Pick Your Weather

Morning has broken and I'm up at dawn. The cockpit temperature is 52 degrees F, the cabin much warmer and anyway I'm hanging out in my bag with a mug of coffee. I look over my shoulder out the window and there is a small blue break in the grey skies. It looks thin, I say to myself, hoping for the best. I have my green drink and nuts for breakfast.

I have a row of old saline solution bottles that keep cereal, nuts, rice and those red/yellow/blue vitamins called peanut M and M's. The bottles are perfect for the boat and have an indentation where a bungee cord could hold them tight on a shelf. These bottles aren't just any ole bottles. I have had these bottles on board Sabra and Shatoosh and maybe some were on Jean's Gulf 32, Namaste. They came from the PT clinic, Tripler Army Medical Center, and sailed from Hawaii with me back in 1982. These bottles have had a shelf life of 29 years, so far.



I watched mother osprey. Father flies in with a fish. She gets up on top of the nest and eats, then flies to a tree and he gets down on the nest. She then flies off towards the Columbia River. This is the first time I have seen this. Perhaps they rotate roles.  Since ospreys are sea hawks, I wonder if all the male Seattle Sea
Hawks' fans know about this behavior. Probably not.

The weather report predicts afternoon thunder showers. About 1045, the clouds are beginning to break up,
and I'm thinking it might be better to be hunkered down in Westport Slough than to be hanging out in the swift current with strong winds. It can get pretty rough at this dock with upriver winds.

1105 hrs: I slip my lines from the dock and in a flash the current has taken me away from the dock. I silently thank my animal friends and thank the dock, as this place has brought me many new friends and it certainly gives everyone a safe place to rest and have fun. I see several sailboats heading up river, slowly slogging against the current. I'm glad for this healthy boost of water on my stern and under my belly. It is not long and I'm back on the main channel of the Columbia and my speed against the flood current is 10.3 k.

An in bound ship hailing from Hong Kong passes me at Crims and Gull Islands. Shatoosh takes those big bow wakes really easy. I am approaching Eureka Island, which is one of my favorite anchorages, and I come across the racing sloop, Rage. I'm thinking it might be returning from the Astoria-Victoria race that took place last month. She is long and sleek and the 3 people in the cockpit were all bundled up in heavy foul weather gear. We waved and I thanked my lucky stars I was sitting in a warm cockpit out of the weather.

The wind is picking up and we are nearing Cape Horn on the Wa side of the river. I have been in the worst seas in this section of the river, so I stood to steer, waiting for the seas and wind to build. But it didn't happen. Just some 2 foot wind waves that seemed to be crunched by the current. Shatoosh just moved right through them, not even taking spray into the windows. I pick up the next 2 sets of range markers along the Oregon shore.The Waikiakum, the ferry from Puget Island to Westport is off to starboard at the Puget Island dock.









At 1248 hrs. I take the red nun "N56" to my port and make my turn around it. This marks a shoal that extends into the entrance of Westport Slough. I slow to creeping at 3 knots, by choice. I'm thinking that the water will be deep this time, but in a matter of minutes I am in 7,6, and 5 feet of water. In hind sight, I feel that I was too close to shore and missing the deeper segment of the entrance. If one goes too far to  port then you are in the shallow shoals. Once in there is plenty of water, 30-40 feet today. Salmon were jumping and the seal lions were there having a feast.

I called the marina owner, Keith, on my cell phone, but his wife said he was out at the logging site. I found an empty slip, which is unusual, so took it and waited until Keith the owner came down. Keith has built this marina, using his own logs, drying and milling them and laying each board by himself. This slough reminds me of the Georgiana Slough in the Delta which I stayed on. I like coming here and Keith usually finds a place for me. There isn't a guest dock, but over the years, he remembers me and gets me set up. He has some of the best  spring water you will ever find. I think there are 5 springs that are on his property. I purposely didn't put much water in my tank and have been nursing my small supply, so that I could fill my tank full of the delicious liquid and brought along 4 extra gallon bottles to fill, as well.

I asked Keith about the restaurant down the road. Its a mile he says, and it is easier to walk on the railroad tracks than the road. He also adds, he'd be happy to give me a lift when I was ready to go. I asked how much for the slip. How 'bout $5.00 to cover the electricity, he says and that would do it. Don't worry about how many days. Stay as long as you like I don't think anyone is in that slip and if there is, I'll have them move. somewhere else. Got plenty of room right now, he says. He is such a kind and gentle soul and a very hard worker. If you ever need a deep water, protected place to leave a boat over the winter, this is it. Its about 40 miles to the ocean.

The NOAA research vessels went out on a nightly run. They have a fancy electric catamaran with a fish examaning system. Looks pretty complicated to me.

The sun came out in all her glory and I had to unlayer a bit, as it was getting warmer by the minute. I was doing the usual Zen thing of hauling water, but Keith was chopping the wood. I can't tell you how delighted I am about getting this water. The water in Scappoose has lots of iron in it, so to have pure, clean water makes me very happy. My tank is smiling right now and Shatoosh whispered as I was falling asleep, "we are getting closer to the ocean".

Day' run: 18.9 nm

Total: 59.4 nm

More Rain

I am awakened at 0430 hrs. The rushing waters under the hull sounds like a babbling brook. The rain on the cabin top sandwiches me between the two and I'm not certain where I am. Oh yes, I remember, I'm on Walker island and I'm going on a down river trip. Shatoosh is bobbing like a cork in the eddies created from the log jam at the up river side of the dock.

The rain comes and goes all day long with a few lasting breaks later in the afternoon. All my earlier caulking attempts have paid off, not a drop is entering the boat. After a meager, non holiday breakfast, I start to tend to my list. I added some things that I want to get started on to prepare us for the pacific ocean.
1. I get the 2 survival suits out and decide that Joyce will wear mine and I will wear Jean's old one. We will wear either the suits or life jackets throughout the entire trip.
2. I pull out the manual hand bilge pump and find a new user friendly spot for it behind the cabin door.

3. I find a new place for the inverter behind the VHF radio. I charge my camera battery, as it needs 110.

4. I run the engine to charge my house batteries and check all the fluids, belts, fittings and batteries.
















5. During a rain break, I untie Pashmina and unload her to the dock. Scrub her down. The rain comes again which washes off the cabin top. Thank you, Mister Rain. It clears, and then I stow her back on top and cover her up with a tarp. Later I will put the survival bag and drinking water in her. How nice that the rain cooperated with my plan.

At one point there were 3 eagles chasing each other in some kind of mating game. The male osprey brought fishes to the nesting mother, I saw a flash out of the corner of my eye; a flying single duck headed for a broken piling next to shore. It was a female Wood Duck and she landed inside the top of the piling. Wow, what a rare find. How lucky am I to get to see this one, but the rains continue and another sweet vision appears with the next rain break. Mother mallard with her newest brood of 6 adorable yellow babies out for perhaps a maiden voyage. She is heading for Shatoosh but when not able to make head way against the current she leads them to shore and I follow them for a long time with the binoculars. She weaves them through brush, over branches and they scurry as fast as they can. Some get behind, but get a burst of energy and they look like they are shot out of a cannon, as they leap forward and close the gap. I've always said to myself, all you have to do is go somewhere, anchor in a remote place and nature will provide the best show in town. You have to be quiet, just sit and watch. I'm never disappointed. Oh, majestic Columbia, you know how to please me.

My life gets very simple on board. The farther my trips stretch out, the more I fall into a deep rhythm of the river. The pull of the tides, the rush of the current, the ever changing weather. You soon surrender to it all and love every minute of it. I relax to the beat of the universe and I am happy to see another generation of life evolve out here in the back waters.  Oh Columbia, I am going to miss you.

Move to Walker Island

Happy Memorial Day to all you Military Veterans, Retirees and Active Duty Personnel. Thank you for all your years of service serving our wonderful country. In celebration of this great day and holiday weekend I am fixing me another big breakfast.
This morning I'm trying one of Pam's big country eggs and her egg toast. Yummy.

The sun breaks through so I go forward to weigh anchor and surprise; a 20 foot log is entangled on my anchor line. Back to the cockpit for the camera and boat hook. I takes a few pokes, twists and jabs, but I am finally freed of the thing.

The river is fast and many ships and tug traffic are busy scooting here and there.

This mother osprey might need to be looking for a new house, if the water continues to be released out the Bonneville Dam.











I pull in to Kalama to see if I can spot my friends on Knot Enuf, but no luck. There is a lot of debris in the harbor, so I get out, as fast, as I went in. I'm not looking for trouble. Many of the waterfront places are just about awash. Kalama river houses are high on the flood list .

Joyce calls and I give her updates. It will be nice to have her onboard and she is looking forward to arriving.
I slip fast under the Lewis and Clark Bridge and here is what it looks like thru the camera, the radar and the chartplotter.

The empty shipping vessels are in a que waiting for a berth at the Longview port. I pass the Star Juventas carrying wind generator towers and remember that they all seem to come from Norway. I say, Bergen, to myself and as she passes, I read Bergen on the stern. Yes, kudos to me.

A tug loaded with 4 barges passes me to starboard heading down river and my average speed is 10k. I make my turning buoy at Walker Island and head up the channel. My speed drops to 4.5k. A large Tolleycraft is tied to the Walker Island Dock and the current is running fast all around it. I dock Shatoosh easily and later the skipper sees me and apologizes for not helping me. He didn't hear the engine. I recognize his face, but I'm not sure where I know him from. He says his name and I realize he is Tim, who hauled Shatoosh to the Snake River. He sits on the dock railing and we talk for a long time. He has lots of questions about my Snake trip and my upcoming trip. He just keeps shaking his head in disbelief about all the journeys. He prepares his boat to depart and I am alone on another favorite place. Thanks Tim for hauling me to the Snake. He is one, cool guy.

The sun continues to smile upon me today and I am one happy river rat.

Sunday, 29 May 2011

Its overcast, another cup of coffee and later in the morning French Toast with homegrown eggs from Pam out in Yelm, WA. A few blueberries and syrup make a perfect Sunday brunch. I'm getting lots of well wishes and blessings for my trip down river. Thank you all.

Yesterday I took a photo of a sweet gaff rigged cat boat and today several men were in it having fun. I hailed them over and Bob, the skipper, and also the owner of a Willard 30 cutter is heading down river to set sail across the bar on the 10th. He is cruising with a group and will be following a more offshore route than we will be taking. They will not be harbor hopping. The name of the vessel is Wings of the Dawn. They are headed for BC. Perhaps I will see them again along the way..They liked the photo I took and I have sent it to his email and in turn take my camera for a sail and take some pictures of Shatoosh and me.

The weather was gloomy gray with a few prospects of sun breaks that never happened. I check in with my crossing guru, Larry, of the Starship. With so much raging water being swept down river to the ocean, perhaps this will impact my depart schedule at buoy 10. I might have to adjust. Will see what he has to say about this. This current will be colliding with the incoming tide at a much great intensity, making for a harder crossing.

No rain, which is good.

Underway At Last

Dawn came with torrents of rain, but then started to settle down.

At 1045, Paul, the end dock mate, assists my departure and I am out on the fast running Multnomah Channel. I take a few minutes to get the chartplotter up and running and then turn down river at 8.6 knots against the tide.














I stop in St Helens, on the Columbia River and top off my fuel tank and fill my extra jugs. I have 3.5 more gallons which will give me an extra 35 miles just in case of an emergency. My fuel range will be 235 miles.

I depart and and my speed picks up to 9.5k. The river is so full of water, there is one red marker  that is at water level and others are close to water level, some are about 4 feet above. I am eye level to many of the osprey nests which sit atop the markers..








At 1307hrs, I make my turn at Martin bluff and can see that all the normal landmarks for entering the narrow gap between the rocky port shore and the starboard sand spit are both under water. I switch over my gps page to trackback and settle in on my past paths of entry. After all these years of entering the slough using these specific landmarks, I find myself lost for a moment on my last visit to Martin Slough. It becomes all new for me and I begin anew, seeing with new eyes. There is lots of debris in the water and I take a few bumps with submerged pieces of wood.

This is normally a big weekend for Martin Slough, so I am coming to see how crowded the place might be. The cut into the lagoon is 20 feet deep, compared to its usual 7 ft. There is only about 25 boats here so I pick a quiet corner near the south end. The anchor sets nicely, so I am set for the rest of the day. People dinghy by or sail by in their small craft.

 Bucky the beaver swam by to see me. Its been a while, so nice to see he is still in the area. The skies are full of eagles, ospreys, great blues and even an old sea lion lifted his head and snorted me earlier in the day. All day I have been buoyed with a buffer of sun and on the outer rim are large cumulus storm clouds.














My Scottish flag blowing in the wind.
Beautiful blue sky.

My radar shows the land in black, my anchored position is at the end of the fine vertical line in the center of the inner ring. The 2 large round dots are boats anchored near by. At the bottom of the screen the cut into the lagoon shows.













About 7pm a rain squall came through from the north, but blew over in minutes and now at 8:47 pm the sun is setting and a lovely sky of golden pink is off my bow. This is a nice end to a long rainy stretch and it is nice to begin my voyage. After so many months of planning, it is wonderful to have a sunny window of opportunity to knock on my deck. I end my day, filled with gratitude for my wonderful 8 years on this majestic river. She has taught me plenty, treated me kindly and given Shatoosh, Pashmina and myself so many amazing adventures. My heart is full tonight.
Day's Run: 17.9 nm.

Our Final Down River Voyage Waits for the Weather

8 years ago on Memorial Weekend 2003, Too Tall Tom and I loaded up Shatoosh on a trailer, departed Oxbow Marina in the "California delta"and headed north to Oregon and the Columbia River. I had settled on mooring her on the Multnomah Channel, a side channel off the Columbia and Willamette rivers. It is located out in the country, with Sauvie Island on one side and the Oregon mainland on the other side. This has been a lovely, quiet marina to call "home". Many years passed before I actually stayed on board for more than a day. I was in and out, fast, so I could go exploring. I stayed one time for 2 weeks painting the cabins and touching up the wood work. I thought to myself, this is really enjoyable to stay here for a while. I used the laundry and showers and explored my own marina for a change. So, after all these years and over 3600 nm of cruising the Columbia, Snake and Willamette Rivers, it is most fitting that I am again, departing on Memorial Weekend. Both cruising grounds have been most memorable for me.

The Columbia, Snake and Willamette Rivers birthed many adventures for Shatoosh, Hira and Pashmina as one only needs to read the 3 years of blog entries that have been made. I even birthed the blog in these waters. In fact, my niece was hospitalized with an unstable pregnancy which caused her to have to be on 3 months of bed rest. To keep herself from going crazy, she started a blog. When I heard how easy it was to establish, I enthusiastically leaped from logging my boating experiences to blogging them. My innocent intention of letting my friends and family keep track of my wanderings, soon dissolved into a world wide success story. Hira and Shatoosh would be known on first name-basis only. All one needs to do is google: hira and shatoosh, and presto, the blog is there for all to read. The audience stats still amaze me and last week Algeria and Mexico joined our expanded family, along with Iran, Aruba, Israel and most of the European and Asian countries have continued to read along. I would never have dreamed this would have happened, as I slowly meandered and jotted down my experiences through the sloughs and back water niches of this huge river system.

Today, 27 June 2011, Shatoosh and I are ready to depart, but we have watched numerous squalls march through, clear one minute and bam, another is right on its tail. The raging current hits the break waters and it sounds like a waterfall cascading over the logs, the wind rips at the tin roofs and one can imagine it being ripped off. I just walked some of the big boat docks while the wind, rain passes overhead in a northerly direction. We are champing at the bit, ready to be swept away with the current taking us to favorite sites down river, but I also want to stay and savor all my precious moments in my mind's eye, hang out in my warm bed roll, study charts and routes, and have a nice dinner. It will be my last one in my cozy slip.
We will see what the morning brings.

Joyce and Zephyr

Joyce continues to feed me photos and bits of her first cruise to Roosevelt Lake in Arizona.

Shes says,"We had an amazing few days on Lake Roosevelt. The camping was fun, much to my surprise. I have not been camping for 30 years and was not sure how that part would work. I really enjoyed being in nature all day and even at night. The coyotes sang a few nights, there were no bugs to speak of and no close encounters with scorpions or rattle snakes.














It was a challenge for me to be out on a boat that I was guessing at the rigging and taking two dear friends who were not familiar with sailing. I was a bit tense and nervous the night before but I was open to trust in my sailing skills as well as keep an eye out for my crew's safety. I realize that it has been eight years since I left Hawaii and sold Sarah, my Cape Dory 27 I had for fifteen years.

The winds were brisk, coming from different directions, changing over 90 degrees from one gust to another. Zephyr was great, I have a list of projects before we go out again and Phyllis and Chris proved their salt, enjoying a broad reach the second day. To see the saguaro cactus right next to the blue lake was spectacular. We went to Tonto National Monument to visit the cliff dwellings. It is amazing to realize that the Salt River basin is now the lake. What man has created is beyond understanding and I wonder at the long term ramifications of building so many dams, especially in the Southwest.

I am ready to return this fall if the weather is not too hot. I have much Gratitude to John, the Boat Giver, who has given me this wonderful gift of challenge, creativity and fun."

Its great to see Joyce, owning a boat again and back in the cockpit with sailing gloves on. You Go, Girl.