Sun shines, season ends and so it goes

Before I left the sun came out for a few days! It was glorious! We ended up in View Cove walking through some mining and logging ruins. It was amazing to be on land without rain, but then to find the area covered with my favorite flowers - shasta daisies - it was a special treat.

Jeff and the crew are headed out west, to tender pollack near Dutch Harbor. Here he is exploring the ruins on Dall Island:

We take the skiff to shore, the water was crystal clear and it was a beautiful day. The Silver Dolphin is in the background.

Aloha! I am back in Hawaii, visiting with my parents here for a few days before they head back to the mainland. Then it's back to work and school for me.

Of course, here is Bootsie, purring and happy while simultaneously pushing away, ears back. It's her way of saying - I hate it but don't stop. She is not much of a snuggler, but I think she is happy I am home.

As I come across cool photos, I will post them. It was a long season and it is bittersweet to be home - good to be here, but sad to be home without Jeff.
Thanks for all the best wishes, and I know we are wishing Jeff a safe journey across the Gulf of Alaska.
Joanna

Off we go again

Back in July, when things were sunny and fun, Jeff took this photo before we started scrubbing the starboard side of the boat:

Joanna on the Silver Dolphin, July 2014

That seems like forever ago. The season has been long and the rain just adds to the dreariness on the boat. I have a whole new understanding of the words "cabin fever."

However, the season is not over yet, so I have done the grocery shopping, the laundry, cleaned the galley and started to secure things for another long trip. We are headed south, to a place called Cordova Bay near Dall Island and Prince of Wales Island. Never been there before, but it will take about 10 or more hours to get there. More beautiful places to see in SE Alaska, hopefully with less rain.

We had a few breaks in the clouds and put the skiff in the water. This was our trip up a river on Prince of Wales Island. Turns out it's one of the largest islands in the US, coming in at #4 in terms of area. More little details here on Hot Greasy Mess. We were looking for bears, but only found a few deer and saw lots of salmon jumping.

As far as creativity in the galley, I have cooked a rib roast, several quiches, cheeseburger pie, breakfasts of varying types, fish tacos, thrown together salads, sandwiches and snacks. Whenever I run out of ideas, I cook up some ground beef for taco meat and that is always a hit. The guys make their own burritos and everybody is happy. I can always count on Jeff to cook up some good things on the BBQ. We had some juicy steaks last night and then steak and eggs with hash browns today. Of course, there was a lot going on since it is our only day in town, so I end up cooking in shifts. Not the easiest or most efficient way to do things, but every one gets fed and that is part of my job. Just doing my job. So, back to it. We are leaving in a little while. They are almost finished offloading our fish. Time to go.

Aloha,

Joanna

Still going...

We are headed out to Port Malmsbury in Chatham Strait. Ready for the opener tomorrow. Nice to be in town and nice to get out of town. Gives me a break from cooking and a chance to stock up on supplies. New idea for breakfast - stratas! Never heard of it let alone made one. But going to try. 

Jellyfish in Affleck Canal. Wow. Didn't jump in that day!

Checking in

We are waiting to offload. Lots of fish to process. After the last 2 day opener, virtually everyone headed back to town:

This was the view from the wheelhouse. Boat masts fill the skyline in Petersburg.  The world if commercial fishing is complicated and fascinating.  

Reading lots of great books:

Ocean Treasure by Johnson and Byers

What ship is that? A field guide to boats and ships

Alaska Inside Passage

As the Gurney Turns

And more but I can't get to them right now. Jeff is grabbing a quick nap before another late night. Since I can't go in the room without waking him, I will add to the list later. 

Pa is doing ok. We haven't found Sandy, his little dog yet, but Pa is in ABQ with my folks. Think he is enjoying the company!

Thanks for the photo Sarah. This made my day and it had been a hard day. Much love to our families... Be in touch soon  

Joanna

Melt down in Baranof

French toast and the breakfast from hell 

    Breakfast is my least favorite meal to cook. It usually involves getting up earlier than I would like in the morning. I am not a morning person and never have been. The guys usually have to wait a little too long before I actually feed them. In my own defense on the topic of timing, most of us need time to wake up and aren’t ready for a full breakfast until after our coffee or tea. The boys know, if they are hungry, there are plenty of breakfast snacks and I will deliver a hot meal … eventually. This morning I wanted to use fresh herbs from my little herb garden I bought in Petersburg. So I cut fresh rosemary and chives for the fried red potatoes. If only it had been that easy. I decide to complete the meal with sausage and French toast. Jeff had thawed out a nice, thick Texas toast and it is one of his favorites – freedom toast. I hope he enjoyed it, because I’m not making that mess again for a long time. For some reason, submerging bread in a thick, egg-custard concoction is incredibly tedious and not very appetizing to me. Sweet breakfasts make my stomach turn. I realize I may be reporting things that cooks are not supposed to openly admit, but I could care less today. I am not a real cook anyway, I am just pretending to be one for a very small, forgiving audience. 

     When things start going awry, it happens fast, there isn’t a lot of counter space or room to maneuver. Organization, timing, and having ingredients close at hand, but not too close because of the tight quarters is a delicate balance. While cooking, Ty came down for coffee and I handed him the box of 5 dozen eggs and asked him to please get them away from me before I threw them out of the galley. Not long after, Jeff came down to “get something” and I promptly shooed him out because there was not enough room in the galley for both of us. He retells it differently, of course, and it all sounds so dramatic. 

     After what seemed like an eternity of cursing, rushing, flipping, stirring, splattering grease everywhere, and using more dishes than I could count, I announced breakfast was ready and they could come down at their own risk. Then, I hastily went out on deck to my favorite hiding place, striping off my apron, earphones, fleece and burst into tears.