24th Women's Cruise-In:A Spectacular Event

The welcome mat is laid out on the dock at Coon Island. I put on my Albineers nametag and join in on the fun.

Anyone for cruising to Hawaii?

How 'bout high tea in Victoria?

 

Let's Go to the San Juan Islands

Pirates in the Caribbean

Big Booty On Board

Pacific Northwest Totems

Over to the Orient

Bahama Mamas

Palapala(Barbara): Heads up the committee boat in her elegant Hula oufit once used in the Merry Monarch Hula Festival in Hilo, Hawaii.

                                              

Her crew look like they are having fun.

Watch Out:

Captain Bev, a seasoned Columbia and Snake River cruiser goes over locking proceedures and favorite destinations with Hira. Bev's mother listens in while she knits away.

The Talent Show: Captain Bev and her crew perform Singing In the Rain and that is Bev's mother taking the lead dancer position. Wow.

Barbara and her crew Perfom: Can you imagine getting so dressed up for a dock party? I don't even have land clothes that look like this.

                                             

Octogenerian Dot and her crew from Warrenton sailed 90 miles in her Catalina 36 to get here for the party. In 24 years she has only missed 3 cruise-ins. The crew all learned to play the ukelele for this trip and Dot played her electric mini-violin and sang/telling stories of cruises in the past. She reminded me of Marjorie Maine of Tug Boat Annie Days. So Cute and loved by many. You go, girl.

Even the dogs loved it.

Aloha O'i  from Coon Island

Coon Island Bonanza

14 May 2010 Friday

With my bulging biceps I pull myself up on the bunk. Glorious blue sky welcomes me, as I swing open the cabin door. With the coffee water on, I check the weather for the weekend and it looks like today will be the best day. Rather than heading for Portland and dropping off batteries, I change gears, go to the grocery and pick up a few items and cast off the dock lines.

The Ladies Cruise-In will be at Coon Island, so might as well head down river and see what is happening. They are expecting several boats from all over the region; sail and power boats with a theme of Your Favorite Destination. They have a big weekend planned with all kinds of activities. All the women have to skipper their boats and no husbands are allowed. All the women handled their boats well even with the swift currents and ebbing tide.

I spotted another boat with old friends on board. Boots and Patti on their Tolleycraft, the Patti Sue. I have passed them often over the years but haven't been close enough to carry on a conversation. This is a real treat for me to get to chat with them.

The day went fast with lots of boat traffic, lots of visiting and it was a pleasure to see so many women at the helm. I hope they get to do it more than one day a year. There is something special about owning your own boat and I certainly hope that all women who boat with their husbands learn to handle their boats by themselves. As one lady said today, as she docked her boat for the first time, that she felt really empowered. Good for her.

Back In the Saddle Again

Thursday 13 May 10:
After a very quick turn around at my casa, I'm back on board with 2 new auxillary batteries installed. Mind you this job is not for the feeble boater.The multnomah channel is a slough which is diked on both sides at the height of about 30 feet and at any given moment the ramp coming down to the dock is a drop of 20 feet at the minimum. I made 2 trips down with the new batteries and 2 trips up with the old batteries, plus all the lugging in and out of the battery compartment and on and off the boat, up and down the docks, in and out of the car....are you getting the picture? Did I mention each battery weighs 50 pounds? In the morning, if my biceps aren't screaming in spasm, I'll get to drive back into Portland, haul the old batteries into the store for a $ 20.00 refund. Boating is such fun.

Bijaboji

This new addition to Shatoosh's library is a fantastic read. Betty Lowman rowed her indian canoe from Guemes Island, Washington to Ketchikan, Alaska in 1937.  While published in 2004, it is difficult to find and has to be a special order. Her story is beautifully written and her journey very exciting. I couldn't put it down once I started reading it yesterday. This has got to be a classic Pacific Northwest read and should be in every boat library.

After graduating from University of Washington she rows her boat to Alaska where her father is fishing. The journey takes over 60 days and she endures all kinds of weather, seas and meets fascinating people who help her complete the journey. It ranks up on the list with the classic, A Curve in Time.

ISBN 1-55017-392-8 Harbour Publishing http://www.harbourpublishing.com/

A Sunny Work Day

Sunday 9 May 2010 Mother's Day

The other night after dark set in and as my head was hitting the pillow, I heard an active group of coyotes off in the distance. I could hear 4 distinct voices and they were definitely on the island. This is the first time for me to hear that call of the wild, while in Martin Slough. I always hear them while tied up for the night at Coon Island. I do love to hear them, as it conjurers up pioneering life in rural America.

This morning I ran the engine and charged the house batteries, then put Pashmina in the water and scrubbed the Shatoosh's hull, waterline and bottom as far as I could reach with the deck brush. Then I scrubbed Pashmina and put her back on the cabin top. Her tarp has met its last days so I have another to replace it. I fix the ends of all the tarp lines, taping and heating the ends.

 The weather continues to be beautiful and warm. It is such a joy to have good weather. Another couple in an old sailboat pulled in last evening. They were moving her to her new slip in Kalama. Both of us spent the morning cleaning boats and they were getting all the winter dirt off. She looked quite presentable when they left and they were excited to have her near their new home in Longview. I bid them farewell and wished them lots of fun in the coming months.

I left at 1445 hrs and slugged my way back up river and against the tide and current. The best I could muster was 6.2 knots and that was hanging out on the outer fringes of the river on the Oregon side. I by passed my other favorite, Coon Island, as the wind started to get cold and a rain squall was approaching. I did, in fact, pass a huge sea lion who was in hot pursuit of salmon. The Multnomah Channel was serene and still and hardly any boat traffic.

I had such a wonderful trip and the sun has boosted my spirits.
Total miles run 36.9

My Old Favorite- Martin Slough

Yesterday the sun was shinning and after getting supplies I depart for my old fav lagoon: Martin slough. The weather is perfect, the Columbia still and peaceful and I arrive after sliding down river with the ebbing tide at 8.5 knots. It could not have been a more perfect cruise. I meet a freighter coming up river.

My gps is being mapped on Sea Clear and the chartplotter is performing as it should. I look for my hearty mother osprey and she has already hatched her chick. Last year she had 3 and nutured them all to fledge. I slow down to navigate the cut and as expected, I am alone in the lagoon. What a treat.

I awake to crystal clear blues skies, a slight breeze fills the lagoon with one large cat's paw.

While the temperature is crisp the projection is a high of 70, which is a nice break from 47. The cattle herd is growing and I see 3 big black angus bulls and a few recent calves. 7 vultures are circling on the east side of the lagoon, but what catches my eagle eye is a pair of wood ducks cruising past the dock. This is a first for me to see these beauties here in the lagoon. They spend some time preening themselves on the shore and then take flight and circle back to the trees in the meadow. They build nests in trees and then shove their chicks out, sometimes falling 20 ft. They tumble and roll and are ready to follow their mother to the water to get their first swimming lesson.

I have a list of things to do, as usual, but will enjoy the weather and the peace that nature provides. A great blue meanders down the dock towards Shatoosh, and the swallows are flitting everywhere skimming insects off the water. I am certain today will be a delicious reminder that summer is near and I am going to enjoy the rare rays of sunshine on my pale body.

I pump up new fenders and attach lines. these will be used in the locks along with the new bow and stern lines that  I prepared a few weeks ago. I tightened all the nuts on cleats, pulpit railing, and the deck bolts in preparation of extra loads. Lots of scrubbing and cleaning done.

Went down to the end of the dock to say hi to all the cows. Many are new mothers and a red headed (hereford)  came over to smell my hand. I thought since it was Mother's Day weekend I should take their photos, as no other boats have cruised in. Where have all the mothers gone?

Late afternoon a lovely Tiara powerboat named Mattanza pulls into the dock, cooks up some burgers in minutes and hand delivers one to me. The new owners are familiar with Albins, so they get a tour and just as fast as they appeared, they departed. So fast, I didn"t get a photo of them. Thanks folks for the delicious burger and it was nice meeting you and seeing your boat. The sun is behind the cottonwoods now and it has been a beautiful day spent in nature with the sun beaming glorious rays upon me. With a burger in my belly, I'll settle down with some hot tea and have a quiet evening. At 9 pm I discover my #2 batteries are dead.They have been loosing their charge, so will have to get them replaced. They are only 4 years old. 

Ah, The Sound of a Ringing Bell

Thursday 6 May 2010

I'm on board this afternoon after a quick house-sitting stint on Orcas Island. I have to admit sometimes life is tough but someone has to do the difficult tasks. While I was there, I went out on my favorite whale watching boat, The Orca Express. J-pod is one of the resident pods in the Puget Sound and they were beginning to come down from BC. We got to see many of them in Rosario Strait between Deception Pass and Lopez Island. Granny, the matriarch is 99 years old and her son, Ruffles or J1 is 55 years old this year. It is always a treat to see these magnificent creatures. Dan, the captain and his naturalist, Deb always go the extra mile so everyone gets a wonderful experience. As a genealogist, I love that they have photos and genealogies of J,K and L pods available for review.

The first order of the afternoon was to mount the SS Independence Bell. First, I had to remove a photo and the hat rack in the head, then drill through the bulkhead and finally through bolt everything. The bell is quite large for this small boat but makes an impressive statement and sound in this small cabin. I like it tho and enjoy our shared history of cruising the Hawaiian waters, the SF Bay area and Suisun Bay. Just out of interest I looked up her sister ship, The SS Constitution and she, too, had a terrible ending to her life. While being towed from Portland to Asia for ship wrecking, she began taking on water and sank 700 miles north of the Hawaiian Islands. What disastrous endings for such beautiful ships.