June 10 Hi All, We did it!!!! The little trawler that can!!! Hallelujah!!!!! Celebrations on Mystic Moon tonight!!!! Wow….what a feeling to be done with this rough passage!! And to be back in the USA…..same dateline side, same hemisphere…..we are HOME!!!!! Yes, I have already been celebrating but just wanted to send a quick email … Read More →

June 10 Hi All, ODG….~85nm to go….I can taste the peace and quiet and tranquility of the anchorage….well, ok, the passage beers/whiskey as well:)))…..so close, but still 12 anxious hours away…. Yesterday was better…..still too much motion and hard for Kathy to cook….but winds calmed to 12-16kts E and seas to 4-7′ ESE with 8 … Read More →

  June 9 Hi All, I just came on watch and very sleepy….2nd night syndrome….slept really, really hard and woke from deep sleep….come on coffee do your thing!!! Weather still crappy and it’s hard to type!! Marginally better today…..winds 12-18G22, started off port bow ENE, then last night clocked to E, right on nose, and … Read More →

June 7 Hi All, Hmmm….as the Brits say….the weather is shite!!!! We did leave at 10:30am…..ideally we would have left last night or early am but no way with the check out procedures…we left the marina at 8:00am, motored 5nm to the pier 11 wharf, tied up by 8:45am, waited 30 min for Customs and … Read More →

June 2-6 Hi All, In my last blog over my frustration with the Officials I forgot some of the stats. We now have completed Leg 4 of MAC, Kushiro Hokadate Japan to Petropavlovsk Russia…..Mystic Alaska Cruise!!!! Distance for Leg 4: 933nm; 35nm circling 7.5 hours in front of Avacha Bay waiting permission to enter Total … Read More →

May 25-26 Hi All, Well….the good news…we are checked into Russia and secured in a small marina…yea!!!!! The bad news is Russia now has the record for the worst, and I mean worst by a long shot country to deal with officials. Fourteen and half hours….YES 14.5 HOURS…..even 12 hours after the experience I’m still … Read More →

June 1 Hi All, We made it to the pilot station in front of Avacha Bay by 7:00am RST and officialdom has struck again. We have been told by the Coast Guard to go to a waiting area. This happened to another boat we know…..we think it is due to Customs not opening until 8:00am…..it … Read More →

May 31 Hi All, Can you say FOG, FOG AND MORE FOG….arghhhhhhh!!!! Yep…..came in last night around 2200….ugh….thick, <1/4 mile visibility…..hoping it burns off today so we can see the Kamchatka peninsula!!! Yesterday we were treated to many snow covered mountains/hills on the islands….beautiful. But the best was the bird show out the PH windows…..a … Read More →

  May 29 Hi All, Day 3, All is well!!! Oops, yesterday I reported the air temp was 30*F….my bad…it was 40*F….still cold to us!!!! Yesterday during the day was sporty. As we were crossing the 40nm wide Friza Strait between Ostrov Urup and Shibetoro the winds went W – NW….very beamy….15-30kts, 6-8′ seas, some … Read More →

May 28 Hi All, Day 2 on passage to Petropavlovsk Russia and all is well!! Final thoughts on Japan: Overall the experience was positive…..certainly some high highs and some low lows!! The people, culture, history and food were highlights – very impressive, experiences of a lifetime. Cruising was a challenge and at times a PITA … Read More →