HARBORS Jan/Feb 2015 Issue

Connecting People, Places, Adventure and Lifestyle.

HARBORS The Seaplane and Boating Destination Magazine

Destination Whistler

Navionics

Apps for Boaters

Birding the Skagit & Samish

Ketchikan: City of Totems

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Adventure & Lifestyle Videos

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Island Webcam Articles & Photography Fishing Lodges Resorts & Spas

CONTRIBUTORS Pat Awmack Jeff & Kathryn Britnell Natasha Dworkin Sue Frause Vincent Hagel Simon Kelly

Bart Rulon Marianne Scott Terry W, Sheely Tom Tripp Russ Young

PHOTO CREDITS Tourism Whister/Mike Crane, pgs. 14-18 Marianne Scott, pgs. 20-25 Bart Rulon, pgs. 28-35 Stephen Armstrong, pgs. 38-43 Jeff & Kathryn Britnell, pgs. 48-53 LLTK, pgs. 55-56

Terry W. Sheely, pgs.62-67 Tom Tripp, pg. 68-70 Ocean Breeze B&B, pgs. 72-73 Cedarbrook Lodge, pgs. 74-75 Willows Inn, pgs. 76-77 Billie Woods, pg. 78

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volume 6 issue 1

Welcome to HARBORS The Seaplane and Boating Destination Magazine

A Note from the Publisher

Harbor Lights Greetings and Happy New Year, It’s been a chilly start to winter here in the Pacific Northwest, after an exceptional summer in 2014. Now is the time to start planning your adventures for 2015! Please take special note of our destination advertiser-partners in this issue to help you get inspired and started on your travel plans.

This issue marks a new milestone for HARBORS: we will now include seaplane and boating destinations in Alaska, in addition to those in Washington and British Columbia. We’ll be bringing our readers some amazing and memorable Alaskan destinations that promise the ultimate in Northwest adventure. We also look forward to adding some new Alaskan advertisers and increasing our distribution in “The Last Frontier.” We’re off to a good start by partnering with Alaska Seaplanes, which will be making HARBORS available at all of their destinations. (See their ad on page 5 to find out where they fly.)

We also welcome another new partner, San Juan Airlines, which will be sharing HARBORS with all their passengers on flights to and from the San Juan Islands, Vancouver Island and beyond. You’ll find a copy of HARBORS in the seatbacks of all their planes – please feel free to take one with you after you land. (Their ad on page 33 has a map of all of their destinations.)

Our January/February issue features Ketchikan’s famous totems, a story about Whistler, BC, and Bart Rulon’s tips on birding the Skagit and Samish Flats of western Washington. We get an educational look at what is happening to coastal cutthroat in the San Juan Islands, and writer Terry Sheely provides lighthearted tips on the do’s and don’ts of packing for seaplane travel.

We want to wish all our readers, advertisers, writers and staff the very best in 2015!

Come visit the HARBORS booth at the Seattle Boat Show the end of January, and the Northwest Aviation Show in Puyallup, WA in February. We’d love to meet you and hear about your adventures in British Columbia and Washington … and Alaska!

In the spirit of the Pacific Northwest, safe travels!

Katherine S. McKelvey Publisher

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2015 January/February

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Features The Road to Whistler via “Time Machine” Whistler, BC

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Ketchikan: City of Totems

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Bird Watching in the Skagit and Samish Valleys

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Waterfront

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Alaska’s Ghostly Depths

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Protecting the Coastal Cutthroat

Alaskan Totems Western Washington Birding San Juan Island

Diving Alaska’s S.S. Princess Sophia Shipwreck

Salish Sea Conservation Efforts

(photo by Tourism Whistler/Mike Crane)

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Packing To Ride a “Flying Mule”

Cover Photo: Whistler Air seaplane landing on Green Lake in Whistler, BC

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Navionics Boating App

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Seaplane & Boating Destinations

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Who’s Who in the Pacific Northwest

Floatplane Travel Turns Your Tablet into a Unique Chartplotter N. Vancouver, BC • Seattle, WA • Lummi Island, WA

Meet the Faces of HARBORS Destinations

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Notes From Our Readers HARBORS – Reflection on a great BC fishing trip We just saw the Nov/Dec issue with the Hakai Lodge article. We were also at the lodge. Great food, great accommodations, great service from the entire staff, and Boston Whaler boats that were well equipped and maintained. What more could eight guys from California want?

Our adventure started the minute that we took off from Renton Airport in float planes. The weather was clear allowing us to have a bird’s eye view of Vancouver all the way to the Campbell River. The excitement grew as we continued on to Hakai Lodge, gazing out the window at what seemed like hundreds of islands and endless forest.

As we landed and motored up to the dock, we were greeted by staff who welcomed us and made us feel right at home. The entire staff was outstanding from Clyde Carlson, president of Hakai Lodge to the manager, Holli, who was incredible in attending to our needs, and her three sons, who maintained the boats, gear and cleaned our catch of salmon, halibut and cod.

And speaking of fishing, we all walked away from this experience feeling great about the thrill of boating to the catching of a variety of fish, mostly Coho Salmon.

The consensus from all eight of us was that this was truly a trip of a lifetime 12

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and one that we could repeat. If you’re looking for an adventure with a touch of class, Hakai Lodge is well worth the experience.

Linda and Doug Dixon Encinitas, CA California resident favors HARBORS when planning trips to the Northwest We are thrilled with our subscription to HARBORS Magazine. We use it to plan our trips each summer.

Great articles and the photography really reflect the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.

Shirley Bailey Palm Springs, CA HARBORS fan returning to SE Alaska for fishing adventure Glad to hear you are now including Alaska in your magazine. Couldn’t imagine a magazine about seaplanes and boating without including the Last Frontier. Flying by seaplane in SE Alaska is like taking a cab in the city.

We flew all over SE Alaska fishing last year and hope to go again in 2015. It was an adventure of a lifetime!

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For almost half a century, our firm has built a rich legacy in the Pacific Northwest, creating compelling wealth preservation strategies and growth opportunities for high net worth individuals and families, and institutions.

Artie James Vancouver, BC Send us your comments to info@harborsmagazine.com

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The Road to Whistler via “Time Machine”

By Simon Kelly

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n my travels I have almost always found myself at the “end of the road;” it seemed that was typically the best place to be. Others would struggle to make their way there, only to find that by the time they arrived they were out of time and had to turn right back around. My strategy was to go straight there and work my way back to town.

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A pilot friend of mine once described floatplane travel like being in a “time machine.” This is especially true in topography like the Pacific Northwest, where roads meander their way along the circuitous route of the coastal shoreline, coupled with one or more ferries, meaning it often takes countless hours to cover short distances. A recent trip from Green Lake in Whistler, British Columbia to Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island was a stark example of this. With the drive time, plus ferry travel, it would have taken at least seven hours to get there.

But in my friend’s floatplane it was only one hour; surely my definition of a “time machine” and the fastest way to get to the end of the road – or better, where there are no roads at all.

Whistler has always been a bit hard to get to. I have banker friends in New York City that have never ever made the trip because they can fly their jet directly to Aspen in four hours. Getting to Whistler is more problematic with no airport nearby and at least a two- hour drive up from Vancouver.

In early days it was even harder.

Before the Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver, the trip started on a steam ship up Howe Sound to Squamish, followed by a two-day trip with pack horses on a trail to Whistler.

The Coast Salish First Nations people were the first residents of what is now known as Whistler. They hunted and gathered in and around the area for thousands of years before the first European settlers arrived. Today Whistler is known worldwide for downhill skiing, mountain biking and golf – but it was fishing that attracted the first tourists.

In 1914, Alex and Myrtle Philip opened Rainbow Lodge. That was the same year a railway came through from Squamish, making access that much easier. By the early 1920s, Rainbow Lodge was the most popular summer destination west of the Rockies. A gravel road was finally pushed through from Vancouver in 1965, which was a 16

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huge breakthrough in terms of access.

It wasn’t until the 1960s that the area began to be developed for skiing.

Whistler Mountain opened in 1966; the original plan was to try and host the 1968 Winter Olympics. However, this dream would not come true until 2010 when Vancouver/Whistler finally got its chance to host the Winter Olympics.

In the meantime, a succession of owners and visionaries would create a pedestrian-friendly village at the base of Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains, and hands down the best ski season in North America. The real growth in recent years has been in the summer season. Originally it was golf, then mountain biking. More recently, it was the Peak 2 Peak Gondola that connects the two mountaintops. It is the longest unsupported lift span in the world, at a length of 1.88 miles, rising at its maximum height a lofty 1,427 feet above the valley floor. It is an amazing feat of engineering.

It wasn’t until 1985 that floatplanes 18

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arrived on the scene in Whistler, when Mike Quinn started Whistler Air on Green Lake with a single Cessna 185.

He grew the charter-air business to include two DeHaviland Beavers and a Turbo Otter. Then came Greg McDougall and Harbour Air, who purchased Whistler Air from Quinn in 2012. That is when everything changed, as Harbour Air began offering scheduled air service between Whistler and Vancouver, and even direct flights from Whistler to Victoria.

You now see planes coming and going out of Green Lake all day long.

One of the first signs of spring in Whistler is the distinctive sound of the hum of the first Beaver that lands on Green Lake once the ice is melted off. However, don’t make the mistake that one of my clients once did, chartering a plane out of Vancouver on a March day – only to find that the ice had yet to melt and had to turn right back around, as there was nowhere to land!

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Saxman Village: clan house and memorial, animal and clan poles.

Ketchikan: City of Totems

By Marianne Scott

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etchikan is the Alaska Panhandle’s southernmost town and like all communities in this region, it’s accessible only by boat or airplane. Stretching along Tongass Narrows on Revillagigedo Island’s west side, the city was founded in 1885.

The legacy from that time includes the once bawdy-house, speak-easy Creek Street area, now a trendy shopping area.

Before Europeans arrived, however, the indigenous Tlingit camped and fished here for 10,000 years. And it is the Tlingit’s legacy of carved totems that has allowed Ketchikan to claim it’s the world’s totem capital.

We arrived in Ketchikan on our sailboat, Beyond the Stars, and passed four cruise ships on our way to the marina.

Thousands of passengers streamed through the downtown, where a small, central park introduces visitors to Chief Kyan’s totem depicting a crane, thunderbird and brown bear. The bear was the chief ’s family crest. Like many of these tall wooden sculptures, it commemorates an ancestor. Poles also record historical or social events, but were never worshipped as early Christian missionaries believed.

The Kyan pole reveals the three traditional colors carvers still apply today: black, red and blue-green. To make those colors, past artists chewed salmon eggs, then added the sticky mix of eggs and saliva to charcoal for black, red-iron ore for red, and iron20

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Saxman: pointing figure pole memorializes a Raven Clan member.

silicate clay for blue-green.

They’ve updated that method—one master carver told me the traditional colors endure, but now he buys paint at the hardware store.

The nearby Tongass Historical Museum contains a corner with three distinctive poles: one describes the Haida Creation Myth; the second represents three iconic animals – the beaver, raven and bear. But the third is offbeat – the Truman pole represents the artist’s view of the Cold War, with the former U.S. president’s head on top, 22

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and Churchill and Stalin underneath.

Potlatch Park I boarded a bus for easy transport north of Ketchikan, where two adjacent parks offer a feast of native clan houses, poles and carvings. Over the past 28 years, Tedi Brown and Patrick Moore have lovingly created Potlatch Park, with its collection of five clan houses, numerous poles and a carving shed. They offer free access to their grounds and run a huge emporium selling souvenirs, native art and books.

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Saxman: a tired wolf host post greets visitor.

The red-cedar clan houses are carved and painted inside and out, and are flanked by totems depicting the mythical thunderbird, coastal animals, the legendary “fog woman” who caught salmon to feed hungry villagers, and the “eagle boy” who shared salmon with an eagle who in turn fed him.

Placards explain the poles’ symbolism and stories. A clan house showing how 19th century Tlingit lived particularly enthralled me. The square dwelling includes a central fire pit and intricate house poles support the hefty cedar

Totem Bight: a bear head shows how nature conquers even resistant cedar.

ceiling beams, while the back panel reveals the carving of a mother and child. The mother’s hands next to her offspring’s head are open to visitors so they can absorb her wisdom and knowledge.

Brown and Moore have created a popular children’s activity. In a room filled with child-sized tables and benches, kids can paint and decorate scales for several “sea monster” poles.

“It’s a way for children to participate actively, to teach them that these traditional arts can be theirs just as they

Saxman: a ridicule pole showing Sec. Seward visiting in 1869 but not bringing gifts. Red nose and ears show his stinginess.

continue to be for native people,” said Brown.

Totem Bight Park Next to Potlatch, the Totem Bight Park stretches along the water. Its ample vegetation, fireweed hedges and rainforest-sized trees create a distinctive flavor. The park was founded during the Great Depression, when the Civilian Conservation Corps funded the effort to salvage and replace the totems and clan houses of the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian.

They did so just in time. By 1900, the forces of assimilation and Christian missionaries discouraged totem carving. Many poles were abandoned to the elements. Under the CCC program, older artists repaired and replaced poles and transmitted their skills to young carvers.

The results are impressive and ongoing. Along the paths, we find striking poles like “man captured by sea otters,” welcome figures, and totems with myriad animals. I liked the signs explaining how carvers chose straight-

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Potlatch: this pole tells the legend of a boy sharing his salmon with an eagle who in turn feeds him. grained, decay- and insect-resistant cedar trees for totems, and cut slabs for clan-house walls. And how abundant food sources allowed leisure time for people to develop elaborate ceremonies and distinctive art styles. And why poles decay: rain mingles with bird droppings, lichen and mold to break down the wood’s cellulose. Thus, several poles lie near the carving shed, awaiting rebirth.

The Totem Heritage Center This downtown museum houses abandoned 19th century poles gathered to prevent further decay. They are prime examples of traditional motifs, but with weather-created cracks, flaked-off paint and softened features.

They offer a marked contrast with the vibrantly painted poles in the rest of Ketchikan’s parks, but retain their primitive charm.

Saxman Native Village Taking the bus south, we were dropped off by an avenue flanked by 11 poles, with another 14 and a richly decorated clan house beyond a cross street. Some of the poles were collected from outlying islands and restored. Using mostly traditional colors, these are among the most vivid totems I’ve seen.

The traditional, yet evolved, designs are thrilling. On each side of the street, two red “tired wolf host posts” greeted us, tongues hanging out. Many poles are commemorative, honoring a chief or lost fishermen. Others highlight the various Tlingit clans—Wolf, Bear, Eagle, Killer Whale, Beaver, Raven and Frog. A row of frogs tucked under the log protecting the clan-house entrance tells a Tlingit legend about “the Princess and the Frog Clan People,” disclosing the belief that humans and animals are interchangeable or interrelated.

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Potlatch: a clan house is built around fire pit and a mother and child carving graces the back wall.

Potlatch: a “sea monster” pole has been covered with child-painted scales.

When cruise ships visit, the clan house hosts native dances and artists demonstrate their skills in a carving shed. The ships having departed the day we explored the totems, we were alone, allowing us to wander and calmly absorb the bold colors and creativity.

There are many ways to enjoy Ketchikan. But if your interests lie in the art of native carving, take time to amble slowly, absorb the culture, appreciate the symbolism and savor the artistry.

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Promoting Safe Flying Protecting Washington Waters

WASHINGTON SEAPLANE PILOTS ASSOCIATION The WSPA is a group of over 200 friendly and knowledgeable "old-timers" and individuals new to the sport of Water Flying. We try to have some fun while doing it. We gather together on a number of occasions each year to share our interests and lives.

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Our main objective is to Keep Washington Waterways OPEN. The Seaplane and Boating Destination Magazine

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Bird Watching in the Skagit and Samish Valleys

By Bart Rulon

Thousands of big white geese with black wing tips explode into the air from the grassy field where they are feeding. Everyone’s eyes get really big as they fly right over us. 10,000 wings flapping in unison makes an impressive and unique sound that few people ever experience. All it took was for a bald eagle to fly over this flock of snow geese to make them take off!

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t’s February in Washington’s Skagit Valley, and I’m leading a field trip for a group of my students from the Natural Science Illustration program at the University of Washington. Many of them have never seen anything like this and are totally in awe.

Every winter I take a group to the Skagit and Samish Valleys to show them some of the best bird watching in western Washington. less than 90 minutes north of Seattle. The huge flocks of geese are the big-bird spectacle, but there are also many more birds to see.

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October and November is when things really get started there. Thousands of snow geese fly in from Siberia, while Tundra swans and Trumpeter swans come from the north and interior of North America. In recent years wintertime population estimates in Skagit County have been between 8,000 and 10,000 swans, and between 24,000 and 55,000 snow geese. Many of these birds stay until April, making it possible to visit the area and see tulips, swans and snow geese on the same day, just before the big white birds depart.

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Shorebirds, herons, eagles, hawks, falcons, owls and a wide variety of ducks also winter on or near these flats.

The snow geese and swans spend their nights sleeping on Skagit Bay, but at sunrise they fly into the farmlands to feed. If you get up early you can see them taking off from the water at daybreak, one flock after another. Find a good spot on one of the dike-accesses to watch them fly overhead after they leave the water, or keep an eye on which field the first geese are landing in to position yourself to see the other flocks coming in. They might land near a road where you can see them up close, or out in the middle of private farmland. After all the geese reach the fields that doesn’t mean the action is over for the day, though. They can be very skittish, and the flocks tend to take off and settle back in throughout the day. The swans tend to spread out into different feeding locations more than the geese do, so they are usually seen in smaller numbers but at more locations. At the end of each day, usually after sunset, you have a good chance of seeing a mass exodus as the geese and swans all take flight again and head back to the water for the night.

Fir Island, in between the forks of the Skagit River, is one of the hot spots for seeing the birds. Fir Island Rd., between Conway and the river’s North Fork, is a good place to start your search, but any of the island’s back roads can also be very productive. Look for large areas of white in the fields; from a distance, the geese can look like a big patch of snow. There are also some good access points where you can park, walk, and get good views: the wildlife recreation areas at the end of Wylie Rd., Short-eared owls are often active during the day, more than other owl species, especially close to sunset.

Some birds of prey, like this red-tailed hawk, tend to occupy the same territory every winter.

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Two trumpeter swans fly back toward Skagit Bay at sunset, where they will roost for the night, after feeding all day in the Skagit farmlands.

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the end of Rawlins Rd., and the south sides of Maupin Rd. and Fir Island Rd. can be very productive for waterfowl, shorebirds, herons and birds of prey.

(Most of these sites require a Washington state Discovery Pass or a Fish and Wildlife parking pass displayed on your dashboard.)

The Samish and Skagit Flats are also widely known as the best places in Western Washington to watch raptors during the winter. Those commonly seen include bald eagles, northern harriers, peregrine falcons, merlins, kestrels, short-eared owls, and a variety of hawks: red-tailed, rough-legged, Cooper’s and sharp-shinned. It is also possible to spot gyrfalcons, prairie falcons, and barn, great-horned and snowy owls. This is one of the few places where you can potentially see all five of North America’s falcon species in one day. The birds of prey winter here due in large part to the abundance of food available. There are plenty of birds to prey upon, but the farmlands are full of small rodents too.

The Samish Flats is probably the best place to see the greatest variety of birds of prey. Take Bayview Edison Rd. north from Highway 20; start looking for raptors on the entire length of this road. The north end of the road, where it come to a a “T” and drops down into flat open farmland, is where of prime raptor habitat begins. Look around, because they can be on the ground, A bald eagle buzzes right over a flock of dunlin. They seem to know that the eagle is too slow to be much of a threat, but for some of the shorebirds it’s a little too close for comfort this time.

The fastest animal on earth, the peregrine falcon, builds up speed while chasing a flock of shorebirds.

Two northern harriers squabble over a meal. Competition for food is fierce with so many raptors wintering in the Skagit and Samish Valleys.

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A peregrine falcon spots a potential meal in the distance.

A flock of 2,000 dunlin twist and turn in the air together like sheets in the wind. This “safety in numbers” technique makes it much harder for a falcon to focus on one target bird.

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in the air, on the tops of trees, and on power lines and poles. Going right at the “T” will lead you over the Samish River, but about 100 yards before you cross it you will see a stand of trees, to the north, that can be littered with bald eagles – I’ve seen as many as 22 perched in there! If you turn left, at the “T”, on Samish Island Rd, there is another wildlife recreation area just as the road turns 90 degrees. This is one of western Washington’s best spots for seeing raptors of various types. You can scan with binoculars from the parking lot, or walk one of the trails out into the fields.

It’s a “dog-eat-dog” world out there for birds of prey; the competition for food is fierce. When you’re trying to protect a meal you just caught, it pays to be big. The bald eagles are the largest raptors; they spend much of their day perched in the trees, waiting for opportunities. If another bird catches something they often swoop in to steal an easy meal. It’s not just the eagles; I

recall watching a peregrine falcon pursue a dunlin one February day. After a lightning-fast chase the falcon knocked the smaller bird to the ground, then circled back to claim his meal. Then a red-tailed hawk flew in and bullied the shorebird, forcing the falcon to depart empty-taloned. Another winter, an immature gyrfalcon made a substantial part of his living by stealing food from other raptors. Gyrfalcons are bird hunters, but I watched this one steal mice from several northern harriers that year.

If you go, dress for cold, windy conditions, and wear boots, because it can get pretty muddy. Much of your bird watching will be from the roadside, and the shoulders can be narrow, so be conscious of other vehicles. And remember that waterfowl hunting season is typically October through January so I prefer going in February and March.

Visit the Skagit and Samish Valleys, bundle up and have a great time with the birds!

A bald eagle perches in a stand of trees that is often littered with eagles waiting for a feeding opportunity near the mouth of the Samish River.

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Waterfront

A special real estate section of unique waterfront homes.

Luxury Waterfront Properties

Going Big, and Going Home San Juan Island Waterfront Home

By Russ Young

Although the expression “go big, or go home” suggests mutual exclusivity, the San Juan Island, Washington house of Sandy and Joe Pond seems to call that notion into question.

There is no doubt that the Pond’s domicile is big – the main house is 8,431 square feet, and there is a twobedroom guest house – but it has a broad list of attributes that make a house a home: form and function; comfort and elegance; spaciousness and cozy spaces. And that’s not to mention a long, well-protected deep water dock; lots of outdoor-living space; and spectacular views of the water, other islands, sunrises and sunsets.

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A special real estate section of unique waterfront homes.

A special real estate section of unique waterfront homes.

Ironically, Sandy and Joe weren’t really seeking size or spectacle when they bought the house in 2004. As much as it is a real estate cliché, the true appeal was location. Avid boaters who had previously owned a house in the nearby town of Friday Harbor, and already had a home in Gig Harbor, Washington, the Ponds chose this house because of their love of the San Juan Islands (“A true jewel,” in Sandy’s words), and their ability to keep their boat in sight and at the dock year-round.

The Ponds know a thing or two about location: they’ve lived in at least nine states, and traveled extensively in their pre-retirement years – Joe set up gypsum-wallboard manufacturing facilities around the world; Sandy was a United Airlines flight attendant for 31 years.

The Pond’s three-bedroom home sits on a peninsula that nearly bisects the island’s Mitchell Bay; it is unique in that, although it is not at the tip,

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A special real estate section of unique waterfront homes.

A special real estate section of unique waterfront homes.

the property has waterfront on both sides of the isthmus. The main house takes in primarily western and southern views and light; the guest house and its spacious deck face east.

The main living area is framed by lightly whitewashed fir posts and beams that were reclaimed from a West Seattle flour mill and purchased from a Bellingham architectural-salvage yard. (According to Sandy, some of the same wood was used in the Seattle-area mega-home of Microsoft founder Bill Gates.) The whitewash treatment was also used on the alder floors to minimize the contrast between the two.

But that’s not to say that the house is monochromatic. An impressive pair of brass handles salvaged from the cruise ship United States opens double doors that lead into a spectacular English-style study/library impressively decorated in cherry.

The master suite, much like the kitchen, dining area and living room, 42

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takes in the dramatic west-facing view that includes the Snug Harbor Resort, Henry Island, the Haro Strait and the southern tip of Vancouver Island.

That view can be enjoyed from a sixjetted tub in the master bath, although there is also a roomy shower with five spray heads. Or there’s an intimate private deck just off the bedroom.

There is a jaw-dropping amount of closet space in the master suite: a partitioned-off dressing/closet area leads to a walk-in closet that brings to mind the size of some big-city apartments.

Reach up, and you can pull down folding stairs that access a cedar-lined attic space perfect for storing out-ofseason garments.

The spacious kitchen is well-suited for both formal and informal entertaining. It can be closed off from the dining room to allow for catering, while it is roomy enough to accommodate plenty of guests when, as is so often the case, a party moves into the kitchen.

There is an equally dizzying choice of spaces elsewhere in the house, including a sunny great room that serves as the Pond’s workout space, complete with a 21-jetted hot tub that seems big enough to swim laps in. A cozy solarium/greenhouse is at the southern edge.

Out back, a pair of decks overlooks the dock, which not only accommodates boats upwards of 70 feet, but also has a covered slip that can take a 30-footer.

A short walk leads to the cozy guest house, well-suited for a visitors, caretaker, family members or tenants. It was built initially as a place for the original owners to live as they supervised the three-year construction of the main home. Considering its view of sunrises, its access to the water, a peaceful garden and the privacy provided by the surrounding woods, the guest house itself might satisfy many people’s dreams of a waterfront home.

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Alaska’s Ghostly Depths Diving Alaska’s S.S. Princess Sophia Shipwreck

By Jett and Kathryn Britnell

A

laska’s worst maritime disaster occurred during stormy seas and a blinding winter blizzard just northwest of Juneau, on Oct. 24, 1918, when Canadian Pacific Railway’s steel-built coastal steamer, S.S. Princess Sophia, ran aground at dawn on Vanderbilt Reef.

While she was cruising southbound on her regularly scheduled voyage between Skagway and Vancouver, British Columbia, foul weather and a navigational error placed the ill-fated ship more than a mile off course in the middle of Lynn Canal.

It was high tide when Princess Sophia slammed into the reef, a flat, rocky outcropping rising 15 feet above the ocean’s surface at low tide, but whose surface is submerged under high tides or heavy swells. The force of the crash caused the 245-foot, 2,320-ton vessel to lie atop the rocks with its entire hull completely out of the water.

Sea conditions on that fateful morning were so dire, Princess Sophia’s captain decided that all passengers should remain onboard, knowing he could not safely launch the lifeboats and abandon ship without putting lives at risk. Under such blustery conditions, leaping into the cold sea and trying to swim for it would have meant certain death from drowning,

Exploring the Sophia hypothermia, or cold-water shock.

Apparently, all onboard remained calm as they awaited more favorable weather and calmer seas to transfer over to rescue vessels. It would be a rescue that would never come.

On Oct. 25 at 4:50 p.m. Sophia’s wireless operator radioed to the U.S. lighthouse tender Cedar, “Ship foundering on reef. Come at once!” A second message at 5:20 p.m. urgently

relayed: “For Gods sake, hurry, the water is coming in my room.” It was ultimately followed by the ship’s final transmission: “You talk to me, so I know you are coming.”

Although the rescue ship Cedar left shelter and sailed into the storm to find Sophia, every effort to locate the foundering ship was unsuccessful.

Due to worsening weather and galeforce winds, rescue was simply not

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At 115 feet deep prowfish haunt the shipwreck.

possible. The Cedar searched as long as possible before leaving to overnight in a safe harbor.

The next morning, the Cedar set out again only to eventually discover Princess Sophia’s mast was all that remained above water. Sadly, there were no survivors. All the watches worn by those onboard stopped when Princess Sophia slipped beneath the frigid waves at 7:30 a.m., taking all 366 souls aboard with her.

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The loss of life made this shipwreck the deadliest ever to occur along North America’s west coast. Many victims were members of Alaska’s high society and major contributors to the region’s economy. After the sinking, the area’s economy virtually collapsed. It took several decades for the economy to recover, causing some to suggest the S.S. Princess Sophia sinking was more important than the R.M.S. Titanic tragedy. A channel

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marker now sits atop Vanderbilt Reef to warn passing mariners of the shipping hazard.

Diving for Ghosts On a windy, sunny day, we moored the Nautilus Swell’s dive skiff to the permanent marker buoy the Juneau Dive Club has secured to the Princess Sophia’s decaying bow section. I had wanted to dive the Sophia for so long, I could hardly wait to grasp the

descent line.

Cloaked with billowy white plumose anemones, the rusting remains of the Princess Sophia start at approximately 60 feet. Some levelheaded divers firmly believe this shipwreck is haunted, but with underwater visibility of 80 feet and superb available light all the way down to 120 feet, we could not understand how anyone could get that spooky feeling.

Adorned with numerous species of

marine life, the Sophia provides sanctuary to a myriad of oceanic critters, including crimson anemones, hermit crabs, rose stars, decorator crabs and schools of black rockfish. On our dive, heart crabs and decorated warbonnets hiding in cracks and crevices were quite common near the ship’s collapsing mid-section, as were a few solitary tiger rockfish.

Pausing to photograph some flamboyant Golden Dirona nudibranchs,

I was excited to discover in my periphery of vision, a spiny-finned Alaskan ronquil. Lurking in the wreck’s deeper sections were monster-sized lingcod. Judging from their immense size, there was plenty for them to eat around here. We found ourselves bargaining with our dive computer for more precious minutes of bottom time.

Although badly deteriorated in spots, Princess Sophia’s corroded ribs

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still conceal some identifiable and intact components. Broken dinner plates and what appeared to be floor tiles could be found amid the ship’s rubble. Not far off the wreck, one diver came across a large rotting trunk containing some old plate glass that revealed photographic images of people.

Probing deeper, we encountered two extremely rare prowfish at a depth of 115 feet. Seldom seen as adults, and rarely photographed in the wild, prowfish were once thought to be an exclusively deep-water species that inhabited ocean depths between 300 to 650 feet. Greyish in color with blunt, rounded heads with numerous large sensory pores that look like dots, prowfish measure about two feet long and have no apparent scales. Their diet consists of gelatinous zooplankton and jellyfish, which we saw many drifting in the water column.

Ripped and broken, Princess Sophia is a beautiful shipwreck resting peacefully in the secluded depths off Vanderbilt Reef. We braved the Sophia’s ghostly depths three times and can’t wait to go back! The only strange apparitions we found haunting her phantom decks were prowfish. We felt privileged to explore her superstructure and believe it is a tribute to all who lost their lives here that divers make infrequent visits to explore this wreck site. In this way, the events that led up to the sinking of the Princess Sophia will never be forgotten, and the memory of all who perished with her will live on. www.nautilusswell.com Nautilus Swell’s dive skiff securing a line to the Princess Sophia’s dive buoy.

Princess Sophia’s collapsed bow section looking towards the stern.

Golden Dirona nudibranch.

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Protecting the Coastal Cutthroat

By Natasha Dworkin

What is happening to coastal cutthroat in the San Juan Islands?

Coastal cutthroat trout have long provided for recreational fishing in the waters of the Salish Sea. Residents of the San Juan archipelago recall a time when coastal cutthroat were much more abundant than they are now. But until recently, these observations have been mostly anecdotal. Are our coastal cutthroat really disappearing? And if so, why?

The Seattle-based nonprofit salmon recovery organization, Long Live the Kings, is collaborating with the Wild Fish Conservancy, the conservation laboratory Kwiรกht, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife on a new research effort aimed at providing answers to these questions. The project is funded by the SeaDoc Society, Scientists are currently in the field, counting cutthroat and their redds (or nests), collecting DNA, taking underwater videos of fish behavior and documenting habitat conditions. The outcomes of this work will provide a foundational understanding of the status of coastal cutthroat populations in the San Juan Islands; helping to form the basis for recovery actions if deemed necessary.

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Do you know these cutthroat trout facts?

The historical distribution of cutthroat covers the broadest range of any stream-dwelling trout in the Western Hemisphere.

In the Northwest, cutthroat habitat ranges from mountain streams in the Cascades, Rockies, and Sierra Nevadas, to freshwater lakes, and to the Pacific Ocean. They are found as far north as Alaska’s Prince William Sound.

While cutthroat vary widely in size, their distinctive coloration – featuring red, pink, or orange marks on the underside of the lower jaw – makes them easily identifiable and is the origin of their unusual name.

While primarily a freshwater fish, coastal cutthroat, like salmon, are anadromous and can venture into saltwater to feed. With a diet comprised mostly of aquatic insects, cutthroat will eat whatever they find – including zooplankton and even other fish.

Like steelhead, cutthroat spawn more than once before they die.

Most species of cutthroat trout are now either threatened or endangered.

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tection guidelines. Contaminants from household drains may end up in cutthroat habitat.

If your property borders fresh or saltwater, protect or plant native trees and shrubs near the shore to provide shade, capture excess nutrients from fertilizers and manure, and prevent erosion.

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Packing To Ride A “Flying Mule”

By Terry W. Sheely

S

ome people just don’t get it – for instance, the guy on the dock with three green suitcases and an 8-foot fishing-rod case that resembles a rocket launcher.

Packing for a floatplane adventure is nothing like loading up the mini-van for a holiday at Auntie Em’s.

Beavers, Otters, Gooses (Geese?), Cessnas, Super Cubs and other broadwinged sky mules are legendary haulers of everything from 100-pound chunks of prime moose meat to mountains of boxed salmon fillets, and enough food to stock a remote fishing lodge for a week. They’ve taken me in and out of some amazing places in my years of chasing adventure stories, and provide Northwesterners access to spectacular, but otherwise inaccessible, world-class destinations..

And in the true spirit of any good pack mule, floatplanes have their limits and restrictions, both of which I’ve come to appreciate.

“We can accommodate just about anything,” says, Shane Carlson of Northwest Seaplanes, “but there are trade-offs. There’s just so much we can carry.”

Most floatplane shuttle services, including the two Puget Sound stalwarts, Kenmore Air and Northwest 62

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Weight and portability count when the pontoon mule must stop short of shore.

Loading a floatplane is like putting together a puzzle of odd-shaped pieces.

Seaplanes, recommend limiting baggage to 25-pounds plus the accurate weight of each passenger. (Yes, you will be weighed. So there’s no use in fibbing about your weight.)

“Say we’re taking you into a fishing lodge,” Carlson explains, “and you plan to bring back a load of fish. The take-out weight of the fish must be

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considered. The allowed weight may not seem like a lot when you pack, but add your weight, and the fish on the return trip and it goes up fast.”

How that weight is packed also makes a difference. “I’d rather have you bring two small bags than one big bag,” Carlson points out. Loading a small plane is like putting together a The Seaplane and Boating Destination Magazine

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I’ve found five criteria to packing for floatplanes: keep it flexible, soft, light, short; and use multiple small bags. My standard floatplane baggage for a weeklong trip is a 20x13x12inch canvas bag, a padded daypack, and a six-piece fly rod and three-piece spinning rod that fit into 24-inch cases. If the rod case is longer than the luggage, don’t attach it.

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de Havilland Beavers: A stable of good looking “flying mules” wait to be loaded. and suitcases capable of housing small dogs, and/or 300-pound passengers with 60-pounds of tackle (and three similarly-equipped big fishing buddies).

If it’s not possible to pack within the guidelines inform the ramp agent or the pilot . Floatplanes are regulated by total weight—if one bag is over the maximum and the other under the average levels out. The pilot makes that determination.

The same goes for packing potentially hazardous materials. Every floatplane operator I’ve flown has a list of potential hazards. But unlike TSA-monitored commercial airlines, floatplane operators typically allow hazards that are necessary for safety 66

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or recreation at the destination (fish hooks, knives, multi-tools, firearms, ammunition, deterrent sprays, rescue flares, bear bangers, fuel) – provided you inform the pilot.

If you intend to bring back half a moose, and a winter’s worth of salmon and halibut fillets, make sure it is is secured in small non-Styrofoam coolers or preferably, sealable waxed boxes.

There’s not a floatplane pilot alive who wants slabs of fish or moose flank sliding around pontoon compartments.

When I’m connecting with a TSAregulated airline I add my “hazardous” gear and soiled clothes to the checked fish boxes. Most airlines allow 50 pounds per box, but they won’t allow your pocket knife or mooching hooks

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in carry-on.

Single-prop float planes are work horses that can be packed with between 1,200 and 1,400 pounds distributed into three areas: passenger seats, inside pontoons, and the tapered freight area behind the back passenger seat. How those spaces are filled is up to the pilot.

If you ask to ride in the co-pilot seat and the pilot gives it to another passenger take it as a compliment – the other person is just weight-appropriate ballast to balance the plane.

Bring a cooler too big, a rod too long, or a suitcase too green and it may stay on the dock. So remember to pack with the float-plane five: flexible, soft, light, short – and in small multiples.

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Navionics Boating App Turns Your Tablet into a Unique Chartplotter

By Tom Tripp

D

o you have an iPad (with GPS) or iPhone onboard with you? Okay then, no excuses; download the Navionics Boating app from the App Store (or the Google Play store, or Windows App store). The app now offers access to free electronic navigation charts (ENC) from NOAA. So there – you’re not lost anymore.

Now, a little more seriously: During 2014, Navionics made a series of improvements to its free app, “Boating,” which now includes free U.S. gov68

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ernment charts for U.S. coastal and navigable waterways, plus additional shorelines of lakes and rivers from other public sources. The app also has significant capability upgrades available at minimal cost.

U.S. Government Charts Included The best thing about the Navionics Boating app is that you can download and use it immediately for direct navigation in U.S. waters. The included NOAA ENCs are vector charts, which means they scale up and down in a

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completely readable way, and conform to the International Hydrographic Office (IHO) S-57 standard for electronic charts.

The charts include all the primary navigation data you need – depths, buoys, beacons, hazards, channel markers and more. You can also purchase Navionics-branded charts with enhanced detail and features such as improved dynamic tide and current information. In the screen capture of Smith Cove and the Elliott Bay Marina (above? – let’s call its location),

note the blue circle labeled “GOVT” – which means it’s a NOAA chart. This is exactly how you would see this area on a U.S. paper navigation chart.

A recent app update includes access to an upgraded chart collection called Navionics+ ($50 for U.S. marine, lake and river waters, $55 for U.S. and Canada). Navionics+ provides much greater depth detail from an additional chart layer called “SonarCharts.” This chart data comes from Navionics users who record depth measurements and then upload them to the company’s data servers, where they are checked for accuracy and compiled into comprehensive new depth charts. A oneyear Navionics+ subscription includes upgraded nav charts, the SonarCharts, and “Community Edits,” which add notes from actual users about the area in which you’re cruising. You can also search points of interest, find fuelprice data,and get detailed tides and currents for your location.

You can see the difference between the NOAA and Navionics+ charts in the second image of Smith Cove and Elliott Bay Marina (right), which is a SonarChart of the same area shown on the NOAA chart. You not only see the exact bottom profile, but you also see distinct humps and holes within the marina itself – good to know if you’ve got a little more draft under your waterline. You can add your own depth data with some inexpensive additional hardware designed to be used with the app. You record it while you’re boating, then send it to Navionics. After a few days, you get an updated SonarChart with your data included. (All Navionics chart users have access to similar map detail uploaded by other users, even if they aren’t recording their own depth measurements.) Given the age of some government soundings data – some dating back to the early 20th century – this new capability offers not only a potential safety benefit, but can give those who fish local waters some new insights and fishing-hole discoveries.

Smith Cove NOAA Chart

Smith Cove and Elliott Bay Marina on the Navionics+ Chart

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Additional Features: The updated app includes several other enhanced features: Tracking – The app uses GPS to measure and record performance data: Speed, Trip Time, Course Over Ground, Distance and more.

Expanded Routing – Planning and route creation are also free with the app. Boaters can measure distances, mark waypoints, create simple routes and save data across mobile devices.

The app includes a free trial of a Nav Module ($4.99) that includes Estimated Time of Arrival, Distance to Arrival and more.

Sharing – App users can share memories of their trips with family and friends via Facebook, Twitter and email. Using a camera function within the app, photos and videos are automatically geo-tagged.

Smith Cove and Elliott Bay Marina on the Navionics+ Chart with Satellite Imagery Overlay

There are some even more advanced capabilities available for about $5 each. These include: Nav Module – Offers advanced route planning with ETA, distance to arrival, heading to waypoint, fuel consumption and more.

Autorouting – The program can plot a course based on your boat’s details, such as draft, speed, and fuel burn.

It will take into account minimumdepth requirements and navigational aids. You will, of course, always check these routes manually, but they’re a great time-saver.

Advanced Map Options – This offers some cool ways in which to customize the map displays. You can highlight different depth contours, giving each its own color, and/or highlight shallow areas according to your own custom depth selection.

Navionics+ Chart View of Puget Sound and Elliott Bay

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The best part about these? The cost.

I bought all three.

Let’s recap: You have an iPad. You downloaded the free Navionics Boating app and got a great on-the-water navigation tool and at-home planning capability. You spent $50 on a Navionics+ chart upgrade, and got incredible new charts and crowdsourced depth information. A nother $15, and you got nearly all the capabilities of an expensive dedicated chartplotter. Now … want to create detailed depth charts of a marina, cove or harbor? Spend another $150 on a SonarPhone T-Box setup that has a transducer and wireless iPad connection. Now you have a portable chartplotter, with nearly all the capability of a more expensive, dedicated unit. In addition to saving cost, once the anchor is set, or the lines tied, you can take your “chartplotter” and stream a movie, or load your stargazing app and look up, while listening to your favorite music on Pandora.

Integration with Onboard Electronics Oh – you already have a chartplotter aboard? The app includes Plotter Sync, a feature that connects your tablet to Navionics to upload data, and download new charts or updates for your wireless chartplotter. (For now, that means the latest units from Raymarine.) Now you don’t have to remove the chart card, take it home and download a chart update to it. Just download the update to your iPad and then wirelessly upload it to the chartplotter.

You now have an updated chartplotter and an independent backup system in your iPad – inexpensive, fully capable redundancy.

Tom Tripp is a marine journalist and editor of OceanLines.biz, a website dedicated to news about recreational boat cruising. He’s been at sea aboard everything from a 17-foot homemade wooden fishing boat to a 1,000-foot-long, 96,000-ton nuclear aircraft carrier.

He’s finishing his first novel, a mysterythriller set in the San Juans.

Complete puzzle on page 82

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Destinations

Seaplane & Boating

Ocean Breeze B&B, North Vancouver, BC

North Vancouver, British Columbia – a neighboring community to Vancouver, with its backdrop of towering peaks and evergreen forests – is a gateway to the fun and adventure in the great outdoors that Vancouver is so famous for. A 12-minute ferry ride (Seabus) across Burrard Inlet and you’re transported from the bustle of the downtown core to the slowerpaced “North Shore,” where you’ll find the Ocean Breeze Bed and Breakfast.

Located on a quiet residential street, not far from the North Vancouver Seabus terminus, this European-style bedand-breakfast has been in business for 24 years and has a loyal repeat clientele. Its owner, Margaret Gradowska, originally purchased and combined two adjoining houses to create the current larger home, with its four comfortable guest bedrooms, cozy living 72

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room and kitchen, and her private living quarters. Around the back is a onebedroom mini-house – complete with kitchen and Wi-Fi – often booked in the off-season by long-stay guests. It can also be booked as a self-contained unit for a family traveling with children or for those traveling with a pet.

Margaret, a former flight attendant, is happiest when she’s cooking up a delicious breakfast and chatting with her guests, dispensing tips on where they should visit while they’re in town.

You’ll receive a full, cooked meal every morning of your stay unless you have an early morning departure, in which case it’s a continental breakfast. Choose from such delicious fare as a smoked-salmon omelette, French toast, blueberry pancakes or a yummy yogurt/fruit/granola parfait. Margaret appreciates good food and believes

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By Pat Awmack

that her guests deserve the best, using only top-notch ingredients.

One of the best things about staying at the B&B is the atmosphere of camaraderie which you won’t find at a large, impersonal hotel. It’s almost like staying with family. Guests at the B&B tend to be mature, well-traveled individuals who enjoy interacting at the breakfast table, sharing tales of adventures from the previous day or offering helpful tips on what a fellow traveler might enjoy during their stay.

While you won’t find large-hotel amenities such as a pool or spa at the property, there is free, speedy WiFi, Each guest room comes complete with a private bathroom, comfortable beds, bottled water, a coffeemaker and a mini-fridge. My favorite room was the Eagle’s Nest, which is built under the eaves of the house. With its angled

ceilings, separate sitting area and semiprivate bedroom, it’s an ideal room for a family or for a couple looking for a little extra space.

My tip would be to try and book one of the bedrooms facing the water. They each have a balcony with a stellar view of downtown Vancouver.

If you’re there over a holiday weekend such as Canada Day, it’s a prime viewing spot for the fireworks display across the water.

A rental car is a good idea if you’re visiting Grouse Mountain or Capilano Canyon, or if you’re planning to explore further afield. However, if you’re containing your adventures to the downtown core or the surrounding Lonsdale area in North Vancouver, you’ll have no problem without a vehicle. Those flying into the Vancouver International Airport can hop on the Canada Line train to Waterfront Station and transfer to the Seabus. Floatplane passengers arriving at the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre can opt for a short cab ride or walk along the seawall to the downtown Seabus terminal. Once you’ve arrived in North Vancouver, it’s a five-minute cab ride or 15-minute walk to the Ocean Breeze.

Whatever you do, if you’re coming in June through September, be sure to make a reservation, as occupancy runs close to 100% through the summer season. Call Margaret directly to arrange check-in in advance of your arrival. If you visit during the summer you may be just lucky enough to enjoy one of her impromptu barbeques, an added bonus for those who have chosen to stay with her.

Ocean Breeze Vancouver Bed and Breakfast 462 East 1st Street N. Vancouver, BC V7L 1B7 800.567.5171 www.oceanbreezevancouver.com

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Cedarbrook Lodge, Seattle, WA

By Russ Young

It’s tempting to refer to the Cedarbrook Lodge as one of the Seattle area’s “best-kept secrets.” Nestled in a wooded area, fringed by wetlands and at the edge of a largely residential area, it’s unlikely that people become familiar with the hotel by driving by.

But the reference would be largely incorrect. Ask someone who’s been there, and it’s likely they will smile, nod, sigh and speak dreamily about their desire to return. And the word is out: Cedarbook Lodge has accumulated a long list awards, including TripAdvisor’s 2011 “Travelers’ Choice” Award as #1 of the Top 25 hotels in the U.S. Its Copperleaf Restaurant & Bar was named Seattle Magazine’s best new restaurant in 2010, and shows no signs of letting up – it won a slew of Gayot’s awards in 2014, among them being named one of Seattle’s ten-best dining establishments.

So although it’s no secret, Cedarbrook’s relaxing atmosphere still lends itself to guests believing it’s a bit of hideaway, even though it’s less than a mile from Sea-Tac airport and the local light-rail system, and a relatively short drive to the seaplane terminals on Lake Washington and Lake Union.

It’s a splendid place for the traveler who is in transit internationally; arriving or departing Seattle as part of an adventure in Washington, British Columbia and/or Alaska; or for area residents seeking a unique getaway not far from home.

Originally built in 2002 as a corporate training facility for the ill-fated Washington Mutual, Inc., Cedarbrook will not be mistaken for a dormitory – not by a long shot. “Guests often walk in and say it feels like the lodge at a luxury ski resort,” says General Manager David Anderson.” That’s understandable – a dramatic wooden staircase leads one from the reception desk down toward the Copperleaf and 74

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its fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows that look out onto the 18-acre wooded grounds.

But true to its heritage as a training center, Cedarbrook is made up of four lodge-style buildings, the newest of which – the 65-room “Alder,” which is to open early in 2015 – increases the capacity to 167 rooms. That’s a boon to the corporate meeting/conference business, which remains a substantial part of the hotel’s business. The facilities accommodate up to 300 meeting participants, including up to 220 in one room.

The guest rooms are relatively compact, but well-appointed – and remarkably quiet for being so close to an international airport.

Each of the lodge buildings features a spacious 24-hour “living room” with fireplace, perfect for conversation or just stretching out and reading, watch-

ing TV or daydreaming. Help yourself to a bottle of water, a variety of malted-milk balls and some Haagen-Dazs ice cream – they’re all complimentary, just like the Wi-Fi and the daily continental breakfast.

But don’t snack too much; save room for a meal (or two, or more) in the Copperleaf. Executive Chef Mark Bodinet and his team serve up a very memorable experience in a cozy environment; recent menu choices included white truffle agnolotti, bourbonglazed salmon bacon, Dungeness crab gratin, Four Story Hill veal degustation and a caramelized-pear crumb cake. The wine list is impressive; the service is impeccable.

After a meal like that, a trip to a spa seems in order. So mere steps away from the restaurant and bar you’ll find The Spa at Cedarbrook, a beautifully appointed new “pure plant

spa” facility that offers a wide variety of treatments “derived from the field and forest.” There are dedicated massage/facial rooms, including one for “two-getherness” couples massages; a “serenity suite” with soaking tub; a rainwater wet-treatment room; and an inviting, if not addictive, fireside relaxation room. There’s also a 24hour fitness and wellness center.

So if you stay at Cedarbrook Lodge and want to tell friends and family all about it, don’t hesitate. You may feel like you now are in on a well-kept secret, but that’s part of its charm and appeal.

Cedarbrook Lodge 18525 36th Ave S Seattle, WA 98188 (206) 901-9268 www.cedarbrooklodge.com

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Willows Inn, Lummi Island, WA

By Vincent Hagel

In June of 1792, after a journey of thousands of miles, two Spanish schooners lay anchored offshore from a small island in Puget Sound that Capitan Galiano named Isle de Pacheco. Today it is known as Lummi Island, about a 30-minute drive and a five-minute ferry ride from Bellingham, Washington.

If you would rather not drive, a chartered seaplane can deposit you ashore on the west side of Lummi Island at The Willows Inn, where you can enjoy comfortable accommodations – and an unforgettable, out-of-this-world meal.

The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Food and Wine Magazine, and others have recognized the Inn’s restaurant and Chef Blaine Wetzel as among the best in the United States, and arguably among the best in the world.

Such high praise might be expected of Wetzel, who was a chef at Noma in Copenhagen, Pellegrino’s Best Restaurant in the World in 2010.

Chef Wetzel embodies the farm-totable philosophy. His menus grow from nearby sources: an organic farm, a shellfishery, an island deer farm and a pond of specially bred ducks. Other resources include wild sockeye netted on Lummi, rare spot prawns and Washington razor clams, served with Bellingham-grown watercress, a snack whose fragrance equals its exquisite taste.

Rather than traditional appetizers, “snacks” introduce the meal, one after another, paired with wines. The menu is prix fixe, a perfect format for several reasons, though Chef Wetzel’s talent may be the foremost. Your first snack might be baked sunflower roots, smoked and served hot in a small cedar box, bedded in shredded kelp with the texture of perfectly prepared artichoke hearts, paired with Westcott Bay apple cider from San Juan Island. Next might be a crispy crepe with a line of salmon roe. One bite collapses the crepe and anoints your mouth with a bright, in76

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describable and unforgettable surprise.

Only one bite—more than one might be too much.

Many snacks are not just one bite.

You can’t eat just one mussel, especially steeped in sauerkraut—smoky and melty. Blaine prepares sauerkraut “the old fashioned way,” carefully chopped, then pressed under a lid in a wooden bowl for five weeks until krauted: sour made sweet.

In addition, there were Olympic oysters, toasted kale with truffles, and baked halibut skin; I could go on. At plate ten, we met our dinner, four courses that included stewed lovage stems with caramelized squid. Roasted pumpkin signaled the end of our excursion into culinary heaven … and I’ve barely glazed the surface here.

Diners can choose excellent wines or equally delicious juices to be paired with the meal. The generously paired wines might require a designated driver, or, as many people choose, an overnight stay in one of The Willows Inn’s nineteen quarters.

The Taft family, Lummi pioneers, built the Inn in 1910, designed as a boardinghouse and soon after added several cottages to serve their many summer visitors. The Willows Inn recently purchased other properties on sparsely populated Lummi Island, from comfortable cottages to an elegantly styled home on the beach. The staff is sincerely cordial and genuinely cares for your needs; the atmosphere is quiet and intimate.

After a three-hour meal, your floatplane could be waiting for you across the lane on the beach, or it may be scheduled to return for you the following morning after your sumptuous breakfast, complimentary with your overnight stay.

Plan well in advance for this popular destination. Dinner is served Thursday – Sunday, with a single seating at 6:30 p.m. Reservations for dinner are required; the Inn recommends that you make them at least two weeks in advance.

Willows Inn 2579 West Shore Drive Lummi Island, WA 98262 888.294.2620 www.willows-inn.com The Seaplane and Boating Destination Magazine

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Who’s Who in the Pacific NorthwesT

Who’s Who in the Pacific NorthwesT

Connecting People, Places, Adventure and Lifestyle…

Meet some of the faces and characters of the Seaplane and Boating Destinations around the Pacific Northwest. If you ever run into them along your travels be sure to stop and say hello!

Lisa Cherneff

Bonnie Robertson Occupation Executive director, Northwest Yacht Brokers Association

Occupation Executive director, Center for Wooden Boats, Seattle

Birthplace Seattle

Birthplace Seattle

Hometown Mercer Island, WA

Hometown Medina, WA

Favorite PNW Destination

Favorite PNW Destination

Seattle’s Seward Park – it’s gorgeous all year round.

Best Boating & Fishing Destination Blake Island – boat camping on the beach

Favorite Eatery Jak’s Steakhouse

and Grill

Favorite Eatery TThe Pink Door Best Meal Freshly caught crab, eaten

Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

Boat camping for a week through the San Juan Islands with my family when I was a kid. We fished between islands but the only thing we caught were dog sharks and one giant sea star.; it must have weighed 20 pounds. It was a blast.

I learned a lot about navigation that summer.

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Birthplace Tokyo

Birthplace Cambridge, England

Hometown Salt Spring Island, BC

Hometown Seattle

Hometown Steveston, BC

Favorite PNW Destination

Favorite PNW Destination

Favorite PNW Destination

Best Boating & Fishing Destination I don’t fish or boat

Best Boating & Fishing Destination Roche Harbor, WA

Tofino… rain or shine!

much, but Port Renfrew is a favorite for having a beer on the deck of the local pub and watching the wildlife

Favorite Eatery Pagliacci’s in

Best Meal Fresh Dungeness crab and oysters in half shell! MMMMMM!

Favorite Read Any book by Haruki

Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

Hobbies Sailing, skiing, writing

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Eataly NYC (New York, NY)

Favorite Read bon appetit

Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

Crossing the Strait of Juan de Fuca for the first time in my old mahogany sloop, the East Wind. We had cracked the boom earlier in the day and it was held together with some C-clamps I had on board. A strong westerly came up in the afternoon for a wild ride across the strait, which can be a forbidding place when the ceiling is low. We surfed into MacKaye Harbor on Lopez Island and dropped anchor. A truly exhilarating day!

Favorite Eatery

Murakami

Favorite Read Anything by Richard

Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

San Juan Island, WA

village of Ganges, Salt Spring Island.

Beef tenderloin with blue cheese and seasonal vegetables

Hobbies Lampworking (making glass beads), gardening, workouts at the gym, and hiking the local trails with my two Boston Terriers

Russo

course), running, gardening, biking, cooking, playing with my cats, watching the Seahawks

Birthplace Victoria, BC

Best Meal Auntie Pesto’s Café in the

Favorite Read The Art of Running Hobbies Hiking, skiing, (boating of

Occupation General manager, Fairmont Vancouver Airport

Best Boating & Fishing Destination Parkes Bay, Shaw

in the cockpit of my boat on a beautiful summer evening

in the Rain by Garth Stein

Occupation Sales operations manager, Alexander Marine

downtown Victoria

Island

Ken Flores

Occupation Flight Dispatch/Office Manager, Salt Spring Island Air Ltd.

Port Townsend

Best Meal House-made fresh

pappardelle and jumbo prawns

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Michael Luis

Emiko Kelly

When I was in my early teens, I signed up for a kayak/wilderness camping adventure at Strathcona Lodge. We set off from Gold River and kayaked throughout Nootka Sound exploring the islands. We slept on the beach, made dinner over the camp fire, and swam in the lakes. My most memorable moment was when we pulled the kayaks up on the shores of Friendly Cove where we were greeted by two resident dogs living at the lighthouse adjacent to the beach. A national historic site, Friendly Cove is a truly magical spot with an incredible story to tell.

Hobbies Running

Every year my company hosts a threeday customer appreciation “rendezvous” at Roche Harbor. One of the popular events is “Captain Steenkamp’s (one of our yacht brokers) ladies-only boat handling seminar.” He takes out one of our boats and demonstrates basic maneuvering skills. Born and raised in the city, this was an eye-opening experience for me. Learning the technique was one thing, but seeing the breathtaking beauty of the San Juans was unforgettable. I never thought I would be involved with boating and its lifestyle, but now it all makes sense why we are all so in love with the Pacific Northwest.

East Sooke Park, on the southern edge of Vancouver Island, is wonderful to explore.

Best Boating & Fishing Destination Sailing English Bay

and the islands of Howe Sound. I never grow tired of coming out or back into Vancouver’s harbor. When the steelhead are running I am likely to be found on the Kispiox and Bulkley Rivers in central British Columbia.

Favorite Eatery The Milltown

Bar & Grill, on the North Arm of the Fraser River. It has a great waterfront feel and the food, beverage and service is consistently great.

Best Meal A curry sampler prepared

by Karan Suri, our executive chef.

Favorite Read Farley Mowat’s Never Cry Wolf was a childhood favorite and one that I have just reread.

Hobbies Woodworking (I built a sailing dinghy most recently), bird watching and sailing.

Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

Going out on the water with my wife, Valdine and our daughters, Mary and Annika. We kayak Galiano Island—and always return with a list of sea birds to look up, driftwood to collect and flotsam to turn into something new. If we’re lucky we come home dry—but Mother Nature and the splash of the paddle usually ensures this isn’t the case!

Pat Awmack Occupation Freelance travel writer Birthplace Niagara Falls, Ontario Hometown Vancouver, BC Favorite PNW Destination

Tofino/Long Beach on Vancouver Island

Best Boating & Fishing Destination Amongst B.C.’s Gulf Islands

Favorite Eatery Wow! Vancouver has so many amazing restaurants, but if I have to choose I’ll say my current favorite is Fable Kitchen in my neighborhood of Kitsilano.

Best Meal Crab fresh from the sea (courtesy of my son-in-law), a little melted butter and veggies from my daughter’s garden

Favorite Read Diana Gabaldon’s

Outlander series

Hobbies Photography, escaping into a good book, wrangling my two toddler grandsons, eating good food and drinking our excellent BC wine Most memorable experience on the waters of the PNW

Having lived most of my life in BC, I fcan be a bit blasé about where I live and sometimes need a good nudge to really see everything that surrounds me.

An example of this was a recent ferry trip between Vancouver and Vancouver Island. The scenery is amazing, but it’s just home … until a pod of killer whales emerged from the depths and put on a show for everyone on the boat.

Watching them as they breached and tail-slapped, I listened to locals and tourists alike, oohing and aahing…and realized how lucky I am to live here! I wouldn’t live anywhere else.

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HARBORS Seaplane/Floatplane

Passenger Guide Things you need to know...

Knowing how to find and use life preservers Stowing baggage Many operators do not permit carry-on baggage in the cabin because it can hurt someone if it isn’t well secured. If you can bring baggage on board, ask your pilot where and how to stow it safely.

Certain dangerous goods or hazardous materials are illegal on board a seaplane/floatplane. Do not bring any gases, corrosives, spray cans, flammable liquids, explosives (including ammunition), poisons, magnetic materials, etc., onto the plane without checking with your pilot.

Using your seat belt Make sure the seat belt fits tight around your hips, and wear it at all times. Always use the shoulder harness if there is one.

Practice finding and releasing the latch with both hands and your eyes closed until you are sure you could do it in an emergency.

Seaplanes/floatplanes are required to carry life preservers or personal flotation devices (PFD) for every person on board. Find yours! Your pilot should provide a demonstration on where to find it, how to remove it from stowage and its packaging, how to put it on, how to inflate it, and when. Ask your pilot if you should wear it during the flight. If so, wear it, but NEVER INFLATE IT WHILE IN THE AIRCRAFT.

Passenger Briefing Checklist

Getting out safely! Underwater egress

• Baggage limits

In most water accidents, seaplanes/floatplanes come to rest upside down. The key to your survival is to stay aware of where to find the exit, and to get out of the aircraft and to the surface of the water as quickly as you can.

• Where baggage is stowed • How the seat belts work • How to secure seat backs and tray tables • How to know where you are in the plane, no matter its position • Where to find and how to use exits • Where to find the emergency locator transmitter (ELT), survival kit, first aid kit, fire extinguisher, etc.

• Rules about using electronic devices • Where to find and how to use life preservers • Rules about smoking • Exiting underwater (underwater egress)

1. Stay calm— Think about what you are going to do when the initial shock of the impact passes.

2. Grab your life preserver/PFD— If time permits, put on, or at least, grab your life preserver or PFD. DO NOT INFLATE IT until after you exit the aircraft. Why? You cannot swim underwater with an inflated life preserver. You may get trapped.

3. Open the exit and grab hold— If sitting next to an exit, find and grab the exit handle in relation to your left or right knee. Open the exit. The exit may not open until the cabin is sufficiently flooded and the inside water pressure has equalized.

DO NOT release your seatbelt and shoulder harness until you are ready to exit. Why? You will begin to float upwards, making it easy to become confused and more difficult to get to the exit.

4. Release your seat belt/harness— Once the exit is open, and you know your exit path, keep a hold of a fixed part of the seaplane/floatplane and release your belt with the other hand.

5. Exit the aircraft— Move towards your nearest exit. If it is blocked or jammed, immediately go to the next nearest exit. Always exit by placing one hand on a fixed part of the aircraft, and not letting go before grabbing another fixed part (hand over hand). Pull yourself through the exit.

Do not let go until you are out. Resist the urge to kick, as you may get caught in loose wires or debris, or you might kick a person exiting right behind you. If you get stuck, back up, twist your body 90 degrees, and then exit.

Knowing how to find and use exits

6. Get to the surface— Once you have exited the seaplane/ floatplane, follow the bubbles to the surface. If you cannot, inflate your life preserver as a last resort. Exhale slowly as you rise.

Not all seaplanes/floatplanes are the same. Learn where to find, and how to use, all exits before takeoff.

Ask the pilot if you can practice opening the exit(s) before engine start up.

7. Inflate your life preserver— Only inflate it when you are clear of the wreckage. Why? Life preservers can easily get caught on wreckage, block an exit or prevent someone else from exiting.

Find the exit in relation to your left or right knee. If the exit is on your right while upright, it will still be on your right even if the seaplane/floatplane lands or comes to rest in another position. Taking the time to become familiar with the inside of the plane will help you find your way to an exit, even with your eyes closed.

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R-31 Command Bridge R-21EC

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T

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