Memories

07 Sunday Aug 2016

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Argonaut II, Cafe Demeter, Port of Friday Harbor Marina, Reid Harbor, San Juan Island, Stuart Island, Turn Point Light Station

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

There’s a great little bakery in Friday Harbor called Cafe Demeter where I picked up some yummy goodies for breakfast and we were underway by 10

dodging seaplanes on our way out of Friday Harbor.

It was a lazy cruising day

so lazy in fact that the Berry finally had to take over.

Fairly uneventful two hour passage up the east side of San Juan Island passing several small islands to starboard.

We arrived in Reid Harbor on Stuart Island by noon and tied up to a linear mooring system out in the bay. Something different but easy.

Stuart Island is a special place for us with fond memories of a family vacation we took years ago when Justin was about four years old. We sailed up here with the Templeton’s and their four year old daughter, Andrea. I remember after being cooped up on the boat for hours we arrived at Stuart and went for the most wonderful hike – which we recreated today.

One of the highlights of the hike was coming upon this one room schoolhouse.

The other highlight of the first visit was the old water pump that little Justin pumped and out came a swarm of bees – something not soon forgotten. The pump seems to be capped off and completely overgrown with bushes. Another cool thing about this spot is one of the ways they raise money for the school. There are treasure chests scattered about the island with tee shirts for sale on the honor system.

Each tee shirt comes with an envelope that you can use to mail your payment when you get home. At these spots there’s always a cooler of water and a dog dish under the spigot to catch the extra water for doggies.

From here we continued our hike

out to the Turn Point Light Station built in 1893.

I love this picture.

We even got to take a tour of the keeper’s quarters.

Here are some sights along our hike

Then it was back to our seaworthy home.

Just as the sun was setting it popped out below the clouds for a lovely end to our day

and one last trip to shore with the pooch.

Moving On

07 Sunday Aug 2016

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Argonaut II, Port of Friday Harbor Marina, San Juan Island

Monday, August 1, 2016

We had a nice lazy morning and cast off by 11.

As we were leaving we heard “The Ride of the Valkyries” by Wagner and saw the water taxis doing a ballet to the music. We’d seen them practicing the morning before. Very fun.

Good bye Empress.

Our destination was Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. The weather was warm, sunny and breezy. It continued to build and after about an hour we were crossing Harrowing Strait – I mean Haro Strait. It felt like we were being tossed about like a cork. The swells were really big as we rocked from one side to the other. Fortunately, we’d learned a lot about battening down the hatches so most things were pretty secure. One surprise was that at least one swell was so big that the heavy dining room table slid all the way across the Salon floor. That was pretty amazing.

As we passed through the worst of the turbulence we hit a wall of fog. We could see only about a hundred yards ahead of us. A huge tanker ship passed right behind us. EAK!

The fog eventually lifted and we could finally see land again – and this great view of Mt. Baker.

Finally, around 2:30 we arrived in Friday Harbor where it was sunny and windy

and docked at

near the ferry and seaplane docks.

In the evening the African Star tour boat passed by.

And of course the ever present fascinated visitors chatting with Justin.

The Big Splash!

07 Sunday Aug 2016

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Argonaut II, fol epi organic bakery, Maritime Museum of British Columbia, Phillips Brewing Company, Victoria Inner Harbour, Victoria Symphony Splash

Sunday, July 31, 2016

Today Justin and Lauren took us to an amazing bakery for breakfast. It’s a popular bikers’ spot with really good pastries and coffee.

From here we wandered downtown to check things out.

Our destination was the Maritime Museum of British Columbia.

We knew they had a model of the Argonaut II as well as the little organ that lived on the boat most of its life and we were looking forward to seeing these things for the first time. Unfortunately, the museum recently had to move into a much smaller facility and these things were now in storage. But…they were most helpful in finding some files with articles about the boat that we had not seen. So it was a successful visit after all.

Victoria was just beautiful in preparation for their big celebration.

While wandering back to the boat Chris and Justin spotted an older boat docked in the harbour and spent time talking to the owner who knew the Argonaut II very well.

He gave us some great suggestions as well as more people to contact who have worked on our boat in the past.

We eventually regrouped back at the boat for a delightful lunch of hearty barley bread (from the bakery) with smoked salmon cream cheese and really good beer from Philips Brewing Company up the street. (Sorry I keep talking about food but it was all so good!)

Justin, Huckleberry and I went for a row where Huck

met Larry for a romp in the water.

By the way, this is what a wet doodle looks like. He likes to keep his hair dry on top.

Later, after Justin barbecued zucchini and burgers

and we had a quick dinner, we headed out for an amazing evening. In honor of British Columbia Day the Victoria Symphony will be performing a free concert on a barge in the Inner Harbour. This is an annual event and will be attended by over ten thousand people. People sitting all along the seawall and in front of the Empress Hotel and covering the lawn in front of the Government Building.

The best part of all is the hundreds of small boats floating in front of the stage.

This was so much fun bobbing around amidst all the other floaties.

What a great way to attend the Symphony.

Near the end of the concert was the 1812 Overture complete with cannons so we chose to skedaddle back to the boat so we wouldn’t loose Huckleberry over the side.

Once safe and sound on board we were just in time for the grand fireworks finale where we had a ringside seat.

And it was a good thing we were on the boat ‘cause poor Huckle was scared @#%less.

Soon all was quiet and Huckle was content once again. What a fun day.

Onward to Victoria

07 Sunday Aug 2016

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Argonaut II, the Moon Brew Pub, Victoria Inner Harbour, Warf Street Marina

Saturday, July 30, 2016

Today’s the big day. We are headed for Victoria Harbour. With a strong incoming tide after 10am and a forecast of strong winds continuing to build all day we were up at 5 and underway by 5:30.

A beautiful sunrise.

We had an early morning outgoing tide and such calm seas

that we made really good time going over 10kts and had to cool our jets

as we rounded the tip of Vancouver Island.

This weekend is the celebration of British Columbia Day with the Victoria Symphony Splash! According to the Victoria Visitor’s Choice brochure “tens of thousands of people will take to Victoria Inner Harbour for the 27th annual Victoria Symphony Splash. From a floating stage in the Inner Harbour the Symphony will perform, ending with a grand finale performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture – with fireworks of course!”

About six months ago when we first talked about this trip and heard about the big Splash weekend Justin called to see if we could get moorage in the Harbor but they laughed and said they’d been booked for a year, but took his name anyway. A couple days before we left on this trip they called to say there was a cancelation and asked if we wanted to come. Of course we said YES! (We can’t help but think it had something to do with the Argonaut.)

Soon we rounded the jetty

and enjoyed the sights as we entered the Inner Harbour.

We arrived in Victoria around 11:00 and docked at the Wharf Street Marina. (Sometimes we look really little.)

After lunch on the boat

and a trip to the dog park

we regrouped and headed out to explore Victoria.

We finished off the day for some great food and beer.

This is livin’ isn’t it?

31 Sunday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Ganges Harbour

Friday, July 29, 2016

Breakfast at the marina this morning. Justin enjoyed fresh strawberries and blueberries on his waffles as well as eggs and bacon and scones.

We cast off just before 10 for a short two hour cruise

in calm waters to Ganges Harbour.

Along the way, C & J played with the vintage auto pilot.

And we raced the ferry – for about two seconds.

There are always interesting homes amongst the trees.

By about noon the wind had really picked up with gale warnings in the Straits of Georgia. Huckleberry has learned to hang on to the table leg in the Chart Room when the going gets rough.

Soon we were anchored in Ganges Harbor with float planes and boats streaming in for the big three day weekend.

Once the anchor was secure we hopped in the dingy and rowed ashore for lunch at Moby’s Pub. Such amazing food. I had the Duck and Goat Cheese Salad

and Lauren had the Asian Albacore Tuna Bowl.

Ganges is an artist community with plenty of galleries to explore. Check out this $18,000 teak table

and these amazing table tops

and these petrified wood sinks

and glass.

There were even pianos scattered around town in case you had the urge to play a happy tune.

As we rowed back to the boat we had to dodge more seaplanes.

See how close they are?

After such a big late lunch we settled on a lite dinner fare.

Then an evening puppy paddle to shore before bed.

And a lovely sunset to top off a wonderful day.

Work Day

31 Sunday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Cowichan Bay, Genoa Bay Marina, N.T. Enterprize

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Awoke to a leisurely morning

and got underway by 9:30, a two and a half hour cruise to Genoa Bay within Cowichan Bay, north of Sydney and Butchart Gardens.

More beautiful sites along the way.

We arrived at Genoa Bay Marina by noon

and settled on B Dock

(Side Note: The town of Cowichan has a lot of artist studios and a lot of wineries nearby. The town is too far walk to. There’s a water shuttle but it was booked doing tours so we were not able to visit.)

There’s a wonderful little gallery here at the marina

as well as great art scattered about.

Hey George – here’s an idea for all those golf clubs.

The restaurant here sounded amazing but didn’t allow dogs so we ordered food to go and had a grand lunch on the boat – fresh mussels, stuffed figs, prosciutto, calamari, and ceviche.

One big reason for this destination is that it is close to Norm (the handyman’s) house. Justin called him and asked him to buy several parts and to meet us here today so he could work on the engine and try to get things working again. Before we were finished with lunch Norm and daughter Christina were here.

They worked all afternoon, nonstop with Justin and Chris working right along side. It was a long day for them and a good day for Lauren and me to do laundry.

After five hours of hard, successful work down in the engine room we said good bye to Norm and Christina

had another amazing “repurposed” dinner by Chef Lauren and settled in to a peaceful evening.

Serendipity Day

31 Sunday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Hummingbird Pub, Montegue Harbour, Options Elementary School

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

We were all ready for an early start to the day but as Chris and Justin started the engine the hose for the fresh water system sprung another leak. Justin shut everything down, had a short pow-wow and decided to continue with Plan A – anchor in Montegue Harbour which is a Provincial Marine Park. We filled every container with shore water and cast off by 8:30.

This time Chris backed the boat away from the dock for the first time since there was not room to go forward.

While underway J decided he needed a shave

just in time for a family portrait.

More beautiful scenery

We arrived in Montegue Harbour by 11:30 and were lucky enough to get one of the few remaining mooring bouys (out of 35 available).

Another 1st. Great teamwork.

Once secure we loaded up the dingy

and headed for shore – our destination: The Hummingbird Pub, of course. We read about a shuttle bus to the pub but once ashore we learned it doesn’t start running until 5pm. After talking to the park ranger who said it was about a 30 minute walk up a very steep hill we set off on foot.

Here’s a great view of the harbour.

Along the way we saw a great idea for what to do with some of those extra bikes sitting around at home.

After more than an hour of walking up and over the steep hill we arrived

and had a great lunch and ok beer. Then we killed a couple of hours waiting for the bus ride back.

Inside the pub

Outside the pub

Nearby market

where they sold this sacred water.

More waiting for the bus fun.

Finally, as we boarded the bus

the driver instructed everyone to grab an instrument. As we settled in

on came the blaring 60’s and 70’s rock and roll music and we shook, rattled and rolled our noise makers. Next stop more people got on so the bus was full of people standing everywhere. The driver announced “No standing on the bus” so everyone squeezed into seats with everyone else.

Off we went flying around curves and down the hill with the driver who looked like Marty from Back to the Future with his neon gloves and blue glowing drumstick playing the instruments above him.

We were back to the harbour in 15 minutes.

Now it’s time for a swim.

No, not in the mud Huckleberry!

We hiked across the spit to the “sandy” beach.

and took a quick dip. Refreshed after our swim.

And some intense rock stacking.

Back on the boat it was time for gin and tonics all around

while Chris made his famous Japanese salad

and the Berry pooped out.

__________________________________

As the sun was setting around 9ish

a couple of kayaks paddled around our boat admiring it. We couldn’t see the people because of the sunsetting right in our eyes. But once they paddled on around to the other side Justin muttered “Hey he looks like a Mud Bay Juggler. I think that’s Doug…HEY DOUG!”

In the double kayak were Doug and Marcela, the parents of Amiel, Justin’s good from Options elementary school in Olympia, WA. Is that crazy or what? With them were Ruby and Kurt

who had just run into Doug and Marcela a few hours before when both were headed for the same mooring buoy. Ruby taught school at Options when Justin was there. This was a happenstance upon another happenstance. We invited them aboard and had a great reunion reminiscing about the good ol’ days and talking old boats and engines and Buckhorn and cookbooks.

What an amazing day.

Ladysmith – Day 2

27 Wednesday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Blue Martins, Ladysmith, Ladysmith Maritime Marina

It’s a new day and we’ve decided to stay put right here to take a break from the stress of the past couple of days and to continue to sort out the bugs. I’m sitting in the Ladysmith Public Library where I finally have decent internet access so I’m using this time to get caught up.

When we awoke this morning, the first thing we saw was this majestic site.

Then it was off to the Old Town Bakery where we’d already gotten word that they had the best cinnamon rolls and bread anywhere.

On our way back we could smell the blackberries ripening in the sunshine

and couldn’t resist a few samples.

Then it was back to the boat where the engineers studied old manuals and pondered

and Lauren made brisket in the galley.

Ladysmith Maritime Marina is very nice.

They even have Sea Survival Rations. We especially like the Spray dried aged cheddar cheese and the Ham flavored TVP chunks soya meat extenders. Yummy

There are Blue Martin boxes everywhere in a successful effort to bring this particular species back from extinction.

Can you see the tiny little heads peaking out of the lower right hand nest?

There’s even a boat for Huck.

And there are these beautiful banners everywhere.

Well it sounds like “the boys” have had enough of the boat and are headed off on a hike with Lauren and the Berry Dog. Until next time. . .

Life in Ladysmith

27 Wednesday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Ladysmith Maritime Marina

After a leisurely morning we said good bye to Thetis Marina

and had a short one-hour cruise to Ladysmith Maritime Marina

where we hoped to have more resources available to us.

While sitting around talking about our plans we suddenly see Diane (owner of Marian II) coming down the dock. She and her friend had just motored over from their anchorage not far away and had come to check out this marina. So we compared notes with them for awhile.

Then back on the boat for leftovers for lunch

and more engine work, boat cleaning and a swim for Huckleberry. Justin talked to Norm again and invited him over to see the boat and to pick his brain. Norm is a great guy and a wealth of information.

He told Justin and Chris to call or text him anytime they needed help. He also gave them some great contacts for additional resources. He and his daughter Christina have been a team ever since she was a little girl. They are truly amazing folks.

After they left Justin bbq’d the best chicken ever.

Something I’ve not mentioned but this boat attracts so much attention it’s really amazing. People come by all the time to look at it and ask questions. Of course, Huckleberry is quite the draw too.

Trouble at Sea…….sort of

27 Wednesday Jul 2016

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Argonaut II, Thetis Marina

We all had a great night’s sleep and got underway around 8:30. Justin, once again masterfully backed out of the slip and got us underway.

We headed north past beautiful scenery.

A very peaceful cruise.

Suddenly an alarm sounded. The temperature gauge shot up. Chris slowed the engine down. Then the gps shut down and the depth sounder shut down. Soon we had no electrical power at all. Daaa Dum (Not to worry, we were not in any danger.)

Meanwhile the 1940 Gardner Diesel engine kept chugging along. Justin shut down all power sources on the boat and we slowed way down.

As we thought about our next steps, a voice came on the radio. It was Diane, the owner of Marian II, our neighbor at Stimson Marina in Seattle saying she was right behind us – What? She saw we had slowed way down. J told her we were having issues and needed to get to a marina. She was very supportive and stayed with us for a little while.

As we slowly continued onward more things crept up and eventually even the radio shut down. Quickly Justin programmed his phone to be able to use it in Canada. With no electronics Justin and Chris were able to navigate with charts – old school style and as things deteriorated J found a marina much closer than the one we were headed for. (Still, we are really not in any danger.) He was able to contact them on the phone to ensure they had room for a 73 foot boat and as soon as he said we were the Argonaut II we were home free.

We are now resting peacefully at Thetis Marina on Vancouver Island,

a very funky place but great folks who’ve been around a long time.

Everyone seems to remember the Argonaut as it used to live very near here in Boat Harbor back in the day. The marina operator is getting us in touch with electrical and mechanical folks nearby. The operator and Thetis Marina are great by the way, the best customer service anyone could ask for. The marina deckhand, Tucker, is pretty amazing too helping to dock incoming boats.

As soon as we were settled Chris and Justin were down in the engine room troubleshooting the issues that had arisen.

After a lot of brainstorming, it was time for a beer and thinking through the options.

The deck hand gave Justin the name of a guy who’d been around a long time and would be a great resource. Justin was able to contact Norm and did a lot of troubleshooting over the phone. C & J were back in the engine room running through all the checks Norm suggested. Tomorrow we will see how things go.

Now, back to the marina, not only is this place great but the flowers are amazing

as are the local sites

and there’s a Pub Restaurant right up on shore. Tonight’s special is a smoked salmon pizza

which we brought back to the boat for dinner.

A little side story: Julian Matson owned the Argonaut from 1970 – 2002. Everyone knew Julian. He must have been quite a guy. During his ownership, he restored this boat to it’s original beauty. His boatworks partner, Ulrich Briner, lives near here and we’re hoping he’ll be able to stop by for a short visit. It would be amazing to hear his stories.

And speaking of Ulrich, there’s an inlaid Compass Ross in the floor of the pub that was made (freehand) by Ulrich.

Just behind the restaurant are the showers. Can you believe the flowers?

And one last bit of beauty silently slipping by our boat.

Life’s an Adventure!

Life in Japan and Beyond

~ Everyday is an adventure!

Memories

Moving On

The Big Splash!

Onward to Victoria

This is livin’ isn’t it?

Work Day

Serendipity Day

Ladysmith – Day 2

Life in Ladysmith

Trouble at Sea…….sort of