The crew pulled anchor late last night, and we cruised overnight to our new destination – Cascade Creek Anchorage.  From here, it’s possible to take a 5 mile hike to Patterson Lake.  It’s now Tuesday, May 21st, and our first week of cruising is almost half over. This was a very relaxing day – the scenery was not quite as impressive as the previous day, but nothing to complain about.

I was once again up before 5am. When I looked outside, I saw another boat. What’s this? Another boat at our private anchorage? It turned out this is the Safari Quest, another Un-Cruise ship, and crew were here to hike to Patterson Lake and do maintenance on kayaks stored over the winter.

It was another beautiful morning – all the sunshine you could ask for.  We only had one event scheduled – a Skiff Tour.  This was going to be a nice day to relax and catch up on some sleep. This little round bird was waiting outside our cabin.

The Skiff Tours were our favorite activity during our first week – we will try the kayaks later in the week, and we’ll even do some of the easy hikes during weeks 2 & 3.  Captain Dano was our skiff guide again, and he tried his best to find a bear, but no luck.  He did keep us entertained with stories about the area. Today we saw several different types of birds, including harlequin ducks.

The Safari Quest was still there when we returned from the Skiff Tour – I must have liked that boat, since I have way too many photos of it.  As you can see, still not a cloud in the sky, and jackets were certainly not needed today.

I don’t recall if any group actually made it all the way to Patterson Lake, but I don’t think so.  Being one of the first groups out this early in the season, the hikers were often trailblazers, since the guides hadn’t had a chance to scope things out.  Being able to get close-up photos of wildflowers would have been nice.

Folks took advantage of the sunshine to lounge on the deck, and the crew even moved cocktail hour outside.  The crew on the Wilderness Discoverer always looked for ways to make our day more enjoyable, even if it meant more work for them.  They also served tasty appetizers every day at happy hour – but you better move quick if you want to get a sample.

Dinner this evening  was – I have no idea – I forgot to make a note of it, but I’m sure it was good.  It was a lazy day – just what we needed.