KETCHIKAN & FOGGY BAY, AK; PRINCE RUPERT & TERRACE, BC
June 23, 2001, Saturday- our sunny day of yesterday was replaced with light rain for most of the day. But, it's Ketchikan, and as Phil says, there are two types of weather, rain or about to rain. It would never stop us from having a full day's activity. First stop was to visit the harbormaster and pay our respects, or should I say our moorage fees. They were expecting 5 large cruise ships in today, dumping 7 to 10 thousand people into the few downtown streets, looking to spend money. Downtown was a mile and a half walk. Again, it felt good to exercise the legs, and since it was dead low tide when we left, the dock was like walking up an elevator shaft.
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As we headed to the center of the action, three cruise ships entered the dock area. The Crystal Harmony must have made reservations too late. No dock space for those folks, so onto the shuttle boats, tenders, to reach dry land. After touring the jewelry and craft shops, and a lunch at a local's place, we entered one of the Tongass Trading Post shops. In the window were some good looking ties, and Phil was pressured to check out the selection. Well, one thing lead to another and after getting the ties out of the way, we found some tuxedo shirts with size 18 necks. In a few weeks as medical officer on the Holland American Line, he will need formalwear. Karen and Susan and the salesgirl were doing a job on him, even to the point of getting some patent leather dress shoes. Although he was putting up the resistance smoke screen, Phil was relieved to have all the expert advice and not have to do the shopping by himself in Denver.
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Checking the weather and tides for tomorrow, we'll try for an early departure, near 4 AM. So much boating is timing and that always depends on the information that we found in the tide tables. At this moment it looks like tomorrow should be okay but the following day, through the Dixon Entrance, we may be looking at 6-foot seas. If they are following seas with the wind at our back, it will be an okay fast ride. If it's on the nose, it would be a long and lumpy day. Anything stronger and we might lay over a day in Foggy Inlet, halfway in the 80-mile journey from Ketchikan to Prince Rupert.
June 24, 2001, Sunday- O dark 30 came around too fast. Phil and I caught the 4:10 weather update, looked outside the window and saw good VFR weather. Actually, good for Alaskan floatplane pilots, about 100 feet above the deck. Our lines were cast off the dock at 4:30 AM, and we proceeded into Tongass Narrows. For the first 15 miles we were semi-protected from the weather and winds. Then we entered open water and we were sure glad that we had both the moving map GPS display and the color radar. Visibility dropped to less then ½ mile in rain and low clouds. As for all the planning to catch the currents the right way, forget-about-it! For the remainder of the 44 miles through the water we had the wind and the sea on our nose. Most of the chop was in the 3-foot range, but every-so-often a 5 or 6 footer made its way to our bow. My three trusty mates did their best by taking a few naps.
We made our way into Foggy Bay, around the shoals, aided by 2 GPS systems and volunteers on the bow. This anchorage is again well protected, and required us to enter through a 60' wide passage with very shallow water and many rocks and reefs.
One or two more days and this adventure will be finished. A more pleasurable trip could not have been planned. Our thanks go out to Phil and Karen for inviting us, and to Howie for letting us use his floating home.
There is a cut in Foggy Bay that at high tide conveys the look that it's okay to take a vessel through. At low tides the rocky ledges that block the passage are obvious, especially when we saw some deer crossing from one island to the next. One does need good charts for these small bays.
Phil and Susan took out the dingy and fished a little. Susan caught an 18" rock cod, but did a catch and release. During their playtime Karen and I got dinner ready….NY strip steaks on the BBQ. Very nice touch!
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The weather forecast for tomorrow is for northwesterly winds. If that holds, we will fly the 45 miles to Prince Rupert.
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June 25, 2001, Monday- after another picture perfect harbor, not a rock or a wave, we arose to a sunny day with forecast winds light from the west and seas at 3 feet or less. Anchor up at 8 and hit the road. Luckily we were at high tide to leave the anchorage. At three miles of winding and weaving to exit and return to the open waters, we were, hopefully on the good tide flow. Heading south we had a slight positive current flow, but that only lasted an hour. The remainder of the sail/motor, we had foul currents of up to 2 knots. But, as Susan and I promised Phil and Karen, it would not be a duplicate of Phil and Howie's 12 foot seas and 25 knot winds. We delivered flat seas, mirror flat. Favorable light winds to no winds…but a better day could not be designed for crossing. If we had more wind at our tail, the seas would have been choppy. So, the famous, feared and treacherous Dixon Entrance was made humble.
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As treats along the way many gill netter fisherman were out resulting in our course deviation many times to avoid tangling our prop in their lines and buying a $5000 net. Also, navigational challenges requiring forward vision were the numerous logs and debris in the water requiring course deviations. Many were close, but all were avoided. Thank goodness! A few Orca whales were playing nearby as we were exiting the Dixon Entrance, a large, presumably female, and two smaller Orcas.
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Our biggest challenge was the entrance to Prince Rupert, from the north, through the Venn Passage. At low tide it's less then 16 feet in depth, if you hit the right channel. It requires a detailed map, cautious attention to the buoy numbers, and several passages that have range markers for correct lineups. Again we cheated the devil, and made it though. Good luck continued as we hit it at slack high tide, avoiding both the shallows and 3 knot currents.
Good news continued when we radioed the Prince Rupert Yacht Club and they held their last space for us. Although we are tied up on the inside of the breakwater dock, it will be our only night of rock and roll. The open river/harbor is adjacent to our docking.
One day of extra timing was built into our return schedule to allow us the cushion of waiting for bad weather to clear. Today was the perfect day to do the 60 miles of travel and we arrived at 6 PM Alaskan time, 7 PM Pacific Time. The only casualty of the day was when the halyard was inadvertently looped around the cap rail, and when we raised the dingy, we also lifted a few legs of the railing. Arriving a day early will let us find a welder to repair this railing that belongs in front of the mast. In fact, when Phil went to the office to call Canadian Customs for our clearance number, he found a welder on the dock. We'll bring the rail and clamps to him in the morning, and it will be ready for reassembly in the afternoon. How great is that service?
June 26, 2001, Tuesday- our night was not as rocking and rolling as we expected, but it was by far the least calm evening. But, for our last night on the boat, we slept well. By 8 AM we had the railing at the office for welding pickup, and by mid morning Stu had it back to us for reassembly. We then picked up our car from the storage lot, and checked with the campground to see if they could get us into our space a day earlier. By mid day they found that they could accommodate us, so back to the storage lot and into our space. Meanwhile Phil and Karen found that Melissa and Chris had safely arrived with their dogs and motor home. After a few pleasantries Chris told Phil that the right front windshield had to be replaced because it cracked while the coach was being jacked up. Also, because they are a nice young couple, coming into Canada they were pulled over and the coach searched. Again, stereotyping.
Phil was in for sticker shock as he learned that the Wandering Eye cost more money to tie up to a dock without services, then we pay here for a fully serviced RV site. $33 verse $19 per night.
All of our gear was hauled off the boat and the first stop was the laundry to do our stuff, but more important, finish the boat linens and towels so that the next crew, arriving tomorrow, will find everything ship shape.
As Susan and I returned to the coach to get ready for dinner, what do we find but our front right windshield has now done what Phil's did…cracked from being on the jacks. It's a funny thing that we went 3.5 years and had no glass problems, and now in three months both windshields cracked. This one is so far out in the top corner, and so fragmented through both laminates, I'm not sure how long it will hold, or where we can get it repaired.
My how big and spacious our coach feels after being on the boat! We now have 40 feet for the two of us instead of 44 feet squeezed as a sailboat with three staterooms and three baths. Susan and I can now walk around and not bump our heads. It has to be seen to be believed!
Upon returning to our campground after dinner we saw one of the camping/tour busses that many foreign tourists ride on. During the day the 20 or so folks are in bus seat comfort, and at night they sleep in what could be described as a 3 x 3 rectangle, each with a little window. Talk about claustrophobic!
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June 27, 2001, Wednesday- the American Coach Service people continue to be a first class group. When I called this morning about the broken windshield, I heard the words that we can do it either of 2 ways. I could find a glass man, and Fleetwood would send them the new windshield. The installer would bill them directly for their work. Alternatively, I could find a windshield place, pay for the repair, and Fleetwood would reimburse us. As I said, first class. So, I called a local place in Prince Rupert that had a big ad, got the number of their Prince George location, and they will get the ball rolling. Hopefully when we arrive in about 10 days, they will have the new glass.
Karen, Phil, Susan and I spent some time finishing the spit and polish on the Wandering Eye, including the removal of the shoe scuffs that always appear. Everything looks perfect now.
Susan and I then stopped by a local department store that had embroidery facilities and picked out a nice set of hats and vests as a thank you to Howie and Pam for the use of their boat. With an order placed yesterday afternoon, by late morning it was ready for pickup. All looked sharp!
I picked up Hobbes from his dog sitter, Kim, and learned that he had a bath on Sunday, but was so wet and dirty now, that you couldn't tell. He had made lots of new friends….a female long haired dachshund, and several newborn kittens.
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THANK GOODNESS FOR THROW RUGS |
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All of our errands we timed around picking up the new Wandering Eye crew at 3 PM. When the bus arrived from the airport, no crew. So Phil called Howie and after a long story, they will be on the flight that arrives at 8:40 into town. At that time we find out that it's an hour late. So, hurry up and wait…but we got to enjoy the company of P&K and Chris and Melissa, and a fine dinner at the Cow Bay Café. By the time we dropped off the crew and returned to the coach, it was11 PM.
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This has been a trip of a lifetime……we cant' wait for the next adventure with P&K.
June 28, 2001, Thursday- it was relaxing morning for us with some computer and laundry. For Phil and Karen, the treadmill was still ongoing. Chris and Melissa had to be dropped off at 8 for the ferry, then Karen had to start putting their coach back into their home. When someone else has it for 4 weeks, things wind up going in different places, and the hunt begins to find things. Phil, meanwhile, was helping Howie with Howie's new computer. They didn't make much progress by lunchtime. After I lost credit card roulette for the lunch bill (can't believe I lost two lunches in a row), all of us except Phil and Howie, did the local Prince Rupert Museum. The first event was an hour walking tour of some 10 totem poles.
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The totem pole history was fascinating. A brief summary of the details covered included that there are many types of totem poles. Ancestors using wooden and stone tools carved original totem poles. Next came metal tools. Now many use power tools to speed things along. The purist has now returned to the hand carving. Sixty-foot western cedar trees are cut and have about a 100-year outdoor totem life. A village may have as many as 70 poles. Commonly carved icons include eagles, bears, frogs (although we couldn't find out what the significance was), beavers, and family members.
Generational totems duplicate existing totems that are aging, or start with existing carving types, and add another family layer.
Memorial totems are ones into which family members place the bones and possessions of loved ones.
Back at the museum, wonderful displays were presented of both The First Nation people, as well as the European influences. Susan and Karen couldn't get over the fine native weavings and carving.
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While we were getting culture, the brothers were still trying to get the computer problems solved. So far, they are $650 and one elusive software program away from success.
Dinner with the old and new Wandering Eye crews was done at the Smiles Restaurant. Howie was the last one into the restaurant, so by the time he entered, we had set up the waitress. The boat contained an excess of peanut butter and jelly, which Howie likes. So when he asked, as he always does, "what's the best thing on the menu", her response was peanut butter and jelly. Howie, being quick on his feet, didn't lose a beat by asking if it was "fresh". The rest of the evening continued with laughs, and dessert was across the street at the "Cowpuccino" restaurant, for ice cream and "sex in a pan", the house specialty.
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June 29, 2001, Friday- another endless day filled with some many things that it's hard to remember them all. First, we picked up the Wandering Eye crew for a morning tour of the Pacific Coast Cannery Museum in Port Edwards, 20 miles from Prince Rupert.
In 1900 there were 284 canneries in BC and Alaska packing salmon. Now, only 43 are still in existence, one of which is in Prince Rupert. The PR cannery is the largest in the world employing 4000 people during the 8-week season, filling two shifts of 10 to 12 hours per shift, at $21 per hour. Prospective employees stand in line for the jobs.
Our museum tour started with the canning line. The first ingredient for the process is the can fabrication. In the 1800's the Chinese laborers cut the cans our of sheet tin and soldered the seams to form a cyclinder. In the 1900's the canneries started buying flat, machine welded blanks. A forming machine gets the cylinders round, and the next machine puts a receptive rounded edge on the end. Next a bottom blank is attached. Previously they used to be soldered manually to form the can. Now it has a rubber gasket and is formed and pressed for attachment.
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Additional lines in the tour showed, side-by-side, the early cutting and packing tables along with the mechanized methods of the 1900's. Manual operations included cutting the heads, tails and fins off in a continuous motion, with these parts being dumped into the river. Next the body would go to the "slime" table for gutting and scaling. Down the line rows of knives would cut the fish into desired widths. On the mechanical side, one machine would do all of the above at the rate of a fish per second.
Four types of laborers were employed. Japanese were the boat builders. Chinese made the cans. First Nation men did the fishing. First Nation women did all the canning. Europeans were management. Each was paid a different wage, and in the company store, different prices were charged to each ethnic class, partially depending on the wages earned and one's ability to speak English.
At the turn of the century power vessels were a rarity. The Pacific Coast's powerboat pulled a string of 50 one-man small dingy type boats (oar powered), out to the fishing area. At the end of the appropriate period, they were reassembled and hauled back to the pier.
The demise of the smaller canneries resulted in part from refrigeration (keeping the time away from the packer longer), mechanization, better transportation options to move finished products, and the concentration of power into the hands of a few.
Pacific Coast cannery was blessed and cursed by the transportation options. Initially it was perfectly based with a large number of paddlewheel vessels coming up the Skeena River. Later all of these boats went out of business when the railroad came to town. But, unfortunately, the railroad was built on the other side of the river and bypassed the cannery.
Noise and odor must have been incredible. Working conditions were anything but safe with many lives lost and appendages severed. Expertise was important, as the experienced women packers packed 72 cans per minute. New help either over or under packed the cans. In the initial cooking process, the poorly packed cans would have too much air or fish, and explode. As cans were observed to start deforming, they were drilled to let the proper can pressure be achieved, and then the drill hole re-soldered. Naturally in the early days all of this use of lead resulted in lead poisoning for employees and customers.
Since cosmetics are important, the newer automated equipment cut and packs the cans automatically, with the skin and bones being on the bottom or middle of the can. Fresh pink salmon should greet the user as the cans are opened.
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After the cannery tour we did the boardwalk tour past the various houses used from the GM down to coolie labor. Phil took the "boat" people back to Prince Rupert so that they could start their water journey while Susan, Karen and I continued our meandering. One of the residential buildings now houses a lovely restaurant. Fresh seafood chowder and chocolate cake made for a decadent lunch. Another couple, from Metlakatla, AK, had parents that worked in the canning industry, and they confirmed how difficult it was to make a living. Danger lurked looking for life and limb, fatigue from long hours, sharp knives, exploding cans, ships lost at sea, all added up to a hard life. Currently in Metlakatla the unemployment rate is 90%. Not a good sign on this "reservation" land.
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Other cabins are now set up as artist's studios.
In all of these areas of BC and Alaska basketball is an integral part of the community. Why? With limited level land and normally inclement weather, indoor sports that could utilize existing multiuse buildings were a natural. The second story of the canneries was often used for recreation, including basketball and dances.
Returning to PR, we stopped into a Provincial Liquor store for a few BC wines. Susan likes ones with a 00 or 01 sweetness rating. She had read about "ice wines" being great. The assistant store manager educated us that these specialty wines come from grapes that have been frozen at 15 degrees or below for 10 days. When they are brought in frozen, and then squeezed, they yield only a few drops of pure sugar fluids. With a 10 rating on a scale of 00 to 10, they are very sweet. Because of the limited supply and limited yield, these small, thin desert bottles go for upward of $50 per bottle.
After dinner of fresh salmon on the grill with P&K, I got involved with Hobbes and our neighbors across the street. Wes and Stacy drew us into their 4 family group, and it felt like when we were in Nova Scotia two years ago. At 10 at night we were getting stuffed with freshly caught crab legs and halibut. It was to die for, and as a nightcap, they gave us a plateful for tomorrow's enjoyment. We couldn't believe it, but Hobbes insisted on his share of crab and halibut and devoured it all.
Our neighbors to the east, two motorcycle couples, had the greatest little trailers behind their bikes. With a few moves, these little vehicles opened to the equivalent of a 3-room house. Very ingenious!
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June 30, 2001, Saturday- another month draws to a close, and our greatly anticipated Alaskan travel and sailing adventures are complete. We can only say that our expectations were high, but that the reality exceeded the dreams, a task not often accomplished.
This morning we left the coastal town of Prince Rupert, and our closeness to the sea. 90 miles to the east we stopped at the town of Terrace. Since it's Canada Day tomorrow, and a 3-day weekend for most residents, we were lucky to get into the Wild Duck RV Park/ Motel. I guess we have some pretty big tents because they put us in the "tent area", tightly squeezed between the trees.
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An 18-mile bike ride got all of us to remember how much we enjoyed biking, and how badly our legs felt after being off our bikes for so very long.
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