The Nordic Quest is now moored and well secured against winter storms as well as being winterized\u00a0against whatever Juneau winter weather throws at her.\u00a0There is\u00a0not much\u00a0I can do\u00a0but recall memories of peaceful anchorages in small remote harbors, brazen dawns and sunsets, calm crossings, and, of course, the holler from the back deck–“fish on!” But I can pull out the laptop with my\u00a0iNavX charts, bring up Google Earth on my desk top computer and start to explore where I might venture next summer. I can’t believe that after 30 years of cruising around SE Alaska there still are places I have not explored.<\/p>\n
Today I was reading the 2012 blog for the Dirona, a Nordhavn\u00a052, that on her way north to Glacier Bay\u00a0enjoyed spending\u00a0several days on the west coast of Chichagof\u00a0Island. Its owners\u00a0got into\u00a0places not many cruisers see because of their remoteness and accessibility — Klag\u00a0Bay and its abandoned gold mines, Kimshan\u00a0Bay, Elbow Passage. Surveyor Passage, Porcupine\u00a0Cove with its beautiful waterfall. I have tended to\u00a0stay away from\u00a0points north and south of Sitka on the outside because of chart inaccuracies and poor GPS plotting. A couple of years ago, we were moored at the Sitka dock and heard a May Day call from a guy who hit a rock coming up the outside of Baranof.\u00a0The Coast Guard got him out and saved the boat but it was quite an ordeal for awhile.<\/p>\n
But some places just beg to be explored. Lituya\u00a0Bay is like that. It has kind of a\u00a0magnetism to be explored. It’s the same with the outside bays and passages of Chichagof, Kruzof,\u00a0Baranof and Prince of Wales. They take a lot more planning, logistics,\u00a0information and first hand reports one\u00a0must glean from another person who has been there. So maybe this is the year\u00a0to explore\u00a0one of these\u00a0remote areas of SE Alaska. Heck, I’ve got months to plan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Nordic Quest is now moored and well secured against winter storms as well as being winterized\u00a0against whatever Juneau winter weather throws at her.\u00a0There is\u00a0not much\u00a0I can do\u00a0but recall memories of peaceful anchorages in small remote harbors, brazen dawns and … Continue reading