Pacific NW

Expeditions

The wind piped up as we exited Tonsina Inlet. We had a great little sail through a riptide as the Gulf of Alaska gave us the last of her swell and chop for now. Whales and bears are common sights on this coast, and we saw many. It was a relaxing day of exploration. We anchored in Palisade Lagoon amongst tall cliffs and trees. We walked up a river drainage and came across a cabin in the woods. It was a bit scary, because you never know who might be squatting in these places. We found the place empty and in general disrepair. The river had shifted and was eating away at the foundation, so it was possibly abandoned. There was a terrific woodpile, but no wood stove. I also found the book “Around the World in 80 Days” by Jules Verne in a pile of rotting books. I rescued it and plan on reading it. I just ran out of reading material, too! Jules Verne it is. I cut and barked a small spruce tree to use as an iceberg pole. Those aluminum ones at the marine stores are only good for picking hats out of the water, and buckle when any stress is put on them. Clouds began flying in from the South and East as we rowed back down the lagoon. We found another set of cabins–long abandoned– on the outside of the lagoon. It was an old mining operation from the 70’s. We came across several bulldozers rusting in the alders, hardhats, and a really long mine shaft. I cursed myself for not bringing the flashlight! The shaft was in great condition and went way back into the mountain. We used the camera flash and advanced 5 feet at a time. But it soon freaked us out, we expected to maybe get a nice up-close picture of a bear or something! A soft rain misted down as we rowed back to the boat. We enjoyed yet another long, peaceful evening of a drawn-out dinner followed by several games of dominoes.