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!
Author: Graeme
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
- ...
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
- ...
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.
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
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.
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…
Cruising Dogbark
So far this blog has been a litany of haul-outs and paint jobs, power washing and chop saw work. But we actually love sailing more than boat work…
Muskoxen are freezing and the Arctic is warm…
If a headline says climate change is causing Muskox to be “entombed in ice” then what does that mean for us?
What is an Open 60 and Why do we Want One?
Open 60s are a class of sailboats that were designed to sail singlehanded around the world. They are tough, fast, and relatively easy to sail for a boat that is 60′ long…