WA360 2025: Day One

Day 1 Goal Map:

We did our final prep and launched just before the race start, resting in the shade of the dock for a few minutes before it was time to go. All of us Rick Rolled across the starting line to beautifully calm conditions that stuck with us through Port Townsend Bay. It was fun to chat with other racers and race fans on the water.

We got to the Port Townsend Canal just as it turn to flood and it gave us a nice push into Oak Bay. 

The wind picked up as we crossed the mouth of Hood Canal and we found some spicy water as we approached Foul Weather Bluff. Winds and quartering following seas stuck with us for the next couple of hours. We landed at Norwegian point Park to grab some food and take a break. 

Although we were technically on track with an audacious goal to paddle the 30 miles to Fay Bainbridge, we had spent far more energy the last three miles than we had the previous 13. So a good long rest and some restaurant food from Hansgrill were in order.

We hauled our heavy, fully loaded kayaks up the beach, so the incoming time could not reach them. After spreading some wet gear out in the sun, we grabbed a picnic table and ordered some food.

After our rest, we’ve launched into spicier water than we really wanted to deal with. Launch was a bit of a scramble, but we both stayed upright and got ourselves off the beach. We made it past point no point and things calmed down as we paddled South along the peninsula.

We managed to overshoot our next stop by about a mile, but at least the water and wind were relatively calm as we back-tracked.

The forecast for tomorrow looks like it’ll be better for the sailboats than it will be for us, so we’ll see how much mileage we’re able to make tomorrow and see if we can stick to our goals or if we need to make different choices for the day.