Morning broke with light rain sprinkles to our surprise since we had not had any rain so far on this leg. By the time we set out on our kayaking, crab pot and fishing adventures prepared with raincoats, the rain had subsided, and the sun was out again for the remainder of the day. The day became so warm that Nate even decided to dive in for a swim.

The kayaking adventure took Dan, Neha and Jane to the head of the bay where the freshwater stream enters the bay. Even at high tide, there wasn’t enough water to get up the stream without portaging, so we beached our kayaks on the bank and began walking up stream. Both adult and juvenile eagles were perched in the surrounding trees communicating with their incongruous high pitched eeeee-eeee-eeee-eeee calls to one another. No bears were seen but footprints and piles of fresh scat reminded us that they were not far away. Admiralty Island has the highest concentration of brown bears anywhere in the world, averaging one bear per square mile! We enjoyed the raw wilderness but decided not to continue into the forest too far.

As we returned to the bay, Melinda and Martha were paddling in to the river mouth and Doug was out in the dinghy exploring the area. Bonum Vitae and Teresa both set their crab pots and each was rewarded with good sized keepers. Mike and Natalie returned with a BIG 8.5 inch male crab and Chris and Jen also caught three big keepers! They will enjoy them for dinner tonight. However, the Bonum crew wasn’t done, they were out in their dingy fishing outside the bay. Chris said he had a big fish on the line for 28 minutes, but it got away. Everyone was out enjoying the warm sunny weather in their own way, relaxing onboard, kayaking, fishing, and crabbing continued well into the evening.

The Pamelican crew changed it up a bit as Hannah and Alex flew out on a float plan while Bruce and Renee flew in to replace them. Ford and Janice have the opportunity to enjoy two groups of family on one leg. The transition went smoothly, and it didn’t take long before Renee and Bruce were fishing and crabbing.

At 5 o’clock Deception hosted a gathering for everyone with snacks, drinks and lively conversations, offering everyone yet another opportunity to get to know each other. About an hour and a half later, we all returned to our boats to make dinner and settle in for the night. Chris and Jen from Bonum Vitae continued fishing from the bow and caught a few Pacific staghorn sculpin which they released but not before they had inspired Ford, Janice, Bruce and Renee of Pamelican to join in the excitement. They all fished; socializing, laughing, and enjoying life in this beautiful bay on another perfect day.