We got a bit of a treat Sunday in the form of some freshly plucked scallop from the seabed in North Cove (Jones Island).

We struck up several conversations with a group of three men in a C-Dory who were camped for a long weekend on the island. I noticed one of them donning some rather robust gear for what looked to be a SUP adventure. As he took off, paddling on his stomach with a bag, super long fins, and a spear, I understood it was not a typical paddle board excursion. He threw an anchor overboard a few hundred feet out and proceeded to look around and dive for about an hour.

My curiosity got the better of me and when he came in, I asked what he was after. Yep, scallops. He only got two, and said there are enormous leaves of seaweed laying over the seabed which are like trying to move sheets of plywood.

He went at the scallop shells with a filet knife on the dock which proved unsuccessful – his buddy went for an oyster knife. (They are both EMTs which made me feel a little better about the knife-wielding.)

He carries the spear just in case he sees some fish worth eating.

Some photos of him and the scallops.

A little later we were on the bow enjoying drinks and the sunshine and they approached with a beautiful shell holding a couple of morsels of raw scallop in some sweet soy sauce. Yummy!

We got to talking some more and it turns out one of them, Brian, runs a small marina/boat rental in Nehalem Oregon. He mentioned the awesome Dungeness crab season in October and so we think we will be paying him a visit!

Nick and I started talking about how many times we’ve made good connections with other boaters over the past decade. Many of our good, enduring friendships came about after meeting people on the dock. Nods to the crews of Coorie Doon, Salish Mariner, Ramble On, and Aris.

There was the time when the guys in Des Moines took Nick out crabbing after one of them cut our bow line which had wrapped around the rudder. Nick still remembers that trip as good times spent with Native men in their home fishing grounds. And when the young girl in Friday Harbor brought us a freshly caught salmon filet. Twice! And just the other day I was going through our chart locker and found the homemade card we received from the little girl last year whose dad asked to use our grill for their dinner after his broke. Oh, and the time a guy came by our anchored boat in Fisherman Bay with a bottle of wine to thank Nick for helping him get his buddy out of the water and back aboard (after attempting something sketchy while underway).

There have been other instances of good connections but these stand out to me at the moment. And it’s not just about getting stuff from people. It’s about being invited on to boats for an unplanned happy hour, conversations about boating trials and tribulations, helpful hints about crabbing and fishing, and news of spectacular destinations.

Sometimes I enjoy the isolation that boating provides – like this weekend, as the only boat sitting at the Jones Island dock…and having the place to ourselves…for a bit anyway. And sometimes it’s all about the people, those we know and care about and those we’ve yet to meet.

On a less fun note, our fridge is on the fritz…again. It has a slow leak and needs more coolant. We have yet to decide how we’re going to deal with this but for now we left Jones and are on the guest dock in Friday Harbor. Nick’s sister Kit was able to join us for grilled salmon yesterday evening. It was a beautiful day but we may get some rain. We’ll stay here at least one more night while we assess the urgency of our fridge problem and figure how who will fix it.

One more thing: Since our very first stop this season was to a state marine park, we decided to go ahead and purchase a mooring permit. (We didn’t use it enough last season to break even.) Prices have gone up to $7/ft. We’ll see if it pays off this year.