Underway at last...sort of!

After months of work making upgrades to our boat's systems we were finally able to cast off the dock lines on May 27th, 2010 and head north toward British Columbia. The last few weeks have been especially crazy with every waking hour spent finishing projects and preparing the boat for our extended trip. As anyone who has gone cruising knows, the boat is never completely finished and at some point you just have to go knowing that the important things have been done and the rest can be attended to along the way. After all, isn't cruising really about doing boat maintenance in exotic parts of the world? With the last minute discovery of damage to a section of our jib's roller furling foil caused by hurricane force winds last fall in Canada, our trip began yesterday with a 6 hour motor to Port Townsend where repairs could be made. Famous rigging guru Brian Toss had the part we needed and made time in his busy schedule to make the repair today. While Mark helped, Brian and his assistant remove the damaged section and replace it, Anne busied herself cleaning the bilges and continued to stow the ton of gear and provisions that we had been throwing onboard during the last few days in Seattle. As it turns out, the opportunity to spend a little time in Port Townsend was a treat as we've enjoyed exploring the quaint Victorian town and sampling several recommended eateries. We had the most amazing pizza at a little place called Waterfront Pizza. We can't figure out what makes it taste so good but it was the best we've ever had! Tomorrow we plan on visiting the farmer's market and will walk to the local West Marine chandlery for more boat parts and a 2010 Canadian tide and current book. We will also tour the wooden boat museum and workshop that PT is famous for. It drizzled all day today and more is forecast for next week (bummer). We were spoiled by the unusually hot and dry weather we experienced during last summer's visit to B.C. so perhaps this is some sort of payback for last year's good fortune. Our plan is to leave here early Sunday morning and head for Sydney B.C., just north of Victoria, where we will rendezvous with friends who keep their boat there. As always, our family and friends are in our thoughts and we will do our best to keep everyone updated as to our travels.