A Delivery with Tribal Canoes and Lovely Birds

In sailing lingo, a "delivery" is bringing a boat to or from a race. I helped my husband bring our boat all the way from the far side of Whidbey Island back to Port Townsend. It took two days, and we motor-sailed, sailed, and motored, sleeping overnight on our boat. We exchanged greetings with Native Americans paddling four tribal canoes on their way to an annual summer gathering. We delighted in three porpoises, dozens of Harbor Seals, and an unexpected view of majestic Mount Rainier. The birds were also spectacular-- here are photos of the Great Blue Heron that announced our first morning and the Bald Eagle on the totem pole the second, a banded Brandt's cormorant on a buoy, and a pair of Marbled Murrelets. We saw dozens of Common (or Caspian?) Terns diving straight down into the sea, a huge group of Rhinoceros Auklets, and the first Common Loons of the summer. The delivery was an adventure!