Bird Island, Simeonof, August 1, 2008, by Bob

This morning I woke up to Stars and Stripes. I cannot believe that Fullerton is capable of operating an iPod. We took off in the
dinghy for a motor tour of the area. Across Otter Strait we could see some whale spouts.

The wind had changed directions overnight, and it was not possible to land and stay dry on our side of the island. So we took off in
the boat for the whales. Humpbacks were feeding. Whales are big.

Then we headed to Simeonof Island. We tooled into Simeonof Harbor. The Coast Pilot calls the entrance into Simeonof Harbor
"tortuous." It was shallow with some kelp, but wasn't too bad. We anchored in 14 feet of water and kayaked around. There were sea
otters and lots of jellyfish. Some birds, too. One duck had about 15 ducklings following it.

There is an old house there, half collapsed. Someone used to raise cattle there. There were corrals and some fence remains.

We passed by Koniuji Island, and are now headed on an overnight trip to the Semidi Islands. Last night when I downloaded the
weather, it showed some wind suitable for sailing. Instead, the wind is blowing directly from the Semidi Islands. I downloaded the
weather tonight, and the forecast now matches the wind. And we are motoring.

At 12:36 pm, we are at 55 27N 158 21W. It is 65F inside and 53F outside. Water temperature is 54.1F -- the highest since we hit
Alaska! Wind is 12 knots from the northeast.