~ Hello to everyone from Captain Dean, and welcome to our summer 2008 newsletter! ~

Chef Matt, Captain Dean, new crew member (and life-long Discovery resident) Heather, and co-Captain Samantha, at Meares Glacier

This summer season has seen some crew changes for us here on the Discovery and at our office.

Sarah Heck who has been onboard for the past 3 years has moved on. I was very concerned with loosing a crew member with Sarah's skill, work ethics, and personality. She is, without a doubt, the best crewmember I've ever had the good fortune to have working onboard.

Her crew position has been filled by my oldest daughter, Heather Rand now 19. Heather grew up onboard and is no stranger to life afloat in the wilds of Prince William Sound. As dad, I'm quite happy to have my children take a serious interest in what I do … day in day out. It's been great having Heather onboard taking part in everything from guiding on our hikes or kayak trips to baking cookies to cleaning or taking the helm. These must be some of my rewards for years of parenting.

Crew member Heather Rand

Brenda Roper, who has managed the Discovery Voyages sales & bookings for many years, is moving on to work full time in the art community of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Brenda has played a big part in developing the office including expanding our trip itineraries to include accommodations in Anchorage and promoting our more specialized Adventurer! and Hike & Kayak voyages. In the 8 years she has been with the Discovery our summer season has grown to having most of our trips sold to capacity. Her experience, knowledge, and grace will be missed.

Tess Stewart, a long time friend of the Rand family will take over as office manager by late August. Tess has been working with Brenda for the past several months and has been involved with many of the bookings already confirmed for 2009. She has also taken over many of the sales & marketing responsibilities including working on a new logo. Watch for hats in the future! Please give her a warm welcome. We expect the transition to go smoothly.

This year is also worth noting because of the unusual weather we've been having. There has been far more rain than we normally would have, some of the days have felt more like October than mid-summer, and we have encountered snow on more than a few of our hikes – up through July! It is shaping up to be the coldest summer on record. None-the-less, we are still doing what we do and everyone is still loving every minute of it.

I have included several of our 2008 group photos in this newsletter. See any familiar faces (besides Happy D. Dog)?

Good energy, much love,

Captain Dean

Paddling at Harvard Glacier

Drifting at

Paddle to Avery Waterfall

Hike to Eshamy Lake

Paddlers getting up close to Barry Glacier calving

Kayaking to Avery Waterfall

Celebrating at Columbia Glacier

Campfire at Point Pellew

Hello from Heather!

This is my first year officially working on the boat, and it's definitely a little bit harder than just hanging out and playing cards like I used to do. That aside, I'm really enjoying myself – meeting new people and learning everyone's unique story while showing them my “backyard” is not a bad job to have. It's amazing that you can grow up in a place, live there for nearly 20 years, and still have hundreds of things left to learn and be amazed by. I only have 2 more trips left this year, though, before I pack up and head to Anchorage for my first year of college. For those of you I'll miss: have fun out on the Discovery! And for those of you coming out next year: see you then!

Chocolate Pots de Crème (from Chef Matt Tocchini)

(serves 8)

10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine (Green & Blacks is recommended)

1 ½ cups heavy cream

¾ cups half-and-half

5 large egg yolks 5 tablespoons sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon instant espresso powder mixed with 1 tablespoon water

•  Place the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl, and set a fine-mesh strainer over the bowl.

•  Wisk the heavy cream, half-and-half, yolks, sugar, and salt together in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, until the custard thickens and is 175-180 degrees. (Takes 8-12 minutes.) DO NOT LET CUSTARD OVERCOOK.

•  Strain custard into the bowl of chocolate. Let the mixture sit to melt the chocolate (about 5 minutes). Whisk gently until smooth, then whisk in the vanilla and espresso. Divide the mixture evenly between 8 5-ounce bowls, and tap the bowls against the counter to remove any air bubbles.

•  Cool the bowls to room temperature before covering with plastic wrap and refrigerating until chilled (4 hours). (Can be left up to 72 hours.)

•  Before serving, let stand at room temperature for 20-30 minutes. Add whipped cream and garnish with chocolate shavings.