08/02/2024
Days 42,43,44,45,46,47 & 48 (7/26 - 8/1)
Day 42 & 43 Hoonah to Tenakee Springs (2 nights) - 45 nautical miles
It was a nice, uneventful cruise. A few whale blows in the distance, with nice smooth water. This is a cute little remote Alaskan Village. We decided to top off fuel here. Petersburg is the next fuel stop. Tenakee is the most unusual fuel dock I have ever been to. 😱 Mostly, because there is no dock. Just Barnacle covered pilings at low tide. We had to be creative to get tied up with fenders to protect the boat. From here, the attendant dropped the fuel hose down to us… this was an exercise I don’t need to do again.
We found a spot for both boats on the Transient dock - it even had power!!! We also got a humpback whale greeting here. One whale, close to the dock for a few minutes.
There are ferry terminal, public bath house, post office, library, museum, grocery store and cafe in the "downtown" of Tenakee Springs. There was a forecast of wind for the next day in Chatham strait, so we stayed 2 nights.
Tenakee Springs is named for the community Hot Springs. These spring are not “clothing optional.” Clothes are not allowed. They have specific hours for men, and different hours for women. Neither of us used the hot springs. But were told by others on the dock that they were in fact very nice. Tenakee Springs was a pleasant surprise. It was a nice stop for two nights. Above our expectations.
Day 44 Tenakee Springs to Baranoff Warm Springs - 54 nautical miles
Our next stop was Baranof Warm Springs ♨️.
Another hot springs without the clothing restrictions.
This was a longer day, again based on weather forecasts. We arrived early afternoon in bright sunshine. There was one spot on the dock that barely fit our boat. So we took it. At the same time, a Coast Guard group is stopping here for the afternoon. Once settled we went on the hike to the hot springs and the lake. It is about half a mile and part of it is a bit rugged. We hiked up to the lake first. We watched several Coasties swimming in the freezing water - and daring the others to join them. Then we went to the hot springs. We found a very nice spot. There are two ponds set next to the waterfall. You can easily sit in the pond that is right next to the waterfall. The sound of water fall and soaking in the natural hot spring is something we couldn't imagine. It felt very good with warm water flowing around you. Wow! What a treat!
On the way back to the dock, we stopped at the private bath house (3 rooms total) with the hot water plumbed in. The view from the window is spectacular. This was very relaxing as well- and no hike! 😀 We went to bed early feeling relaxed from the soaking, knowing tomorrow was a long day to reach Petersburg ahead of some expected wind.
This was supposed to be our last night together with Miss Marlie - However....this place is very busy and there was a large flotilla with big boats occupied the dock and the bay. They decided to go to Takatz bay instead. So we were forced to split up early. 🙁 We had a great time together the past few weeks. We will keep in touch and see them again.
Day 45 & 46 Baranof Warm Springs to Petersburg (2 nights) - 77 nautical miles
Once again we decided on a long day due to the weather. There was a couple days of wind in the forecast so we left early in the morning for a long day cruising directly to Petersburg. The plan was 2 nights in Petersburg.
We left at 4:30 to beautiful flat calm water. Shortly after reaching Chatham Straight, the fog set in. We were in dense fog for 7 of the 10 hours it took to get to Petersburg. Thankfully, the radar works. AIS works, and we have excellent electronic navigation systems, and there were not a lot of other boats out there. We were hailed by a cruise ship that wasn’t on our screens yet. He was so far away and we could barely understand him on the radio. We changed course a bit and watched his blip go by on the screen. We passed about a mile apart, and we never saw the ship. We changed our route once again later for another cruise ship in Frederick Sound. This one was passing us and headed to cross our path (so he could go up Stephen’s Passage). We adjusted course a little again and never got closer than 3 miles. We never talked to this one.
The only good thing about fog is this - usually, when it is foggy, the water is calm. That was certainly true today. We did have flat water for 77 miles. Once the fog burned off after 6 hours cruising, it was glorious sunshine the rest of the way to Petersburg.
We were assigned the North Basin marina this time! Much nicer docks and much closer to town. Petersburg was our stop for laundry, groceries, and fuel. We visited a couple of our favorite restaurants, and prepared to go further south.
Day 47 Petersburg to Exchange Cove - 40 nautical miles
We left Petersburg at 9:30 to stop at the fuel dock and time our trip down the Wrangell Narrows. Heading south, we wanted to time our arrival at Papkes Landing -about midway down the narrows-at slack current. This allows us to get a little current push from the flood tide at Petersburg and get a push from the Ebb for the south half of the narrows- avoiding a push against the strings currents that can run through here. Once out of the south end of the narrows, we were about half way to our anchorage for the night. Exchange Cove in Kasheverof Passage. It was a wonderful, beautiful, easy anchorage. We watched 2 deer on shore for hours and few sea otters swam by. We kept watching for bears too, but no luck on bears. We just hung out, played some games and enjoyed this peaceful evening in the quiet wilderness of SE Alaska.
Day 48 Exchange Cove to Ketchikan - 75 nautical miles
We weighed anchor at 8:59 AM. A beautiful morning....the water was calm and sun was out! As we cruised south in Kashevarof Passage, the Coast Guard broadcast that a humpback whale is entangled in fishing gear near by Coffman Cove. When we got close to Coffman Cove, we didn't see any whales in trouble nor rescue boats. However, off shore of Coffman Cove, we saw a few blows. We changed course to take a look. Surprisingly, we saw 3 Orcas and a group of Humpbacks bubble net feeding - Tracy's favorite wildlife activity in Alaska! We hung out with them and drifted for about an hour. There were a few fishing boat in the area that had their engines off. The water was glassy smooth, the blue sky and cloud are reflecting on the surface of the water, the air was quiet, it felt like the time paused. We are very grateful passing through their home and watching the wonder of nature. We will never forget this moment of the beautiful silence and the blows of Humpbacks was the only sound we heard. 🐋
We had to say good bye to the Humpbacks. Our plan was to spend a night or two in Thorne Bay before heading to Ketchikan. However, the weather forecast looked like Clarence Strait was going be very bumpy for the next few days. We decided to push on directly to Ketchikan on the good water that we had.
We made it to Ketchikan around 7:00PM and got a temporary slip in Bar Harbor South for tonight. We walked to a Mexican/Italian restaurant for dinner and drinks. Long day! We may need to stay here for a few nights before a weather window to cross Dixon Entrance.
