I'm buying a boat in Bellingham in the next couple weeks. Instead of taking
it up the inside passage to Juneau I have to barge it up. What's the run
like from Bellingham bay down to the Seattle docks? Don't have any ready
charts for reference. THanks.

linus

I'd suggest you get some charts, of course. 18440 and 18423 should do
you if you are careful.

To run from B'ham down to Seattle, you can take several routes. My
favorite is the one that is least
susceptible to wind and weather. It's slightly less scenic, but you
won't have to lay over if things get nasty in the Strait of Juan de
Fuca. For a cruise where the primary goal is to relocate a boat, the
more sheltered run makes up for an extra few miles of travel and
missing the more spectacular scenery on the "outside".

Run south from Bellingham Bay to Padilla Bay near Anacortes. Take the
Swinomish Channel south of Padilla Bay, past LaConner, and emerge in
Skagit Bay. Run between Camano and Whidbey Islands to pick up Saratoga
Passage. Follow Saratoga Passage to Possession Sound, off of Everett.
Running south from Possession Sound will bring you to Puget Sound
(proper), and continuing south will raise Seattle.

wrote in message
oups.com...
I'd suggest you get some charts, of course. 18440 and 18423 should do
you if you are careful.

To run from B'ham down to Seattle, you can take several routes. My
favorite is the one that is least
susceptible to wind and weather. It's slightly less scenic, but you
won't have to lay over if things get nasty in the Strait of Juan de
Fuca. For a cruise where the primary goal is to relocate a boat, the
more sheltered run makes up for an extra few miles of travel and
missing the more spectacular scenery on the "outside".

Run south from Bellingham Bay to Padilla Bay near Anacortes. Take the
Swinomish Channel south of Padilla Bay, past LaConner, and emerge in
Skagit Bay. Run between Camano and Whidbey Islands to pick up Saratoga
Passage. Follow Saratoga Passage to Possession Sound, off of Everett.
Running south from Possession Sound will bring you to Puget Sound
(proper), and continuing south will raise Seattle.


Thanks, of course I'll buy the charts. Was looking for estimated time, say
cruising at 20 knots. thanks again

Around 4/14/2005 10:45 AM, Black-n-Gold wrote:

wrote in message
oups.com...

Run south from Bellingham Bay to Padilla Bay near Anacortes. Take the
Swinomish Channel south of Padilla Bay, past LaConner, and emerge in
Skagit Bay. Run between Camano and Whidbey Islands to pick up Saratoga
Passage. Follow Saratoga Passage to Possession Sound, off of Everett.
Running south from Possession Sound will bring you to Puget Sound
(proper), and continuing south will raise Seattle.



Thanks, of course I'll buy the charts. Was looking for estimated time, say
cruising at 20 knots. thanks again


At that speed, I'd estimate around 3.5 to 4 hours if you're going
through the Swinomish Channel, closer to 3 if you're going through
Rosario Strait to Deception Pass or "outside" all the way down through
Admiralty Inlet.

Going through the Channel past La Conner is a really nice trip, but it
can really slow you down since the entire channel is a 4-mile-long no
wake zone, and if you time it wrong you might have to run the whole way
against a stiff current (though nowhere near as strong as Deception Pass).


--
~/Garth - 1966 Glastron V-142 Skiflite: "Blue-Boat"
"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing about in boats."
-Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

Thanks, of course I'll buy the charts. Was looking for estimated
time, say
cruising at 20 knots. thanks again



At that speed, I'd estimate around 3.5 to 4 hours if you're going
through the Swinomish Channel, closer to 3 if you're going through
Rosario Strait to Deception Pass or "outside" all the way down through
Admiralty Inlet.

Going through the Channel past La Conner is a really nice trip, but it
can really slow you down since the entire channel is a 4-mile-long no
wake zone, and if you time it wrong you might have to run the whole way

against a stiff current (though nowhere near as strong as Deception
Pass).


*************

I would agree with Garth's guesstimate of time. I'd need 10-11 hours to
make B'ham from Seattle at 8-knots.

About Deception Pass. Don't be deceived. There are guys who will check
the current tables, see that current runs maybe 8-9 knots, and then
conclude "No probem, my 20-knot boat will still net 10 kt. The
challenge here isn't just the speed of the current, its the general
behavior of the pass (serious whirlpools) and the amount of drift that
can be in the water. If you run the pas without waiting for slack,
there is little room to maneuver safely. You may be able to maintain
headway and steerage, but who's steering that 20-foot log bearing down
on you at 9 kt? If you use the pass, plan to arrive near slack.

(one of the curious characteristics of the pass when its runing hard is
that it can suck drift well underwater.-see "serious whirlpools" above.
a hull busting deadhead will disappear completely, get sucked pretty
deep, and then when the current hits a huge rock and the whirlpool
collapses everything gets released. you only have to see a few
phone-pole sized trunks come rocketing 10-15 above the surface before
your imagination begins to suggest what might happen to your boat if it
were unfortunate enough to be directly above the trajectory)