We had dear friends join us on Aeolus for the past 3 days and they were about the most perfect days one can have. We picked them up at SeaTac and went straight to Anacortes, making the ferry after parking and walking on by the skin of our teeth. We so often make ferries by the skin or our teeth that I think our teeth must have lots of extra skin!
Friday night was quiet and we were away first thing Saturday. These friends are global travelers, Peace Corps veterans, and just delightful humans. He's a physician, and she works on climate change as a big brain for the State of California. On Saturday we went to Prevost to set up the rest of our trip.
I'll pause here and say that we truly enjoy having guests aboard Aeolus as it is always wonderful seeing things through their eyes. We feel blessed to be able to expose people to the joys and adventures of sailboat travel and the wondrous beauty of the Salish Sea.
So the voyage to Prevost was a highlight. Takes 3 hours from Friday Harbor in benign conditions, which we had. Once there we dropped anchor not by the State Park as most do, but by the public dock and Ericsen farm, and went to shore and hiked out to the Lighhouse. The lightouse was open for tours and we even got a tour of the big keepers house. A rare treat. From there we hiked up to a high point we love, and all together had about a 5 mile day with lots of elevation change. We are not young anymore, but tough as nails and know something about grit.
Back at the public dock, the three of them wanted to swim back to Aeolus which was a good 120 meters out to sea. I rowed the dinghy, being less a fan of neck seizing water. Well done by them!
A night of cards, and gorgeous light and conversation. These friends have been in our lives since college, more or less. There is so much to say, and so much that doesn't need said. Beyond this, they are both so bright and yet don't take themselves or life too seriously. It's a gift to be lighthearted in this life. Especially, if I may say, for men. We laughed, and laughed, and laughed, and laughed. Just silliness. All of us have advanced degrees but instead of being lodged in a place of stodgy intellectualism we can act like 13 year old misfits one moment and have deep conversations about global affairs the next. No pretense. No need to impress.
On Sunday we cleared customs at Bedwell Harbor and were off to Portland Island and Princess Bay. This time our anchor caught on the first try, as opposed to previous trips that saw us grab a barrel of kelp. It's been hot and dry for days here and the whole trip was like this. We swam first, paddle boarded, and enjoyed the ease of leisure on the life aquatic. After some food we crossed the island to Arbutus Point and came back on the East side. Portland is so botanically and culturally interesting. Thank you BC Parks and Gulf Islands National Park system for all you provide to mariners in British Columbia.
We dropped them off in Sidney this morning as they continued their journey on Vancouver Island to see other friends, and we did the 3 hour trip across Haro Strait and back through Spieden Channel to Friday Harbor. It got a bit choppy in the Straits, with maybe 15 knots of wind kicking up some seas as it went against some light current. Aeolus smiles.
I will never cease being grateful for Aeolus. What a day today, 4 hour boat journey through some of the most scenic places in the lower Salish Sea, and then a 3 hour drive home. Yes, we will sleep well tonight.
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