Watmough Bay, Lopez Island

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Tuesday, April 2
After a weekend of beautiful spring weather, spent at work in it’s entirety, I scanned the forecast for the the next few days when I have my days off. Looks pretty good – I see the little cartoon sun and the cartoon cloud, but no cartoon rain. Marine forecast for the San Juans shows no real wind. Although I always have a long list of things I should be doing around the house, what’s the rush? The only one that I will really face punishment for its neglect is the lawn. It’s spring, and it’s growing like a weed, which coincidentally is what it is greatly comprised of. I powered through the lawn, threw some clothes in a bag, gathered some food from the fridge, and after a couple of quick stops in town, I was aboard and ready for an afternoon shove off.

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Early Spring Cruise

It’s finally spring. Just barely.

Friday, March 22
This weekend adventure began with finishing up a few chores at home, locking up the house and heading for the boat Friday evening.

JaCarol’sJim & Carol had just arrived at the marina- their first visit for the year. After dropping some things of on my boat, I ventured over to C Dock where I joined in sipping a cold one, already in progress. Cara (Enough Time) was there, too. It was nice to sit and catch up. JaCarol would be staying at the dock this weekend due to some commitments at home for her crew.

The consensus was we were all hungry, and after minimal deliberation, we loaded up and headed downtown for some dinner at the Rockfish Grill. Jonathan, Lori, and Thomas (Briar Patch) rolled into town and joined us at our table, as well as some other riff raff that made their way in. Overall, a nice evening, but it was nice to say goodnight and head back to the boat and find my bed.

Saturday, March 23
Up early, I readied the boat, found some breakfast, made some coffee and waited for the cue that the rest of the fleet was ready to go. After a quick stop at the fuel dock, Jolly Mon, Enough Time, and Briar Patch were under way.

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January Cruise – Eagle Harbor, Friday Harbor

January 18-20

Boating was penciled into the calendar for this weekend well in advance, hoping for some decent winter weather for a chance to get away and enjoy winter’s quiet time in the islands for the Martin Luther King Jr. long weekend. For once, luck and Mother Nature were on our side and plans were made to go!

I decided – pretty much last minute – to leave a day early on Friday, with Jon, Lori, and Thomas on Briar Patch, heading out the next morning. I ran through the grocery store, throwing some things in my cart, and got to the marina where I quickly loaded the boat and prepared to get under way. I made a quick run to Eagle Harbor, cozy with my newly installed cabin heat drawing off the starboard engine. I arrived and tied to a buoy just before dark. I shared the bay with one other boat, who’s crew was probably surprised to have company. As the darkness fell, the cabin was filled with good music playing and the pleasing smells of dinner in the oven. I watched a movie and called it a night.

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Looking Back..

I’ve gotten a bit behind on my cruising log, and for various reasons I didn’t get around to entering last summer’s cruises. Here it is February, and while I’m already making plans for this years cruising season, I’ve been fortunate to get out for a few very nice winter cruises.

But first, a quick re-cap of last summer, just so you can be convinced the boat was well-used.. Here’s a few highlights:

March:Impromptu Easter weekend overnight cruise to Obstruction Pass. Ran into JaCarol… Had some wine. Had some more wine. Afternoon cruise turns into overnight. Good times!

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