A very full day...

Wild Blue is in Anacortes, ready to be pulled out tomorrow and get her bottom cleaned.

We left Friday Harbor this morning, knowing that we'd be dealing with fog most of the way back to Anacortes.  The view as we came out of the harbor...

That's Turn Island on the right side of the image - and a wall of fog at the horizon.  Within a couple minutes, it looked like this...

The visibility was down to about 50 feet at the worst...

Look close - there is a nav marker in that image above.  We monitored traffic (not a lot), and moved faster than I like in the fog to get out of the way of a ferry that was coming through a narrow area... never saw it (less than 1/4 mile according to the radar), but we could hear it, and saw the wake after it passed.  Good thing all that nav gear works...

It was nice having a second set of eyes to help scan - we considered having Joan take the truck on the ferry while I drove solo... and then decided we'd rather do it together.  Of the 22 miles in that run, about 18 of it was in fog with visibility less than 200 yards.  Fortunately, it began to lift after we crossed Rosario Strait, on our way towards Cap Sante Marina.

We put the boat at the slip, then climbed in the truck for the ride to Merv and Kathy's place to pick up our trailer.  On the way, there was some interesting fog around the bridge over Deception Pass...

That is fog swirling up and over the bridge (and that bridge is high above the water) - it made for a "tunnel" of good visibility right on the bridge, with the fog rolling overhead.  And off to the side...

Merv gave me a hand airing up the tires and greasing the bearings on the trailer.  We visited for a bit, then hooked up the truck and trailer, and hit the road again.

Back to Cap Sante, just before 6:00...

As we were walking to the boat, a young man passed us, said, "Hello," and then asked, "Are you Jim and Joan from the C-Brats?"  We got the opportunity to meet Sam - I have been following Sam's travels as he took his C-Dory 22 from the Puget Sound area up to Alaska.  Sometimes with others onboard, often on his own.  He had just graduated from college and planned this adventure.  I have a lot of admiration for that young man; it was a treat to get to meet him face-to-face (we had corresponded through the forum).

Sam had a supper date, and we were running late to meet with our friends Herb and Wilma for happy hour!  We visited on Herb and Wilma's boat for a while, then headed off for pizza... I have been craving pizza for days and we knew this place in Anacortes makes 'em good!

It was a good day - an interesting cruise in the fog back "to America," visiting with friends, and driving the truck - this was the most I've driven the truck in 4 1/2 months.  We need to get back in "road shape" - tomorrow the boat comes out, goes back on the trailer, and we head south.

It's time.  The 4 of us all agreed that the days are getting short and the nights are getting chilly here in the Pacific Northwest.  Back south, where we will get "another summer."