And now today's episode of as the worm turns...Will wonders never cease. As mentioned our boat parts are finally here! Their journey has been plagued from start to finish. I made sure to contact UPS Canada and pay import duty and tax so the Harbor Master Kevin would not have to worry about it. When we go to pick up the parts Kevin says with a concern on his face "the parts came COD and I had to go to the pharmacy since that is where UPS dropped them off. The pharmacy would not let me take them until I paid $35.41 which I did with my personal credit card." We fork over the cash thanking Kevin profusely for going above and beyond and agree to work it out with UPS. Carl heads to the pharmacy to figure it out while Pam starts the laundry. Carl returns and says that UPS had stopped back by the pharmacy and said the package was not supposed to have been COD (duh!) but for some reason no one bothered to let Kevin know that. Kevin promptly returned our cash and says he will now work it out with his credit card company. We head up to Ukee Scoops and buy a gift certificate for Kevin. When we try to give it to him he says "absolutely not. I am on contract and cannot take gifts of ANY kind!" We promise a nice letter to the editor instead and do the only other thing we can at the moment. We march back to Ukee Scoops and consume enough ice cream for three people.
Back to the boat, parts in hand. We take apart the windlass, put it all back together. Everything works and no parts were dropped overboard which is always a bonus. We have a very brief chat with Cam as he motors near the dock with his tour boat full of whale watchers and calls out a greeting to us. "Perhaps Laura and I will stroll by tonight" he yells as he motors off. We see him returning from his second tour around 8:30 that night. Since it is so late we know we won't see them now until we return in 2017.
Off the dock we go, headed back out to Barkley sound. Entire we pass by Folger island that is covered with sea lions. We can head their barking nearly a mile away. We anchor in what will become a new favorite spot for us, Dodger Channel in the Deer Group of islands. We explore by dinghy and land on Haines Island with its beautiful beaches and abandoned cabin. We pick fresh ripe plums from the old small orchard. We see our first deer tracks ever in all of our exploration (except the neighborhood deer in Ucluelet). This anchorage puts us safely behind a row of small barrier islands that allow us calm yet we have a front row seat to watch breaking waves as they roll into the sound.
Next we head for Tzartus Cove. We catch... Rock fish... No surprise. The real treat is the mature Bald Eagle that swoops down three feet from us and snags the fish carcass that Carl threw out! Had my sister Barb been here she would have taken some great photos I am sure! We also like the rugged shore here with caves and rock arches. We dinghy into one of the arches and I am reminded of Leif and Lisa and our dinghy excursions off the coast of Mexico.
We take our burnable trash to the shore. Lighting the small fire at the waterline, Pam solemnly reflects on the wildfire that is raging in Canyon City, Oregon the small town where we raised our two sons. The hill that our home was on is under mandatory evacuation. We hope for safety from the fires for the residents and the fire fighters. As we get back into the dinghy we make sure that our little fire is "out... dead out" as Smokey would say.
Carl catches a very nice ling cod that we freeze for part of a fish dinner with the "kids and grands" when we get home.
Today it is off to the Pinkertons, another area we enjoy for its small islands and beautiful sunsets. We crack crab and enjoy the sun. We stop by the cabin that is receiving much needed repair and visit with Christine and her Dad Ray. We find out she went to our alma mater Oregon State to be part of their rowing crew. We look forward to seeing Walt and Odile as they have made their way from Anacortes and down the outside of Vancouver island and will tie up with us in a day or so.
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