Don't leave home without a Marine
Mathias at the helm in the Straits of San Juan de Fuca on Day 2: A lot of chop, and wind on the nose all day. May 12, 2015 When I started planning The Trip, I hoped that Mathias would join me for some segment of the voyage. He is on a walk-about year after a long stint in the Marine Corps as a helicopter pilot, and I had it in mind to reserve the trip home from Sitka for him. Weather patterns and prevailing winds suggest it would probably be the best segment of the trip, and with the most sailing. His other plans mitigated in favor of his joining me for the start of the trip instead. This turned out to be a fateful adjustment in plans that probably made the whole thing work. Ripple's regular home is on Lake Union, which means that the Fremont Bridge and the locks stand between us and Puget Sound. The bridge is less than a half mile from my marina, and is the only bridge in the area that I need a lift to get under. The night before departure, I took ...