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Going Nowhere Fast When the sun shines in the Northwest, people come out of their shelters en masse. Like clouds of hatching May fies, they emerge to absorb the warmth of the golden rays of the sun. Beaches look like seal rookeries, glistening white bodies laying everywhere, catching every precious moment of radiation. Why the first people in this region weren’t sun worshippers I don’t know. There’s almost an anxiousness about summer here, which lends itself to trying to maximize every glorious moment. It’s only natural that this need should spill over into summer vacation. You hear people making plans for their annual migration to the San Juans, making sure every day is filled with things worthy of this valuable time. “Okay, we’ll be at Sucia, Tuesday afternoon, take a hike for an hour, have dinner, then leave at 6:00 AM to catch the tide to Roche Harbor, have lunch there, then to Friday Harbor for the night, then up to Jones Island for a couple hours, Deer Harbor for lunch, then off to Spencer Spit. Yup, I think we can hit all the islands in five days.” Ambitious, don’t you think? Jo Bailey, in her article on Larry Cheek in this issue, points out a story in his book, The Year of the Boat, where Larry, paddling a kayak, overtakes a barely moving sloop. “Great day,” the sailor calls out. “Great for paddling, maybe not so much for sailing,” Larry replies. “Why do you say that?” questions the sailor. “You’re not going to go anywhere fast,” said Larry. “Why would I want to go anywhere fast?” says the sailor. Now that’s an attitude worth achieving. Realistically, it’s probably too laid back for most people who, unfortunately, have that ever present time factor looming in the background. But meeting that attitude half way is doable, and a perfect way to slow down and smell the roses and the the salt air. So, when making your cruising plans; if you’ve got two weeks, plan for ten days; one week, plan for four days. Leave some extra time to enjoy those pleasant surprises like that special cove that’s now your own. Extra time is always welcome for the unpleasant surprises as well, like nasty weather, where it becomes a safety issue. Who knows, maybe this is your year to be the one saying, “Why would I want to go anywhere fast?” |
