Given that there is really no room in our fridge for more salmon, we decided to stay put today. We enjoyed breakfast at Kate's then I busted through the laundry. In the afternoon we decided to head to see an Everett Aquasox game. Such a great time! Great prices and great family fun. The kids seemed to really enjoy the whole experience. Of course we had hot dogs and ice cream, but Katreina also got to play in a bounce-house and head out on the field after the 1st inning to meet "Pop Fly," one of the mascots. It was pretty cute! I was impressed that they kids lasted 6 innings plus pre-game fun considering they hadn't really had naps yet.
From there we headed into Seattle to check out the REI sale and let the kids sleep! Didn't pick up much there, but did get Grandma Powers a sweet new GPS she can use for geocaching. Merry Christmas, Grandma!
For dinner we took inspiration from World Wraps and combined salmon, rice, soy sauce, greens, and lime juice and wrapped it up in a garden spinach wrap. Yummo...yet one more way to enjoy the bounty of the sea!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
More salmon!
Caught a total of 6 pinks today, one under sail! We are officially out of room in the fridge/freezer!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Yum, yum...Salmon are on the run!
Got some good reports on the local fishing this week so we headed out yesterday to see if we'd have some luck with the pinks. Frank's first bite was a big guy, probably a small king, on his smaller rod--yikes! Sadly, it got away but we did get a look at it. Not much later while sail-trolling under a reefed genoa, we got a bite and this time it stuck! We of course realized then that we didn't have a big net to dip in the water so we had to walk the flopping fish into the cockpit. Somehow it worked and we opened the salmon processing plant right on deck! Within a few minutes (and several buckets of water), we had a clean fish ready to become steaks.
By the end of the day, we'd caught Frank's quota of 4. Nothing quick like fresh grilled salmon! :)
They only "suck" of the day was once again returning to our slip to find our neighbors there. I got the feeling after I'd talked to them about the first time that they kind of blew me off, but this proved it. I was honestly shocked at how immature a grown man could be when he had the audacity to tell Frank he didn't think it was a big deal and that he'd do it again if he wanted. We went to the marina office this morning and thankfully they didn't agree that it was ok, either. Not sure what they'll do, but we'll be contacting them to demand a resolution if it happens again.
By the end of the day, we'd caught Frank's quota of 4. Nothing quick like fresh grilled salmon! :)
They only "suck" of the day was once again returning to our slip to find our neighbors there. I got the feeling after I'd talked to them about the first time that they kind of blew me off, but this proved it. I was honestly shocked at how immature a grown man could be when he had the audacity to tell Frank he didn't think it was a big deal and that he'd do it again if he wanted. We went to the marina office this morning and thankfully they didn't agree that it was ok, either. Not sure what they'll do, but we'll be contacting them to demand a resolution if it happens again.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Whirlwind Visit!
Grandma and Grandpa Powers visited for the past week and we managed to do A TON! The got to stay in the Inn at Port Gardner and said that it was VERY nice. Can't wait for the next set of g-parents to get to try it out in September.
On their first day here I had to work, but was able to enjoy lunch at Meyer's Cafe with them and deliver them to the ferry for Jetty Island. Sue was eager to check out some geocaches there. And that night we got to share our yummy Dungeness crab cakes with them! Thursday I took them out to Index to see the cabin for the first time. While it was a quick trip, they seemed to enjoy it. Of course I took them to Espresso Chalet, too! After a yummy dinner of crab bisque, we headed over to the concert stage for an awesome evening of dancing to great music. I think Sue had a very good time there! We were all pretty tired by the end of that.
Frank was finally off work Friday and we were able to head out on the boat for the day. There was hardly any wind so we motored, dropped the crab pot, and trolled for salmon. No luck on the fish, but we did get one red rock and one Dungeness. We also scored with a great gray whale sighting on our way back in.
Saturday we decided to show the parents the Washington State Ferry system with a destination of "GeoLuau," which would be Sue's first caching event. It made for a long day of traveling with the little ones, but it was fun to show Sue an event.
Sunday was an AWESOME day! It was the Fresh Paint art festival in Everett and the Sunday market. After a trip to the park and lunch at Kate's, the kids went down for naps while I took Sue on a dinghy tour of the marina. Then she and I hit the art festival until the fellas and kids joined us. We picked up some fresh foods and cookies and got the kids faces painted before heading back. The wind was looking good, so we decided to get underway for an evening sail! It was wonderful, and I was glad we got to show Sue and Maury the peace of sailing. It was such a great, fun-filled day!
On their first day here I had to work, but was able to enjoy lunch at Meyer's Cafe with them and deliver them to the ferry for Jetty Island. Sue was eager to check out some geocaches there. And that night we got to share our yummy Dungeness crab cakes with them! Thursday I took them out to Index to see the cabin for the first time. While it was a quick trip, they seemed to enjoy it. Of course I took them to Espresso Chalet, too! After a yummy dinner of crab bisque, we headed over to the concert stage for an awesome evening of dancing to great music. I think Sue had a very good time there! We were all pretty tired by the end of that.
Frank was finally off work Friday and we were able to head out on the boat for the day. There was hardly any wind so we motored, dropped the crab pot, and trolled for salmon. No luck on the fish, but we did get one red rock and one Dungeness. We also scored with a great gray whale sighting on our way back in.
Saturday we decided to show the parents the Washington State Ferry system with a destination of "GeoLuau," which would be Sue's first caching event. It made for a long day of traveling with the little ones, but it was fun to show Sue an event.
Sunday was an AWESOME day! It was the Fresh Paint art festival in Everett and the Sunday market. After a trip to the park and lunch at Kate's, the kids went down for naps while I took Sue on a dinghy tour of the marina. Then she and I hit the art festival until the fellas and kids joined us. We picked up some fresh foods and cookies and got the kids faces painted before heading back. The wind was looking good, so we decided to get underway for an evening sail! It was wonderful, and I was glad we got to show Sue and Maury the peace of sailing. It was such a great, fun-filled day!
We spent Monday in Seattle, first visiting the Ballard Locks. That was so cool to see just how perfectly they orchestrated the movement of so many vessels. The gardens there are lovely, too. After that, we headed to Seattle Center for lunch and a trip up the Space Needle. We were lucky to have pretty good visibility when we went up and were able to see Mt. Rainier. With the day winding down, we headed to Pike Place Market. Once again, Sue seemed absolutely thrilled with all the sights and activity there. They got to see quite a few fish tossed, too! From there we headed towards SEATAC as our guests had an early morning flight out the next day. After a big dinner at Outback, we bid them farewell. It was so great to share our experiences with family and we were so fortunate that the weather was so cooperative!
Space Needle self-picSunday, August 9, 2009
The good, the bad, and the VERY ugly!
The good--This weekend started out in pure, spontaneous Powers fashion. We got underway Friday after work and quickly decided to head south, drop our crab pot outside of Agate Pass, then anchor in Liberty Bay, Poulsbo. It was a late night for mom & dad, but it was pretty nice motoring to anchorage under the stars and full moon. Peaceful...
In the morning we shifted anchorage to be closer to the town dock and headed into town. We walked Front Street before hitting Sheila's for a hearty breakfast, then walked around some more while we waited for the Marine Science Center to open. While Frank was heading into a nautical gifts shop, a necklace caught my eye in the window of the Blue Heron Jewelry Co. It looked like a wave made of blue glass and mounted in a silver setting. It was a very good day for me! I tried it on and Frank must have liked it because he got it for me! I love it. It's so reminiscint of our life on the water. After picking up snacks at the famous Sluys Bakery we put the kids down for nap and got underway to return to Everett. Still good... Managed to get one keeper in our pot, too!
The bad--Winds were favorable for using the spinnaker, so we let it fly. It took us several attempts to get all the lines run correctly. We were also trying to cross the traffic seperation scheme amongst 3 jumbo cruise ships and the ferries. Stressful!
The VERY ugly--As we tacked one time, the spinnaker slipped behind the genoa and got all twisted around. That wasn't entirely bad, but once I got that worked out and she filled with wind, I noticed a problem--the lazy sheet was on the wrong side of the boat, like it had gotten too much slack and slipped under the bow. I wish! As I tried to walk it back around the bow with the boat hook it became clear that the whole line had been in the water and was now twisting, alot. Frank had had the engine on in the attempt to clear the traffic lane and somehow the knot tied in the end of the sheet had come out and it had become wrapped around our prop. Very bad. We made a questionable decision to start the engine and put it in reverse while I pulled to see if we could unwrap it. Amazingly, it worked! We were EXTREMELY lucky. There could have been major damage, but somehow we got out of it.
Lessons learned:
- If it's sailing, sail it. Don't turn on the engine.
- Make sure GOOD knots are in the end of lines. Figure-8 is much better than an overhand knot.
- Always be ready to get wet. Time to get the wetsuit and mask onboard!
And back to the bad--The rest of the return trip was amazingly uneventful. Around 9pm we pulled into the marina. As we rounded the corner to our slip, I was shocked to see a boat in our spot! Thankfully someone was on deck so I yelled to him that he was in our slip. These guys didn't exactly jump to get out of our way and even kept kind of waving us off. After a few minutes of them trying to get their power boat out of our slip, he waved me off again, to which I responded, "Hey, take your time. We're only paying for it!" I was getting annoyed. They finally inched their way out and to my complete surprise, headed for the boat house 2 slips down from us--it was our neighbor (whom we've never met). After we got in and were tying up, Frank was out on the pier when the 2 guys came out of the boat house. They didn't say a damn thing to us! No sorry, no introduction, nothing. Just looked at Frank then turned away. I said, "Gee, good night!" and could swear I got flipped the bird. Sure hope I'm wrong on that one. Totally not like any other boaters we've met and certainly not neighborly.
And one more very ugly--we had some kind of short in our shore power connection and it's fried. Frank is trying to fix it now. Still a pretty good weekend overall, and we had a great time in Poulsbo, but man that's more "downs" than I'm used to!
In the morning we shifted anchorage to be closer to the town dock and headed into town. We walked Front Street before hitting Sheila's for a hearty breakfast, then walked around some more while we waited for the Marine Science Center to open. While Frank was heading into a nautical gifts shop, a necklace caught my eye in the window of the Blue Heron Jewelry Co. It looked like a wave made of blue glass and mounted in a silver setting. It was a very good day for me! I tried it on and Frank must have liked it because he got it for me! I love it. It's so reminiscint of our life on the water. After picking up snacks at the famous Sluys Bakery we put the kids down for nap and got underway to return to Everett. Still good... Managed to get one keeper in our pot, too!
The bad--Winds were favorable for using the spinnaker, so we let it fly. It took us several attempts to get all the lines run correctly. We were also trying to cross the traffic seperation scheme amongst 3 jumbo cruise ships and the ferries. Stressful!
The VERY ugly--As we tacked one time, the spinnaker slipped behind the genoa and got all twisted around. That wasn't entirely bad, but once I got that worked out and she filled with wind, I noticed a problem--the lazy sheet was on the wrong side of the boat, like it had gotten too much slack and slipped under the bow. I wish! As I tried to walk it back around the bow with the boat hook it became clear that the whole line had been in the water and was now twisting, alot. Frank had had the engine on in the attempt to clear the traffic lane and somehow the knot tied in the end of the sheet had come out and it had become wrapped around our prop. Very bad. We made a questionable decision to start the engine and put it in reverse while I pulled to see if we could unwrap it. Amazingly, it worked! We were EXTREMELY lucky. There could have been major damage, but somehow we got out of it.
Lessons learned:
- If it's sailing, sail it. Don't turn on the engine.
- Make sure GOOD knots are in the end of lines. Figure-8 is much better than an overhand knot.
- Always be ready to get wet. Time to get the wetsuit and mask onboard!
And back to the bad--The rest of the return trip was amazingly uneventful. Around 9pm we pulled into the marina. As we rounded the corner to our slip, I was shocked to see a boat in our spot! Thankfully someone was on deck so I yelled to him that he was in our slip. These guys didn't exactly jump to get out of our way and even kept kind of waving us off. After a few minutes of them trying to get their power boat out of our slip, he waved me off again, to which I responded, "Hey, take your time. We're only paying for it!" I was getting annoyed. They finally inched their way out and to my complete surprise, headed for the boat house 2 slips down from us--it was our neighbor (whom we've never met). After we got in and were tying up, Frank was out on the pier when the 2 guys came out of the boat house. They didn't say a damn thing to us! No sorry, no introduction, nothing. Just looked at Frank then turned away. I said, "Gee, good night!" and could swear I got flipped the bird. Sure hope I'm wrong on that one. Totally not like any other boaters we've met and certainly not neighborly.
And one more very ugly--we had some kind of short in our shore power connection and it's fried. Frank is trying to fix it now. Still a pretty good weekend overall, and we had a great time in Poulsbo, but man that's more "downs" than I'm used to!
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Sleepover!
Last night we welcomed our first sleepover friend to the boat! Katreina's friend Mia visited for the night while her parents got some rest after having baby #2. Pizza, toys, a dinghy ride, fishing, ice pops, and manicures--what more do little girls need? Surprisingly they managed to sleep together in the same bed (after about an hour of whispering and playing) through the whole night. The more surprising feat, to me anyway, was that I managed to get 3 kids ready for school in the morning!
Katreina and Mia hanging out on deck
Monday, August 3, 2009
A few firsts and another summer weekend gone by
While it wasn't a record-breaking crab weekend (only 3 keepers!), we did have success at a new anchorage, Port Susan. There were lots of jet skis and skiffs running around, but there was plenty of room. The crab pot kept filling with females and small males and Frank tried crab snares with the fishing poles. That was actually a success to some degree--no keepers, but we did snare some crab and dogfish! I was feeling a little under the weather and spent the better part of Saturday morning sleeping, but we did enjoy a trip to the local public beach/boat launch where the kids, especially Katreina, played a bit in the water. On the way back to Everett yesterday we busted out the spinnaker for the first time. LOTS to learn there! We got it all tangled up a bit at first, but eventually had it flying just in time for the wind to die. Pretty cool, though!
The mighty Neil Pryde spinnaker, sporting a sweet Beneteau logo!