Odyssey goes to Alaska

                                                               Odyssey goes to Alaska

May 10, 2021    

Tomorrow we start our 8th trip to Alaska.  First time in this boat....a very long story but this is our 2nd Helmsman Trawler.  We had planned to go north last year but Covid changed our plans.  We are hopeful that we will be allowed to cross into Canadian waters and transit through to SE Alaska where we will float around for the summer.  Due to Covid, we will be allowed to anchor, fuel and take on water but not deviate from the route of passage, not fish or crab or leave the boat.  Our float plan has us transiting Canadian waters and arriving in Ketchikan (weather permitting) in about 9 days.  I will be trying to post along the way with photos.  Stay tuned!                     

May 14,2021 This is the first real post for this blog since we are underway. I'll start at the beginning and catch up.  We left home Tues, May 11 as planned Diesel, the Shih Tzu had a grooming appointment for early that morning...likely his last for the summer.  Picked him up at 0930 and we pushed off the dock at home at 0950!  There was a bit of fog which cleared as we crossed Rosario into Thatcher Pass but the water was flat!  We cruised over to Friday Harbor where we topped off with fuel and then made our way up to Reid Harbor on Stuart Island.  There we ran into Marco and Karen from Helmsman Navigator and met Karl and Shellie from Helmsman Amy Ann.  We also met Tom and Kay from Alaskan SeaDuction ( on their way to AK).  We had a nice visit,compared stories and boats and got a good night's rest.  

The next morning, 5/12, we pulled anchor at 0700 and headed for Van Isla to clear Canadian customs.  We did not know ahead of time about the app ArriveCan which they wanted complete before we met with the customs officers.  Once that was done they boarded Odyssey and searched it.  Seems their biggest concern and target was cannibis in any form.  We had none but I had a tiny old bottle of Lavender oil at my bedside that aroused their suspicians. So old the label was worn but they were most curious about it.  Was I sure it was not cannibis???  Yes!  Take the lid off and smell it!   Neverthe less, they cleared us after we supplied our float plan and meal plan(to  make sure we had enough food!!)  We made the trip to Nanaimo and dropped the hook at 5 pm. Long day and a longer one comeing tomorrow.

We pulled anchor at 0520 andmade for Campbell River!  The first 20 miles were a bit bouncy but the sea finally laid down and we had smooth cruising the rest of the day.  At the north end of the Strait of Georgia the currents/tides changed direction. From about Campbell River the sea ebbs north through Johnstone Strait and floods south.  From that point also, the Strait of Georgia ebbs south and floods north.  So when we hit Campbell River (actually Cape Mudge) our nice forward motionon the incoming tide stopped and we met an incoming(in the opposite direction)current working against us...running at 6 kts.  So suddenly we went from 9 kts down to 3 without changing our rpms.  Fortunately Gary read the water/currents correctly and found the path of least resistance, caught the speed of some back eddys and took advantage of God's rpms! We cruised most of the way to Gowland Harbor in excess of 8kts. We dropped our hook in Gowland Harbor at 530 which made for another long day.  

This morning we pulled anchor at 0620 to make slack at Seymour Narrows and catch the ebb which would take us north up through Discovery Passage and Johnstone Strait. Gale warnings out but early AM looked promising.  

We made the narrows at slack tide and took off.  Made great time on good water all the way to Chatham Point where things started to deteriorate. Before long we were in 6-8foot seas and were slamming into the waves taking green water over the bow.  Never a fun thing!  We fought our way for the next 3 1/2 hours.  We called ahead to a boat infront of us (happy to have AIS!) and asked about sea conditions.  They said things were deteriorating.  This boat was a 60 footer...much bigger than we are and they were quiting for the days.  We checked weather (thank heaven we bought a cell phone booster for our internet!!) on line.  Fanny Island was reported WNW @39 kts!!  To much for our stamina.  We turned around and skipped back to Helmcken Island for the night.  A tiny little uninhabited island in the middle of Johnstone Strait with a good little nook with roomfor 2 boats tops but protected fromN/S and W winds.  We called the Canadian customs folks (since we deviated from our float plant) and let thew know our whereabouts....this is a totally new concept for us bt we are playing by the rules!!!  They were nice and understanding about the weather.

Hope things are better in the AM.  It is still 45 miles to Port McNeill!           

April 19, 2017
Again we are preparing for our Alaska cruise.  This will be our 7th trip to AK and our 2nd aboard Magic, a 38' Helmsman Trawler.  If this is your first visit to our blog, you can go back a couple of years and get a bit of our history if you so desire.  Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the trip.

The past year has been interesting and eventful.  A bit of a health scare issue for Gary that has been resolved and a hip replacement for him along with a knee replacement for me have made for a year of staying closer to home than we usually do.  All of that is behind us and we are anxiously making ready for a planned departure on May 6 that will take us to SE Alaska including Ketchikan, Wrangell, Juneau, Sitka, Glacier Bay, Hoonah and many stops along the way.
Gary installed new electronics last summer and we've had the battery bank evaluated and rewired to insure it is adequate.  Linens and non perishable food items are aboard along with a new doggy pee pad for the Diesel.  There are a few final prep items to take care of along with clothes and perishable shopping and loading and we should be ready to go.

                                                   This is Gary, the captain of the ship.
I will do my best to post as often as possible but if you've ever been to Alaska aboard a small vessel you know that internet spots are far apart and often you have to take your computer to a café to even gain the slowest access.....'taint like the lower 48 at all.  I'll be uploading to Facebook so stay tuned.

The Never ending frig repair story

I don't normally write blogs on mundane subjects but this one is becoming a never ending odyssey.
On Dec 17 2015 we received into our home a brand new Samsung refrigerator.  French doors, stainless, freezer on the bottom.  You know the one.

This was a big deal for us because when we bought our house 15 years ago it came with an almond side by side that was probably 10 years old then.  We figured....:"What they heck?!"  It will probably last another 5 years and then we'll get a new one.  Well, 5 years became 15 and it still chugged on and on.  Gary, the good husband, decided he would surprise me with a new one for Christmas.  I was delighted.  And I liked it a lot.  Much bigger than our old one, roomier (this one even holds a pizza!) and trendy-er. 
About 3 weeks after it arrived, Gary heard a "click/crack" when he opened the door one evening.  Here is where you need a bit of descriptive narrative.  French door fridges have a hinged, flange like panel (a mullion)attached to the center edge of the left door.  This allows either door to be opened first and also provides for a tight seal when the doors are closed.  The crack that he heard was a plastic clip which holds the "mullion" to the door.  Suddenly the mullion was not flapping back and forth the way it was supposed to and this was going to be a problem. 
The next morning we called Samsung who agreed to send an A&E service person to inspect it.  The man arrived several days later and sure enough, the attachment was not working properly.  He unscrewed two screws, reattached the mullion and the proceeded to put the screws back  Gary noticed that the lower screw would not tighten.  The receiving surface for the screw was stripped and was probably stripped from the factory.  The A&E service person said he was only authorized to fix what Samsung had authorized and that we would have to recontact Samsung.  We made the call as soon as he left.
Samsung wasn't too happy but agreed to send another service rep to look at the problem.  #2 rep showed up and decided that we needed a new door.  He ordered the door to be delivered to us and set up an appt for the following week. 
The door arrived in good condition and #3 technician came the next day to install the door.  He did and took the old door with him when he left.  Later that day I opened the freezer and noticed I no longer had a light shining in the freezer.  I pulled out the owner manual and found out there was a light on the lower surface of the left door.  When I got down on the floor to look up at the door I saw that there was an empty hole where the light should be and a dangling wire. 
Another call to A&E to tell them our woes.  They said we needed to call Samsung.  We argued that since A&E came and exchanged the doors and the technician who took the door should have taken the light from the old door and installed in on the new door.  Finally after talking with a supervisor A&E agreed to send another technician.  #4 showed up to look at the door and ordered a part from Samsung to be delivered to our home.  It came this past Tuesday.  #5 showed up on Wednesday to install the light only to realize that Samsung sent the light but not the lens cover.  He started doing some investigating and was able to locate Technician #3 who still had the old door.  Voila  Problem solved.  No. 6 is coming tomorrow.
0800 today.  Phone rings.  A&E stating the technician called in sick but another would be coming later in the day.  I said ....if he doesn't have the part that #3 had don't bother to send him.  "But M'am, the part was shipped to your house".  Yes I know but only part of the needed replacement part arrived.  Tech #3 had the old door and the lens.  So don't send #6 if he doesn't have the part.  But M'am, the part was shipped to your house.   I explain again.  She says she will have the technician call me.  I waited 2 hours for the phone call that didn't come.
I called A&E.  Again spoke with a representative who told me the part was delivered to my home.  I explained the whole story again and was told the same thing.  This time I asked to speak with a supervisor.  I explained again to her.  She called the #6 technician who said he had the part.
He called at 2 pm, said he was on the way with the part.
He arrived and has put the light in the door and gone to the truck to make a phone call.  He has now come back inside and is talking on the phone to someone about having "one wire hanging out" and it sounds like he hasn't encountered this problem before.  I'm beginning to think I will be seeing Technician #7 before this is all over.