4 Days Till D-Day

I honestly have no idea who is reading this nonsense. My assumption is that the majority of you are not boaters. Since that is my assumption and no one is speaking up to tell me otherwise, I am going to give you a quick lesson on what could be the 2 greatest things about boating in the Northwest.

The first of these 2 greatest things is the “Raft-Up”. The official definition of the “Raft-Up” has never made it into Webster's Dictionary for some odd reason, so it has become my duty as a Northwest sailor to enlighten the rest of the world. Here you go...and remember, this is an official definition from me, not Webster's.

Raft-Up: to anchor multiple boats in a calm bay, tying them together, whereby making a raft.

Yep, that about sums it up. There are some nuances that aren't made very clear in the official definition so this has also become my duty to enlighten the rest of the world on some very important facts that make a successful raft-up.

First, make sure the boats in the raft-up belong to good friends. These boats that are going to be tying up to you are going to be awfully close for a few days and walls on these floating homes are paper thin. These aren't like apartments where you can sometimes hear your neighbor if the stereo is cranked up. Nope, these are like cardboard boxes and you can hear your neighbor like he/she is in your living room. Ideally these friends aren't conspiracy theorists (unless you are into that sort of thing), Sasquatch freaks (unless you are into that sort of thing), or wearing tin foil hats to protect themselves from aliens or mind reading radio waves (unless you have your own tin foil hat). What I'm getting at is that it is important that you like the people you are rafting to. You're going to be spending a lot of time with them.

Second, bring good food (or in my case, a wife who makes good food). In general, meals are shared and you don't want to be the guy who is sharing top ramen (that would be me...which is why I bring my wife).

Third, be prepared to work on boats. Boats always need work and what better way to do the needed work than with boaters who are tied to your boat. They are captive participants, which also means, you are a captive participant. Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty.

Fourth, be prepared to listen to boating stories from boaters who are reliving those stories in an overly exaggerated state. And when these boaters tell you they survived a hurricane while anchored in Poulsbo, smile and pretend like you believe them, because in a minute it will be your turn to relive a story that is way over the top that no one else believes either.

And finally, fifth, be prepared to have tons of fun because you never know what is going to happen. Unless we are in the raft up, because I will guarantee that Brenda will be coordinating some sort of hike and I will be coordinating cookies.

The second thing in the list of the 2 greatest things about boating in the Northwest is fresh seafood. It's as good as it gets here. There is no place on earth that has better seafood than the Northwest. And the best part is that we get to catch it, slap it on the grill (or boil it in a pot), and eat it. It's as fresh as it gets.

There is a huge difference in the taste of fresh seafood. I don't mean fresh, as in today's special at the market or restaurant. I mean catch it and eat it fresh.

Not too long ago, we were in Salt Lake City at a 5 star restaurant that had “fresh” Halibut as the special. I asked the waiter “how fresh is the Halibut? I don't recall seeing an ocean nearby.” He told me “we flew it in from Alaska this morning. It's fresh and delicious.” I looked around the restaurant and noticed that most patrons were eating the Halibut, and with my expert lip reading, I could tell they were saying “this is delicious!” Since I love fresh Halibut and apparently so did everyone else in the restaurant, I ordered it.

Well, the moral of the story is that “fresh” is a loose word when ordering Halibut in the middle of the country. Where there is no ocean, there is no fresh fish. It wasn't terrible and I didn't get food poisoning, it's just that there is a huge difference in how fish tastes when it is put in a freezer and flown thousands of miles away, then thawed, and finally cooked versus reeling it up and putting it on the grill. There is nothing better than fresh seafood and now that I think about it, my expert lip reading really isn't that great. Instead of “this is delicious”, the other patrons in the restaurant could have been saying “this is hideous” or “Christmas smishmus” or “I wish that guy would stop staring at my lips.” Who knows?

There are very few places in the world in which the raft up can take place and there are very few places in the world where you can catch salmon, dungeness crab, clams, oysters, and prawns from the comfort of your home. We can do it here and it's great.

For the last few days, we have been tied up in a raft-up with good friends and former neighbors from our old dock at Shilshole. We've done all of the things that normally happen at a raft up and even had some surprises (the surprises may be a topic of an upcoming post...not sure if these things should be shared with the world yet). We've eaten tons of good food, caught salmon and crabs, hiked, swam, paddle boarded, drag raced the dinghies, worked on boats, listened to over the top and unbelievable tales of boating, and the best part of all, we had a great time with great people.

The raft up has been dismantled for a few days but will be reconvened in 4 days so we can all enjoy the most delicious creation that was ever invented...bacon maple bars at the Eastsound Saturday Market on Orcas Island. It's 4 days till D-Day (donut day). They only come out on Saturday and these are worth traveling for. This will be our 3^rd time achieving nirvana this summer and yes, we have traveled for many hours each time to get these donuts. They are worth it. If you are thinking of making the trip to get some of these donuts for yourselves, here are a few words of advice. Get there early...they go quickly. If you are wondering how to find them...look for the line of people. And bring cash...$4 for a donut (worth every penny) and I personally guarantee*** that you'll want to take a bunch home with you.

***disclaimer – personal guarantee states that if you do not like the donuts but purchase a bunch, I will take them off your hands and I won't charge you for me to eat them...you're welcome.