Heading South

Heading South

September 17-18, 2022

As we head down the Inside Passage, everyone has a mission to spot whales! It’s a perfect day, sunny with no wind. The sea is calm, with no whitecaps which makes it much easier to see the whales. First you see the blow, then with either strong binoculars or a good camera you can see the back, maybe the fluke or even the whole animal if it comes out of the water and breaches. Myrta caught the fluke of a humpback and then a small pod of fin whales as they swam past us.

(Well, i give up. After successfully transferring pictures for two weeks, the whale photos refuse to move from my phone to the iPad.)

The scenery is gorgeous, mountains covered with conifers are on both sides. There’s also a narrow strip of shoreline, mostly rocks and driftwood on both sides. We have a local pilot aboard all the way through the passage.

I know I’ve mentioned it before, but the Open Bridge policy is the best. Myrta and I usually wander down the hallway after lunch to spend some time there. It’s on the seventh deck, with windows all around so a great view. The Captain is about as well as another six to eight young officers watching any number of screens and gauges plus any passengers that have stopped in. There is no big wheel. The man actually steering the boat is back from the windows perched on a stool at a small podium.

Before we get off the boat, I ran around taking pictures of various places on board. The Whiskey Bar, the Scenic Lounge, the Observation/Library/Tea Lounge where Myrta and I would meet mid afternoon to go through pictures we’ve taken as well as try to remember what we did that day. I type, she needlepoints. 

I did remember to take a picture of our suite before we unpacked. 

By the way, the Indian dinner was fabulous. I’m not too sure what I ate, but I’d like to try it again. 

We set the clocks forward to PDT. 

Our last day on board started out with pea soup fog, again, but by midday it had burned off and it was sunny and mild. There was an open house on the helicopter deck so everyone could see the copters as well as the garages where they’re stored and talk to the pilots. 

We’ve pretty much had the whole passage to ourselves but today at lunchtime we passed a tug towing a building, two small fishing boats and a barge of timber. Loads of speculation but we asked the local pilot on the bridge and he said it was a floating fishing lodge. Huh, you might well ask. The lodge is moved around from cove to cove all summer for fishing expeditions. In the fall it is towed up to the Fraser River to over winter. Craziest thing. Who knew?

Some Pacific White-Sided Dolphins chased us for a while in the late afternoon. You’ll have to take my word for it. Every time I tried to take a picture they’d duck under water. 

Last night, last dinner. Luggage out in the hall by 11 tonight, and passengers out of their rooms by 8 am tomorrow. 

A most interesting itinerary on a most interesting boat. 

The Discovery Team

The Captain at farewell