B&B (Bed and a boat trip)

We spent Friday once again trying to clear out more space -- this time in our bedroom. By late afternoon we were able to clear up enough to bring in the bed and set it up. And Friday night we were able to sleep in our bed once again for the first time in over three weeks. During those three weeks we were in sleeping bags for all but two of the nights that we spent on the ferry. We haven't been able to completely ditch the sleeping bags though -- we can't find the rest of our bedding, so for now, one of the sleeping bags acts as our comforter/bed spread. There is still sufficient boxes stacked about the room to make life interesting, enjoyable, and adventuresome for our cats.

Sabbath morning we were treated yet again to another wonderful sunrise. Initially there was low fog and only the peaks of the mountains were visible. But as time went by the fog quickly dissipated until the water and the base of the hills appeared. There were enough clouds and mist to keep things interesting. There was a continuous succession of low clouds and mist traveling through the Sound.

Following our Sabbath services, we had a quick lunch and then met the Herbrandsons at South Harbor to go out with them on their boat. We traveled through the Narrows and up Petersburg Creek. The tide was extremely high this afternoon. It was so high that the riverbanks were a few feet under water. Gerry told us that he had never been through this area when the tide was so high, and as a result, we were able to go farther up than he had ever gone before. We did get stuck for a bit on a sandbar, but with a little bit of pushing and shoving, the boat came off. The boat uses jet engines rather than outboard props, so it can travel through very shallow waters. When "stepping" (hydroplaning), it apparently only needs about six inches of water. When it isn't, it needs about ten inches.

After we had turned around, we stopped at a trailhead and started to hike west, but only a few hundred feet in discovered that the trail was a couple of feet under water and we could not get through. So we backtracked and went east. While on this trail, Amy saw what appeared to be a mud puddle just off the wooden planks serving as the trail. We've learned since arriving here that Amy loves rain and puddles even more than the sun and dry ground. When it rains, she goes out. So true to form she (apparently) decided to test out this puddle as she found the siren call of mud puddles irresistible. Unfortunately this was a muskeg pool - which means that even though it looked like there was solid ground just below the surface, the "ground" was just an illusion. Muskeg pools are sometimes known to go many feet below the surface. Fortunately, Amy was able to grab onto the trail plank and only went down as far as about her knees, but not before her boots went below the surface. Plenty of water and mud had to be drained out from her boots, and through the rest of the hike, there was a continous, rhythmic "squish, squish," coming from her direction.

We returned to the boat and set off again towards the harbor. We stopped for a few minutes at a little island, about 30 feet long and 15 feet wide. A number of us scrambled about, but Amy, apparently having had enough adventures and cold feet for the day, decided to have a restful time reclining on the bow of the boat.

Once again we got going and shortly we encountered two sea lions at their dinner table. One was particularly active in catching salmon (probably) and violently swinging it about and tossing it with its neck as it chowed down. Sea gulls flew over to pick up any remains. As soon as one fish was completely eaten, it would dive down in search for another. The gulls would float about and fly around wondering where their dinner disappeared to. A few minutes later the sea lion would pop up with another fish, and the gulls, a few moments later would all take off and swoop over to the new location of dinner.

Saturday afternoon was Petersburg's annual go-cart race. On the way back from the harbor (to get some dry socks and clean clothes for Amy), we came to where they were holding the races and stopped to watch for a few minutes. We saw creatively decorated go-carts, some more suitable to racing than others. There was a team formed around the "Finding Nemo" theme. The go-cart was decorated as Nemo and once the cart crossed the finish line, three other individuals, dressed as other fish came over to push the cart away.

The week of prayer was more successful than I had hoped for. There were four to seven of us that gathered together each night for eight nights. I think this helped us to get to know one another much better than we ever could have during just a regular once-a-week service. Following the meeting we had supper at the church with a few of the members.

On the way home, in the clear sky, we saw the Harvest Moon (well, perhaps a day late but close enough!).

We are now entering the time of year when the Northern Lights (Auroras) make their presence visible. We haven't seen them yet, but hope that we can soon. Tonight would be a great time because the sky is pretty clear.