Somehow there was a glitch in the matrix and some of the photos did not publish correctly in the previous post. I have since fixed them if you’d like to go back and view them. Here is the link https://missmarlie.com/hoonah-to-tenakee-springs/
We left Tenakee headed for Baranof Warm Springs – they have nine hot springs pools – ranging in temperature. They also have a hot spring bath house. There is a public dock near a stunning waterfall. When we arrived, there was room for Cerise on the dock – there were boats rafted 3 deep. But we were a little too big. There are anchorages as well, so we tried those. It was jam-packed with boats in all the spots marked on the chart. To top it all off, there was a huge Coast Guard Ship out in the Strait and they were shuttling coasties in for a soak. It was mayhem. We decided to throw in the towel and go to Takatz, which is an anchorage that is less than an hour away. We have the entire next season to check out Warm Springs Bay – without the crowds.
That means we didn’t get a proper goodbye with our buddy boat Cerise, which was a bummer. We had such a great time hanging out with them – we will miss them!
Boy are we glad we backtracked and went to Takatz. The anchorage is stunning. There were only two boats there – us and Meteor – a 52-foot Nordhavn. We saw them in both Hoonah and Tenakee.
Takatz has to be in the top 5 of best anchorages to date. It was super protected, surrounded by towering peaks, waterfalls, and grassy meadows. We spent a peaceful evening soaking it all in. After a great sleep, It was such a gorgeous morning we sat up on the flybridge with our coffee and watched a bear meander around the meadow.
There is some wind coming Tuesday – Cerise is going to leave at 4:30 am and head to Petersburg. We have decided to go to Cannery Cove in Pybus Bay. We left long after Cerise (3 hours!) – we were in patchy fog for the majority of the trip. Once we hit Frederick Sound we were in whale-central! We easily saw over 25 – the problem was dodging them! We would slow down and change course, but it was really tense for a bit. We didn’t want to hit one or have one hit us! Other than the fog, it was a fantastic smooth cruise.
Once we got near Pybus Bay, the fog lifted and revealed the jaw-dropping gorgeous scenery that we were missing out on along the way. We pulled into Cannery Cove. It is tucked into the base of a glaciel bowl, a thundering waterfall in the distance, and a brown bear poking around the shoreline. It was idyllic for about 30 minutes. Then the NW Explorations Grand Banks Flotilla came in – the bear vanished.
That’s okay. You are the show or you are watching the show. One of the boats stern tied. Another got their anchor jammed in the roller area (I’m sure there is a term for that). The leader had to come over and help. It was quite the process, at one point someone was hanging off the pulpit trying to free it. Finally they freed it and everyone was anchored successfully. They kayaked, skinny-dipped (!!), fished, and buzzed about in a hive of activity.
We knew bear watching was over til this all settled down, so we played dice and listened to music up on the flybridge and enjoyed the glorious evening. It got chilly and windy, so we headed in – made dinner and watched the Prime Time show of the Olympics.
We are hanging out in this bay until the wind event is over. Right now the weather buoy outside this bay says it is 15.9 gusting to 17. We have 10 days to get to Ketchikan, so we have some time. We might have a stall in Wrangell, so we are going to check that out. (how Alaskan of us – they do not call them slips).
We might be here a day or two, so probably won’t hear from us for a bit.
Talk Soon.