Pillsbury Cove to Ketchikan - May 9

Yet another early morning  While this might sound like a burden, it really isn't.  Generally the seas are at their calmest in the early hours and the beauty of the dawn (and a hot cup of coffee) makes up for the inconvenient alarm clock.  We had the anchor up just as light was breaking.  By the time we had everything stowed we were able to move at a slow idle as our surroundings came into view.  Pillsbury Cove seems to be a hotbed of aquaculture, so it was important to be able to see all the floats and markers.
Our first course was a turn to Starboard which brought us to the entrance of the Venn Passage.  Venn Passage is a shallow body of water that serves as a shortcut between Prince Rupert and Chatham Sound.  To our surprise, there were two crab pots in the opening to the Passage although there was plenty of room to avoid them.  We followed last years course on Coastal Explorer and since the route is so well marked with buoys and lights and we were close to slack water and had 10+ feet of tide - we completed the run easily.
We next set our course on Dundas Island where we agreed to re-check the weather.  If need be, there is good anchorage at Dundas.  At 9:30 the winds were up to 15 and the seas were 6+ feet.  The forecast was for 20+ mph winds in the evening and the following day was also looking in question.  We decided to "go for it" knowing it would be safe but thinking it might be less than comfortable.  For the first hour we were correct.  The seas were confused and at least 6 but maybe closer to 8 feet.  As we neared Cape Fox, the water settled down noticeably and we had a pleasant trip past the Cape with a targeted arrival in Foggy Bay around 12:30.  One final change of course and we were on our way to Ketchikan.  The weather and seas were cooperating and it seemed worth a few more hours to complete the run to Ketchikan.
We called in to Customs and let them know we would be arriving around 3:30.  We also connected with our friends Josh and Emily on Ursa Major.  They completed the crossing before noon and were already docked at the City Float in Ketchikan.
Two hours later, we were preparing to enter the Tongass Narrows.  This can be a very busy waterway with cruise ships, Alaska ferries, cargo ships and fishing vessels but today is was very quiet -- not a single cruise ship in sight.  When we reached the Coast Guard Station, we radioed the Harbor Master asking for a slip for the night.  There is very little guest moorage in Ketchikan but lots of "hot bunking".  When a fishing boat is away from the dock, the Harbor Master assigns his/her slip to a transient boat.  We were assigned slip 19 on finger 5 in Thomas Basin.  We drove down the fairway passing large commercial boats on both sides before finding our slot about half-way down.  Imagine our surprise when we looked up to see that we were tied next to another Krogen 42.  Mr. Peters and his wife Ernesta Ballard are the owners of Frances Stoughton (named after her grandmother) and reside in Ketchikan.
We called Customs to let them know we had arrived and they cleared us by phone (thanks to our NEXUS cards).  We met Josh and Emily for drinks at Annabelle's (across from the Cruise Ship berths) and were joined later by their clients for a delightful dinner in the dining room.  There was only one cruise ship in port when we arrived (we had to navigate around its stern and can tell you from our perspective -- those things are HUGE!) so the restaurant was less than half full.