Ann and SmartyPants Show Up in Cathlamet

13 September Saturday

I get up early and shower, as the showers are great here at the marina. They cost a quarter. It is interesting how everything along the oregon side is free and on the washington side you pay for everything. Linda comes over to have breakfast and I fix my special french toast and she brings her own hearty coffee. Her camping spot has just been perfect for she and Tux, her cat. It has inspired her to maybe hook up with me more often. This is her second trip and we have had a nice time. Linda is quick to learn and handy to have onboard. We'll have to plan some other trips in the future. We think how funny it was for us to both be in a bar last night. It has been ions for us yoginis to be in a bar. We really had a nice time listening to the good singers, like Larry and some of his friends. Linda leaves to return to Tacoma. I hang around the marina and mid morning I go over to the rv section to see if I can find Larry and his wife Susan. She is there and they are camping in their truck, so I sit on a foot stool and talk with her. Larry shows up and we talk about the singing last night. I am killing time waiting for Ann to show up. She calls and lets me know she in the marina parking lot. I'm trying to find her, but can't. I don't see her car, so I call her back to find out where she is. Well, she has bought a new Smart Car and it is really sassy. Smart cars are made by Swatch and Mercedes. It is really fun to drive and you feel like you are in a big car inside and then when step out you wonder what happened to the rest of the car. We head into town to get groceries and block ice.

We pump out the holding tank on the head, for .50 cents and buy 10 gal of fuel and then we are on our way headed for Kerry West Marina on the Oregon side up Westport Slough at 1550.

Westport Slough is a deep water slough across the Columbia from Puget island. At 1700 we enter the slough and are docked at 1750. I find Keith ,the owner on the docks and give him my

$ 5.oo fee for tying up. He tells us some of the boats are going up for auction, as the owners have abandoned them, not paying their slip fees, of course. The place is full of derelict boats. It is a sad commentary that people just let these old boats just rot. There are many well kept boats in here and large ocean going vessels. This is a great place to leave a vessel as it is a safe, deep water moorage. Keith has rebuilt many of the docks laying in new timbers from his own land. He is a hard working marina owner and manager. There aren't usually any guest docks, but he has always let me tie up on the landing next to the NOAA Reseaarch vessels. The water at Kerry West Marina is fed by several springs that have the purest water. Keith lets us fill up our extra jugs of water. We take 4 gallons. By land the marina lies on Hwy 30 west of Clatskanie and east of Westport heading towards Astoria. It is out in the country.

Days run 12 nm

Total 122 nm