2nd Boat Trip

Since our first boat outing went so well, we decided to go for a repeat on Labor Day weekend! It was a little drizzly as we entered Whittier but nothing we couldn't handle. A Princess cruise ship was docked in town and we saw bus after bus (plus the train) come through the tunnel as we waited for our turn.

An early wake up call makes for a 2-nap day. D brought out Boyd's infant seat for this trip. It's way small for him but it actually worked perfectly as a napping spot on the boat.

Our shore break for the day. The beach was deep and smooth enough for us to bring the boat in directly and not have to use the canoe.

Overcast but not rainy.

He really loved beachcombing and exploring his surroundings. No toys necessary.

Mr. Cheesy.

A little lillypad pond that D tipped me off to. It was through the tall grass via a short deer/otter trail.

Kids in the Lower 48 have sandy beaches. Alaska kids have rock beaches.

This cheap little wind-up toy kept him occupied more times than I can count. SO GLAD I brought it.

"He did it!"

Having a bigger boat and more powerful motor means we can go much further out than we used to. And sleeping on the boat means we are free from having to set up camp on land, schlepping all of our gear up the beach, and returning to a spot at the end of the day. Although I really don't mind sleeping in a tent on shore - it's kinda fun in a different way.

This time we set the shrimp pots on our way out of Passage Canal on Saturday morning, and then motored south past Culross Island and south down to Latouche Island. That's where we spent most of our time fishing and checking out the area.

In the evening the benches came down to form our bed, which is where Boyd and I slept. D fashioned a bed out of plywood and the front two seats (since 2 adults and one baby is a tight squeeze on the benches). Our usual nightly routine didn't mean a hill of beans to Boyd - he was AWAKE and MAD that we wanted to put him to sleep. We all finally fell into an exhausted sleep at 10:30 p.m.

The sun peeked out on Sunday morning - no rain!

After breakfast we left the benches down for a comfortable lounge-y area.

Sea porpoise.

So hard to see - sorry about the crap photo but these sea lions were super far away.

Rockfish - one of 2 that D caught.

Lazy Sunday on the boat.

Peaceful Sunny Cove - where we anchored up for the night.

We got lucky with the sea forecast - very few choppy waves and most of the time seas were 2 feet or less! That made it so much easier for me (a person who gets mildly seasick if I'm not careful) to deal with a rambunctious toddler.

Boyd's hair is getting long in the back - not so much in the front - and I love the little curl that shows up.

Getting warm - have to let some air in.

Best seat in the house and by far his favorite. He was very good about holding on and not falling.

Future captain.

It was a good fishing weekend - 3 halibut, 2 rockfish and a nice bucket full of fresh spot shrimp. I don't think we can ever fish long enough for D, but at least he got more time in this trip compared to our first outing. 

"TA DA!"

Leaving Latouche Island and starting the 3-4 hour trip back - first to get our pots and then head back to Whittier.

The kid managed to stay up until his regular nap time, and then passed out on top of me. The sound of the engine and the movement of the boat is a surefire way to get him to sleep!

Up and ready to pull the shrimp pots.

All suited up as we motor into the Whittier harbor. Daddy and Boyd headed off to get the car while I stayed with the boat.

Since it was a holiday weekend, D had Monday off too and it was nice to have a relaxing, family day at home to do laundry, clean & package fish, and do household chores. Hope you all had a great holiday as well!

A photographic study

I'm not quite sure why I find these funny, but it's kind of neat to open up my camera folder and log through the images that Boyd has taken. A few weeks ago I allowed him to play with my Canon and after a while I heard the camera turn on and could see the flash go off out of the corner of my eye. He had a great time just clicking away!

I posted these in order of when he took them - apparently Boyd likes to walk around and really take in the scenery of the living room and kitchen.

Heh heh, this one is my favorite!

1st Boat Trip

Two weeks ago we braved the rain and dreary temperatures to embark on our first family boat adventure! Whittier was our point of departure and overall the trip went very well. The launch was very busy on Saturday morning but we waited until most of the boats had unloaded so it wouldn't be so stressful on me and the little one. Usually I stay with the boat and move it down the dock as others unload, but with a baby it's almost impossible to do that by myself (D has to park the truck/trailer and walk back - a 15-20 minute process). In this case, we just waited to unload and then left the boat tied up at the launch. I walked around with Boyd until D showed up.

Boyd in his life jacket and Muddy Buddy waterproof suit. 

We're off! Motoring out of the Whittier harbor.

Found this little guy and his bigger friend in one of our shrimp pots. Also came up with a huge octopus (which we saved for my mom), a couple sculpin fish, and a sea urchin.

The combination of a very early wake-up call and the rocking motion of the boat put our kid to sleep for about 20 minutes in mid-morning. Afterwards he was little fussy, which is understandable - new experience, tiny space with minimal room to move around in. We stopped in a calm bay to let him explore the boat and he settled down.

Boyd took an afternoon nap in his carseat (we brought it on board) as we motored over to drop the shrimp pots in a new area. It worked out pretty well because as he slept, I drove the boat while D prepped the pots and threw them over the side.

A much needed shore break. View from one of D's bear hunting stations.

This is what black bears do! It looks like the container melted, but a bear basically shredded it to get to the stuff inside. Those claws are no joke.

Bear scat. It's been eating berries. Looks very different from spring poop, which is very dark.

Low tide. The boat was anchored up and we took the canoe into shore.

Small crab shell that washed up on shore.

My absolute favorite shell - sea urchin. I maybe find one or two per year on the beaches here. They're so delicate that they rarely make it to the beach in one piece.

Bloop bloop - big fat jellyfish.

D put a couple small pebbles in the shell for Boyd to shake.

A curious sea otter that swam around us after we anchored up in a small bay for the night. Later in the evening we saw a seal too.

Day two dawned quite early - Boyd didn't fall asleep until about 10:30 p.m. - and we awoke at 6:30 a.m. to a hungry kid. This was the first time that the 3 of us all slept on the new boat together. The two bench seats fold down to make a cozy bed, so we snuggled Boyd in between us. It was tight, but it worked. After a quick breakfast, we cleaned up and did some fishing.

Nap time on Sunday.

Boyd is in a camera phase. I found this one when downloading my photos and just laughed.

Our shrimp haul wasn't too skimpy this time. We kept some and then gave a bunch to my mom and Risha.

Pretty rainy on our way back in to Whittier on Sunday. It's difficult to see in this photo  - but the little watercraft on the right (to the left of the pink buoy) really looked to us to be a PADDLEBOAT with a little motor. Isn't that crazy!?

Whittier harbor.

More harbor. The boat launch is the area marked by the yellow lines.

Driving home!

Stop talking mom & dad, I'm trying to make a call.