30 July - Across Dixon Entrance

Got up at 4:30am to get ready to go.  Woke the boys up around 5:00am, after a cup of coffee, and we were underway by 6:00am, wending our way through Venn Passage.  Venn Passage is a twisting channel shortcut between Prince Rupert and Dixon Entrance.  There were a lot of commercial and sportfishing boats headed out at the same time.  The commercial boats were polite and slowed down when passing us, but many sportfish charter boat operators are complete jerks, passing us close by at high speed in shallow water, creating large waves and rolling the boat.
Dixon Entrance was smooth, with only a small swell and a few waves from the fishing boats.  The boys went back to sleep and Otto and I sailed the boat.  About mid-day a breeze came  up from the east and I raised the sails, motorsailing at 6 knots.
We arrived at Ketchikan about 8:30pm, causing a problem for customs.  Turns out that, since Congress can't get its act together enough to pass a budget, there's no overtime budget for U.S. Customs.  The poor customs officer probably spent more time on the phone getting permission for an evening inspection than he spent actually inspecting the boat.
Since we didn't know where we would be mooring, we didn't call ahead to clear U. S. Customs before leaving Prince Rupert.  Not that it would have helped, because we made the decision late the evening before, after office hours, and left early, before office hours.  I tried hailing customs on VHF 16 once we were in U. S. waters, but got no answer, so waited until we were within cell phone range of Ketchikan and called them on the phone, just before 5:00 pm.  Their first response was to have us go back to Foggy Bay and anchor for the night.  I said no, claiming prudent seamanship, since it would have meant backtracking 20 miles and anchoring in the dark.  Several phone calls later, he met us at the dock and helped us tied up. 
After coming aboard, he asked a couple questions (booze? - yes, ship's stores, fresh fruit or potted plants? - no), looked around the small cabin, and left.  Never even asked for passports or identification.