second time around

When we left in 2009 for the Inside Passage and eventually Mexico, we were all-consumed with what cruising would be like. It's all we talked about, thought about. We read blogs incessantly. We debated the merits of different anchors with our boat friends (as if we knew anything about anchoring). We poured over charts predicting our route and imagining what far-off anchorages were like. We consumed cruising how-to books, learning all we could about storm tactics and how to check into French Polynesian islands. We were actually jittery and wild-eyed with excitement when we slipped the dock lines and left Shilshole for what would surely be our last time. We never once looked back as we took off towards the Inside Passage.

Fast forward to Tuesday of this week. We'd been back in Shilshole for almost two years after our last cruise. We spent that time working and getting the boat ready for cruise #2. We slipped the dock lines from J dock once again bound for Alaska this time and once again had no plans of coming back. But this time was different. As we left J-dock and motored our way out the north entrance of the breakwater, we found ourselves kinda torn.

We've spent the last year and a half in the company of incredible friends. Friends we'd known for years, friends we met cruising in Mexico and friends we've only recently gotten to know. We had several going away parties (as is our style) and each one left us more melancholy than the last about leaving these people. We rafted up in Eagle Harbor with several other boats from Shilshole. I even broke several of my cardinal anchoring rules (I don't raft to other boats and I never drink too much at anchor). We spent a gorgeous April weekend laughing, eating awesome food and drinking good rum. As we walked into The Sloop for our last farewell party, we were greeted with a chorus of "hey!" from several tables as everyone raised their glasses. Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name.

As Hello World motored up to the marina exit, our buddy CB stood on the fishing pier filming our departure. We yelled and waved and gave a failed attempt at blowing an air horn (put "new air horn" on the list) as we slipped past. We thought about all the marina volleyball games and Taco Tuesdays we're missing out on. We thought about the great times at The Sloop. We thought about the family and friends we're leaving behind this time and this time, we were just a little sad about it.

As we cleared the red day mark at the end of the breakwater, we nosed out into a southwesterly blowing 18 knots. We unfurled the genoa and Hello World took off to the north with a bone in her teeth. Christy and I flashed each other shit-eating grins as we passed hull speed.

Oh right. This is why we left.