First off, I got tenure today, so that's exciting!
Went on a shakedown cruise around the back side of Douglas Island yesterday (April 30) and today (May 1). Originally planned to do the full Douglas circumnavigation, but work intervened. However, we were able to paddle from Thane, South of downtown Juneau, to Fritz Cove, paddling the portion of Douglas not accessible by road. Overall, a successful trip that gave me a good handle on a few things that I need to do over the next two weeks in order to be prepared for my long paddle this summer.
My paddling partner was Jason Amundson, then Assistant and now Associate Professor of Geophysics at the University of Alaska Southeast. Jason is a strong paddler and a frequent trip partner. His boat is a little slower than mine, but he packs lighter and is a fair bit faster than me getting on the water in the morning.
Our weather for the trip was pretty good for early May. We got a bit of rain both days (more today than yesterday), and it was a bit windy at times, with temperatures in the low to mid 40s. So overall, a little nippy, but probably about as good as we could reasonably hope for. And indeed, based on earlier weather reports, I was pretty worried that we were going to be absolutely poured on last night and today, potentially with near gale force winds to boot. And we basically has favorable winds and tidal currents the whole time.
Spent the night at Middle Point, about 3/5 up the Southwest (back) side of the island. There is a nice campsite there, located right on the point, though we found that the location required a long carry in the morning, when the tide was out. At the point, beach sites and clearings with soft ground and shelter from the wind above the point, in the trees. There are numerous beaches up and down th the whole side of the island--other beaches immediately to the Southeast and Northwest also looked promising and featured shorter carries at low. On the other hand, the creek we were camped next to showed signs of good Dolly Varden fishing, though I neglected to bring my fly rod. Had a startling wakeup call when we felt a substantial earthquake (later turned out to be a 6.3) at about 4:30, and several aftershocks, but our stay was otherwise quite comfortable and uneventful.
The paddle yesterday was around 22 (statute/imperial) miles, not bad for the first full day on the water in months. Today was much shorter, probably less than eight miles. Took out at the boat ramp on the N. Douglas Hwy.
Lots of waterfowl sitings. Huge rafts of thousands of scoters, plus many loons, mergansers, guillemots and harlequin ducks. Also weirdly paddled past a floating deer carcass about three miles from Tantallon Pt. Some hunters out, and heard some shots, probably grouse hunting, but the deer appeared to be a natural kill—not quartered and the fur still on. Many sea stars and anemones as well as other intertidal life.
Tested out a couple of pieces of gear. A new wetsuit (actually a thick farmer john and neoprene jacket and rash guard) proved to be a little chilly in the breeze and rain, though it seemed to work relatively well in the water during a rolling session last week. I'm pretty confident, though, that it will be well suited to the warmer air and water temperatures of Puget Sound in May and Sitka Sound in August. Also installed a compass on the deck of my kayak. Works well and looks nice. And tried out a new Greenland style paddle that I just put the finishing touches on this week. Have not yet tried rolling with it, but was worded that it would be slower than my euro-blade paddle. Definitely a bit heavier (to be expected in a cedar paddle, compared to a carbon paddle of any variety), but even if it was slower, I was still able to stay well ahead of Jason most of the trip. Finally, tested out a DeLorme/Garmin inReach which I plan to use on my long paddle this summer—worked just fine. A little bit of a load off my mind that I can check in with Emily back at home from time to time.
It's probably no shocker that I will need to think about packing gear into the boat over the next couple of days--my homebuilt stitch and glue kayak, though beautiful, fast, and seaworthy, has some idiosyncrasies that make packing a little complicated, including prominent deck beams and a large skeg compartment. Had no problem loading enough gear for a single night out, but packing food and fuel for 2+ weeks, in addition to some other gear (water bag, tent, fishing gear, and some additional small pieces of equipment) may be interesting. Probably need to figure out how to use the little spaces in the bow and stern (especially around the skeg) and the "hold"—the often-unused area fore the foot pegs in the cockpit. Normally I store my bear can there (it can't get out with the foot pegs slid into place and doesn't present an entrapment hazard) but that leaves a lot of unused space around it. Adding the tent in a dry bag in that space might be a good solution, provided I can secure it appropriately. Worst case scenario is that I may need to reassess some of the extras I was planning to bring (nice folding saw, bear protection, etc.) The boat is definitely not high volume; speedy, but without a lot of room for luxuries.
More to come, but feeling pretty good about my plans.
Got word that my application for tenure has been accepted mid-afternoon, after getting home, showering and getting something to eat. Really the culmination of about twelve years of work, and a real load off my mind. Though the horizon is a little cloudy for UAS and the University of Alaska in general, I'm feeling pretty good about my place in the world in general at the moment, and thrilled to be here, working my dream job, and getting out in beautiful Southeast Alaska. Had a nice dinner with Emily, and received many kind congratulations.
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