Last season we didn’t have time to entertain guests. But we’re making up for that this year! Our friends Tamara and Johnny from Seattle came to spend a week with us exploring Prince William Sound.
They landed in the afternoon at the tiny airport in Valdez and joined us aboard.
The next morning we left the dock for a relaxing few days in several different anchorages. Catching up was wonderful, and they are the easiest guests you could ask for, chill, yet game for anything and great fun.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but thank goodness their expectations are low from living in Seattle, because the weather was hideous. It rained literally every day. Not ALL day every day, we had cloudy and foggy intervals with minor dripping at times. Just for variety. When the rain stopped, we’d scramble to deploy the dinghy to explore the anchorage. Here we are on our way back from such a foray, getting pelted in the face with freezing rain, but still grinning like fools.
There are lots of icebergs floating down the fjords and into the sound from the glaciers. It’s just exciting to see them up close if you never have.
And even better if you can net a tiny growler (a growler is less than 3 feet tall) and use it for cocktails!
Yes, I know a Manhattan is typically served up, not on the rocks, but I want a Manhattan, and I have a growler, so here we are!
Cocktail
I showed our gearing up for halibut fishing in our last blog post. But despite numerous and enthusiastic efforts, nobody caught any ☹️ On the other hand, we do have a pair of shrimp pots, and on our first try managed to pull up a gallon and a half spot prawns between the two pots.
We were thrilled. Spot prawns are a true delicacy, plentiful here in PWS. They are very sweet, and have a more tender texture than other shrimp.
Johnny, an executive chef in a former life, whipped up a scrumptious meal for us with the spot prawns, pasta, poached asparagus, and lots of shallots and garlic. We gave him no warning that he was cooking, but it happened to be Stan’s 77th birthday so I’m sure he felt compelled when we all sat back with our cocktails and informed him. And I was apparently too busy savoring the dish to take any pics!
Above, another momentary pause in precipitation allowed Stan to deploy the drone.
One of our favorite anchorages in PWS, Cascade Bay. Our fourth time visiting this spot and we are always the only boat. Last year we were joined by spawning silver salmon, and a frolicking black bear family feeding on said salmon. No wildlife this time, though.
In a final obscene gesture by PWS to Tamara and Johnny, the first true sun shone on the day of their departure. Their flight out of Valdez was cancelled, so we drove them to Anchorage.
Above, view of a glacier from the highway on the way back from Anchorage.
We had glorious sun and warm (OK 62°F, nearly tropical!) temps for the next few days. And when that happens around here, you take 10,000 pics.
We saw folks on the dock cleaning their catches of rockfish and halibut.
So Stan joined a “6-pack” charter boat to figure out what we hadn’t been doing right.
Turns out, nothing! Oh, other than the fact that halibut are only rarely to be caught within PWS, but are plentiful just outside the Sound. Well, OK then!
A harpoon is needed for the big ones – eek!
He brought home a lovely 30 lb halibut and a black rockfish… and FedExed it all to Tamara and Johnny because we want them to come back and visit us again.
And did we mention, we are taking the Buffalo to French Polynesia next spring? Haha, big impulsive life-changing Val-and-Stan news, delivered as a footnote. Very us.
Not 100% positive but I THINK Fakarava is going to work for our Seattle friends.
buffalonickelblog.com 
Hi Val.
Miguel here; let me know when you’re in NZ again. I’ve moved from NY to NZ in 2021 and am living in the South Island outside of Christchurch. I go twice a year back to NY for a visit and work. In the meantime I travel throughout NZ doing locum work, which tends to be more in the North Island than in the South Island.
I just came back from Argentina, which was also great to catch up with many friend and family. Got to visit my Alma Mater and catch up with some colleagues that are now faculty members.
Cheers.
Miguel
Hi Miguel! Thanks for the update. In Alaska now as you can see, but the plan as of today is to make the passage to French Polynesia, probably spring of 2024, and base ourselves there for the next couple years. So NZ is certainly possible!