Boat wakes awaken me at 0445. I get up and look around and climb back into my warm bunk.
I get up in 2 hours and my eyes are red, itchy, and I'm sneezing. I take an antihistamine, put the mantra on, the coffee water, meditate and give myself a Reiki treatment. The morning is sunny but then clouds over for the day. After breakfast I take the stove out and give the galley a good cleaning. Next is the ice chest and all the food is stored in the dc refrig. I take an inventory of remaining foods, plan meals for the remainder of the trip and will throw in a few meals at Washougal and St. Helens. I should get home with all the food gone. I use all my left over ice water to refill the solar shower. I don't want to waste my fresh water. I tidy up the aft cabin deck
and she looks nautical and nice.
and she looks nautical and nice.After lunch I take a little 15 minute snooze and read more about Lewis and Clarke in this area. They camped along the river coming into Washougal and stayed quite a while. Clarke took a group back down to explore the Willamette River, another group explored the Sandy River across the way, which they called Quicksand island. The main thrust in 1806 on their way back east was to provision themselves as best they could. Smoking meats, using the elk hides to make clothes and twist into ropes to haul the boats up river and portage them through the Cascade Falls. They tanned hides that would buy horses once they got to Nez Perce country. I love reading and re-reading about this adventure. I never tire of it. I have several books, calendars, brochures and pamphlets about the Corps of Discovery. I always learn something new that I missed on the previous reading. For example, for all the hard work that York and Sacagawea did, they were the only 2 that weren't compensated for their service. York pleaded with Capt Clarke upon their return to be granted his freedom from slavery, but Clarke would never give it to him. Other not so known facts: Clarke did take in the 2 children of Sacagawea to raise and educate them, as if they were his own. Clarke married a 15 year girl upon his return, Lewis never married and he never managed to get his journals published. Many people never learned that he was probably manic-depressive and an alcoholic and finally committed suicide. Such a tragic ending for such a talented man.
I watch with interest when an older wood, lapstrake hulled power boat about 35 feet length enters the anchorage and continues deep into backwaters. He probably has a 3 foot draft. He anchors near the island shore. He anchors for a while but then drift fishes while coming back out to the main river. I'll have to check this out in the morning. After sunset I put on my anchor light and continue reading with my new cockpit light. I had a simple, easy, restful day at anchor. I love being in a quiet anchorage.
