Tracy Arm Cove June 9

Last night's wind was not forecast and this morning's forecast now calls for winds from the south at 15 knots.  Southern winds coupled with this morning's ebb tide make for a lumpy passage as we head northeast.  Our objective is Tracy Arm Cove which is the closest reasonable jumping-off point for getting to Ford's Terror tomorrow night.  There is something about a place with the name "terror" that catches my attention.  The only anchorage at the head of Endicott Arm is 250 feet deep - yikes!

We arrive at the entrance to Tracy Arm just after 2 pm and find seven large ice bergs blocking our path.  We also read that with a south wind, these ice bergs are likely to be blown into the cove we have identified for tonight's anchorage.  Some of these bergs are several orders of magnitude larger than Chug and somehow the thought of large ice berg crashing into the boat in the dark has us concerned.  We consider alternatives but this is Alaska and anchorages are often far apart.  About 10 miles north there is another cove but it too is exposed to the south wind.  The good news is that there will be no ice bergs in that cove.  Finally, we set our sights on Taku Harbor which is just over 20 miles (or 3 hours) away.  The tide has turned and now we have a south wind and a flood tide on our stern carrying us north.  There are still a few white caps but our ride is comfortable and soon we are tied up to the public float in Taku Harbor.  We are not alone.  Steel Eagle calls us on the VHF asking for a report on sea state.  They are headed south, ducked into Taku and tied up to the public dock (across the harbor) to get out of the chop.  We share the dock with a sailboat and as evening falls, Mist Cove anchors nearby.

Mist Cove

Perhaps tomorrow we will be able to reach Ford's Terror.