11:55 a.m. June 29, Sandy Island Forest

Can't imagine that such a tiny Island can have so many different environments. Couldn't capture the beauty of the trees. . . UH OH! Is the tide coming in early? Gotta run save the dingy or we'll be stranded!

11:05 a.m., June 29: Handsome boy in Sandy Island Meadow

Sandy Island is an amazing marine park. It has everything! Beaches, meadows, and a forest of wonderful old pine. Native Canadians used to call it tree island. You can find shell middens here, where the shells from their eating of oysters, clams, and muscels have made fine white beaches. This deer didn't seem to mind us getting quite close. I was close enough to see the fuz on his antlers! The meadow was full of wildflowers and we ate some sea aspargus growing in abundance at the tide line.

10:30 a.m., June 29 Visit to Sandy Island Marine Park

We took the dingy from Henry Bay, around the point and landed on Sandy Island, which is connected to Denman, but only when the tide is out. The tide is out now and we are walking along oyster beds that will flood again, when the tide comes in about noon today. We'll have to hurry if we want to see the island and get back to the dingy before the bar floods again!

8:24 a.m. June 29 Waking up in Henry Bay

It rained most of yesterday, but we had a good sail to Henry Bay, at the north end of Denman Island. Only one other boat sharing the anchorage. Where have all the boaters gone?

11:05 a.m., June 28: Ah Oh! Big Rain!

Rick doesn't mind if it rains. He says his zoot suit keeps him warm and cozy.

9:12 a.m. June 28, Leaving Silva Bay

Yesterday's sail was in a combination of rain showers and sun; when it rained, no wind, when there was sun, lots of wind. We spotted two Minke whales splashing around, possibly mating, on the way to Silva Bay. Achored out in Silva bay about 9:00 p.m.

10:02 a.m. June 27, Leaving Sidney

Finally! We are heading out of Sidney. Nice day, so far . . .

9:31 a.m., July 27, "Resonance" is ready

View from the main cabin into the captain's cabin.

9:30 a.m., June 27 "Resonance" is ship shape, ready to sail!

Inside "Resonance". All things put away, ready for sailing.

11:07 a.m., June 26: Pictures arrive

Oh! Here's Toby. He too looks well cared for. Cassandra and Tom are really taking good care of the animals this summer. I wonder if they will want to give them back after enjoying their company for so long. Toby is a Scottish Fold (notice how his ears are folded downward) and he sure looks like a grumpy fold today.

11:05 a.m., June 26: Pictures arrive

Oh! Cassandra sent photos of Toby and Belle, Rick and Sharl's pets who Cassandra and Tom are caring for this summer. Belle is looking so beautiful under Cassandra's care. Obviously, she is going for walks everyday and engaging in her favorite pastime—hunting squirrels.

5:44 p.m., June 25: Cassandra uses iChat to call "Resonance"

Cassandra called Rick on iChat, using video conferencing. Not only did we get to see Cassandra, but we got to see Tom, Toby and Belle too. What a treat to see them and to talk to them in real time from 5,000 miles away!

10:26 a.m., June 25: A Typical Day at Work

This is Rick calling Cassandra on SKYPE. For the past eight days he's been sitting here at the "nav station" doing research that involves a lot of algebra. He takes breaks, when it isn't raining, to do a little "bright work", which means stripping and resealing anything on deck that is made of wood.

5:02 p.m. June 24: Lochside Bike Trail

A nice break between rain showers and Rick put the bikes together. We traveled along the Lochside Bike Trail that goes 25 Km to Victoria. We stopped at Cy Hanson Park where we enjoyed this view.

12:04 p.m. June 17: Ready to Board "Resonance"

Here's Rick ready to help me aboard. Our summer has officially begun!

12:03 p.m. June 17: Arrive at "Resonance"

There she is! After months of being away (actually we were on the boat 4 days in May) We are back!

11:47 a.m. June 17: Arrive at Port Sidney Marina

A short walk from the ferry and we arrive only to discover the tide is way out! Its one of the lowest tides of the year and the ramp is quite steep as we make our way down with our luggage. Oh! Its good to be back at Port Sidney Marina, even if her bottom is showing! Now its a quarter mile walk from the marina entrance to our slip on G dock.

11:15 June 17: Arrive in Sidney

Finally, Sidney is in sight.

10:33 June 17: Ferry to Sidney, B.C. Canada

Rick talked the hotel manager into giving us another breakfast for the ferry trip. Boiled eggs, bagel and banana tasted good, even the second time!

5:35 a.m. June 17: Depart Anacortes—View from our room at Ship Yard Inn

Our flight from Boston to Washington D.C. went well. We were delayed, however, for three hours before boarding a plane to Seattle. Even though we were not allowed to step foot on the red carpet, we had good seats with a free seat between us (Rick always reserves seating in this way hoping no one will reserve a middle seat). During the second movie, we hit some pretty intense turbulence, we went weightless a couple of times, Rick was clutching his laptop waiting for the big drop.

We landed in Seattle, waited for an hour for a bus. After an hour the bus stopped at a motel and we transferred to a small van. Around midnight the van stopped near our hotel in Anacortes, WA, USA, but we had to walk the rest of the way down a steep hill looking for our cabin. A wild deer nosed her way along the hillside and our porch light was out but we did finally find our cabin. Inside was cheerful and homey. We found two sack breakfasts prepared by the hotel for guests catching the ferry in the morning but we were hungry and ate our breakfast at midnight. I woke up around 5:30 a.m., opened our door and saw the ferry, which we had to board by 7:00 a.m. as there is only one a day to Sidney, B.C., Canada.

9:35 a.m. June 16: Depart Cambridge

Rick returned from Germany around midnight Friday. By 9:15 a.m. we were packed and ready to call a cab. This is the beginning of our summer. We plan to spend three uninterrupted months aboard our sailboat "Resonance" in the beautiful waters of the Pacific Northwest.