Day Two: Caves, Kayaks and Campfire Dinner
“Rise and shine!” came early today after our first sleep on the Curtis. Leaving Anacortes, we were greeted by a foggy morning and chorizo breakfast burritos. The crew did their morning routine of getting the boat prepared in less than 5 minutes – and we’re off!
Bernie loading us up with fresh water before leaving.
On the way to Sucia Island, we passed Orcas Island. At Lawrence Point, the Log Watch in the wheelhouse reported an object in the water. As Skipper Tom warned us, those waters in the Strait of Georgia are powerful! The OOD (Officer on the Deck) called for a float overboard drill. It was an unusual location for something to be. The helm turned the boat around while two deck crew came onto the bow to point and grab pike poles. Most impressive was their speed, accuracy, and calm under pressure.
We shouldn’t be surprised though – the crew practices this drill, among others,
every week at the Tacoma Sea Base.
At around 11:00am, we arrived at Sucia Island and prepared to drop our anchor. This is not an easy process. On the long chain, there are yellow marks. Each yellow mark indicates 25 feet of chain. At the end, Deck Crew Caitlin counted 6 marks.
When lowering the anchor, there is a counter and someone on the brake. Once lowered, a third crewmember checks the chain to make sure the anchor has grounded.
After the anchor is set, the crew filled up on chicken salad sandwiches, chips, and a delicious cream cheese dessert. After lunch, they went on top side and unloaded the skiffs and kayaks from the davit. Thank goodness the crew practiced this maneuver the last couple of months at Youth Marine Center in Tacoma – it takes a lot of coordination! The crew then was released for shore leave and took turns in our own water taxi on the skiffs– skippered by Ezekiel and Trevor. Once ashore, we got busy exploring the caves and many hiking trails.
Around 5:30pm, the real magic began. We managed to transport 24 crewmembers,2 BBQ grills, propane, food, and supplies for a sunset beach BBQ. As everyone arrived, hamburgers and hot dogs were flying around the campfire. You know what else was flying? SMOKE! It was worth enduring it. With s’mores complimenting the perfect dinner, the scouts were ready for a second adventure to the caves.
As the scouts gave Tom some quiet time to explore on his own, they convinced Miss Monique and Intern Ceciley to muster up their adventurous spirit and explore the caves. A half mile down the trail, the forest opens up to a sandy beach with a wall of caves to the side. The caves have openings small enough for a mouse and big enough for 5 Sea Scouts.
We spent about 10 minutes trying to gather everyone in the cave for a group photo. Once we succeeded, the scouts raced each other back to the beach. Time to transport back to Curtis! The good news was we ate all the food we brought. The bad news? We had to bring newly generated garbage along – and the 10 pounds we each gained! We loaded up the skiffs with 4 passengers at a time and headed back to the ship. We started transporting at twilight, and the last run was in pure darkness. The bats would have scared us more had Tom not reminded us that they eat the mosquitoes…..
The Curtis crew’s work is not done when the sun goes down. We still had to load the kayaks and skiffs topside. As the deck crew put them away in the dark, we readied for lights out. No one objected – and soon we were fast asleep.