Joni, and all the way to Tacoma

Our friend Joni, and favorite sister of Petra in Anchorage, braved the rain and came out for a sail with us in Shilshole Bay and a bit towards Seattle.She's got some great photos on her photo page of the event. She's an Urban Planning student at UW and singer/songwriter to boot. She's also a lot of fun and knows Seattle's restaurants well.
Here she is wondering about halyards and rigging strength and steering a straight course.

And then it got a bit wet.

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We were invited to check out Blake Island State Park with our dock-mates for a long weekend. The motor down was great and the island a welcome bit of nature for us all.

Chance enjoyed a bit of off-leash time at the beach.

The harbor quickly filled with boats of all kinds, and included the U. of Washington Sailing Club. For a bit of a respite from the very social dock, we paddled around the island for an evening kayak and got some nice shots of Seattle.

The raccons are locally famous for breaking into hatches with agile arms and helping themselves to the bounty within. A new policy of not feeding them has reduced the problem and all we saw were coons on their best behavior poking under rocks. The Island was logged in the 1850s, but has bounced back after being purchased by a wealthy Mr. Trimble in the 1900s. Today, it is a very popular destination for groups of folks needing a little "green therapy".

We enjoyed the trails with Dave and Sam, knowledgable and fun guides and our mentors of sort with sailing. We owe these two a lot of kudos for getting us up and running. We also enjoyed their singing and playing at the Shishole Yacht Club Burger Burn with a really nice bunch of sailors.

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On to Tacoma after Blake Island to see it from the waterfront and Mt Ranier again.

When Blain went to school there in the late '80s, the waterfront and Commencement Bay were pretty much industrial blight. A large cleanup of the waterway and a renovation to town makes it a lovely place to be a boater. Our first bridge was a bit nerve-filled. We cleared it by 10 feet or so.

We moored up at Jonnie's Dock, a waterfront eatery that allows patrons moorage. Saturday and Sunday, they do breakfast. The food was nothing special, but the view was great.

In the morning we paddled across to the glass museum and to the Tacoma Art Museum, where our friend Janna works.

We overdosed on Chihuly just from the Bridge of Glass. I can't imagine the inside of the museum. It's almost embarassing sometimes walking our celebrity dog. He's a favorite with japanese tourists and school kids.

Of course he hates the attention...