Sometimes you win, sometimes...

It was iffy as to whether I'd have a trip today... the big boat was nearly full, so I was on-call for the boat I drive.  At 10:30: nope.  At noon: nope.  That is my timing.  We don't leave until 1:30, but we generally have at least an hour to prep the boat.  Truth be told, this was another one of those "I'm OK if we don't have a trip" days... the wind was blowing 15 to 20 from the southwest; the seas were predicted to be 3 feet or more, with Small Craft Advisories.  I was kinda relieved when the 12:00 call came up with: "Sorry."

I settled in with my guitar.  At 12:50, the phone rang.  It was Joan... "Can you come in?  I have a trip for you."

My stock answer: "I'll be right there."  Good thing the boat has fuel... and I'm not going to get my usual hour to prep.  I put the company polo on, tossed a soda and a water in a bag, and headed out.  When I got there, I asked, "Who's my first mate... oh, and what happened?"

It turns out that a family of 8 had the wrong date: they were scheduled for the 30th.  He even had the paperwork to show us.  Only problem: today is the 23rd.  Joan handled it all very professionally, and let them know that we'd probably be leaving a bit late, and they'd have the boat all to their family.  They were very grateful.

It's only a 5 minute walk for me.  I did my normal engine checks, and while warming up the engine, I got the first mate's prep work done.  I walked back to the office, met the family, and told them that we'd board as soon as the first mate arrived.  Nice people.  He apologized profusely for the mistaken date, but I let him know that we often have trips come up on short notice.

Even with the short notice, I checked weather.  I let them know that the sea conditions would be "sporting."  (That's a euphemism for: we're gonna take a beating out there.) ;-)

The first mate arrived, we passed around introductions, did the safety talk, and shoved off.  There were white caps in San Juan Channel.  Knowing where the whales were, I knew we had time to see some seals and sea lions before heading to Haro Strait.  Cattle Pass wasn't pleasant; with the southwest wind, I knew it would be even uglier "out there." (Captain Ron reference ;-))

Yep, it was.  We saw plenty of whales, but I had my hands full trying to keep the boat in a comfortable position with the 3 to 4 foot confused seas.  I checked with the guests a couple times to make sure everyone was doing OK... going slow or not moving is actually tougher for most people.  I worked hard to keep the boat into the waves, but they were coming at us from all directions... we did a lot of rockin' and rollin'.  I asked the first mate to come up to the helm... "Is everyone handling this OK?"

"One lady is puking - everyone else is having a great time."

"Check with them.  When they've seen enough, we'll head out.  I'll run north with the waves to get a better ride.  It will take longer to get back, but it should be easier on them."

She came back a few minutes later... "They're ready to go back."

One of the whales picked that exact moment to surface right in front of us!  We aren't going anywhere soon.  When we could get out of there, I took them north and ran through Mosquito Pass - I knew we'd have some calm water there, and Kristen (the first mate/naturalist) could have other stuff to talk about.  At one point, I had the first mate take the helm so I could visit with the guests... I looked up and we were headed out of the channel... "Take us back to the left, please!"  Then, we were headed out of the channel the other direction... "Now to the right."  The lady who was ill was very apologetic... I let her know that all the other captains were having the same situation on their boats - not a problem, but we came to calmer waters to try to make the situation better for her.

It took longer to get back, but the ride was better... a decision I made for the sake of the lady who wasn't feeling well.  The guests got to see other parts of the island, we saw some bald eagles in Mosquito Pass, and we were getting a better ride.  Best I could do with the circumstances.

I got them back almost a half hour late, but 7 of the 8 of them were beaming!  One still looked pretty green.  They showed their gratitude when they got off... everyone was happy.

Well, except my poor back... I felt like I had been sucker-punched in the kidneys.  All in a day's work. ;-)

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On edit: interesting boat of the day...

It's an Aspen, a catamaran with asymetrical hulls and a single engine.  We were on one at the Seattle Boat Show... nice boat.  Well made, good layout, nice appointments.