Entries about juan

Ahoy. The time had finally come when we had ta put the bikes away 'n pull out the sailboat. Alas, Jared has been concoctin' a dream o' sailin' the Caribbean wit' his lovely wench in tow 'n his swashbucklin' sons doin' all the cookin' 'n swabbin'. But we settled on th' San Juan Islands - 'cause 'twas closer. 'N Corona meant we couldn't leave the country.... Aaaaand we only had 2 weeks off from work.

Although try as we did ta get the bikes on the ship ta fulfill me needs ta explore islands wit' wheels, fittin' four bikes on a 22 foot sailboat -- although easier than a sword fight -- would 'ave more o' a hindrance that a blessin' fer this expedition.

Wha' be a virgin in salty water? 'Tis a cowboy dabblin' in medicine who has ne'er put his big wee ship in salty water. We were used ta high winds 'n lakes on the Mainland, but now we were addin' currents, tides, shippin' lanes, congested coves, fog an the unknown o' 'will our ship be floatin'' by the end o' the trip.

'N the fact that I didn' particularly care fer the ocean.
But I do like animals - 'n a change o' scenery. So Jared convinced me ta come. It helped that he was a handsome scallywag.

Th' expedition started on a rainy 'n windy afternoon (no pullin' the peg leg). We thought the ocean Gods were against us as we tried ta set sail, wit' the motor actin' unreliable, makin' incomprehensible noises, 'n decidin' ta jus' give up whenever it wanted ta. An our dinghy (the only way ta get t' shore) got a new hole creatin' a bathtub situation. Then as Jared hoisted the sails wit' the currents 'n wind slightly against us, the radio sounded a wee craft advisory - which meant if ye're wee, be advised -- ye may die out thar. However, we thought our galleon was ginormous, aft all, this one had a table! Yet 'twas by no means large. 'Twas a 22 foot Catalina. (Imagine livin' in a minivan. Nah a van - a minivan -- fer 2 weeks wit' 4 scallywags.) In fact, we were the weeest galleon in the Pacific ocean those two weeks - as far as we could compare anyway. Every cove we pulled into, we were the goldfish next t' the whale. But we didn' mind. Most everyone enjoyed our galleon - I reckon they had flashbacks o' when they were young, naive 'n livin' on a wee vessel as well.

Aah, back ta the tale. Aft we dropped sails so the blustery winds wouldna tip our sailboat o'er, we motored ta the first island - Saddlebag. Aft well-nigh crashin' into th' rocks wit' 3 inches ta spare (me fault, I turned the motor off instead o' 'low'), we ducked past all the larger vessels 'n tucked into a cove. Our teeny size was ta our advantage as th' winds whipped 'n rocked the surroundin' boats around us 'n we watched them while barely movin', protected from the shore. 3 boats crashed nigh where we put in that day 'n became salvaged, 'n we saw 2 trees fall on th' island. This was an ole crash, but ye get th' idea.

'N jus' as we thought we should offer Triton some gold, or one o' our sprogs (young lads), the dolphins swam by, then a mom 'n sprog seal, 'n then a double rainbow.
'N as the sun came out, we had excellent weather fer the next two weeks. We motored 'n sailed (dependin' on the current 'n winds) ta seven state park islands. 'N ta avoid Corona, we slept on the ship, ate on th' ship, 'n when we hiked on th' island, nigh-on all pirates were extremely conscious o' one another, wore masks outside 'n gave scallywags space.

Th' change in scenery was jus' wha' we needed aft the Montana lockdown 'n the hoards o' pirates flockin' ta Montana in th' summer. One highlight that blew me mind was a snake eatin' a banana slug! Anyone who be anyone knows ye should nah eat a banana slug. Thar slime has chemicals that numb th' tongue o' any animal that attempts ta nibble it, discouragin' predators.
Yet this simpleton snake was spotted wit' half the slug in its mouth.... 'til it spit it out, mouth covered in slime.
'N the slug crawled away, virtually unharmed. We watched th' whole episode, Shakespeare theater.

First grade started wit' the wonder 'n joy o' spottin' slugs, sea anemones, starfish, crabs, numerous seals, dolphins 'n otters. Those educational moments fully outweighed th' trials 'n tribulations o' peein' while standin' on a rockin' galleon. Don't pee into th' wind - or ye will do laundry shortly after. Or usin' a bucket as a head durin' a swell. Th' expedition also taught us how nah ta play Tag on a wee galleon - or ye will end up in the Pacific ocean.

But most importantly, it taught us that no matter where ye travel, or how big yer galleon be, thar will be mateys thar ta greet ye 'n wants ta share tales.
'N some o' those scallywags will be clones o' each other - thar were 4 sets o' twins on one beach. Apparently ye 'ave ta be able ta grow two sprogs at once in thar belly ta be crazy enough ta cap'n a ship.

I guess we managed ta appease the ocean gods aft all -- granted the rewards o' new mateys, great sunsets, 'n a wonderful start ta first grade.

'N the lads found thar pot o' gold.

Here are some extra pictures fer those o' ye who can nah read. Or who wants t' make up yer owns tale.