Desolation Sound

Doesn’t that have a great ring to it? And it is aptly named; a largely undisturbed (there are a few cabins) calm sound, surrounded by beautiful trees and majestic mountains. We motored for 12.5 hours yesterday to reach Desolation Sound. We made great time, actually, until the first two anchorages we tried were too full and without having rope to do a stern tie, we would risk swinging into other boats or shore. We finally made it back to the first anchorage that we passed and tiredly tried to drop anchor twice before being successful on the third (in 80-90 feet of water the amount of line that we had to have out would put us in too big of swing risk). So we were tired and passed out shortly after our 9:30 dinner:)

6/23/24 Paul and I woke up early to take a kayak and row boat around the sound. It is beautiful! We got back before the kids woke, had a lazy morning and then headed back out with the kids for Kathryn to try her aerial silks and then go for a kayak ride. Beautiful!

So far, the journey has had its intended effect: life has slowed down enormously. No schedules, no appointments, no 500 things to keep our minds everywhere but in the present. At times, it may be borderline boring, but between looking up and taking in the gorgeous views around us, cooking meals, unpacking/organizing, doing laundry, there is enough. We have to train ourselves that it is okay to slow down. The kids might say they are bored, but they are doing great. They are on their devices for their allowed time each day – an hour – and then find books to read or legos to build. They may start school early, though, which hopefully will give them the flexibility to take time off of learning when we get somewhere cool and aren’t motoring.

Ready for launch?

We left June 17th and landed in Seattle, rented 2 minivans to load our 22 bags heading to the airport (not including backpacks), drove 2.5 hours to Port Angeles, checked into a hotel, unloaded all of our luggage, returned mini vans and passed out!

On the 18th, we took a ferry to beautiful Victoria, BC to pick up our new kayaks and Hannah and I paddled to the SeaXII. We departed Victoria on the SeaXII to head back to Port Angeles, WA believing it was easier to load our  22 bags plus 8 shipped boxes in the US.

Bad news – deciding to face our fears, I decided to test our pilot house bathroom…and brought down our whole toilet system:( The toilet problem that started last summer continues to plague us….  As my friend points out, unfortunately there are no porta potties as back-up along our route, and my kids aren’t adept at the Grand Canyon manner of using the bathroom…yet.

We loaded all of our luggage, and 10 days worth of groceries from Walmart, visited gorgeous Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park and then pushed off on June 20th to head back to Sydney Harbour, right outside Victoria, where Philbrooks will take a look at the toilets.

June 21, 2024: I went for a run and visited the adorable town of Sydney to pick up donuts and headed back to the boat to find we are apparently on a B.O.A.T. – wait, what?  They found the source of the bathroom issue – yay! – only to find that the alternator and water pump weren’t working. Oh, and we found a water leak. We took the Fournado (dinghy) to lunch in Sydney. Kathryn couldn’t handle the speed after our very sloooooow 8 knot speed on the SeaXII and fell out of her seat. They put the old alternator on, replaced the water pump, replaced the electrical relay for the toilet. We don’t think it will be worth leaving today.  Will we start our adventure tomorrow?

SeaXII Hypothetical Summer Itinerary

Hey everyone! I am trying to put together a basic itinerary so you can follow where we are and decide if you want join us for part of our journey! Our friend and retired Coast Guard Lieutenant Commander Adam advised us that Alaska is the hardest water to navigate. Once we have Alaska under our belts, we are ready to conquer the world!!!!

We have to be super planned and organized so we can assure that we can book slips in our ideal marinas (or stop at places with good anchorages) or ensure that we can stop in places with good grocery stores for re-provisioning. On the other hand, we have to be flexible, in consideration of weather,  current and tides. I met a couple in Florida doing the Great Loop who said they have A,B and C plan but everything in organized spreadsheets. However, this may be a challenge to convince my husband to be this organized….

For example, we had to apply for a permit to enter Glacier Bay National Park but we could not apply until 2 months out. We applied, and got our preferred dates of July 15-19. Then we could work out a plan to meet Paul’s sister, Sophie, and her partner, Ross, in Juneau.

These our our projected places to visit. Exact dates TBD, weather and location dependent

Port Hardy or Port McNeil

Cape Caution

Bella Bella

Prince Rupert (supplies)

Ketchikan (entering Alaska)

Wrangle or Petersburg

Juneau (July 12th) – pick up Sophie

July 15-19- Glacier Bay National Park (we will find out where we can go when we check in on the 15th and get a briefing)

Other recommended places in Alaska and British Columbia. Hopefully we can get to as many as possible!

  1. Blunden Harbor:- jumping off point to Cape Caution
  2. Fury Cove – shell beach
  3. Pruth Bay
  4. Codville Lagoon – walk around Sagar Lake
  5. Khutze Inlet – very pretty, often see BEARS!
  6. Lowe Inlet – waterfall; bears often fish
  7. LeConte Bay – southernmost tidewater glacier in the northern hemisphere
  8. Tracy Arm, Endicott Arm, Ford’s Terror – beautiful scenery
  9. Takatz Bay – beautiful scenery and BEARS!
  10. Red Buff Bay
  11. Egg Harbor, Coronation Island