Miramontes Family Visit

It's hard to believe it's been almost a month, but the Miramontes family (minus Dad) came to visit during their Spring Break. We met in Bremerton, where it was only a one-block walk to such fine establishments as Starbucks, Subway, and Coldstone. We walked a bit farther, in the wind and rain, to the Navy museum, but it was Tuesday -- the only day of the week they are closed!

Well, let's try to do that when we come back to Bremerton to drop you off. Maybe Uncle Mikey will be around to visit then too.  Off to Blake Island State Park!

Blake Island is one of our favorite places. But this is not the view you like to see when you have 6 people cooped up on a boat, three of them kids aged 6, 8, and 10.

Blessedly, the sun came out on Wednesday afternoon! And what do boys love to do?
Throw rocks, of course.

And make faces at Grammie! But he's got such a CUTE face...

It's nesting season for killdeer -- is there a nest nearby?

The kids are not stopped by the HUGE puddle under the play structure.
Madalyn loves the zip-line-like feature.

Sailing Vessel Carlyn is in the area. At dinnertime, the crew adds a lot of color to the view.

One of my favorite subjects.

Oh no! Where is Evergreen State going??? She is our 'favorite' ferry, and we are at first distressed to see her being pushed south. We knew she had been up for auction. Al googles to find the answer:  she is going to the Caribbean!  We are happy she will continue to be a ferry. 

The kids are delighted to watch the raccoons.  Casey even got a photo of one climbing onto Viking Star. (This is old hat for us, but it's a thrill for the kids)

The next day there is still sun in the morning, so Casey and I and the kids head for the west point.
It's fun to explore at low tide.

The kids try to look as bored as possible while they take a rest.

We brought snacks, but that didn't keep Madalyn down for long!

Milo and Casey

Evan and Madalyn

Dig dig dig!

The rain held off ALMOST until we got back to the boat. I don't remember what we did all afternoon (probably watched a movie), but after supper we had a campfire in the shelter that the Carlyn had vacated that day.

The next morning Papa and I begin to ready the boat to go back to Bremerton while everyone else is till in bed. It doesn't take long for heads to pop up, though. Micah DOES meet us, and we DO go to the Navy Museum, and we all have lunch together before we all go different directions -- Miramontes back to Hillsboro OR, Micah to his place, and Al and I take Viking Star to Poulsbo for a gathering with the Cascadia Sailing Association.

A passer-by takes a group shot for us!

Growing Grandkids

Hey the good news is that we are out cruising again!

But before I start sharing our travelling adventures, I want to document the great visit we had with daughter Lindsay and her brood in February.

The forecast called for rain every day, and I remember that we got some, every day. BUT we had some good times and mostly stayed dry when we were outside.

Here are photos and captions to tell the story:

I do a Selfie Sunday post on my business facebook page: Better With Lipstick!
Here I pose with Emrie and Ryker.

Emrie LOVES make-up! I wouldn't be surprised if she's a make-up artist to the stars someday!

We girls had fun trying several new colors of LipSense during the week.

We had a driving trip to the sculpture park near Roche Harbor. Troy is known to walk far ahead of the group, so he's not in many pictures. Here are Ranger and Ryker banging the gong -- it makes a nice sound!

I just love this!

We had a ferry trip to Lopez Island. The kids like to be on the front of the boat with Papa.

The kids played and made new friends at the skate park, even without skateboards!

Ryker's teacher's family has property on Lopez, and recommended a couple of places to visit. Here Lindsay is sending a photo of Ryker, on our way to Iceberg Point.

Typical. Troy forging the way. and Emrie back with me.
She made fun of me for 'taking a picture of Papa's butt'!

The whole gang.

We did an overnight boat trip to Turn Island. The whole island is a State Park just outside Friday Harbor. I think this was the biggest highlight of this years trip.

Troy goes ahead, but this time he came back announcing 'I found something cool! Look at all the tracks!'

Blue Boy

This was pretty high above the water and close enough to the edge to make moms nervous.
Papa says 'Kids are tougher than you think.'

The kids barked at the seals. And the seals wondered what those strange creatures were.

Sloth Ryker

We spent hours on this sunny beach, on the lee side of the island.

Emrie's art....

... turns to a balance beam.

Ryker and I got the first ride back to the boat. I got a head start on supper, but stopped to take this photo.

Our Last Full Day with Ryker

We weren't in a rush, but we didn't dawdle over our morning coffee and hot chocolate. We had a long day ahead -- estimated five hours travelling time to reach our destination at Cornet Bay. There was fog, but it was rising as we left Jones Island -- oh, about 9AM?

We traveled through the heart of the San Juans and down the east side of Lopez, where Ryker's teacher's family has property. We went out Lopez Pass onto Rosario Strait, where Captain Al had to contend with some commercial traffic. Conditions were okay, with negligible waves, but 3-4 foot swells -- a bit of a roller coaster! NOAA had forecasted 0-1 foot.



The closer we got to Bowman Bay where we planned to hold over to wait for the slack tide at 4:52PM for Deception Pass, the greater the waves and swells and their orientation became. There were two other boats already at the dock and several anchored, but there was room at the float for us.

We had encouraged Ryker to put down his game, since he had become a little queasy on a bit of a rough trip a month ago, but didn't seem too bothered by the larger stuff on the Strait this time. Here he is, waiting for lunch to be ready.

An easy lunch of salad and grilled cheese sandwiches, and by then the fog had lifted and the wind died and the sun was sparkling. Al and Ryker went for dinghy ride to explore the bay, while I stayed behind and relaxed with some knitting.

The appointed time arrived, and we departed the bay for Deception Pass. There were several fishing boats out, and we noticed a larger powerboat approaching from the north. He seemed to be the only one making the same move we were.

It has become a gorgeous day! Looking west onto the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Our first glimpse of the Deception Pass Bridge. Al has been through twice, Kristi once, all from east to west. This is our first trip in this direction.

Our timing is good. There is just a bit of flood current left, but no evidence of whirlpools. The current is on our nose, which helps us pass through in a more controlled manner. It can be a little more 'squirrely' when it's pushing us.

Captain Al and sidekick Bronson

We made it!

We take a spot on the dock at Cornet Bay State Park.  Al and Ryker take another dinghy trip to explore Ben Ure Island. It is private and can only be visited by reservation, so they circle the island and return.

Saturday we are on the move again before 8 AM, and enter the Swinomish Channel to arrive at LaConner WA. We have time to stroll and snack before the arrival of the rest of Ryker's family to arrive. We have lunch together and do a little shopping before we haul Ryker's stuff back to their vehicle and they all load up and head for home again.

We have loved each of the visit the three oldest grandchildren have had with us -- two last summer, and this one. The next will probably not happen until next spring, since we are leaving for six months in Canada soon. It was also allow the next in age to have another birthday before his turn.

Jones Island

Al recently saw a facebook post that announced the docks had been put back in on area State Parks. So we headed for Jones Island.

We grab snacks and head out for the south beach. There is a wide smooth path and it is less than a half mile to our destination.

The orchard is in bloom!

Another opportunity for throwing sticks....

... and stones.

Tormenting the anemones

A beautiful day!

Sunset from Matia

We loved Matia, again!

It is such a delightful place, and we had it all to ourselves on this visit. But, one of our favorite things are the sunsets from Matia.

The low light shines on the rocks alongside the dock.

A pair of geese add a nice highlight.

And just because the sun is gone doesn't mean the show is over!