Tue Jul 26 2022
Haines was awesome! With a freezer full of halibut and crab we hadn’t rigged a salmon trolling line yet, but we were able to purchase a couple of nice coho from a local gill netter. He was an interesting old fellow claiming to be 81 years old but flirting his ass off with Isabel. I think she was flattered! Anyway, we also got given a half salmon by some local guys who had been out subsistence fishing and had a really good day. Folks are so friendly in Haines.
We got invited over to a friend of our pals on Fly Aweigh II, a retired Air Guard pilot / airline pilot, call sign “Beak”. He and his wife prepared a spectacular gourmet burger lunch on the grill, showed us around their lovely home and talked about how to cope with heavy snowfalls and bears. Bob pulled out his 460 magnum hand cannon and explained how he had to kill a bear the previous summer before it could mall his neighbor’s dogs or even him. Dogs are a problem around bears, and it seems bears would just cruise on and mind their own business if dogs didn’t piss them off. It’s a common theme - humans encroach upon the natives environment, then eventually kill them when they become a problem. Happens to wildlife, and has happened to indigenous peoples for a long time.
We also had a great evening on Sunset with our pals Pat and Camille on SV Tarooki. They’re a lovely couple with a big fluffy dog named Millie, and they live on a little 30’ sailboat. They came to Haines for the summer so Pat could do seasonal work while Camille, a nurse, recovered from a knee surgery. We discovered them in Meyer’s Chuck and after hearing them extoll the virtues of Haines we knew we had to check it out for ourselves. Between the friendly people, the amazing scenery, the killer 4th of July festivities, and the local craft brewery and boutique distillery we found much to like. We even had good luck crabbing out in the bay just around the seawall. We did a little funnin’ around with our pals Joe and Nancy on Harborlark too, so it was a great social time, and when we needed to chase down information or look after personal business the public library was a wonderful resource.
Getting from the Juneau area up to Haines requires chugging about 50 miles up the Lynn Canal, known for it’s nasty seas when the wind blows up. Think of it as a natural wind tunnel kind of place. We hung out in Haines until we noted the high pressure system was beginning to break down, and before the low could really move in and bring Southeasterly winds we elected to blast off for Auke Bay. Sunday July 10th we tossed the lines and made our way down the channel, observing the gill netters preparing for the noon start for the week’s salmon fishing. During the salmon run the gill netters can put nets in the water at noon on Sundays and the fishing period lasts for anywhere from 2 - 4 days depending upon the inventories that Alaska Fish and Game collect. The point is to support the fishing fleet but also to allow enough salmon to get up the creek and spawn so there will be a good harvest in years to come. Commercial fishing is a big part of the local economy in many Alaskan villages and towns. We enjoyed chatting with the local fishermen (and women) as we wandered the marina floats, observing them preparing their boats and nets.
We got a very early start, departing the float around 0500, then chugged through deteriorating conditions, occasional heavy rain, poor visibility and gusty winds until we found our way into the marina at Auke Bay. Fortunately we got to sheltered waters before the wind had time to whip up a big sea. It’s key to arrive at any local marina after the gill netter fleet has departed to go fishing, hopefully freeing up space for the likes of us. The marina at Auke Bay doesn’t take reservations, so it’s a bit of a scrum wandering around the fairways of the transient floats looking for a space. To complicate matters, the electrical hookups are centrally located at the center of the big U-shaped float sections, and many of the berthing spots might require a 100’ or longer cable run to reach the power. Top make matters even worse, the electrical junction boxes have a rather limited supply of 30 amp and 50 amp receptacles, so not everyone gets a chance to plug in.
The first spot we found was just behind a sailboat named Scintilla, a boat we knew from our days in Ensenada, Mexico. Darned if Chris and his wife Chris didn’t greet us just as we tied up and naturally we were too far away from the power box for our cord to reach. While Isabel had a visit with them I went wandering the float looking for a better location to tie up, and along the way found Frank from May Marie walking back to his boat. He pointed out a single location the we might back Sunset into, and even better a power box that our 30 amp / 50’ cord would reach. I asked him if he would stand by to catch lines and trotted back to Sunset, apologizing to the Chris’s as Isabel and I fired up the iron jennies and tossed the lines. About 5 minutes later we were squeaking into the better spot with Frank advising me on how much room I had on the bow while Isabel on her headset kept me advised on the stern clearance. When we were all situated our stern was as close possible to the float “T” intersection while our bowsprit hung a couple of feet over a small motorboat’s bow. I thanked Frank profusely as I couldn’t have gotten the bow in without his coaching, and soon we were all secure and connected to power.
Now that we were “snug as a bug in a rug”, it was time to explore the local environs!
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