Questions about the shipwrecked sailor rescued on Vancouver Island last week are no closer to be answered after the man was released from Canadian custody and mysteriously returned to the U.S.

Keith Carver was arrested by RCMP officers at a hospital in Port McNeill, B.C., on Friday, where he was being treated after being stranded on Vancouver Island’s rugged north coast for five days. (more)

more at

The Puget Soundkeeper Alliance’s threat to sue five boatyards has sparked an intense reaction among boaters and environmentalists. Three Sheets Northwest, which broke the story last month, takes a deeper look at the issue. Today, we sit down with the man behind PSA's controversial move. (more)

The numbers of boats sold in Washington state and the value of those sales jumped during the last quarter of 2009, suggesting that the industry is finally on the upswing.

But the good news is tempered by an alarming drop in new boat sales and increasing numbers of people buying boats out of state and through private deals, a trend that has been growing in recent months.

Read more

If the Seattle Boat Show is any indication, the recovery the region’s boating industry has long been waiting for seems to finally have arrived.

The nine-day show, which ended Saturday, was marked by bigger crowds than last year, enthusiastic showgoers and most importantly, sales. Exhibitors reported boats selling in categories ranging from dinghies to luxury yachts.

(more)

Related:

Three boat shows around the region cancelled for next year

The Tacoma News Tribune has this story in today’s issue:

Harbor WildWatch, a Gig Harbor environmental education group, has published a new book on Puget Sound’s marine environment.

“Puget Sound’s Wildside, A Natural History of Puget Sound’s Marine Environment”

Read more.

The PostGlobe relies on your donations. Please support this writer's work by going to ourdonate page and let us know where you'd like your donation to go.

What does it take to race across an ocean alone in a small boat against some of the best sailors in the world?

It’s a question that Seattle sailor and rigger Chris Tutmark can now answer.

In October, he and fellow Pacific Northwest racer Craig Horsfield completed one of the most demanding sailing races in the world—the 4,200-mile Transat 6.50. (more)

A few years back, Kim Carver was working on commercial ships and looking for a way to finance the publication of her fledgling maritime magazine.

Taking a cue from the countless steamy calendars of firefighters, cheerleaders and other objects of desire, Carver rounded up some of her female friends working in the maritime industry around Seattle and photographed them in various stages of undress, on ships and in other locations.

And soon, the Sexy Women of Maritime Calendar was born. (more)

Three boat shows around the region have been canceled for next year—and that could be a boon for next month’s boat show in Seattle.

The lagging economy prompted the cancellation of the 2010 boat shows in Tacoma and Everett, while the annual boat show in Vancouver, B.C., was canceled to allow for construction of a retractable roof at BC Place, where the event was to be held. (more)

Clammers got the green light for a four-day razor clam dig on Washington’s coastal beaches over New Year’s.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) approved the evening digs after a series of marine toxin tests confirmed the clams on five coastal beaches were safe to eat.

Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis, Mocrocks and Kalaloch beaches will be open for clamming Thursday, Dec. 31 and Friday, Jan. 1.

Read full story and more clamming dates here at Three Sheets Northwest.

In 2007, business was humming along nicely at Lake Union Yacht Center.

The Seattle company moved to a new location in August, after the property it leased was sold. The new facility was double the size of the old one, and owner Geo Tamblyn knew he would have to increase business by 20 to 30 percent to cover costs at the two-acre site.

But Tamblyn wasn’t overly worried. The company was... (more)

With a new theory surfacing that toxic algae rather than asteroids killed the dinosaurs, scientists are still trying to unravel the mystery of what caused a massive algae bloom off the Northwest Coast that left thousands of seabirds dead and may have sickened some surfers and kayakers.

The bloom, which stretches roughly 300 miles from Newport, Ore., north to the Canadian border, still persists... (more)

Despite the winter chill, Washingtonians have plenty of reasons to head outdoors during the holiday season, including steelhead fishing and the possibility of the first New Year’s Eve razor clam dig in years.

Evening clam digs are tentatively scheduled at ocean beaches from Dec. 31 through Jan. 3, pending the results of marine toxin tests. (more at Three Sheets Northwest)

Pleasant Harbor

This perfectly named cove, with its wooded shores and calm waters, is a fine place to visit when the summer crowds have thinned out. It offers ample guest moorage, a state park float and enough room for anchoring. Not only is this the most protected harbor in Hood Canal with the most marine facilities, it’s beautiful besides.

Moorings and Anchorage

The state park float is on the north side just inside the entrance. Depths are good on either side of the 100-foot float. There are no facilities here, and the maximum stay is 36 hours. Fees are collected at the self-service pay station at the head of the ramp.

Read more here from Migael Scherer at Three Sheets Northwest.

In 1973, Gerry Jacobs was living aboard his sailboat in Seattle and planning to cruise down to Mexico.

He was interested in meeting other cruisers, so friends of his suggested starting a cruising club. Jacobs wasn’t keen on the idea. Who’d want to join a cruising club, he thought?

But Jacobs grudgingly agreed to the plan, and an ad was placed in a local magazine. Close to 200 peoples showed up at the first meeting, spilling out of the small Seattle office where it was held. A larger space was rented for the club’s second meeting, which attracted about 300 people.

“It was unbelievable,” Jacobs says. “People were just starving for information about cruising.”

In those pre-Internet days, there was little information available about cruising and few ways to connect with other cruisers. Suddenly, Northwest cruisers had a place to trade stories, share information and talk about their dreams with likeminded people. The Puget Sound Cruising Club was born....

Editor’s note: the following is an excerpt from Northwest historian David Wilma’s new book “Historic Photos of Puget Sound.” Wilma graciously agreed to share some of the fantasic photos with Three Sheets Northwest.

In April 1792, George Vancouver, on behalf of the King of England, explored the coast of North America aboard HMS Discovery. Vancouver named the waters off the Strait of Juan de Fuca after Lieutenant Peter Puget, a member of his expedition. Fur traders from the Hudson’s Bay Company established a settlement at the mouth of the Nisqually River in 1833.

Fifteen years later, settlers from the United States staked claims to Olympia, and settlement grew in the 1850s around lumber mills. Some of these communities were orderly company towns like Port Blakely or less organized responses like Seattle.

Read more from Marty McOmber and see a slide show of the historic photos at Three Sheets Northwest.

How could I resist? Waggoner, the self-appointed cruising bible of the Pacific Northwest, called the trip’s jumping-off point—Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island—”the single best saltwater trailer boat destination in the Northwest.”

In April I began seeking a really special cruise for myself and Sam, my 20-year-old nephew from Chicago, who had just finished an 18-month volunteer stint in the Israeli army. He was tired and still aching, knees and back possibly injured for life, from his zealous service, which had earned him the honor of bearing his unit’s heavy machine gun. (Eating a roasted scorpion while out on patrol showed perhaps an excess of zeal.)

Read more here from Dan Richman on Three Sheets Northwest.

The waters of the Northwest remain largely unexplored, offering enormous potential for Washington’s marine industry to reap the economic benefits created by visiting boats—particularly large yachts.

But a new trade association says state laws effectively discourage superyachts from visiting the region and are impeding the growth of Washington’s yachting industry.

The Pacific Northwest Yachting Association formed late last year with the goal of promoting yachting in the region and knocking down what its members say are barriers that prevent superyachts from visiting the area.

Read more here from Deborah Bach on Three Sheets Northwest.

An eerie whistle floats across the foggy Pacific like a lone survivor calling for help at sea. A black-hulled vessel slowly approaches the source, a bobbing and whistling buoy.

Figures in hardhats, stained coveralls and life jackets scurry about the deck prepping the red and white, 18,500-pound mass of steel and electronics. They hook line and chain to its base, yelling commands across deck.

“Heads up! Buoy’s coming in!” bellows one crew member.

“Heads up! Buoy’s coming in aye, aye!” yells the rest of the crew in unison.

A large crane with the words “No bar too rough, too tough, too far” emblazoned on the side begins to pull the buoy up onto the deck. It takes an immense amount of patience, timing, skill and most importantly, a keen eye on safety. One wrong move and a crew member could be seriously hurt or killed. This daunting task may frighten some, but all the members work together in a tight, cohesive team.

For the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter...

The recession hasn’t dampened one of the longest-running maritime shows on the west coast, say organizers of the 42nd Annual Pacific Marine Expo, to be held in Seattle this weekend.

“We’re very fortunate,” show director Bob Callahan said. “A lot of shows across the country have been down, but this one has bucked the trend and stayed strong. The show is approximately the same size as last year.”

Billed by organizers as the largest and longest-running commercial marine trade show on the west coast, the expo will be held this Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 19 to 21, at Qwest Field Event Center and includes more than 425 exhibitors and events such as conferences, author appearances, happy hour gatherings and a documentary screening.

Read more here at Three Sheets Northwest.

As it usually does, last weekend’s Round the County race included some of Puget Sound’s sleekest, fastest racing sailboats.

But in the end, no amount of Kevlar, carbon fiber or high-tech design made the difference.

The annual regatta around San Juan County, among the most high-profile races in the region, was won by the 102-year-old wooden schooner Martha, the second slowest boat in the fleet. The historic yacht took first in both her division and in the race overall, to the astonishment of her captain, Robert d’Arcy.

Read more here on Three Sheets Northwest.

From former P-I reporter Deborah Bach at Three Sheets Northwest:

While new boat sales in Washington remained dismal in the third quarter, price-sensitive boaters turned increasingly to the used boat market, with more buyers going out of state in search of deals.

New boat sales dropped 23 percent over the third quarter in the number of units sold overall and nearly 30 percent in value, compared with the same period last year. The rate of decrease slowed from the second quarter of this year, when sales were down 33.2 percent over last year.

Used boat sales fared much better...

Read more here.

From former P-I reporter Deborah Bach and ex-Tiimes reporter Marty McOmber's maritime blog, Three Sheets Northwest.

By Scott Wilson on November 9th, 2009

Few things come to grate as much on cruiser’s nerves as listening to the incessant chatter on the international VHF hailing and distress frequency, 156.800 Mhz on your FM dial, or channel 16 on marine VHF sets. In many parts of the world, the frequency is used and abused to capacity, with transmissions by users expert and amateur alike crowding it during daylight hours and often well into the evening.

Read more

The PostGlobe relies on your donations. Please support this writer's work by going to our donate page. Please note how you'd like your donation used.

Spectacular scenery, challenging conditions and an overnight stop - and party - make the Round the County regatta one of the region's most popular races. (Orcas Island Yacht Club Photo)

This weekend, the who’s who of Northwest sailboat racers will converge on Orcas Island for one of the most beloved races of the year, the Round the County regatta.

This year’s race, with 69 boats in six divisions, will feature the largest and fastest fleet in the event’s 22-year history, said race chairman Betsy Wareham.

“We have just about everything,” Wareham said. “We from Santa Cruz 70 to Santa Cruz 27s in size, and ratings from minus 75 to plus 180. This is actually the fastest fleet we’ve ever had.”

Read more here.

By Deborah Bach

Zen kitty: Lily takes in the scenery off Penrose Point State Park on our previous boat, Camelot.

From former P-I reporter Deborah Bach and ex-Tiimes reporter Marty McOmber's maritime blog, Three Sheets Northwest.

Poor Lily Winston Churchill. If the past summer was sucky for us without a boat, it was tragically boring for Lily.

Weekends that would normally be spent clambering around the decks in search of bugs, being mesmerized by the shifting water and exploring the boat’s nooks and crannies were instead spent staring out from the relative boredom of the small deck off the living room of our townhouse.

Lily is an indoor cat—that pains me, though I know it’s probably best for her—and she’s been cooped up for most of the past six months. No marinas, no squawking seagulls, no sunning atop the dodger.

As our ersatz child (we have none of the human variety), Lily is loved and indulged to a degree that better...

From former P-I reporter Deborah Bach and ex-Tiimes reporter Marty McOmber's maritime blog, Three Sheets Northwest.

By Marty McOmber

With colder weather settling in around Puget Sound and the holidays fast approaching, it’s time to ask the question: is my boat ready for winter?

The Northwest’s reputation for relatively mild winters can make it tempting to tempt fate and not winterize your boat. But last year’s long cold snap and heavy snows should be a reminder that you can never take weather for granted here.

If you do, you could be putting your boat and your pocketbook in big jeopardy.

Read more