Highlights from San Francisco Bay

Sitting on the side of…

R2AK makes one big rule change for 2020

With awards being given out, beer flowing and lots of laughter going around the Race to Alaska's annual Blazer Party during the Wooden Boat Festival, there was also a big announcement to be made about the future of the race.…

Bluewater Cruising Association announces 2019-2020 class lineup

  The Bluewater Cruising Association recently announced their lineup of classes for 2019 and 2020. Based in British Columbia, the courses — which range from outboard engine repair to the psychology of cruising — will be…

A sublime farewell tour of The Great Land

When we sailed through Southeast Alaska for two months in the spring and summer of 2017, one of the places we wished we’d gone was south through Chatham Strait making stops in Kuiu Island and then east to Prince of Wales…

Endless Alaska summer rolls along

Anchored to the west of a tall mountain peak rising vertically from sea level, the sun is up and filling the bay, but not quite touching Yahtzee. Rowing towards a sun-splashed beach, we soon feel the warm sun rays and scurry…

Seattle-based J/125 Hamachi wins Transpac Race!

Huge congratulations are in order for the crew of the Seattle-based J/125 Hamachi after winning the 2019 Transpac Race. The six-man crew won First J/125 to cross the line, First in Division 3 and First ORR Overall. With…

A self-reminder that cruising is not a vacation

Arriving back at Yahtzee in Sitka Harbor after an amazing trip to visit family in Michigan, I climb aboard and instantly start sorting through projects and things that need to get done. Fix the fridge drain. Replace hoses…

Soaking in the experience of Sitka Sound

When the anchor was set, I scrambled to get the dinghy off the foredeck and Yahtzee switched from offshore mode back to cruising mode. We’d just made landfall after four days crossing the Gulf of Alaska and Goddard Hot…

Retracing our steps across the Gulf of Alaska

By all measures, the Gulf of Alaska is a large, imposing body of water. Even in the summer, weather windows to get across are short and can be few and far between. Because of this, many mariners choose to take a longer…