Introduction

     The adventure continues!  It happened the week of August 1 thru 8, 2015, thus time up in the Pacific Northwest.  Destination:  the San Juan Islands, an archipelago located in Puget Sound, that extensive body of ocean which cuts deeply into the northwest corner of Washington State.  The islands are surrounded by snowcapped mountains on three sides and covered with lush vegetation.  The scenery is as wild and majestic as can be.

The San Juan Islands

     This would be our third bareboat sailing charter.  The 1st one was in 2011, when we journeyed to the British Virgin Islands, in the Caribbean.  Here is the link:  http://www.viyachts.com/bareboat-trip-reviews/bvi-yacht-charters-woods.php

      The 2nd one took place in 2013, destination Florida Keys.  The link is: http://woodsonrainbowsend.blogspot.com/

      But this bareboat charter will break some new ground, in several ways:  First off, it will be in COLD WATER.  No swimming!  A man overboard situation could be life-threatening.  (Well, we broke this rule a few times - details to follow.)

      Secondly, my brother Tim will not be there.  Tim has been my rock-steady "mighty sailing man" First Mate and Maneuvering Under Power Expert for our previous trips.  In comparison, my crew this time around is rather young and inexperienced.  (Side note:  I don't want a skipper who is "brave".  I prefer one with a healthy respect for Mother Nature.  And that would be me.)

      Thirdly, we will be aboard a monohull.  We actually prefer catamarans, but it seems they are not very numerous up here.  Anacortes Yacht Charters, who we booked thru, did not have any available at all.  (I'll have more to say on possible reasons for this later.)  So, this trip would actually be my very first foray as skipper of a yacht-sized monohull.  Get ready for life at a 45⁰ angle!

      So why did we choose the San Juan Islands (SJI's), to sail in icy cold water, on a monohull?  Well, a big factor is the cost just to GET to where you want to sail.  It takes big bucks to get to remote Caribbean Islands, but it's relatively cheap to fly to big domestic cities like Seattle.  Also, Joan and I lived up here, in Tacoma, from 1979 to 1983, and Joan has been itching to come back ever since.  And you can't blame her!

      And so my seven-person crew came together.  We were a diverse lot, hailing from all over the US.  Joan and I, of course, live in Houston.  Joining us was my nephew Mitch (Tim's son) who presently lives in Baton Rouge.  Then there was our good friends Robert and Michelle, currently from Boston.  Daughter Emily is in San Francisco.  Rounding out the crew was Emily's friend Caroline, from Atlanta.

The crew at Buck Bay:  Emily, me, Joan, Robert, Michelle, Caroline (Mitch is the cameraman).