Still at Port Angeles

We were up at 6 AM intending to set off for Neah Bay at 7 AM, not long after daylight. We listened to the weather report over breakfast and were concerned that the high winds in the Strait of Juan de Fuca would be from the E, not the SE. To us this meant little protection from the wind and probably some gybing. We thought it prudent to wait in Port Angeles until Wednesday, when the worst would be over. We then took that next step of prudence and motored into the boat haven while the wind was still calm.

Late in the morning the wind was still relatively calm and there was none of the predicted rain. It reminded me of the near catastrophe at Eden Australia where we prudently moved to the southern side of Two Fold Bay to take shelter from the big blow expected that night, then foolishly moved back to the northern side the next day because nothing had happened, only to get slammed big-time for 24 hours while Arnold and I worked to exhaustion to somehow save the boat from being bashed against the jetty, to the surprise of the locals (who helped us a lot). Even for a slow learner like me that is an experience that I will NEVER forget and a mistake that I am very unlikely to ever make again.

In the early afternoon the wind kicked up a bit but then died down and we had a relatively quiet and dry day. However, we have not doubt that things would have been much rougher out in the Strait, particularly at the western end.

It is just as well that we came to the boat haven. The marine toilet became hopelessly blocked this morning. From previous experience I knew what to do and I did it relatively efficiently but nevertheless it was not a pretty sight when I uncoupled the outlet hose. The joker valve was totally blocked and after unblocking it I spent a lot of time knocking the scale buildup off the joker valve and its fitting with a screwdriver. Many buckets of fresh water laced with bleach were used. (Color photos will be provided upon request.)

In the afternoon Brenda and I took a taxi to the laundry in town. I visited the internet kiosk and had a telephone discussion with Arnold about the procession of lows headed for the Oregon/Washington coast (gulp!) In hindsight we are one week late in departing the area, but it just couldn't be helped because work on the SABB diesel and the refrigerator was being completed last Friday. After that we walked to Safeway for some supplies then took a taxi back.

We expect to set off for Neah Bay tomorrow (Wed) morning, unless there is a weather surprise.

I forgot to mention that I used "Jeff", Pachuca's Monitor wind steering yesterday and it steered us most of the way to Port Angeles.

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