Ghost Rider's
Alaska Travels
2001


North Sawyer Glacier
Tracy Arm


Sue and I left Home in early April 2001 and headed up the coast of Washington to Neah Bay and then East in the Strait of Juan De Fuca to Port Angeles 
where we topped off our fuel tanks.  We proceeded to Bedwell Harbour in 
the Canadian Gulf Islands to check through Customs.  We then made our 
way north through southern  BC and rounded Cape Caution into Northern BC. 
The following photos are from many that we took along the way.

 
The waterfalls were very active, particularly in this stretch of Graham Reach just south of the abandoned town of Butedale.

 
 
 
We spent two nights in Lowe Inlet.  The first night we anchored in the 
middle of the inlet since it was almost dark on our arrival and a 
Canadian Coast guard vessel was anchored in front of Verney falls. 
The second day we moved over directly in front of the falls and 
anchored.  Upon reflection, I am not sure that we would anchor in 
this location again due to the possibility of drift logs coming over the 
falls.

 
 
During the afternoon the cruise ship the 
"Spirit of 98" came 
into the inlet behind
our anchorage to let their passengers 
view Verney Falls.

 
 
Evening time at Prince Rupert

 
 
Ghost Rider tied up at the
Prince Rupert Yacht Club.

 
 
. After clearing customs at
Ketchikan, we spent some
time in the area waiting for
mail.  We explored Thorne
Bay and Smugglers cove.
We then tied up here at the State dock in Meyers Chuck.

 
 
After picking up our
mail in Ketchikan, we headed for Wrangell.
On the way, we
stopped over in Santa-
Anna inlet where we
found this interesting
rock formation which
we named "Face in
the Rock."

 
 
While in Wrangell, we enjoyed touring 
Chief Shakes Tribal House which is located on a Peninsula in the boat harbour.

 
 
We also enjoyed the
Totem park in the middle of Wrangell.

 
 
 
To travel to Petersburg one
must run north through
Wrangell Narrows which 
is also the route of the 
Alaska Ferries and 
tugboats towing loaded
barges.  On our way
south, we also encountered
a Black bear swimming
across in front of the boat.

 
 
After a stop for a couple of
days in Petersburg, we headed for the Juneau 
area, with a stop in this
lovely anchorage called
Sandborn Canal.

 
 
After visiting Juneau and 
Auke Bay with Bob and 
Sunny from Raven, we 
headed north into Lynn
Canal to visit Haines and
Skagway.  Since the small
boat harbor at Haines was
full, the harbormaster had
us both tie up at the small
cruise-boat dock which was
easier anyway.

 
 
When the cruise ship
made its once weekly
visit to Haines, we were
treated to a bird's eye view
of their docking operations.

 
 
After visiting Skagway by
fast ferry, we left Haines and headed for Glacier Bay.  Since our permit dates did not coincide with those of Raven's, we made our way to Glacier Bay hoping to meet up with Bob and Sunny later.  This photo shows our tax dollars at work--note the fancy dock and ramp in
Bartlett Cove.

 
 
Upon leaving Bartlett Cove, one is treated to this view of the Fairweather Range.

 
 
The main reason for going to Glacier bay is to view the glaciers.  This photo shows  two of them, Marjorie glacier on the left and Grand Pacific glacier on the right.  Grand Pacific glacier is currently receding and  covered with debris and looks black.  Note the cruise ship in the center of the photo between the two glaciers.

 
 
After a day of glacier watching, we relax in Blue Mouse Cove with a view of the Fairweathers.  We watched a grizzly bear prowl the nearby beaches looking under boulders for dinner.

 
 
After cruising Glacier Bay, we headed for Hoonah and Port Frederick.  This is Hoonah Harbour.

 
 
The mountainsides in Frederick Sound
reminded us of some of the lush hillsides and waterfalls in Hawaii, except for the snow, of course.

 
 
After several days in the Frederick Sound area, we headed west in Icy Strait to a great little place called Elfin Cove.  It is mostly used by commercial fishermen and the occasional cruising boat.  One of the summer inhabitants is Dave Walton, AL7DJ, the local electronics guru who runs the Great Northern Boaters net and keeps track of the cruising boats.  He is always willing to lend a hand  with any electronics emergency,

 
 
 
Fairweather Range from Elfin Cove.  The farthest peak is 60 miles to the north.  Brady Glacier is hidden in shadow between the dark hills below the snowy mountains.

 
On our way down the coast to Sitka, we visited Kimshan Cove along with  Raven.  Bob is on the bow preparing to anchor near Ghost Rider.

 
 
On our way south we anchored  for two days in Cannery Cove in Pybus Bay.  This particular little island was just covered with shells.

 
 
We anchored at Dead Point and dinghied over to Berry Island and photographed this Pictograph which shows faintly on the left.  The cavity in the rock on the right is said to be an Indian Chief's bath.

 
 
This photo shows the pictograph more clearly.  The eyes and brows of the face are most evident.  Note that the red has faded, but color is still remarkable. 

 
 
One of the fun places to stop in Southern BC is Lagoon Cove.  Every day the marina holds a no-host cocktail hour.  They provide fresh shrimp!  A special treat each night is a campfire sing-along.

 
 
On our way down the Washington coast we stayed overnight at Westport. The shipyard where the Ghost Rider was built was launching a new 107 ft. yacht for Johnny Carson.

 
 
Sue and I left home on May 5, 2001 and returned on August 7, 2001.  We traveled over 2500 nautical miles and saw bears, eagles, gray whales and killer whales, otters, a wolf, porpoises and seals.  We met many friendly boaters, had a great time, and can't wait to go again.
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