DeFever Cruisers Rendezvous

 The day had finally arrived for our DeFever Cruisers Rendezvous. A short hop to Anacortes from the San Juan's, Jeff wanted to arrive early in order the wash down the boat and get her looking shinny and nice. Coincidently the day before I had received an email from a former gold looper who asked if we would be attending. Ironically our boats were docked right next to each other at the rendezvous and we were anxious to catch up. Jeff worked hard all day and was done in time for our first event- docktails. We shyly walked over to the activities float not knowing what to expect and quietly took a seat at the only table to be found. Within minutes a lady came over and said hello and told us it was her first rendezvous. We started to respond when suddenly I realized I knew her. Debbie & George own the boat Ethos and we met them in Petersburg, Alaska (their homeport) then again in Juneau. I told her who we were and Jeff and I quickly felt relieved to be with someone slightly familiar. Soon after George came over and the four of us sat talking the entire time not once getting up to meet any other people. Just as Jeff and I like it. We had dinner reservations that night and said our goodbyes to George and Debbie and told them we would see them at the seminars in the morning. Nonna Luisa lived up the hype and we enjoyed a large Italian feast. 

First Event - Docktails

Dinner at Nonna Luisa

The next morning at 0800 we walked over to the Anacortes Yacht Club where all of our seminars for the rendezvous would be held. We listened to the history of the DeFever, the current market for buying and selling boats now and how to take the best footage with your drone. All very informative and interesting. Despite that my mind was on open boat. We quickly headed back to the dock so I could stage the boat and make sure it was ready for the open boat invasion. I turned on lights, opened doors and made sure everything was ship shape. We grabbed our sack lunches from the activities float and scarfed them down to get ready. There was a gale warning and Jeff measured the wind which was blowing 46mph. The boats were all over the place and rollers were coming in at the end of the dock. I was happy to not have to go out again. Open boat went well and we met a ton of people who came through. By 4:30 it was done and so were we. A quiet raining windy night aboard was just what we needed. 

Cap Sante Marina

Anacortes Yacht Club

Seminars

Once again at 0800 we were at the yacht club ready for another morning of seminars. Today we learned how to cruise Mexico and beyond, the advantages of adding a bulbous bow and electrical issues on a boat. Today we ended at noon and walked around the Anacortes farmers market which had a drum circle and several cute booths. Jeff and I had lunch in town on our own and got our flu shots at Safeway. That evening we had a pot luck and I needed to get back to the boat to start cooking. We were a little (5 minutes) late and Jeff was nervous. When we arrived George and Debbie were there and had saved us seats. We were so happy to sit together and continue our conversation. We ate and drank and then had them over to the boat for a nightcap. 

Potluck with George and Debbie

The next and final morning of the rendezvous was a panel discussion of Q&A for the attendees to the senior members of the group. Jeff and I decided sleeping in and watching football would be more beneficial to us. A little hungover and groggy we made a big breakfast and watched football in pjs. We grabbed sacked lunches again from the float and then went to a couple open boats. We saw several 53s and a 60. So interesting to see the different layouts and how people have customized their boats. The final evening was a big banquet dinner with a pay bar, appetizers and a buffet dinner. We arrived on time and quickly got a drink. We spoke to some people and I actually met another couple from San Diego who keep their boat where we used to. So that was fun. We sat but George and Debbie again and some other now familiar DeFever people. We listened to a fascinating talk by Hank Haeseker our chief pilot about his adventures in Belize and Guatemala. It was so interesting and inspiring and I kept nudging Jeff telling him, "add that place to the list." After the talk we thanked Hank for sharing and said our goodbyes to the organizers and took a ride from George and Debbie. We got a treat on the way back, several deer were in the grass grazing and hanging out. It was a great capper to a wonderful rendezvous. 

 

Back to Life Back to Reality

 On an overcast and cool day we threw lines from Sidney, British Columbia and made the 11.4 mile run to Roche (pronounced like the nasty bug) Harbor and dropped the hook while simultaneously clearing customs via app then phone call. The process was swift and simple and here we were right back where we were about a year prior. My mood was glum to say the least. I just couldn't shake it. I didn't want to be back in the Puget Sound I wanted to be in Alaska. This would take some time to get used to. I kept myself busy by working on my blog and watching all the float planes come in and out from the anchorage. The place was packed and I felt smothered. Jeff on the other hand was chipper and excited to be back in Roche. At some point we lowered the dink and headed to the dock. A dockhand happened to be near and ran to tie us up. We walked along the familiar buildings and made it just in time for Jeff to get the famous donuts right before closing time. He picked up a few things from the little market and then we headed back to the boat to wait out our dinner reservation at the hotel. 

At dinner we could see the colors ceremony at sunset and hear the various music played - Canadian National anthem, British National anthem and Taps which today made me cry. Jeff noticed from across the table and took my hand. I apologized for being not good company and we went on to enjoy our meals which were both excellent. Jeff got fish and I got a veggie plate. A few glasses of wine and I was ready to put this day to bed. 

Purse Seiner at Work Outside Roche Harbor

Roche Harbor

Roche Harbor

Anchorage Roche Harbor

Colors Ceremony 

Restaurant at Roche Harbor

After a goodnights sleep I was feeling a little better and more willing to except our reality. At 10:17a.m we up anchored and made the 38 mile cruise to Bellingham where we would catch a flight to head to cousin Jarod's wedding. It was a sunny day and there were a ton of boats out cruising. At the marina we were assigned to the commercial fishing dock because we would be there for over a week and the marina has a limit on transients to three days so they were doing us a favor by letting us keep the boat there while we left. I kept telling myself that when I saw the shape of the docks and all the crap that was left at our slip - slabs of wood, old fenders with tons of barnacles all over them, old lines. I did my best to maneuver around them and got us secured by 3pm. We checked in at the office then walked the strip center and visited one of my favorite stores LFS followed by welcome drinks at the marina bar. The bartender was funny and made us laugh several times and I felt like I was starting to settle in. 

Cruising to Bellingham

Bellingham Harbor

Entering Squalicum Harbor

Our Dock Bellingham

The next day was spent doing laundry, boat projects and packing for our early morning departure to Ohio the next morning. We were confident the boat would be fine on her own and looked forward to seeing the Ohio family. 

The flight was uneventful and we were thrilled to see my parents at the Detroit Metro Airport. We went for a casual mediteranian dinner then made the two hour drive south to Lima. Ju was there waiting and after unloading the car we quickly got to catching up. 

Labor Day weekend was Jarod and Jessica's wedding. And like all Stolly family weddings it was a blast. The ceremony was familiar with some Mexican twists and the reception was full of libations and great conversations. As usually Jeff and I were the last to leave. 

The next few days in Ohio were spent catching up, eating, going to the lake and just enjoying each others company. We would fly out on Tuesday evening for Bellingham.

Our Prop Plane in Bellingham

Jarod & Jessica's Wedding 

The Dornick's

Back in Bellingham Jeff wasn't feeling so good and spent the entire day in p.j's on the couch. I proceeded with laundry and reprovisioning. We were scheduled to head out the following morning but Jeff was in no shape to be traveling so we got an extension from the harbormaster and he continued to rest and recover. Fortunately football season started that day too so we watched the first NFL game of 2021 and convelessed. 

Finally with a little nudging Jeff decided he would be okay to travel the 23 miles to Thatcher Bay on Blakely Island. I reminded him we were taking our home with us and if he didn't feel good at any point he could just go to bed. He agreed and we were off. I was so happy to be leaving Bellingham and get away from the dock. 

The anchorage was peaceful and quiet and we were fortunate to have it all to ourselves which is unheard of in the San Juan Islands. The day was overcast and we spent it soaking up the anchorage and reading. 

Thatcher Bay - Blakely Island

Sunset Thatcher Bay

Jeff finally was feeling back to himself and we decided to spend a second day at Thatcher. We watched as boats and ferries passed by while still having the place to ourselves. The day was overcast with light sprinkles on and off and we decided it would be a nice quiet p.j. day. 

Ferry Passing By Thatcher 

View from Thatcher

Thatcher Bay

After much slothfulness we decided to upanchor and leave our little quiet abode. Today the hope was to go to Patos Island and anchor. We've both wanted to go to Patos since arriving in the Pacific Northwest but you have to find the right weather window to go there because of how far north and open the island is positioned. We felt we had a good three day weather window which the conditions should be ideal. It was a sunny day and we made our way north through the islands. As we were approached Patos we saw another boat about our size entering the island before us. Slightly annoyed Jeff said they may be taking our spot. Patos has two mornings for boats (under 45 feet limit) and what we thought would be some room for a couple of other boats. As we were pulling in we saw the boat who had entered just before us leaving. Not a good sign. One of the two mornings was taken and there was one other boat med moored (anchored and stern tied to a tree). We could barely fit into the anchorage and I was impressed that Jeff could maneuver us out of there. So much for Patos. Luckily Sucia Island is right next door and Eco Bay was one of our favorite anchorages. We headed east and with little effort we anchored in Eco Bay. 

Map of the San Juan Islands

Lighthouse at Patos Island

Entering Patos

Eco Bay - Sucia Island

We decided a second day was in order at Eco. We lowered the dink and went to shore and took a nice long hike around the island taking in the pretty views.  Later we dingied all around the anchorage and to the sister anchorage next door. We read and watched Monday night football. 

Hiking Eco Bay

View From Hike

Tidings of Joy From Hike

The next day we decided it was time to move on. Some big winds were coming in and we would not be protected in Sucia. We cruised the short 18 miles to No Name Bay a place that would offer us good protection from the winds. It rained the entire day and you could feel that a front was rolling in. By 2:30 we were secured in No Name with several other boats. The anchorage was nothing special but did offer us great protection. We spent the rest of the day reading. 

No Name Bay

We intended to head out the next morning but the winds continued and our next destination didn't offer half the protection as No Name. With our upcoming DeFever Cruisers Rendezvous the next day I decided to spend the day cleaning the boat and getting her ready for open boat and all the people coming through to check her out. Jeff spent the day on the phone talking to various family members and catching up. 5 hours later and cursing cleaning I had her in pretty great shape and ready to show off to our friends and strangers. The sun was shinning and the wind was subsiding and we were ready to head into Anacortes for our rendezvous in the morning. 

No Name Bay

Sunset No Name Bay