For months Bill has been saying that the trip would start once we reached the Seattle area.He said coming up the coast was work and something to be endured not enjoyed. I, being the ever optimistic one, said that of course it was fun and it was all part of the experience…..

Well, two days ago when we turned the corner at Cape Flattery and left the Pacific Ocean behind I had to agree with Bill (but don’t tell him). There was a calm that came over both of us. No longer were we bashing into a wave every 4 or 5 seconds. The swells were behind us and for the first time since Bill left Ensenada, Mexico in January with Adagio, we were no longer fighting a southerly current that runs down the entire west coast. It was an experience I am glad we endured (yes, I did say endured) because now we can truly appreciate the calm waters of the Pacific Northwest and start our trip.

I have been totally dead set against spending a night at sea. I have worried and ruminated about it. Every time Bill mentioned that it might be the best way to get up the coast I told him that only after we had spent months on the boat would I maybe entertain the thought, but then only maybe and for sure not on this part of the trip up the coast. But then, we headed out on a beautiful morning from Eureka to sail up the coast to Brookings, OR. It was so pretty and smooth and flat that the words flew out of my mouth, “Why don’t we do an overnight?” I figured that sometimes the best way to do something challenging is to do it without thinking and planning – just like ripping a band aid off all at once. Bill had a look of surprise on his face, something like who is this woman and what have you done with my wife.

As night fell I had a few butterflies in my stomach and my mouth was dry. But the sunset was beautiful, the fog lifted and the moon was full. Bill took the first watch from 9-12 while I got a few hours of sleep. I took the second shift from midnight to 4am. I quickly set up a routine of checking the engine gauges every 15 minutes, watching the radar for boat traffic, watching our heading and looking for crab pots (oh yes, those nasty little things). The night wrapped itself around me and the moonlight danced on the water. It was an amazing experience being out on the ocean 12 miles offshore in the middle of the night. I felt the weight of the responsibility, but also the freedom of a new adventure.

We said goodbye this afternoon to our friend and ships photographer (be sure to check out his photos on our photo pages). Thank you so much for joining us from San Francisco to Eureka!

I used to love crab until I started boating. You can’t imagine what it is like after 10 hours in rough seas in a wide open ocean to come across a string of crab pots. It is Murphy’s law that no matter where you are they will find you. They come up out of nowhere and when you least expect it. They are a serious problem because if you happen to wrap one around your prop you are dead in the water. And heaven help you if you wrap it all the way up and the crab pot hits the bottom of the boat. Then you are in real trouble!

So I say boycott crab! If there is no more demand then there will be no more crab pots out where we can run into them!

The best part is after arriving in Eureka and we were walking up the dock, we noticed little tiny schools of what looked like tadpoles. So we stopped and asked a crab fisherman what they were. He told us they were crab larvae and that he has never seen so many (isn’t that just great!) and that they will be ready to harvest in 4 years. It sure is ironic that the crab start their life in the marina where all the crab boats dock isn’t it?!

It is easy – organize his tools. Here is how it went:

Bill says in passing: I am planning to organize my tools before we leave and make a small set to carry inside the cabin with us.

Michelle thinks she will help and while Bill is out of town she gathers all the tools on the boat and sorts them by type. We are talking EVERY single tool including the ones in the tool box which had always looked so disorganized to her. She is so proud of herself.

Bill arrives home and Michelle excitedly shows him what she has done and tells him that now he can put together a main set and a smaller set of tools. There is a pause of silence. Michelle is still standing there beaming when suddenly she sees a little quiver in the corner of Bill’s mouth. Uh oh, this can’t be good.

Bill never raises his voice, but in a soft voice says, “Is this also the tools from my tool box?” Michelle makes a small nod. “And did you mix the metric wrenches with the US wrenches?” Michelle makes an even smaller nod.

Bill’s voice quivers, “It took me years to get my tool box set up with exactly the right set of tools so that I can take it anywhere and know that I have one of everything.”

Oops, this is very bad. Michelle quietly slinks away while Bill mumbles to himself and tries to make sense of the organized tools in front of him.

Moral of the story: There is only one tool of a man’s that you can mess with. Leave the others alone!

Yesterday we had a long, foggy day from Ft. Bragg to Eureka with big seas, but calm winds. We pulled into Eureka just as a sailboat race was starting and we were surrounded by boats cutting back and forth in front of us. After a long day it made for a hair raising end to the trip. Today we took the day off and did laundry, cleaned, fixed the head (Bill’s job!) and went to the grocery store. We walked around historic Eureka which has lovely Victorian buildings and cute little shops. We leave California tomorrow for Brookings, Oregon.

Our sail yesterday from San Francisco to Bodega Bay was beautiful. It was a crystal clear day with almost no wind. We had a little bit of rough sees around Point Reyes, but nothing too uncomfortable. I had to keep pinching myself to prove that we really were out to sea and on our way. We have had this dream for so long that I still can’t quite believe it is happening!

Today we had a great sail from Bodega Bay around Point Arena to Ft. Bragg. We are berthed tonight in a “working” marina surrounded by fishing boats. These are the kind of boats you see in old movies with names like Miss Smith, Daisy Lee and Shirley (our neighbor), but who look nothing like what their name might imply. These boats have a history of storms and hard, hard work. I have a new appreciation for the fish I eat! Tomorrow we head out to Eureka our last stop in California.

We are counting the final minutes. Everything is stowed, oil is checked, we have enough food on board for a month and we are ready to go! We have 1500 gallons of fuel and 600 gallons of water so Adagio is sitting low in the water. We actually have to step up to the dock. We have a short 50 mile day tomorrow to Bodega Bay. It is a perfect first day to shake out all the bugs and find all the rattles. Bon Voyage!

We did it! We sold the house, packed up, bought a boat, remodeled it and are about to set off on the adventure of a lifetime.  We are heading out from San Francisco for Seattle and Alaska where we will spend the summer cruising the San Juan Islands and Southeast Alaska. We will return to San Francisco for September and October and then set off for points south in November. We plan on cruising down through the Panama Canal and over to the east coast before our adventure is done. We will keep you updated with photos and blog entries throughout our trip.

Thank you to our two amazing daughters and all of our family and friends for their overwhelming support throughout the long journey it took to get us here!