Alaska 2013

Since retiring and purchasing our 27' Ranger Tug we have cruised Lake Powell in Utah, the southern coast of Texas, the Florida Keys, up the inter coastal waterway from Florida to New York, the San Juan islands in Washington, and the Gulf islands, Desolation Sound, and the Broughtons in Canada. This year our goal is to cruise S.E. Alaska. We will try to keep in touch with family and friends as we travel and share our experiences.

My buddy Danny and I left Kelso, Wa. at 6:00 AM, May 24^th with the 27' Ranger Tug on the trailer for our road trip to Prince Rupert, Canada. Danny will be my traveling companion until June 11^th then he flys out and Toni flys in, she and I will cruise another 6-7 weeks in SE Alaska before returning home. Our goal this day is to come close to Prince George, approximately half way. The I-5 bridge near Burlington collapsed yesterday so we had a slight detour. We took Hwy 9 to the Sumas border crossing, arriving about 11:30 AM and waited about ½ hour in line then another hour (some confusion) before heading north on Canadian Hwy. 1. On the way we saw lots of deer and one bear. The countryside is beautiful, like Washington except there are a lot more lakes and marshes. We were a little excited about the trip so we drove until 9:00 PM before reaching Quesnel, B.C. and camped in the boat at a Walmart parking lot. We brought an air mattress for Danny and made the dinette into a bed, then each day we just put everything forward in the v-berth.

We were on the road again at 5:00 AM. Diesel fuel in Canada has been $1.29 to $1.41 per liter, a bit more expensive than the states. We didn't get too far before we had to wait for a bull moose to get out of the road, a short time later we saw another bear with a cub next to the road then another moose and lots of deer. We arrived at Prince Rupert at 4:30 PM, just in time to check in with Coastal Propane where we will leave the truck and trailer for the next two months. They charge $125 per month but it seems secure and its only ¼ mile from the boat ramp. We secured a slip for the boat and launched before 6:00 PM, cocktail time. We checked the weather for Dixon entrance on marine weather radio and it looked good for tomorrow.

We left the marina at 6:00 AM and headed through the well marked Venn Passage before entering Dixon entrance. Light wind and no swell or wind waves, its flat, the sun is shining, it doesn't get much better than this. We fast cruise at 3400 RPM, 14 MPH, and about 2.2 MPG. Danny is only here for a few weeks so we want to get to Petersburg to start fishing so we are on a fast speed schedule and he is splitting my fuel cost. We want to make Ketchikan, AK., a distance of about 95 miles, and look around before moving on the following day. We see several other boats as we travel, probably making the same passage.

We arrived in Ketchikan at about 2:00 PM, fueled, and got a slip assignment. We took on 43 gallons of diesel at $4.15/gallon, a slip with power is $31. There are three cruise ships at the docks and the town is full of tourists, a good thing for the local economy. Ketchikan is known as Alaska's first city because its the first city you come to as you travel north. We walked around town, took in the sights, and bought our fishing license. Out of state annual fishing license is $145.

We left Ketchikan at 6:00 AM and decided to bypass Wrangell and go straight to Petersburg, a distance of about 140 miles. The seas are calm again and the weather is sunny and clear, a perfect day to be on the water. We saw an occasional whale spouting as we traveled and a black bear walking the shoreline at low tide. We watched a logging operation that included a large helicopter as we traveled on. We finally arrived in Petersburg at 4:30 PM, fueled, and got a slip assignment, just in time for cocktail hour. Diesel fuel cost is $4.22/gallon, a slip with power is $22.

We walked a small portion of Petersburg and got some ice before going back to the boat to watch a movie before bed. The next morning we jigged for herring just outside the marina. The herring jig has five little hooks, we catch 2-5 herring at a time and quickly get enough bait for two days. We head back south down the Wrangell Narrows to fish in Sumner Straight. We caught some bottom fish and a few sand sharks but no Halibut, they told us in town that Halibut fishing was a little slow. I have a friend that has a cabin in the Wrangell Narrows and he he is letting us moor our boat at his dock while we are here so that saves us trying to find an anchorage. We will only go back to Petersburg for fuel and a few provisions.

The next day we caught a few 15 lb. Halibut and more bottom fish. We see whales everyday but no Orcas, Eagles are everywhere, if I get their attention I throw out a herring and they swoop down and pick it up. They are filming the series Ax Men at a logging operation in the Wrangell Narrows and we see there crew each time we pass through.

The next morning we cruised back north through the Narrows and fished in Fredericks Sound outside of Petersburg and south of the Baird glacier. After a few hours with no luck we decided to cruise La Conte glacier to see some icebergs. We made it to within a few miles of the glacier before the passage was completely blocked with ice but we got some great photos and came pretty close to icebergs, some as large as apartment buildings, fun stuff.

I don't get a 3G signal anywhere up here with my Verizon service so I will have to find a wifi when we are in town next time.

We are in Kito's Cave in Petersburg and they have wifi.... and beer, a perfect combination. My friend Danny and I will continue to fish for the next week, we have over 100 lbs. of Halibut fillets ready to be shipped when he leaves and we hope top add to that. I will write another log when I can, if you have any questions about the area or boat travel please ask and I will try to answer.