Commencement Bay

Trip report, Commencement Bay Entrance Quadruple Cross, 5-25-2014

Weather: Partly cloudy, light winds, calm waters. Light rain at the end of the trip.
The first leg of the trip was 4.4 nm from Owen Beach at Point Defiance Park to Chinese Reconciliation Park in Old Town. We took a short restroom break at the Les Davis Pier on the way. At Reconciliation Park, we started our crossing to Browns Point by first checking in with VTS. No traffic was reported close to us. The 1.9 nm crossing to Browns Point was uneventful. We stopped at Browns Point Park for lunch.
After lunch we departed Browns Point and headed 1.1 nm north to Dash Point. After reaching Dash Point, we started the 1.6 nm crossing to Piner Point by contacting VTS. We could not raise VTS, but did hear them report traffic to other vessels, so we continued the crossing without incident. We stopped at Piner Point for a short rest break at tent rock.
We then crossed the 1.8 nm mouth of Quartermaster Harbor headed south-southwest to Neill Point, and then proceeding west along the southern tip of Vashon Island to the Tahlequah ferry dock. We stopped there to explore public access to the beach below the ferry dock. The path to the beach is badly overgrown and blocked by Jersey barriers on the top.
Finally we started the 1.9 nm leg to Owen Beach avoiding the Pt. Defiance Ferry. We landed safely at Owen Beach on schedule. Before leaving the water we practiced rolling and rescues as is the custom on Tacoma Branch outings.