We had been watching the predicted path of Hurricane Erin. For a while, it was supposed to hit Newfoundland but as it got closer, the models converged and showed it going East. But to be safe, we decided to go to the NE end of Placentia Bay, Arnold’s Cove. We stayed here for a while and did some boat work as we were getting some strong southerlies after the hurricane passed. There were several nice hikes and the rock formation below is called “Screaming Woman”. We had created a plan to meet up with Graeme and take the boat to Nova Scotia to overwinter and get the some painting done. We headed south, and anchored in Baine Harbor for a few days as it was raining and we had southerlies. We then went to St Lawrence where we met up with Graeme. The harbormaster, Scott, was very nice. He drove Al to the gas station to get diesel and Graeme and Al fished for mackeral off the pier for dinner that night. Then it was off to St Pierre where we finished stocking up, including getting the maximum bottle of wines per person. We had an ok weather window to East River Shipyard, just past Halifax, approximately 350-400 miles. It was a bit of a slog, we did 24 hours the first day and only did 160 miles where we checked into customs at Louisbourg. We did about 14 hours the next day and 13 hours the day after that and anchored in downtown Halifax. Here we had a beautiful sail in and a fantastic view of the big city. It was pretty foggy the next morning and Graeme and Al had to worry about Naval bombing practice which was announced over the VHF. But the fog started clearing around 11:00 and we had a great sail to East River. We have a few days to prepare the boat for overwintering before it gets hauled out and we fly home!
Southern Placentia Bay
From Fortune, we sailed/motored 50 miles around Burin Peninsula and anchored in Little St. Lawrence Harbor. We then spent a couple days in Burin. Burin is a charming town with a boardwalk around the bay and very nice trail up to the highest point, called Cook’s Lookout Point. From Burin, we went to Oderin Island, and then to Merasheen Island. In Merasheen, we found the charts inaccurate – it showed 20′ and we ran aground. Luckily, we were going slowly and we still had an hour of rising tide. We floated off and tried another direction but stopped at 11′. Luckily where we decided to anchor had good holding as we ended up getting 2 nights of 25+ knots of wind. We then went to St. Kyran’s which was a very protected bay. The church was built in the 1920s and is an amazing bit of architecture. The community was relocated to more populous areas through the government’s resettlement program in the1960s and the church abandoned. Some community members celebrated the parish’s 150 year anniversary in the abandoned church in 2006. One can see the amazing view the parishioners must have had in the last photo below.
Back to Dogbark
We stopped in Lewisporte on our way back from Gros Morne National Park. Lewisporte has a large port and we had hoped to overwinter here but they couldn’t accommodate our boat. We looked online for live music and found the Citadel House. It is both a live music venue and record label and they had two groups performing that night. The second group, the Dandelion Few, was amazing, with a lead singer from Ireland who had married a singer/songwriter from Newfoundland. Then it was on to Fortune where we caught the ferry to St. Pierre where we met up with Graeme and Janna’s family and spent the day in Miquelon before we all came back to Fortune.
L’Anse aux Meadows
In the northwest corner of Newfoundland is the National Historic Site of L’Anse aux Meadows, the only authenticated Norse site in North America. The Visitor’s Center shows many of the archeological findings and some of the Viking village has been recreated, including actors demonstrating everyday life. We did a little hike along the coast line and found a delightful surprise, fairy homes created from the imagination of children. After leaving the village, we went to dinner at the Norseman Restaurant and had the best dinner in Newfoundland. We saw what looked like the Leif Erikson statue in Ballard and saw that it is a replica given by the Leif Erikson International Foundation of Seattle to Vinland in 2013.
Driving around Newfoundland
After meeting Graeme and Janna and their family in St. Johns and turning Dogbark over to their capable hands, we left in our rented car for Dildo. Dildo is a quiet fishing village that got world wide attention on Jimmy Kimmel shows. Jimmy ended up receiving honorary mayor status and he gave the community Dildo block letters as seen on Hollywood Hills. Nearby Dildo is the Newfoundland Pony Heritage Park where they are trying to protect and preserve the rare and endangered Newfoundland Pony. We spent several days in Terra Nova National Park and Gros Morne National Park. The trails were well kept, the outhouses spotless, and the trails surprisingly uncrowded. We did not see a moose but saw a moose exclosure that demonstrates how an overpopulation of moose harms the forest. We also saw a ruffed grouse and spruce grouse chicks. Terra Nova National Park is on the east coast and Gros Morne National Park is on the west coast, separated by a 5 hour drive. They both contain hundreds of coastline which have numerous lookouts and trails.
Burin, Newfoundland (AKA Most Goated Town Ever)
Hello world, this is Talia, back behind the keyboard of saildogbark.com for the first time in FIVE years. I am delighted to tell you about our remarkable experiences in the small town of Burin, Newfoundland (pronounced like Bjorn, they like to get rid of syllables in their words here).
Oh dear, Oderin!
Our first notable stop was at Oderin Island (pronounced “odeern”) on the west side of Placentia Bay. Oderin is a gem of an island with rocky outcrops, green rolling Sound of Music hills, and a small protected harbor just (barely) big enough for Dogbark. The shoreline is dotted with the colorful homes of the fisherfolk who used to live here. In the heat of the summer, the place looked idyllic, but imagining living here through the cold winter months battered by North Atlantic storms definitely made us shiver.
Our first 48 hours cruising in Newfoundland
Hi! Savai here. Our family is cruising Dogbark for the next two weeks along with my friend Juliette. We have been having a BLAST in our first few days. After flying into St. John’s and touring the local universities, we sailed to Ferryland Harbor. We came with a bucket list of animals to see, but somehow have already checked all of them off the list. Wildlife we have seen so far:
Quidi Vidi
We said goodbye to Ted and Monica in St. Johns. But before they left, they drove us to Quidi Vidi, a very cute town, and from there we walked back to St. John’s along the coast with a stop at Signal Hill.
St. John’s
From Bay de Verde, we had a relatively easy sail to St. John’s, the capitol of Newfoundland. It is a wonderful city to visit with lots of restaurants and live music. They wharf is right in the downtown, blocks from their main street, Water Street, which is closed to cars and only open to pedestrians in the summer. The pictures below is the historic railway station, which travels all the way across Canada. The second picture is the Provincial Supreme Court, one of the oldest buildings in Canada. The last picture is of Jelly Bean Row, where all the houses are painted different colors.
Bay de Verde
We had a long way to go to Bay de Verde the next day so we left early. We stopped to fish and Monica was caught her limit in cod in just a few minutes. We also saw two orcas along the way. Bey de Verde is a well protected harbor, with one of the largest processing plants in Canada. Snow crab season had closed a few days before so we were not able to purchase any fresh crab. There is a historic walk and a longer walk to the coast. We stopped at a couple places and bought bread baked that morning by Madona.
Sydney Cove
We left Valleyfield the next day and went to Sydney Cove, 20 miles to the south. Recreational fishing is allowed on Saturday, Sunday and Monday so we planned to do some fishing on the way. We ended up catching 3 mackerel that made a very good dinner that night. There is a trail connecting the coves that we went on after exploring the cove with our dinghy. We enjoyed a restful night watching the sunset in a well protected anchorage.
Bona Vista to Valleyfield
While in Bonavista, we met a couple traveling by bicycles in Newfoundland. Jani and Sam were from Cambridge Mass. and were looking for a ride across the bay. They had never been on a sailboat before, but they were excited to do so as this would save them days of biking and their son had done many sailing adventures. We had a perfect day for sailing almost 30 miles, but even so, Jani got seasick, which was not unexpected. She felt better part way through and we all enjoyed seeing a large pod of Atlantic white sided dolphins.
Bonavista
From Trinity, we sailed to Bonavista, 45 miles away. We went past Puffin Island that has 45,000 breeding pairs of Puffins. There were lots of bird life, but they don’t like to get close to the boat and we could barely see the puffins through binoculars. We did see several whales though, 2 came very close and one circled us, checking out the boat. We wanted to stay an extra day in Bonavista as there were high winds predicted. We went on a hike to the end of the cape as Jerry, the dockmaster, highly recommended it and he had beautiful pictures of Puffins. We did get to see lots of puffins and gulls. With the high winds, it was especially fun to watch the puffins taking off, flying, and landing as they are awkward flyers and the high winds made it even harder for them. Again, most of what we saw was through the binoculars – this picture was taken using the binoculars. But when we were leaving, there were three puffins that landed within 20 feet of us. We felt especially lucky to get that close to them.
Trinity
From Carbonear, we went to Trinity East and anchored. Monica had read about a wonderful hike, Skerwink Trail which has been rated as one of the most beautiful hikes in North America, and we believe it! We made a quick stop at the town of Trinity for breakfast before heading on to Bonavista. The town is one of the cutest we saw, unfortunately we don’t have that many pictures to illustrate that!
Carbonear
We had a week to prepare Dogbark to cruise. When the mast was down, we replaced the track as it had taken 3 people to hoist and pull down the main! We had worked with Ballard Sails but getting things through Customs wasn’t easy and unfortunately some of the order was wrong. So we carried the slides on the plane and Al had to handsew all of them on the 65′ main. But we were finally ready to go when our friends, Monica and Ted arrived. Ted is an avid fisherman, so we had several wonderful dinners with cod and mackeral. Our first harbor was Carbonear, 20 miles from the Royal Newfoundland Yacht Club. Carbonear is one of the oldest continuous settlements in Newfoundland. It has been a multiple winner of the “Tidy Town” award and the Mayor, Frank Butts, plans to win it again. Frank Butts welcomed Monica and Ted and showed them around his gas station and sold them a jar of marinated moose which later became a fantastic shepherd’s pie. We had dinner at the Stone Jug, one of the oldest buildings in Canada, built in 1860 from hand carved stone. When it was renovated, they tried to keep it as authentic as possible. The town center had a large pond in it’s center with a boardwalk all around it. There was a mother duck and ducklings.
Traveling to Newfoundland through Boston
Shauna and Al on the Freedom Trail in front of Benjamin Franklin Statue and Park. Al looking at Charlestown Bridge History on the Freedom Trail. Al in front of Ventura, a twenty five foot Wianno Senior. This boat was given to JFK for his 15th Birthday and he taught Jacqueline to sail on it. Al raced against this boat when he was 8 years old. This was Al’s very first sailboat race. He was with his Uncle Chad and friends on Varuna and the race took place at Martha’s Vinyard. This sparked Al’s love of sailing and racing!
Well Travelled and Well Lived Advice From the Crew
We ask our crew: If you had one piece of life advice to give, what would it be?
Emerging into Civilization and a New Home
Champagne sailing for our last day and Dogbark finds a new berth at the Royal Newfound Yacht Club.
NW Passage Complete, but We’re Not Done Yet!
We’ve conclude the NW Passage of our journey, now to make our way down south!
A New Frontier at Fort Ross
Tracing the steps and exploring the former trading grounds of one of Canada’s oldest companies, Hudson’s Bay Company.
The Day We Did ALL the Things!
Pushing through the ice towards Bellot Strait, we find new edges among belugas and a once in a lifetime experience with the Canadian Coast Guard!
Welcome to the Global Race to the Ice Edge Challenge
It’s a race to the first real ice edge flow in Larsen Sound!
A Full Moon and Friendships
A quick pitstop in Cambridge Bay, but we are rewarded with good laughs and new friendships.
Do You Ever Feel Like You’re Upside Down?
A bumpy few days and wildfire smoke sets a dystopian feel to our adventure.
- Alaska
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Through the Looking Ice
Looking through our crystal ice ball to determine our route through the NW Passage.
We’re in Polar Bear Country Now
So how does one navigate getting onto a beach to meet a taxi but there are two polar bear cubs and probably a mama polar bear not too far in between you? You send a sacrificial lamb of course.
Al and Graeme Have Been Lying…
How did we all get tricked into believing them for all this time? Was it the polar mirage?
Delivery: Sitka to Nome Part 3 (False Pass and Nunivak Island)
With an ominous name like False Pass, one can only wonder what type of trepidation awaits us.
Delivery: Sitka to Nome Part 2 (Anchorage Hopping and Fresh Fish!)
Exploring the beautiful Alaskan Peninsula anchorages and getting a fresh fish delivery in the Aleutian Islands!
Delivery: Sitka to Nome Part 1 (Sitka to Kodiak)
Our skipper Al and his partner Shauna need to get Dogbark to Nome! 1,400nm is a reasonable amount for a shakedown cruise right?
- Featured
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So We’re Back in Nome…
And I wouldn’t be surprised if we have some catching up to do. But I will get to that. For now, the basics. Dogbark arrived in Nome a little after midnight last Friday. And the fearless skipper that you are used to wasn’t aboard… Luckily Dogbark has had many other fearless skippers. And Leg 1 of our journey starts with an introduction to an old friend, Al Hughes. As you can tell, he is a rockstar. And he is the man responsible for getting Dogbark to Nome. He is also a co-owner these days, much to his chagrin! (Perhaps the grimace refers to the state of our batteries? Or the radar dome that we found a star fish in?) More to come. So much news, so many stories, so little time. Much, much more to come, my friends!
- Books
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Strong Leadership
So many issues are top of mind right now: the pandemic, the economy, racial injustice, the climate crisis. It’s going to take many people, from many different spheres of influence, to lead us to health, prosperity, justice, and equilibrium. But who’s going to lead us, and how?
- Books
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Buoyed by Books: Readings on Climate Activism
I’ve been coping with 2020 by reading. I’m thrilled to be doing book recommendations for the awesome Women Who Sail newsletter, which tackles a timely, thought-provoking topic each month.
Alaska Summer of 2020 Rewind
A sailboat is the best quarantine machine ever! Here is a rewind in photos to give you an idea of all the fun we had in Alaska this summer.
Captain’s Report – Day 6 – Off Icy Bay
Currently about 65 miles S of Icy Bay. Some of my favorite coastline is out of sight on the horizon to the north, with Mt. St Elias, the Malaspina glacier and Mount Logan.
Halfway Day!
The following is an update from the boat people, coordinated by the land person known as Talia. Today the crew opened up the halfway box, a traditon running strong on Dogbark for all passages. Mom and I picked everything out and today since the boat is half way to AK, they finally get to see what is inside! Enjoy the update from Graeme!
Captain’s Report – Day 4 – In Alaskan Waters!
We struggled along sailing most of the night under sail, motoring a little as the wind went behind us. We are now clear of Haida Gwaii and “in Alaska waters.”
Captain’s Report – Day 3 – South End Haida Gwaii
Had a pleasant, fast sail across Queen Charlotte Sound entrance to Haida Gwaii. We focused on birds, with sightings of brown albatross, petrels, something like sheerwaters, and puffins. Lots of puffins.
Captain’s Report – Day 2 – West Side Vancouver Island
Sailed most of the night under main alone, but have a bit of jib pulled out now on starboard gibe.
Dogbark to Alaska Again – Day 1
Get yer trackers loaded, folks! Dogbark is sailing north to Alaska again. It’s fun to watch their progress as they go.
- Marquesas
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In the Media! In the Ice! In the Movies (sort of)!
We may be back but the journey continues–at home, way south, way north. Dogbark’s voyage lives on thanks to the creative efforts of her friends.
- Boat Stuff
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Top 10 Life Changes Since Being Back
Here’s a big change: Walking to school with a puppy who insists on being picked up, then put down, might make us miss the bus. Not all our changes are good. Not all our changes are bad. But our changes are MANY. So here are ten ways “normal” life is different from cruising life.
Salmon, Rain, and Rainie
Fall has come aboard Dogbark. We are still busy killing salmon, but it is not quite as easy in the Puget Sound as it was in Alaska. With all the rain, and the girls back in school we aren’t getting out as much as (I think) we should.
We’re Back!
Greeted by family and friends with tears in their eyes, there was much hugging and merriment.
Best gifts for cruisers and other friends going on epic adventures (aka Thank you)
We’ve been out a year now and it’s time to reflect on what got us here. Like the gifts, encouragement, help, and hard work from people like you!
Solomon’s Sea Life Essay
Get excited, everyone, because this is saildogbark.com’s first ever guest blogger! Solomon is an eleven year old with a big smile and a big desire for fun. He is also, as it turns out, a very good writer!
A Year of Earth Science
It’s June, which means it’s also almost time for THE END OF BOATSCHOOL!!!!! Dad gave me a fun end-of-year science assignment that I would like to share with y’all. (Actually, I am being FORCED to post this as part of the assignment, sorry Dad for blowing your cover). Anyway, here’s the assignment…
The Cookie Catastrophe!
This was a fun science presentation that I did a few months ago. I just found the pictures and decided to post it!
Being a Cruiser Kid instead of just a Cruiser
What is a cruising kid, you ask? It’s a kid with parents just as crazy as ours who decided to quit school and jobs and head off on a boat to remote and exotic places. Hundreds of boats flock to French Polynesia each year, quite a few of them with kids!
Aloha!
After being away for 2 months of cruising, 5 atolls, 2 amazing volcanic islands, and almost 6000 sea miles, the lights of Diamond Head were a welcome sight.
- Boatschool
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Advocacy
A lesson on advocacy: “This catalogue only has men in it,” she said, furrowing her brow. She flipped a few more pages and shook the magazine in our direction. “Why aren’t I their demographic?”
Humble Pie
The day started out well enough, the girls did great under pressure, and we enjoyed seeing the “mullet ship.” But the performance of the grownups did not pass muster. (Though we did try to pass mustard.)
Taiohae Bay
Just a quick note to say that we arrived in The Marquesas safe and sound. 2360 miles, 11 days, 16 squalls, 97 dolphins, 6 whales, one Mahi Mahi, one big eye tuna, one monster Ono (wahoo), one lost gaff hook, and six tired but happy people.
Aloha Hawaii, Hasta Luego!
Just a quick note to say that Dogbark cast off lines this morning at 0800 bound for the Southern Hemisphere.
Wrapped Up in Aerial Silks
I like aerial silks because it’s one of the those things I can climb on without getting yelled at by my dad.
Talia’s First By-line
Talia wrote an article for SAIL Magazine about our time in the Arctic. It’s a great piece, and we’re so proud!
Jell-O + Calling the Shots + Our (new) New Route
Cruisers say All plans are made in Jell-O. Why? Because old plans are always being molded into new plans as sailing realities shift and actual routes take shape.
Adventures With Albatross
The best adventures always start way earlier in the morning than you want them too. Our albatross hike was no different.
- Books
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Dogbark’s Review of Books
Huey Lewis was addicted to love, but I might as well face it I’m addicted to books.
New Year, New Route!
Happy New Year! For those of you who don’t already know, I will unveil the details of our often-debated, subject-to-small-changes route for 2019.
Visiting an Ukulele Factory!
Yesterday our friends Jeff and Cheri offered to bring us along to tour their neighbor’s ukulele factory. Of course, we said yes because who wouldn’t want to tour one of the most successful ukulele buisnesses in the world?
A Day in the Life of a Dogbarkian
For those of you that do not know, Dogbark has tied up at the dock in Honolulu at the Waikiki Yacht Club. We have settled in to a casual daily routine, and I’d like to share it with you so you know what it’s like to live at the dock.
Ode to Becca and John
There aren’t many people who could stand being cooped up on a boat with our family of four, twenty-four-seven, for four months, across 7,700 miles, in extreme conditions.
On-the-Water Activities
We haven’t just been lounging around admiring the beautiful landscape. We have been doing lots of unique water adventures…
Ah, Boatschool . . .
The thought of being the lead teacher in our boatschooling endeavor brought to mind voracious reading, real-world science, and rainbows. Lots of rainbows.
How the Hawaiians Discovered Their Paradise
Long long ago in the South Pacific a clan of sailors left their home on a long voyage. They were searching for new islands…
Aloha! A Warm Welcome in Kaneohe
Landfall was spectacular. Huge green mountains, hanging waterfalls, breaking waves over coral green reefs. But the toughest part of the 12-day passage happened in the dark before the sun rose over this glorious view.
- Hawai'i
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Following the Whales
Whales, like us, came north to Alaska for great food, sight seeing, and adventure. They’ll be heading back to Hawai’i soon. And right now we need a plan B…
- Featured
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Dogbark Turns Back
Heeding the warning from the Canadian Coast Guard, Dogbark makes the tough decision to turn back.
Back and Forth, What the Heck?
This is not a retreat, though it may look like it to you tracker junkies. This boat still plans to go to Greenland. We hope that this next weather system will shake things up and let us go forward.
One Big Apology and some Answers to your Questions
After finding oodles of comments languishing in our junk folder, we answer your questions.
Our Wonderful Food
During our overnight passages and in Pt. Hope we have had wonderful food! From homemade pasta to chocolate moose!
Mukluk’s Adventures in Point Hope
Land Ho! DogBark’s crew cheered, (or actually just Savai and I). We had spotted Point Hope in the distance, a place where we were going to anchor to wait out a bad weather system.
Tigvariak Island Gale
For those of you who are not tracker junkies, we have moved to a new island, Tigvariak, which is at the entrance to Mikkelsen Bay. The reason was a weather forecast.
An Island in the Ice
We sailed overnight through ice that sometimes required us to backtrack, once and a while we even had to push ice out of the way. Twice our promising leads through the ice closed down to roughly the width of the boat
Big News: on the TV and on the road!
We think there’s a chance we can finally go! Graeme’s consulting the oracle right now. In the meantime, check out this great TV coverage Dogbark.
Adventures with Dogs (AKA the BEST Kind of Adventure)
I LOVE dogs. So when I heard that we had been offered the chance to go hang out with dogs and go dog sledding, I said “YES!!!”
An Update from Nome: Welcoming People and Fantastic Food
“Look Mom, It’s Dogbark!” I said pointing out the airplane window as the plane coasted down towards Nome…
Real-time Tracker for S/V Dogbark
By popular and parental demand, we now have a real-time tracker for S/V Dogbark so you can see where we are!
My Temporary Retirement
Mom, Savai, and I are all back home in Washington. I consider it to be a temporary retirement from all the work we had to do aboard Dogbark.
Hello Raptors!
After getting to Sitka we had some spare time, well really just a chance for Mom and Dad to kick us off the boat in a kind way to get some work done. So we got to spend a lot of time with our grandparents. To our pleasure.
Blog Update fom the Dogbarkers: Autopilot Pranks
Wilma and Wilbert are the hydraulic autopilots who steer the boat so we don’t have to. And they are acting funky, like they don’t appreciate all the sail changes and configurations.
The Early Expedition
“Uggghhh! I don’t want to get up,” moaned my sister, or maybe it was me. The plan of the day was to wake up at five and drive four hours round-trip to Tow Hill hike and the semi-famous blow-hole hike.
An Amazing Adventure in Haida Gwaii
Dogbark has reached Haida Gwaii, a place with huge forests, intriguing wildlife, and lots of Haida culture and history. After a couple stops at Haida Heritage sites complete with totem poles and hot springs, we headed to a beautiful anchorage called Crescent Inlet where we decided to go on a bushwhack!
Week 1 in Photos
This gives you a visual sense of our first week cruising. For a beautiful description in words, check out Becca’s blog post at halcyonwandering.com.
Quick update from the top of Vancouver Island
We are jumping off to Haida Gwaii today. We will be out of service for a bit, so I wanted to share a few photos from the trip so far…
A day with Hula Girl
Well it’s not just Dogbark sailing the Inside Passage. We also have another boat with us, Hula Girl. Someone had the idea for me and Talia to ride on Hula Girl for a day. So we did, and this is what we did!
Islands and Sunshine and Dolphins, Oh My!
We’ve finally set sail, and headed off into the beautiful San Juan Islands and Inside Passage (Not to be confused with the Northwest Passage). Many people have asked “What’s it like?”, or “Where are you?”. Currently, I am on a big sailboat steaming towards the not-so-big town of Port Hardy, on the east side of Vancouver Island.
The Emotional Lowdown
On yesterday morning’s regular bike ride, Savai got teary. “This is the last time we’ll ever do this,” she said.
Roald Amundsen
This is a report Savai did in 4th grade before we plucked her out of school a little early to set sail.