Shearwater

We treated ourselves to a few days at the dock in Shearwater, and yes, it was a treat even though we did a little rocking and rolling moored on the outside of the T-dock along a busy channel. RL did the happy dance when Jean at the hardware store loaned him a ladder tall enough to access the anchor light that needed repair. Can't you just picture the ride he had... on top of the ladder... up on the top deck... when a thoughtless boater or two roared past?! 

I especially loved the small, well-stocked grocery store, the pub that offered great burgers and halibut tacos on a sunny deck overlooking the harbor, and Mika the hair stylist who rescued me from a bad summer haircut. I was not too impressed with the s-l-o-w, reminds-me-of-the-old-dialup-days internet access and 2-bar cellphone reception available intermittently at the dock. Oops, I sound like such a city girl, it must be time to get moving again.

Shearwater was crowded with scores of gill netters, fifty or more, running about, coming and going or stopping to raft up at the commercial dock. They hang out between openings, fish Monday dawn to Tuesday noon, then hang out again until the next week's 30-hour opening. This was the only area open to gillnetting at the time, so boats from all along the coast flocked to fish here. The coho fishing is HOT and more and more big kings/springs are caught each day, so sport fishermen are also flocking to this area. Oh yes, we have a lot of company lately, here at the dock and out on anchor.