Philip Winrod of Forks left Port Angeles on Aug. 5 and set a northerly course for Ketchikan, Alaska.
His nonstop journey weaved its way around the maze of islands that extends from the Evergreen State through the Inside Passage, the waterway between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island and into southeast Alaska.
What makes Winrod’s trip particularly noteworthy is that he did it in a 14-foot Lund aluminum fishing boat in which he had two 5-gallon cans and a 50-gallon drum filled with gasoline to supply a 25-horsepower Honda outboard motor.
When I first heard that Winrod was underway, my first thought was to pay close attention to Coast Guard advisories to see where he would be picked up.
That was not the case.
He arrived in Ketchikan on Tuesday evening (Aug. 6) about six hours earlier than he initially had projected.
On Thursday, I spoke with Winrod, who was sport fishing on Prince of Wales Island at the NorthernSpell lodge in Klawock.
He said he averaged about 20 knots through mostly smooth waters.
The roughest seas he encountered were caused by the wake from the Alaska state ferry Columbia.
He added that fog was a bit of an issue; for about 20 percent of the journey, he had to navigate using a GPS device.
Winrod, who was raised in Alaska, left the boat in his hometown of Craig and flew back to Port Angeles on Friday night.
During our conversation, I asked if anyone had questioned his sanity.
He said all of his friends think he’s crazy — and he likes it that way.
As for me, although I may tend to side with his friends, it’s just another example that shines a very bright light on the notion that we all have a different concept of what’s an adventure.
‘Shave and a cut’
Platypus Marine in Port Angeles hauled Motega out of the water last Tuesday.
She is an 80-foot workboat that recently was added to the fleet operated by Arrow Launch Service, the Port Angeles-based marine service company owned by Jack and Terri Harmon.
I asked Jack why his newest acquisition was out of the water.
“For a shave and a cut,” he said, “then back in the drink.”
In other words, personnel are preparing the bottom for a new coat of paint, which will be applied in the next couple of days.
Jack said the boat is powered by twin Z-drives and that a contractor from New Orleans is on site to instruct his personnel on the proper maintenance of the boat’s propulsion system.
Motega, which is Native American (Algonquian-
Ojibwa) for “New Arrow,” was built at the U.S. Coast Guard Yard at Curtis Bay in Baltimore, Md., and commissioned in 1969.
She entered service as Tern, a buoy tender, and was stationed at Governor’s Island in New York Bay, although her career was short-lived.
According to a Coast Guard website, the vessel had a number of shortcomings that made her unsuitable for service, and she was decommissioned in 1977.
The vessel was sold and used for commercial fishing.
Olympic Tug and Barge purchased the vessel, renamed her Sarina and used her along the Columbia River.
She subsequently was sold to Marine Oil Services of Norfolk, Va., which is also a marine services enterprise, and was used in Seattle until acquired by Arrow Launch Service in April.
Happy sale
There were two very happy guys Wednesday morning at the Port Angeles Boat Yard.
One was Bob Major of Bainbridge Island, who had just sold his Dufour 34 to the other happy guy, Montgomery George of San Francisco.
These two happy guys — I dare say for vastly different reasons — watched as Dan Schmid used the yard’s 70-ton TraveLift to load the sailboat aboard a transport trailer.
I suspect that Montgomery is now getting to know his new plaything.
Up on the roof
A lone Westport Shipyard employee armed with nothing more than a power-washer was on the tall roof of the building on Port Angeles’ Marine Drive on Thursday, undertaking a task of enormous proportions.
Anyone who has glanced at Westport’s structure has surely seen sea gulls congregating on the roof.
Sometimes there are only a few; other times, there are too many to count.
It’s a situation all along the North Olympic Peninsula’s waterfronts, especially this year.
Many of us have suffered the indignity caused by the telltale signs of a gull’s presence.
It now looks a lot better atop the Westport building.
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David G. Sellars is a Port Angeles resident and former Navy boatswain’s mate who enjoys boats and strolling the area waterfronts.
Items and questions involving boating, port activities and the North Olympic Peninsula waterfronts are always welcome. Email dgsellars@hotmail.com or phone him at 360-808-3202.
His column, On the Waterfront, appears Sundays.
