent Coastal mountains and the beauty of Dundas Fiord. It was 53nm and it took us about 7.5 hours…..at times we were fighting a 4-5kt foul current…..ugh!!!! We did see 3 Humpback whales….not great viewings but still close enough to see body and tails, many sea lions hunting even in the big currents, and many eagles hunting as well upon which Sharon got some amazing pictures. And, we saw many otters…..not as many as in Glacier Bay but enough that Sharon had her “otter” day….still think of them as those cute, crab eating varmints:))) We anchored at the head of Dundas Bay…..a deep valley shaped by receding
glaciers surrounded by 3-4’k mountains…..still some snow left….and everything was a brilliant, emerald green….so lush….the sun was still out and we all sat in the cockpit mesmerized by the amazing beauty surrounding us….wow, wow, wow!!!!
Friday June 7: Slept in….but still out by 8:00….another long day….55nm to Swanson Bay by Point Couverden. We stopped at 2 spots that a friend in Hoonah had told Mark were good spots for Halibut…..not the best of conditions…..cloudy, blowing 10-15kts and up to 25kts by the time we got to Swanson….TG it was behind us….pretty cold…..and our poor halibut showing continues…no joy….caught many sculpins and I got hung once requiring massive maneuvering of Mystic to get the rig free….oh, I suppose it could have been an 100-lb halibut refusing to move…yep, that’s my new story:))) We did see 6 whales…..2 Minkes and 4 Humpbacks…..one Humpy suddenly came right up 20′ off the strbd bow….was a bit concerned its tail would smack Mystic…..ODG….what a rush….got to the controls and throttled down and into neutral, it resurfaced off starboard….50′ away….then we drifted away but it continued to feed off our stern….got some great pics!!!!
We arrived in Swanson around 4pm….a great day. There is a small public dock but it was full so we found an anchor spot at the head of the cove….perfect….Sharon starts fishing off the stern and bam….catches 2 crab (off the hook, amazing) and 1 small flounder….we eventually threw a crab pot off the back of the boat as I was too tired to lower the dinghy…..we watched the line carefully as to not wrap anything and in 30 min we had 5 crab…..only 1 keeper though!!!! For dinner, Costco prime steak Oscar with Bearnaise with a Australian Wynn Cab…..ODG…to die for!!!!
Saturday June 8: Everyone agreed Swanson Harbor is another good one….the views across Southern Lynn Canal and Icy Strait are gorgeous and the small cove is lined with small meadows. We left around 9am, went by Rocky Point Light again to see the 200+ Stellar Sea Lions….this time they were just getting settled from a night of hunting and the 3 bulls were quite vocal as well as all the females and kids…..the roaring sounds and snorts were a treat for sure!!! We made the 28nm cruise in about 4 hours arriving around 1pm in Pavlov Harbor in Freshwater Bay off Chatham Strait. ….anchor down, passage beers open, fishing lines out…..bam, bam….small flounder and more sculpin….we have enough bait for 2 crab pots so lower the dinghy and set the traps. Koinonia also came in to anchor a little later and we had some nice chats and decided to do “closing ceremonies” tomorrow in Tenakee Inlet. Pavlov has a nice size stream at the head with a beautiful waterfall….sweet as!! The
day was closed with a rousing game of Mexican Train dominoes and then Kathy made fresh crab risotto with a salad….with a 2002 Concannon Petite Sirah Reserve that was excellent….ODG Kathy out did herself on the risotto packed with fresh crab….yummers!!!
Sunday June 9: So much jocularity/good times the crew was a bit tired so another day to relax and sleep in….I didn’t get up to almost 7am…..wow…feeling good!!! ODG….went to pickup the crab traps…..the one we set off the stream had 8 small King crabs and 7 Dungeness…..holy cow….we thought Dungeness and Kings did not mix but wrong….all the Kings were undersized….in the 4-5″ across the carapace but still, with their huge legs, bigger than the Dungeness. In all we caught our 6 keeper limit on the Dungeness and of course, threw all the Kings back!!! We decided to go into Tenakee Springs and tie up to the dock. We were meeting Koinonia there for closing ceremonies with all the guests. We finally saw our 1st bear of the trip….a big Brown grizzly chopping grass on the shoreline about a mile from Tenakee. By the time we got Mystic up close the bear had taken one look and said …..nope, can’t put my face on Facebook and promptly left for the forest…..whaaaaaaaa!!
We docked about 11:30am and went for a walk in this charming small town. I’m not sure of the population…..maybe 60 residents in the winter and ~200 in the summer. Looked like maybe 100 homes most on pilings along the shoreline!!! We had dinner on Koinonia….beef and halibut burgers….Roseanne had cup cakes and ice cream to celebrate Kathy’s and Charmane’s birthdays…..the girls get a birthday month:))) And everyone looked at all the pictures and told about all the amazing scenery and critter showings…..tops were a single whale very close to Koinonia bubble feeding in Funter Bay and the pictures Sharon took of the 3 whales we saw bubble netting in Port Frederick!!
Monday June10: A very sad day….Wayne and Sharon said good-bye and got on a small seaplane from Tenakee Springs to Juneau. They will overnight there before going on to Seattle and then Baja!!! It was an excellent gathering filled with way too much laughter, story telling and just good fun!!! Mark & Roseanne’s guests left as well and around noon we both headed for Crab Cove about 8nm away and settled in for a long summer nap, book reading and rejuvenation:))))
The Plan: After a few days to catch our breath, rest up, do a few boat projects and clean a bit, we will start cruising…..do not have a detailed itinerary but will cruise more in Tenakee Inlet, Chatham Strait, Peril Strait, Salisbury Sound and then Sitka over the next two weeks. King Salmon season opens on June 15 so we will finally get to do some trolling for salmon!!
Sunlight: Sunrise is now 4am and sunset is 10pm…..18 hours of sunlight…..add dawn, dusk, twilight and we only have ~1-2 hours of complete darkness!!! Air temps are in the the low 50-s to 60’s F….sweet as!!!
Weather: Well, Craig & Jeanette get the prize for the most sunshine and least rain on their visit. While it did not rain too much with Wayne & Sharon, we only had 2-3 days of sunshine and the rest somewhat cloudy. Well, yesterday, today and tomorrow it is raining hard with very low clouds….as in, very good sleeping and resting up weather:)))
Critter Stats:
Dungeness Crab: 67 total; 12 in Crab Cove in Funter Bay; 1 in Swanson; 6 in Pavlov Bay
Prawns: 25: 11 Spotted, 14 Coon Stripe; 3 Spotted in Funter Bay
Whales: 144 total; 127 Humpbacks; 11 Orcas; 6 Minke: 3 in Stephen’s Passage, 8 in Icy Strait & Port Frederick; 3 Humpy’s in Icy Strait; 6 in Icy Strait; 1 in Northern Chatham; 1 Minke in Tenakee Inlet
Salmon: 0
Bears: 34 Browns; 1 in Tenakee Inlet
Wolves: 5
Otters: 795; 10 in Icy Strait; 30+ in Dundas Inlet; 30+ coming out; 5 in Icy Strait
Mountain Goats: 42 total
Dall’s Sheep: 3
Moose: 3
Alaskan Husky sled dogs: 60
Stellar Sea Lions: 789; 160 off Rocky point in Icy Strait; 8 in Icy Strait; 5 in Icy Strait; 200+ off rocky point
Hope all is well!!
Cheers,
John
Mystic Moon
Crab Cove off Tenakee InletAlaska
Position: 57 44’12.95 N, 135 25’30.91 W
Course: Stopped.
Position: 19-06-10 15:27:47 -0800
http://maps.google.com/maps?&ll=57.73693,-135.4253&q=57.73693,-135.4253&z=16
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