May 12, 2005 Snug Harbor to Port Audrey Day 73
Snug Harbor is not a snug harbor. I am re-naming it “Williwaw Avenue”. All through the night violent williwaws screamed into the bay with incredible force. Thank god for our Forfjord! We would surely have been blown onto the beach without it. I locked the tiller down and removed as much as I could from the decks to reduce windage. Still we sheered off in all directions as we were buffeted by the gusts all night. A warm rain slapped the decks in waves and sheets, depending on the velocity of the gusts. I am so glad we changed anchors and repositioned the boat! The Forfjord held us fast all through the night. Sleep was not an option. The wind shrieking and waves breaking against the hull were very effective at keeping me awake and alert. The boat would heel over and swing an arc to port only to be knocked back suddenly to starboard by another williwaw. Despite my worrying, we didn’t drag an inch. I love that old heavy Forfjord! The clouds hung low all day as we rounded the southern end of Knight Island. At one point we sailed in close to shore and watched a huge Grizzly bear feeding in the intertidal zone. The forecast is still grim and it’s pouring rain, so I decided to anchor in a “hurricane hole”. Especially after last night’s episode. Port Audrey is a totally cool place, a good one to come back to. It is a small uncharted basin, totally landlocked at low tide, with a mud bottom 30 feet deep that gradually shoals to gentle beaches. Heaven. After so many grand mountain vistas and sweeping panoramas, it is nice to be in a more intimate setting. By evening a drenching downpour began. Silent Partner sits calmly in the basin while the wind tears at the treetops above, a plume of smoke issuing from the chimney. We have to keep the hatches fully open so we don’t get too hot. Nothing beats wood heat. Neptune and I went for a short excursion to shore and explored an abandoned cannery from 1910. Several seals swam right up to Modulus and followed us as we rowed around the basin. I snorted at them, which they seemed to like, and they drew in even closer.
