July 4 – 5, Flynn Cove
We departed GBNP in a
moderately heavy fog and depended on the radar to monitor for the presence of
other vessels. We tried halibut fishing
just outside the park but gave up due to strong currents. We were going to try again on the south side
of Icy Strait, but approaching Point Adolphus we saw one boat salmon fishing
and decided to try that instead. The two
lines were hardly in the water when we caught our first salmon. Within an hour we had landed 4: 2 coho and 2
pink.
A happy Cash with 4 salmon
Once again we anchored in
Flynn Cove. This time we had it all to
ourselves except for a grizzly bear that was roaming the beach.
July 5 was possibly the best
weather day we’ve had since leaving Everett:
Sunny, blue skies and temperature in the mid-60s. We had planned on fishing for a while then
spending the night in the Tlingit community of Hoonah. As luck would have it right outside Flynn Cove
we started catching salmon. I was letting
Cash reel in all of the fish; however, on one occasion we had fish on both rods
and I was forced to land one. When we
had 6 in the boat we decided, over Cash’s strenuous objection, to quit fishing
and go back into Flynn Cove to clean, fillet, vacuum pack, and freeze the
fish. Our freezer is filling up fast.
A happier Cash with 5 salmon - me with 1
Tranquility Base (Flynn Cove) at last
light
July 6, Hoonah
Another beautiful day! At Hoonah we stocked up on groceries and Cash
finally got the Alaska sneakers (XTRATUF boots) he has been lusting after
almost since we picked him up in Ketchikan.
It doesn’t matter what the weather is, you see people walking around
town in these boots.
July 7, Tenakee Springs
Three nice days in a row. I could get used to this. It’s more than 40 miles and 6 plus hours from
Hoonah to Tenakee Springs. If that
wasn’t enough to make it a long day, we slowed down to troll for salmon (got
skunked) and then anchored in 90 feet of water at the entrance to Tenakee Inlet
to fish for halibut. This is the same
place I caught my large halibut in 2011.
After only half an hour of
halibut fishing a large fish took the bait and ran with it. Cash struggled with the fish for about 20
minutes. The fight tired him out just about as much as the fish. When the fish was finally at the surface I
harpooned it then, for good measure, used a flying gaff to secure it. With the fish subdued, I cut its gills. Another half hour elapsed before the halibut quit
flapping and was safe to bring aboard.
It was after 10 pm before we finished cleaning, vacuum packing and
freezing the halibut – a long day.
July 8, Ell Cove
Ell Cove is a beautiful
little anchorage about 40 miles south of Tenakee Springs. Cash and I had
planned on taking the dinghy outside the cove to explore. As luck would have it, however, a pair of
eagles distracted us. I ended up taking
over 200 shots and Cash took a bunch more.
The series below shows one eagle picking a fish off the water.
Eagle catching a herring
July 9-11, Warm Springs
Warm Springs is a place we
have been looking forward to. The name
really should be “Hot Springs” because that’s the temperature of the water: You can bathe in a stream in really hot water
as well as in private bathrooms in large tubs where the water is constantly
running and the temperature is controllable.
Bathing in a hot pool by a waterfall is an unforgettable experience. My guess is that the hotter of two pools may
hit 120 degrees F while the cooler pool is still significantly warmer than the
104 degrees of my hot tub.
The rooms with the tubs have
windows that allow you to see a magnificent waterfall while you soak in warm
water. Linda, Cash, and I tried the pools
but like the bath tubs best, so much so that we took multiple baths each day.
Early in the morning I
spotted a mink foraging near the water’s edge by the dock and managed to get a
couple of shots before it disappeared.
Later in the day we walked up to the beautiful lake and tried some
fishing for cutthroat trout. I managed
to catch two in the 8 - 9 inch range which I released. Cash logged much time
practicing casting.
We had planned on staying
only 2 nights in Warm Springs; however, the weather forecast for Chatham Strait
was wind and rain on our planned departure date. The decision was unanimous: we would stay
another day tied up at a dock close to hot tubs. Halibut chowder for dinner.
Bath house on the right.
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