Tacoma, WA and Quartermaster

Bored with our usual haunts, we planned a new adventure.  Two nights in Tacoma and our first time/night on anchor in Quartermaster.  We were able to book moorage with Foss Harbor Marina.  A lovely marina, with guest slips for temporary moorage typically available when permanent residents are away.  Nice bathrooms, showers, lounge area with patio and a little market with essentials.  Walking distance to downtown Tacoma with lots of restaurant choices.  Also short Uber ride to many Tacoma waterfront restaurants.  A highlight was The Point Defiance Zoo. Pretty grounds, and lots of interesting animals.  You are able to take the trolly or Uber as we did, and it's a short 5-10 minute drive.  

After our two nights in Tacoma we were ready for a more picturesque nature setting.  We set sail for a night on anchor in Quartermaster Harbor on Vashon Island.  We read in our cruising guide of two spots for good anchorage at Dockton Park  and Burton, all the way at the end of the passage.  We were a bit unsure of which area would be best so we ended up choosing Burton all the way at the end.  It was quite windy, 19k winds, but we did achieve successful anchorage around 2PM.  Winds died down and we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful Vashon surroundings and peaceful harbor.  Wind died down around dinner time.  Upon arrival we noticed we were in a dense residential area.  We needed to relieve our two whippets and after kayaking in to a nearby beach were greeted with a sign 'Please leave your address, and I will visit your home and have my dog poop in your yard.', so we started to get the impression visitors were not necessarily welcome on these beaches and are private property.  However, all beaches are in fact public in Washington.  There is a nearby private marina in the Burton area where we felt a bit more comfortable relieving our dogs.  However, next time we would stay by the Dockton Park which had more space for public usage.