Monday | May 9th

I lead a hike originally for 12 but there was a mix up and I ended up leading it for 4 people to the other side of Sucia to Mud Bay. Highlights were pointing out many bird species that I identified by ear…a real rush hearing my winged friends and triggering all sorts of memories and synaptic neurons that haven’t been used in over 2 years: Heard:  Orange crowned Warbler; Townsends Warbler; Pacific-slope Flycatcher; Violet-green swallow; Rufous Hummingbird; Harlequin Duck; Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagle, etc

  In the afternoon I had more projects putting pads on the kayak racks.  Went over with the bosun, Aaron, to make a fire right above the beach in a fire-ring surrounded by picnic tables.  He started it with one of those smallish rectangular batteries and some steel wool!  I collected a few plant cuttings, beach-combed a few items and grabbed a handful of dirt from the other side of the island that contained Indian midden material.  Also mentioned the rocks as granitic coming and deposited by glaciers and the beach logs people were sitting on as part of log rafts that escaped from the tow from a barge during a storm.  All this downwind of the fire, but was a terrific idea from our hotel manager, Terri, to throw the cocktail hour at 5pm on the beach.  Leah did a fire show demonstration on the beach to cap it all off…

  Now on our way back in our Dib that Kristin Roth was driving, bosun sped alongside us to grab some of the left-over hor’s deuvres and sped around us…he’s very entertaining!  I had one of those dried meats onshore and as soon as I had it I was tripping over the logs and proclaimed:  “I was looking at my meat and not my feet!”  This got put up in the crew lounge bulletin board for memorable quotes by Leah, another very entertaining place to be during meals. 

Sunday | May 8th

Fabulous feeling to come up from my cabin to see gorgeous scenery after sleeping the last couple of weeks in Fisherman’s Terminal on Salmon Bay in Seattle.  Usual view then was rusty fishing boats, roads, parking lots but now glorious clean water, hillsides, forests, meadows and near-shore kelp beds.

 

We take a relaxing, wonderful whale-watching cruise after breakfast circum-navigating SJI into Haro Strait and past Lime Kiln Lighthouse State Marine Park where Killer Whales are often seen.  Watch Humpback Whales and I have a chance to interpret their behavior on deck to the crowd on the fo’csle. Also see white-winged and surf scoter and pointed out the first bald eagle that flew overhead.

 

Not enough time ashore in Friday Harbor.  I bought Patty lavender flower heads and shipped them to Texas I also looked at nets for collecting marine algaes to look in the stereoscopes provided by Jacqui from the Wilderness Adventurer.  Went back to the ship to work on projects.  Our E.L. is a real task-master, which is great so that we can have a productive and enjoyable season.

 

Head on over to Sucia Island and some of the crew and I eat on the top deck soaking in the marvelous skyscapes and seascapes.  Surrounded by islands.  I gave a route talk, describing Walden Island as a place for Annie Dillard who wrote part of her book “The Writing Life” on that off-the-ferry-stop path (won the Putlitzer Prize for her book “A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek”). 

Saturday | May 7th

Saturday | May 7^th

 

One last big push by crew to get the vessel looking ship-shape.  Passengers board by 2pm and are welcomed with champagne and appetizers.   

Soon we are pulling lines and departing our dock in Seattle. Finally Alaska bound after 5 long mothballed years for this vessel and at least 7 months undergoing major renovations.  Through Salmon Bay and the Ship Canal through the Charles M. Chittendem locks adjacent to the Carl S. English botanical gardens located on our starboard side as we pull into the “ship elevator” and we drop 25 feet from fresh water to salt water.  Port side is Magnolia district of Seatle with a fish ladder and chutes with water released.

 

Then to Elliot Bay—not quite—for a view of the Seattle skyline, but bagged it because of the rainy squalls.  Nice sunset after passing through Admiralty Inlet.  Pulled into protection of lee side of SJI.

Friday | May 6th

Friday | May 6^th

Announcement on the ships public address system from the Hotel Manager:  “All Hands report to the pier for stores.”  Most of our 26 crew members set up a line and pass 6 pallets worth of food toward the refrigerator, dry stores and freezer.  It takes a ½ hour to lift and pass hundreds of boxes.  Wouldn’t want to make one person suffer through 13 hours to do the heavy lifting!

There is an insane flurry of activity, vacuum cleaners moving back and forth every 3 hours over the same spots in the lounge and dining room areas.  Engineers, the boatswain or bo’sun, deck hands expedition guides swab the decks.

Where is gMack now? InnerSea Discoveries Expedition Week 1

First full day today in the 172-island archipelago called the. San Juan islands. We did some whale watching hoping to see the southern resident killer whale, j.k. and l-pods. Instead, we witnessed two humpback whales in Haro strait just north of lime kiln lighthouse between San Juan and Stuart islands.

In the afternoon we went ashore at Friday harbor and experienced "island time", a more relaxed vibe than the big city of seattle. Locals often barter amongst each other for goods and services. An example would be a neighbor that might trade a refrigerator for a carpentry job of building cabinets.

After dinner We set sail for sucia island and dropped anchor for the night. The sunset behind the gulf islands of Canada was spectacular but was dwarfed by the alpenglow on the glaciated slopes of mt baker, the northernmost volcano of the cascade mountain range. I was handed the ships wireless microphone to provide our guest passengers with some narration on the public address system, pointing out the sights and distant night skiing slopes in north Vancouver, site of the most recent olympics.

Tomorrow after a yoga session with our wellness instructor Leah our expedition team will drop sea kayaks and stand up paddleboards for half of our adventure enthusiasts while I will lead a shore hike in sucia state marine park for the rest of of our shipmates. After lunch we will have another round of activities along with an island buffet ashore before lifting anchor and heading north toward Alaska through the inside passage of British Colombia Canada.

Here is where we ate spending the night and all day Monday. Described as "the crown of the San Juana and the marine state park system of Washington state.

 

 

More to come...Check back soon!

-Greg

New Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route Granted $20,000 in Support from REI

ACA PRESS RELEASE Adventure Cycling's new road-based route to trace the Pacific Crest from Canada to Mexico Missoula, Mont. — Adventure Cycling Association — North America's largest cycling membership organization — just announced that Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) has granted the Association $20,000 to support the creation of what is destined to be one of the most iconic cycling routes in North America — a paved route tracing the Pacific Crest. The new Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route will be an approximately 2,500-mile, road-based journey, stretching from the Canadian-Washington State border through the Cascade Range into Oregon and southward through the Sierra Nevada Range in California and Nevada to the Tehachapi and San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California and on to the Mexican border.  "The Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route will be a crown jewel in the Adventure Cycling Route Network," says Julie Emnett, associate development director. "We are thrilled with this generous support from REI." Paralleling the Pacific Crest, the route will pass around and through many of North America's mountain gems, including the North Cascades National Park, Mount St. Helens and Mount Adams, Mount Hood, Mount Bachelor and Diamond Peak Wilderness, Crater Lake National Park, Mount Shasta and Lassen Volcanic National Park, Lake Tahoe, Mono Lake, Yosemite National Park, Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park, San Gorgonio Peak and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This extraordinary route passes through terrain as varied as thick evergreen forests, apple orchards, wide and narrow river canyons, grasslands, glaciated high Sierra canyons, volcanic cones, and high desert. Adventure Cycling chose this route as its next major project because of: its closeness to many major population centers; numerous requests from cyclists across America for such a route; its amazing scenic vistas, made popular by writers like John Muir and photographers like Ansel Adams and Galen Rowell; its extraordinary history, from the rich heritage of Native Americans to the Gold Rush to the birth of modern environmentalism; and of course, the exhilarating challenge of the terrain for the bicycle traveler. In addition, the combination of our very popular Pacific Coast Route and a new paved route near the Pacific Crest will create an epic loop and will entice even more people to travel by bicycle. The Adventure Cycling Route Network encompasses 38,158 miles of routes across the U.S. Learn more about Adventure Cycling's routes and maps at their website: http://www.adventurecycling.org. About Adventure Cycling Association Adventure Cycling Association is the premier bicycle travel organization in North America with over 44,000 members. A nonprofit organization, their mission is to inspire people of all ages to travel by bicycle. They produce routes and maps for cycling in North America, organize more than 40 tours annually, and publish the best bicycle travel information anywhere, including Adventure Cyclist magazine and The Cyclists' Yellow Pages. With 38,158 meticulously mapped miles in the Adventure Cycling Route Network, Adventure Cycling gives cyclists the tools and confidence to create their own bike travel adventures. Contact them at (800) 755-BIKE (2453), info@adventurecycling.org, or visit http://www.adventurecycling.org. About REI REI is a national outdoor retail co-op dedicated to inspiring, educating and outfitting its members and the community for a lifetime of outdoor adventure. Founded in 1938 by a group of Pacific Northwest mountaineers seeking quality equipment, REI operates retail stores nationwide, two online stores – http://www.rei.com and http://www.REI-OUTLET.com – and an adventure travel company, REI Adventures. REI offers products from all of the top brands for camping, climbing, cycling, fitness, hiking, paddling, snow sports and travel, including its own line of award-winning outdoor gear and apparel. While anyone may join or shop at REI, members pay a one-time $20 fee and receive a share in the company's profits through an annual member refund based on their purchases. As an active supporter of the communities in which it does business, REI is committed to promoting environmental stewardship and increasing access to outdoor recreation through education, volunteerism, gear donations and financial contributions.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA EVENTS SHOWCASE NEW SIERRA CASCADES BICYCLE ROUTE

ACA Press Release: New 2,389-mile route will guide cyclists along the splendor of the Pacific Crest Adventure Cycling Association's executive director Jim Sayer will visit California from April 13-16 to showcase the Association's brand new 2,389-mile Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route and to share the latest news on bicycle travel and adventures in North America. Events will be held at Rickshaw Bagworks in San Francisco and at Louden Nelson Community Center in Santa Cruz (see below for event details). A 2,389-mile road-based journey, the new route stretches from Sumas, Washington through the Cascade Range into Oregon, southward through the Sierra Nevada Range, to the Tehachapi and San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California, ending in Tecate, California, at the Mexican border. The route roughly parallels the Pacific Crest, passing around and through many of North America's mountain gems, from Mount Rainier and Mount Hood to Lake Tahoe, Yosemite and Kings Canyon National Parks. The Sierra Cascades Bicycle Route takes the Adventure Cycling Route Network over 40,000 miles (40,633, to be precise), the equivalent of riding around the planet more than one-and-a-half times! Adventure Cycling's network is the largest mapped cycling route system in the world. Sierra Cascades maps will be available later in April or early May.

Where is gMack Now? InnerSea Discoveries – ALASKA

Where in the world is Gmack now?

Greg is gearing up to leave port in Seattle, WA for an Alaskan Adventure with InnerSea Discoveries.

Wilderness Passages of Discovery - Seattle to Juneau Greg will be cruising the 900 nautical miles between Seattle and Juneau, leading Naturalist Expeditions and discussions through the snow-capped mountains, wildlife and birds, waterfalls, and tree-lined narrow passageways from Seattle up to Juneau, Alaska.

The InnerSea Discoveries Expedition will include wildlife and whale watching in Frederick Sound, cruising the inside passage of British Columbia and Alaska, exploring remote wilderness and island outback in Alaska, glacier calving in Endicott Arm, kayaking in Devilfish Bay, Patterson Bay, Walker Cove, Frederick Sound, and Endicott Arm, hiking on southeast Alaska's Baranof Island and in the Tongass National Forest, Klawock native village carving school and totems, exploring El Capitan Cave and the fishing village of Little Port Walter, and Inflatable skiff excursions.

Check back for updates from Greg on his Alaskan Adventure!

ISLAND OF THE WEEK

Very few words in the English dictionary evokes memories, a sense of wonder and a yearning for travel like the word "island".

I am fascinated with islands due to the unique natural and cultural heritage associated with them.

I'm sure I've been influenced by Charles Darwin and his discoveries in the Galapagos Islands. Being a naturalist it was like a pilgrimage for me to go there 15 years ago.

Valuable first-hand experiences above and below the lava-rimmed islands gave me a knowledge I could never obtain simply by reading "The Origin of Species". I learned about a fragile and threatened archipelago dealing with issues that are commonplace all over the world: Threats due to human population and introduced species such as feral cats, dogs, goats, pigs, etc. To this day that particular peregrination has helped me in my continuing education of a favorite topic: Island Biogeography. Over the next several months, I will present to you some of my favorite islands--continental and oceanic--in locales ranging from the tundra to the tropics. Examples include one of the smallest specks in the ocean that somehow gets on all of the world maps despite the fact that nobody even lives there: Gaferut Atoll (pictured here) in the Caroline Islands On the other extreme, I will highlight larger islands, e.g. Java, which is not only the most populous but one of the most diverse islands in the world. I hope you find something of interest while clicking and scrolling your way through these pages. Perhaps it will trigger thoughts or memories that you'd like to share (please leave a comment below)? My goal in this endeavor is to rekindle a sense of wonder and encourage all of us to continue to be courageous and proud stewards of this marvelous planet. One single island, multiplied by a few, makes an archipelago. One act of conservation, multiplied by many, makes for a healthier environment. To see my first "island of the week", please click on the navigation bar and go to "Java".

Greg Interviewed in New SeaVoices Book.

Greg is interviewed in the beautiful (and affordable at $29.95) coffee table book that was just published a few months ago by authors Duffy Healey and Elizabeth Laul Healey. Take a look at some of the prominent movers and shakers in the marine conservation field.  Included within the book are experts in oceanography and environmentally active celebrities, musicians, surfers  and artists. Greg has been in the marine conservation arena for over 30 years.  He worked at the Catalina Island Marine Institute for several years in the 1980's. Recently McCormack did a 5 year stint as an education specialist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. You can see a photo of Greg in the top left corner on the back cover of the beautifully illustrated book. Visit Sea Voices at www.SeaVoices.com

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