We left Blake around 9am, headed for Dyes Inlet and the
Silverdale Marina. This is a new location for us. Not sure why we haven’t
visited before, maybe because we've never heard anyone talk about it.
As we approached Bremerton, nearing the turnoff toward the
Manette Bridge into Dyes Inlet, I noticed some activity further up Sinclair
Inlet, by Bremerton. There were two massive tugs and several smaller boats with
lights flashing. And then I saw it! A submarine! The sub was being escorted out
to open water (I am glad we didn’t run into all of this further back while we
were in narrow Rich Passage).
We were already turned, heading away from the escort, when a
Navy boat, with a manned machine gun in the bow, sped up and came toward us.
(Fortunately, Nick had turned the radio on!) We were hailed as “white boat
approaching the bridge” and cautioned to stand off. (White boat!?) We were
doing everything right, and feel this was mostly a routine “courtesy” to make
sure boaters know what’s going on. (We had heard them do the same thing a few
minutes earlier with the Bremerton/Port Orchard passenger ferry.) Exciting,
none-the-less, and fun to watch.
 |
| Submarine |
 |
| Navy boat |
The passage into Dyes Inlet was quite nice; shallow in
places, and about 5 miles long. We passed a small private marina and the
Bremerton Yacht Club. We were the only overnighting boat at the Silverdale
Marina, however there were a few anchored sailboats.
We were pleasantly surprised. The marina isn’t much, and the
power was off due to repairs. The water was also turned off. We don’t know why,
and the marina isn’t staffed. (There are no services.) However, the setting is
lovely, there are a couple of nearby parks, quite a few promising
restaurants/brew pubs, and groceries within easy walking. We had beers and excellent fish and chips at Kettlefish. The Old Town area is
small but nice. The inlet looks like good kayaking territory, and we watched
lots of birds. They also have a farmer’s market on Tuesdays and a couple of
summer events, including Whaling Days. This city needs to build a super-duper
marina!
 |
| Europa all alone at Silverdale |
 |
| Dyes Inlet from Silverdale Park |
No comments:
Post a Comment