Serenity in South Sound

It's been a while since we've gone cruising. This year, we've been weekend warriors and halfhearted racers. We'd prefer to be out there exploring, but our busy work lives prevent us from getting too far from our home harbor.

As a teacher, I have summers off, but Dave doesn't. And unsurprisingly, after taking four months off last summer to sail to Alaska and back, he doesn't have much vacation time to spare this summer.

But short trips can be pretty nice too. And since Dave only works Tuesdays through Fridays, we have a number of three day weekends to travel to nearby ports. And by taking only one day off over Fourth of July, he managed to put together a five-day weekend. Longer cruise here we come!

We decided to go south this year as we haven't been south since 2013.

Day 1 (July 3):

Dave met me at the boat after work, and we left immediately. Very little wind. A lot of on and off motoring. We stayed flexible this trip, deciding to go where the wind took us, and allowed the drift to take us to Blake Island for the night. This would be a good starting off point the next day.

Day 2 (July 4):

We had planned to dock at the public dock at Point Defiance. Due to Tacoma's holiday festivities, though, it was full; in fact, every dock and anchorage within the area was crowded, so on we sailed. The conditions were perfect for it. So perfect we clocked 11.4 knots in the narrows! The 4 knot current helped. :)

We pulled off at The Narrows Marina for diesel, timing the takedown of the mainsail so we didn't miss it. Fighting a 4 current back through wouldn't have been fun. The current was still present, albeit weaker, in the marina's narrow passage, and we tied up in front of a sheriff's boat at the end. Man, were we careful not to hit that boat! Regardless, we were thankful to find an open fuel dock on Fourth of July, and after filling up, excited to get back out into that exciting current.

We rounded Fox Island and headed for Penrose Point State Park before dark, anchoring north of the point in Mayo Cove. We visited there in 2013 and remembered we loved it. The charm was not lost on us this year either. Open anchorage, smooth waters, chill. We put up the hammock and enjoyed a relaxing evening.

Happy Fourth, y'all

Day 3 (July 5th):

We dinghied to shore and hiked around. The hike is short—about 2.5 miles—but still fun to explore. Great day.

New electric outboard!

Idyllic town of Lakebay

Day 4 (July 6th):

We left Penrose and headed back north, this time to Gig Harbor. We timed the current to help us again through the narrows, fighting a current only at the convergence zone at the entrance. The harbor was super crowded for the holiday weekend, as it appears everyone had the same ideas as we did. We meandered our way around boats, finally finding a spot with a hundred foot radius to call our own. We dinghied to the public dock and had dinner at Tides Tavern, an early anniversary for us. We spent the evening in our hammock, listening to our neighbor's Leonard Cohen on their speakers. Another great day.

Our girl

Day 5 (July 7): 

Our real anniversary. So much to celebrate. We married seven years ago, on 7/7. Seven's supposedly a lucky number, and though we're not superstitious, we know we got lucky. While Gig Harbor's fun, we decided we'd rather go for a hike, so we pulled anchor and headed back where this trip began, to Blake Island again.

Honestly, so much has begun at Blake Island. In early 2009, we borrowed Dave's brother's 26 ft. sailboat and headed there for the night, our first sail away together. At that point, the boat had grown mold and smelled of mildew and gas inside. It was winter and cold. The outboard died in the Ballard locks. No electronics or even electricity, but we didn't care. What an adventure we considered it at that time. We were falling in love, with each other, and more slowly, with a beautiful dream that was then only a vague idea.

Day 6 (July 8):

In very little wind, we drifted slowly back to Shilshole. Blake Island is close, and we weren't in any rush.

And that's it. A brief but relaxing cruise. Serenity in the South Sound.