Today was to be the day! I sold my boat to a crab
fisherman down in Washington State. We agreed to put
the boat on the ferry for the buyer. Easy, right? So
he schedules for May 31. On May 31, the only ferry
that goes to Bellingham has what a friend at the ferry
termed the “annual generator fire”, and the ferry was
canceled. The ferry was full the following week, so
we rescheduled for the 13th.
On the 13th, I wanted to get the boat out to the ferry
early in case any little thing happened. And it did.
A wheel bearing went. We called a tow truck, and
headed to Western Auto hoping they carried the right
bearing. When we arrived there, they had closed
early. Due to the high electric prices from the
avalanche. The tow guys even thought they knew of one
of their trailers that had the same bearing/wheel
assembly that we could swap. He went and took it off
and brought it back. But it didn’t fit.
So, we rescheduled for the 20th. I contacted my
marine mechanic, who said he couldn’t do it that week
because he had other deadlines. I had to leave for my
new job the next day, so I hoped myself and/or my
buddies could find someone. They found a guy who
would try to do it in the evenings. By the time he
got to it, got the other wheel off to see what kind of
bearing was needed (because the makers of the trailer
couldn’t tell us!), there were none in Juneau and he
had to order it…and not in time for the 20th ferry.
So this week, my buddy calls to say his friend had
redone all four wheels. I think, “Finally, this boat
is headed south”. My wife and buddy coordinate with
the tow guy (same tow guy from above) to take the boat
to the ferry. The tow guy takes the boat out there
early, so all he has to do is show up at the appointed
2 am time to put the boat on the ferry, and it’s a
done deal. He shows up at 2 am, just as THE FERRY IS
LEAVING, and my boat is still in Juneau. The ferry,
which has left at 430 am like clockwork for the past
month, changed the schedule for THIS WEEK ONLY 2 hours
earlier….
If the buyer backs out now, I will not hold a grudge..
–
Mark Stopha and Sara Hannan
Alaska Wild Salmon Company
Wild Salmon and Salmon Pet Treats
4455 N. Douglas Hwy
Juneau, AK 99801
907-463-3115
www.GoodSalmon.com