Friday, July 4, 2025, Covered Portage - Happy 4th of July!

It remained totally quiet last night. the boats were all facing different directions this morning. It must have gotten cold as I awoke to find that Kerry had placed an additional blanket on us. It was 60 in the main cabin.

My batteries were at 85% this morning which is great. They got to 99% yesterday which almost never happens at anchor. It was a combination of morning generator running, a slow motor to the anchorage letting the engine charge longer and abundant sunshine letting the solar panels perform. As I said last year, the combination of new batteries and Mark's adjustments to the charger/inverter have dramatically improved the effectiveness of my battery charging. 

Today I posted the blog before I made my coffee. That was so I could go up on the top deck with my coffee and enjoy the beautiful day and anchorage. It's what us cruisers dream about all winter. Peter came over and had two cappuccinos on the top deck with me. He too was struck by how perfect it was. And he could sit back and watch Voyager bobbing peacefully in the water. He had forgotten his phone so borrowed mine to take a dozen or so photos of Voyager. We decided not to fish today but try tomorrow. 

One of Peter's pictures of Voyager in a near perfect setting

Kerry had her tea with me when she got up, also sitting outside. Then we took a 50 minute ride in our dingy. I went slow but was pleased to see we had only used 7% of the battery. Kerry took note of that and seemed pleased also, and perhaps a little relieved from her range anxiety. Later I charged it up while the generator was running and that process was uneventful. It might have looked odd seeing an extension cord coming out of Annie and going into the dingy. 

I took the contents of my paint and varnish container out of the lazarette to dry in the sun. I have a leak somewhere and when I get in big waves the container and contents get soaked. I plan to put my milk carton container in a plastic bag once everything is dry, but Kerry suggested a covered plastic container as a permanent fix which is a far better idea. 

The weather was perfect all afternoon with warm sun and a cool breeze. I busied myself with a few tasks and also found time to read in the sun. Kerry made brownies for dinner tonight and tuna fish salad for us for lunch, read and took a little nap. Several more boats arrived but there is still room for more, although not being crowded is very nice. Covered Portage is one of the best anchorages in the entire North Channel.  

Peter and Marianna came to Annie for a July 4th cookout. Cocktails were on the upper deck. The weather was perfect. We chatted and watched boats coming and going, commenting on each one of course. We had bacon cheeseburgers, salad, chips baked beans and brownies. Kerry had a lovely July 4th table setting with a special fireworks tablecloth she made for the occasion. We all took pictures of our food for the next photo contest. The photo below shows the festive tablecloth. 

After dinner Peter and I smoked little cigars on the top deck. This time we were joined by the mates which was very nice. We sat up there chatting for a long time until it got late and surprisingly cool. We agreed we would stay here through Sunday, then move on down the road to Heywood Island. Sometime next week we will go to Little Current to restock the boats before heading out again. The weather is forecast to be good tomorrow, but very rainey on Sunday. Tomorrow could be a fishing day. 

The evening light made the rocks come alive with interesting shadows. We took some pictures of what appeared to be a tortured poet and a bear - possibly for a future photo contest. Peter and Marianna be warned!

Do you see the Tortured Poet?

Do you see the bear?