More on Boats

The natural beauty here can be at times overwhelming. For the two days I was on the boat I shot 375 pictures. There are just lots of things to see. The Madronas (which are a cousin of the mesquites that you see in California) are a stunning contrast to the stone outcroppings. The flowers, especially on Roche Island, are quite brilliant.

The odd contrast is that you are never without contact with other people. There are always, within a reasonable period of time, other boats in view. At the two places we moored there were a ton of boats around and yet at night the sounds are very still. One of the nights we found someone who had the same kind of boat as my brother and we went over to their boat and had a tour. They were retired and had had the boat shipped from Mexico (where they had been on board for two years) to Seattle. In about five years they had about 2100 hours on the engine - which is evidently a lot. Before we left Bellingham we had heard a story about a woman who had fallen off the boat while docking into customs. It turned out that the woman was the same one we were visiting. Small world. She fell off and luckily did not hit the dock or get hypothermic in the water.

The food is also not bad. One night we at at McMillan's in Roche Harbor. I have eaten there several times. Roche is a pretty happening place - although it has lost some of its charm - it is being developed a bit more than it was. Each night at sunset there is an elaborate setting of the colors which uses both the Canadian and the American anthems. On the second night we ate on the boat - fresh Salmon with some simple veggies.

But you always come back to the scenery. The 8 photos in these two posts are only a part of the wonder I saw.