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Part
2
June 11th, 2002
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A short break
at one of the small beachs along the way.
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We sleep late as the rain continues to fall. I enjoy more great
coffee as Canadian Geese fly by and the abundant Kittiwakes soar around the
bay. There is a brief pause in the rain and we pack up the boats. We launch
at high tide as the seawater floods into the lagoon behind camp. We head
north towards Cochrane Bay and stop for lunch at a tiny beach in a tiny
cove. After lunch, a harbor seal "tails" us as we approach an
anchored fishing boat. It is a good sized fiberglass boat and the captain
is surprised to see two smiling kayakers in the rain. He says the forecast
calls for more rain and that the seas were too rough for him to cross
Cochrane Bay. We were planning on attempting that crossing today and I
wonder what we will find up ahead. We round the point to Cochrane Bay and
the confused seas surround us. 3-4 foot waves rebound from the rocky cliffs
along shore and toss us around. There will be no crossing today and we
speed along to the next sheltered cove to make camp. There is a small
platform on one side of the beach that is well above tideline and just big
enough for the sleeping tent. We pitch the cooking tent as high up on the
beach as we can, but there is a certain question as to how high the tide
will be tonight. It is going to be plus 13.5 feet very late tonight which
is almost 17 feet higher than the the minus 2.8 we have this afternoon. We
decide to gather all of the cooking gear and place it in the forest so we
do not lose anything to the very high tide. I find a suitable tree to hang
our food out of bear's reach and I make the rope throw on the first try. I
will go on to finish this trip with a 1.000 rope throwing average...
perfect, but sadly no medal exists for such an event. |
| Wildlife on June 11th,
2002 |
| Canada Goose
(1 close up) |
2+3
|
| Rufous
Hummingbirds |
3+
|
| Bald
Eagles |
3+
|
| Harbor
Seal |
1
|
| Merganser
Ducks |
4
|
| Murrelets |
many
|
| Ancient
Murrelet (close up) |
1
|
| Yellow Legs
(Greater) |
1
|
| Black Legged
Kittiwakes |
many
|
| Salmon
(leaping) |
many
|
| Purple
Starfish & Jellyfish |
many
|
|
 |
|
Ferns pressed
flat against the ground.
|
 |
|
The Skunk
Cabbage grows to unusually large sizes in the forest.
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June 12th, 2002
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Hiking through
"old forest" along the shoreline.
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The rain stops! Cochrane Bay is very calm compared
to last night's wind and high seas. We pack up immediately and head across
before the conditions decide to deteriorate. I see my shadow for the first
time as the sun makes an appearance behind us. The 3.5 mile crossing feels
l-l-long to my lower back as it complains quietly to me. We land at the
first beach on the other side and mom quickly breaks out tents and sleeping
bags to dry in the fleeting sunshine. We camp at Blackstone Point with many
eagles and crows greeting us to the beach. After supper, we hike up through
the "dwarf rainforest". We get a great view of the very large
Tebenkof Glacier. It is so large that we see only about one tenth of it as
it snakes its frozen path down towards the water. It continues back up
behind the mountains for many miles and is sort of the "mamma"
glacier for many of the other large glaciers at the end of the bay. Eagles
talk through the night and light rain falls. |
| Wildlife on June 12th,
2002 |
| Sea Stars (on
beach) |
many
|
| Yellow Legs
(Lesser) |
1
|
| Rufous
Hummingbirds |
2
|
| Bald
Eagles |
6+
|
| Crow |
2+4
|
| Murrelets |
many
|
| Black Legged
Kittiwakes |
many
|
| Salmon
(leaping) |
many
|
| Green
Starfish |
3
|
|
 |
|
Sunny skies at Blackstone Point
|
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Lichens on the mossy forest floor.
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June 13th,
2002
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Unusual shale
formations at Blackstone Point.
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We slept in the footprint of a fallen, uprooted Sitka Spruce last
night and we awake to a misty drizzle. I have two large, hot cups of coffee
and we enjoy the scene for a good long time. A female merganser swims by
with many chicks riding on her back. A river otter swims by and splashes
with his tail each time he dives. At 3:00 pm we break camp and begin to
paddle down Blackstone Bay. I am feeling much stronger today and I am
convinced that extra caffeine and proper hydration are a paddler's best
friend. The bay is very glassy with an intermittent fine drizzle falling. I
drink heartily from my camelback as tiny bright spots begin to appear in
the overcast sky.
We quickly
paddle the 9 miles to Williard Island and arrive to find low tide and
people occupying the camp area we were hoping to use. We speak with them
for a few minutes and decide to ferry the gear 400 yards by land rather
than paddling two miles around the spit to the other side of the small
peninsula. The beach is about as big as it gets and we trudge slowly under
the heavy burden of gear and kayaks. We stow the boats high above the
tideline. We enjoy dinner at midnight as the sun begins to glow on the
glaciers. The sky suddenly clears and Beloit Glacier thunders approval.
"White thunder" echoes throughout the night as the glaciers calf
in the distance.
|
| Wildlife on June 13th,
2002 |
| Bald
Eagles |
3+
|
| Crow |
many
|
| Rufous
Hummingbird |
2
|
| Mouse (wearing
brown furry parka) |
1
|
| Land
Otter |
1
|
| Merganser Duck
(female with 6-8 chicks) |
1+6-8
|
| Merganser
Ducks |
2
|
| Canada
Geese |
3
|
| Rockfish (in
tide pools 2"-3" long) |
4
|
| Pigeon
Guillemots (flock) |
15
+
|
| Yellow Legs
(greater) |
1
|
| Black Legged
Kittiwakes |
many
|
| Pacific
Loon |
1
|
| Common
Loon |
1
|
| Salmon
(leaping) |
many
|
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Clearing skies
above Beloit Glacier.
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Sunset over Blackstone Bay.
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about this story to bob@thedigitalbob.com
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