January 2000 - Y2K in Mats Mats Bay
Like the rest of the world, over the past few months we've been hearing some conflicting opinions of what the year 2000 will bring, from complete societal collapse to just a few power outages. We were taking it all in stride until a few weeks before New Years, when reports of a terrorist plot against Seattle emerged. We decided that we might be better off just getting out of town for a few days and made plans to sail over to Mats Mats Bay on New Years eve.
A few days before our departure we visited Costco, where we spent a good portion of that week's paychecks on food (not that we were really worried or anything...we figured it would all get eaten eventually). Actually, we were quite surprised that what was an entire Costco cart (i.e. huge) amount of food didn't even fill up the space under one of our settees. We were excited that someday we'd be able to fill Jenny P with several Costco carts of provisions in preparation for the Big trip...wherever that may be.
On the Friday that was New Years Eve 2000, we left at 5 am since we needed to be at Mats Mats by noon during high tide, due to the fact that the channel is only four feet deep during low tide. Happily, the wind was SW 10-15 knots and we were able to set our main and jib and sail all the way there. It was quite a sail too-- around 1000 the winds increased to over 20 knots with waves 4-6 feet high. Even with the chilling cold, it was exhilarating.
Arriving at Mats Mats, the first thing that greeted us at the channel opening was the construction site of an enormous house. This was disappointing, but quite representative of what is currently happening in the Puget Sound area, tremendous growth at the expense of (in our humble opinion) the gorgeous natural scenery, plants and wildlife. Looking a bit farther south in tiny Port Ludlow, we could barely believe our eyes at the sight of an entire clear-cut hillside, with about 50 tightly-packed houses taking the place of where a gorgeous forest had once grown. And the developers left not a single tree! Amazing.
Once inside Mats Mats, we successfully anchored on the first try (at last!). We were happy to see that we were the only visitors to the bay. There were about 15 other boats moored but they were all empty, most likely belonging to the residents of the bay. We dug into some of our food stores, ate a nice big lunch and promptly took a nap, knowing we'd have to stay up until midnight.
That evening, we listened to Art Bell's radio broadcast over the HAM radio. As each time zone slid into the 21st century, we were glad to hear only the sounds of celebrations. No power outages, no explosions except for the fireworks worldwide. All remained well with the world. We held our breath in anticipation as the West Coast of the U.S. entered the year 2000 at midnight. Poking our heads out of the companionway, the stars were winking brighter than ever . From a party on the shore, the sounds of a rusty trumpeter playing "Auld Lane Syne" echoed over the peaceful waters of Mats Mats Bay.
The next day we slept in, ate Belgian waffles for breakfast, read, ate and slept some more. It was bliss.
Sunday arrives; the sun is shining, the wind is blowing 10-15 knots once more. We're not too excited to go back home (which means back to work on Monday), yet we know it's going to be a gorgeous sail. And it is. We drift along at 3-4 knots, which gives Michael a chance to get in the dinghy and take some beautiful photos of Jenny P at sail. She simply sparkles against the deep blue January sky and glides gently through the chilly waters. For hours, we are both lost in the peacefulness of the day, swimming in our dreams of one day sailing across oceans. We imagine that there is only blue sky and water surrounding us and we are free....
Someday. For now, we are satisfied knowing that we have days like this: sun, wind, and water.
-sdk-
