DAY 5: Halleck Harbour & Red Bluff Bay
We woke up to another sunny day. It was chilly on the water, but t-shirt weather on the shore. We rolled out of bed just in time for the morning stretch. Then it was off to breakfast. Today’s special was eggs Benedict.
We signed up for a skiff and stroll excursion, meaning part of the excursion was on the water and part of it was on land. The skiff took us around Frederick Sound. It got us up close to a petroglyph of a sun painted on a rock. There was a group of seals lounging around some kelp. We spotted a few otters and seabirds, too.
The skiff dropped us off at the beach. It was low tide, so we walked around the tide pools, gently turning over rocks to peer at the small creatures living underneath like kelp crab, sea cucumbers, starfish, and anemones. It was a good thing that we wore our rubber boots because we did a lot of wading and splashing in the water. On the beach, we spotted some mink running between the forest and the water, looking for snacks. As we walked along the beach, we found a large bone. Our guide thought that it was a bear femur and deemed it to be relatively fresh. We also found an intact porpoise skeleton; the only thing missing was its skull. After a morning of exploration, the skiff took us back to the boat, getting us there just in time for our next meal.
The theme of lunch was BBQ. We were served either brisket or jackfruit. It was served with BBQ sauce, cornbread, coleslaw, and macaroni and cheese. Twist my arm!
After lunch, it was on to our next adventure. We got in a bonus round of stretching at an afternoon session. Then we put our Kayaking 101 skills to use. We paddled out to a nearby waterfall. Being newbies, our arms got a little sore, so we took some breaks and enjoyed the view.
Still full of energy, my daughter wanted to try out paddle boarding for the first time ever. With some instruction and encouragement from the crew, she got on a board. A couple of other paddle boarders stayed close and offered her advice. She stayed on her knees the whole time, not quite confident to stand up. The jellyfish swimming all around kind of freaked her out! Still she paddled around for about a half-hour before heading back in. Then it was off to the hot tub on the sun deck to warm up and relax after a busy day.
During happy hour, we munched on fried corn and zucchini fritters. But the highlight of the day for many guests was the all-you-could-eat Dungeness crab dinner. The chef came around with a large bowl throughout dinner offering more crab legs. Few refused second or third helpings. At first, my daughter wasn’t sure how to get the meat out of her crab. The helpful crew got her started, patiently showing her how to use the crab cracking tool. Our tablemates also had lots of experience cracking crab, and they shared their techniques. By the end of the dinner, we’d consumed more crab than we’d had in our entire lives!
After dinner, there was a presentation on salmon covering the different types, the importance of salmon, and how to eat salmon responsibly. As you’ve noticed each night, there was a presentation. It included a slide show on a large screen in the lounge. A different guide presented each night, relying on their areas of personal expertise. Many of the guides had degrees in subjects like marine biology or geology.
Looking for something to do, my daughter joined a couple of the young adults in a game of Mancala. Then it was lights out by 10. We were both quite tired after our day of adventure.
