Boat Repair in Exotic Location?

I love humorous definitions of common things. For instance "Hammer: A tool used as a type of divining rod to locate the most expensive part directly adjacent to whatever you are actually trying to hit."

We've always heard that cruising is defined as "boat repair in exotic locations" and while we wouldn't consider Petersburg exactly exotic, it fits here.

Kyrie and her crew had run from Taku Harbor down to Gambier Bay Wednesday with the intent of spending a couple days fishing and exploring the bay before pushing on to Baranof Warm Springs. As we dropped the anchor, we put the boat in reverse to firmly set it, and the engine would not throttle up. Crud.. After 10 minutes diagnosing the issue, the problem was obvious--our throttle cable had gone on to greener kelp beds. We were safe for the night though, and so enjoyed a lovely evening and night's sleep, figuring we would decide our next course of action in the morning.

Thursday morning greeted us with bright sun and two deer on the beach. The temptation to stay and explore was very high, but as we were unable to get a current weather forecast and it was Thursday with the parts stores shutting down for the weekend, we thought it was more prudent to get to the nearest town for needed parts.

Joe jury-rigged the engine, using a cord as a throttle, and pulled anchor--headed to the bustling metropolis known as Petersburg.

We had a lovely motor in glassy seas across Frederick Sound, with a brief stop to play with the drone around Five Fingers Light (video to come!), and the wind filled in just past Cape Fanshaw quite nicely. We then raised the spinnaker, and were able to sail for the 7 hours, nearly sailing all the way into Petersburg.

We pulled into the dock, anticipating a crazy day of boat chores for Friday.

Friday morning, we got a quick breakfast and an early start. Joe took the skiff over to the parts store after placing a few calls to see who had the needed replacement cables. After a few hours, the new cables were installed. In the meantime, we took advantage of the facilities and caught up on laundry, showers, and some minor grocery shopping for a couple items we forgot in Juneau.

Best of it all, while we did have to skip the hot springs, we were able to meet up with some good friends, Kari and Diane on S/V Pacific Wonder. They were getting ready to leave Petersburg and we were afraid we would miss them. Luckily, we connected Friday evening, learning they had planned to leave Saturday morning at 4:00 am, in order to catch the tide through the Wrangell Narrows. Buddy-boating down through Southeast and BC with friends who had already explored the area, who wanted to take their time as well--that was an opportunity we couldn't pass up.

The alarm went off at 3:40 this morning. The engine fired up, the newly-fixed throttle responded properly, and with coffee in hand, we groggily departed Petersburg. After an uneventful trip down the Wrangell Narrows, we arrived in St. John Harbor on Zarembo Island, dropping the hook at 8:30 am. After breakfast, we took a much-needed nap!

We will likely stay here for the day and, weather-permitting, press on another 20ish miles tomorrow.

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