There be dolphins!

This is actually a shot of Pruth Harbour taken a week ago - I just though it looked good!

Turnbull Cove

We stayed in Turnbull Cove for 3 nights, waiting for summer.  It did not happen.
If you have to spend time waiting for the weather, there are few places that would be better than Turnbull Cove.  Even though the winds my be howling down Queen Charlotte and Johnston Straits, here it is always calm and peaceful.  We have been very lazy, getting up late, reading books and playing Monopoly (the card game), and watching the 2nd season of the TV show 24 (not that great).  Because the days have remained overcast, our solar panels have not been able to keep up - we probably could not do this for much more than a week without having to start the engine, unless we gave up our fridge, freezer or TV.  Still, not too bad.

Our anchorage here is quite near the site of an avalanche that occurred in 2005, nearly swamping a couple of boats that were anchored close by.  As one of the near victims expressed: "Of all the ways I've imagined dying on a boat, I never thought I'd be killed in a landslide."
These types of slide areas are actually very common throughout these waters.  Just one more thing to worry about.



Sullivan Bay

Today, we finally decided to move on, and we motored the 6 miles or so to Sullivan Bay, where we are paying for moorage for the first time since Shearwater.  They have a store where we can do some re-provisioning and a floating restaurant where we can indulge ourselves.

This is a very interesting (quirky) kind of place, with some very swanky looking float-homes.  Pretty isolated, so the owners (these are really just summer homes) commute via private yachts, planes or helicopters.  Odd seeing a landing pad on a house.

Normally this is a very busy marina in the summer with reservations recommended, but right now, it is almost empty.  Talking to the manager, it appears that the last couple of weeks of gale warnings in Johnston Strait have kept most of the boats from getting this far north.  They are really hurting here, so we are doing our part by consuing the somewhat pricey fare at the restaurant (although to be fare, the food is rather good).

We will probably stay here another day and then start moving further south again.  Tomorrow (Sunday) night is roast turkey dinner night, and that sounds pretty good to us right now.

Note: The big bonus today was when we were motoring a few miles out of Sullivan Bay, and were suddenly surrounded by a small pod of dolphins playing in our bow-wave and leaping along side the boat.  We have heard of them doing this but this is the first time we have had any such experience - moments like this make the whole trip worthwhile.  Unfortunately they did not stay long enough for me to get a camera organized, so I don't have any proof.

Misty Moments

Fog!

I forgot to mention that yesterday's excursion around Cape Caution was accompanied by fog. Not real bad, probably had almost a mile of visibility at all times, but combined with the dreary, overcast sky, it made it difficult to see what was coming in the busy waters around the Cape. As a result, we had the radar on for most of the way. We haven't had to use this much on this trip and it took a few minutes to remember how to get it turned on and synchronized with the chart plotter image, etc. Indeed, while I was fiddling with the settings, both Sue and I saw a boat approaching from our port side. Noting that this now corresponded with a small purple blob on our display, we started congratulating ourselves on our brilliant observation, when we noticed a much larger blob on our starboard side on the display. We looked up to see a huge ferry steaming past us. Boy, are we on the ball or what?

This morning, we left Blunden Harbour to continue our way southward down Queen Charlotte Strait. As soon as we left the shelter of the harbour, we were able to launch our genoa and had a nice, slow (maybe 3 knot average), two-hour sail to the start of Wells Passage, which we then motored up an into Grappler Sound and then through a couple of narrow channels to an anchorage called Turnbull Cove. While under sail we encountered more fog and had to resort to radar again for about an hour.

Turnbull Cove is a beautiful spot, completely land-locked and very protected from all winds - a big improvement over Blunden Harbour. It is also very busy. I counted 14 boats at anchor here, not including us (all but 3 are power boats). And since we were the last boat to arrive today, they were all treated to a little demonstration of our anchoring techniques - I am sure they were all impressed!

We may stay here a couple of nights so we can explore a nearby trail that is supposed to be worth a look. It would be nice if the weather would cooperate though; it has been overcast and cool for the last couple of days - not at all what we expected for the middle of summer.
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Back to Blunden

After waiting three nights in Frypan Bay, we felt we had a window of opportunity to make the rounding of the Cape.

Upped anchor at 6 AM and motored towards Cape Caution into light south winds (predicted NW of course). The forecast winds never appeared, which was probably just as well, and the only seas we had to contend with was a slightly confused 2 meter swell coming in from the SW. A bit rolly and uncomfortable being partially beam-on to the short swell (lots of thing flying around in the cabin), and the crew was caught feeding the fish as we approached the Cape around 10 AM.

After that, the going should have gotten better, but instead we encountered more and more following seas as we motored SE down Queen Charlotte Strait. It got really nasty as we passed the entrance to Slingsby Channel with a combination of a strong Ebb tide and big steep chop on top of the SW swell. Crew was again contemplating the side of the boat from close up. Still no wind.

We basically reversed the same course we used when going northward a few weeks ago, all the way to Blunden Harbour. A total of about 50 miles in just over 8 hours. We used the engine the entire way as there was no wind until we got within a couple of miles of the anchorage. And naturally it then started howling out of the north.
So here we sit, the boat being tossed around violently on the anchor, wondering if it will ever let up. But at least we are here safe and sound once again. Tomorrow we will try and find a more sheltered spot in the Boughton Islands somewhere.

Conversation overheard on the VHF today:

"Hey Joe, if you are coming this way, better get out your camera."
"Why is that?"
"I see a sailboat and it actually has a sail up!"

Nuff said?

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Out of the fire...

and into the Frypan!

Listening to the weather forecast, it appears that in the next few days we could be in for some large seas and high winds around the Cape. When we woke up this morning it was dead calm and the sun was shining in Pruth Bay but, based on the winds we had yesterday, it could get quite nasty here if the winds pick up in the afternoon again. We were securely anchored but it is not that much fun when the boat starts sailing back and forth on the chain when the NW winds start funneling in.

Looking at the charts, I found a promising anchorage on Penrose Island, much closer to Cape Caution, so if the opportunity arises for us to make a move in that direction, we will be well poised to take advantage. So this morning we upped the anchor and headed through Kwaksua Channel, back to Fitz Hugh Sound. Once we were in the Sound, the winds started to pick up and we were able to sail south for 2-1/2 hours on a single down-wind tack, on a bright sunny day, down and across the Sound and around the south end of Penrose Island.

Penrose Island is the place we first stayed when we came around the Cape in the other direction. But this time, instead of pulling into Fury Cove on the west side (the most popular spot for most boats to wait out bad weather at the Cape), we motored up the east side of the island and dropped the anchor in Frypan Bay.

Frypan Bay is a completely land-locked cove, with good protection from all winds, especially the forecast NW winds. Indeed, this turns out to be beautiful spot. We have the anchor down in about 55 feet of water, with lots of swinging room on all sides. There is only one other boat in the bay and he is a long way away from us.

While the winds whistle out in the Sound, here we are just getting the odd gusts (from seemingly random directions) and we are confident we could handle anything the weather gods could throw at us. Listening to the updated forecasts, it appears we may have to hole up here for a few days before making any move to round the Cape. But we have lots of food, the solar panels are keeping our batteries fully charged, and it is a lovely spot to hang around. The sun is still shining and we are almost warm again.

One additional note. As we were rounding the south end of Penrose Island, and entering a narrow channel between two smaller islands, a whale surfaced right in front of us. We only got the one glimpse of it before it spouted and dove, probably right under us. We proceeded very slowly and cautiously up the channel but he never reappeared.
In the bay, we have only seen a couple of seals, and the usual bird life so far.

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The Truth about Pruth

The Pacific

Today we left our beautiful, secure anchorage in the McNaughton Group to venture out into the open Pacific.  Instead of the usual NW winds, we found ourselves facing a light south wind instead, right on the nose.

The bad thing about a light south wind is that we really could not sail at all.
The good thing is that there was virtually no nasty wind-waves to contend with, just a somewhat confused westerly swell coming in from Japan or Hawaii or somewhere out there.  A little uncomfortable but not particularly exciting.

The dinghy was quite happy riding on the deck, although I don't think it would have been any worse off being dragged along behind in these conditions.

We made it OK to Pruth Bay on the northern tip of Calvert Island by 1 PM, and are anchored very securely.  Good thing too, as the wind did get blowing a bit in here - I am not convinced that Pruth Bay is as protected as I was led to believe.

The weather is a bit cool and overcast and we are getting pretty tired of being cold all the time.  What happened to summer?  Maybe it is always like this up here.  NOTE: While it seems we are so far north, sometimes it is easy to forget that we are actually considerably south of our old home in Edmonton, closer to the latitude of Red Deer.

The forecast for the next few days does not sound too encouraging - overcast with chances of showers and a bit too much wind for a comfortable sail around Cape Caution.  So we may be lingering around this area for a while.

The Rocky Road

We spent a day in Codville Lagoon with full intentions of exploring the trail to Sagar Lake. The day started a little overcast but promising. However, it just got colder and started to rain for most of the afternoon. Not our idea of ideal hiking weather. So we sat around and read books and entertained ourselves as best we could. One of the seals in the cove was quite entertaining, splashing around, chasing fish we assume. Interesting that on the first day we had 10+ boats anchored in the cove - now there are only 2 left - how do they know the weather is going to turn nasty? - do they have access to some sort of weather info that we do not?

Today, we decided to make a break from these extremely protected waters and try our luck on the open ocean (sort of). We left in the morning, in relatively calm winds, and motored across Fisher Channel and on into Lama Passage, following exactly the same route on which we had our mechanical mishap last week. They say if you fall off your boat, you should just jump back on and tempt fate some more.
Everything went ok this time.

At the middle of Lama Passage, we now made a left turn into Hunter Channel (instead of continuing to Bella Bella and Shearwater). This channel leads out to the Pacific.

As soon as we entered the channel, we were able to kill the engine and sail for almost an hour down wind, making 4 to 5 knots, right on course. After we exited the channel we had to turn west, directly into the now 10 to 15 knot winds, so we just doused the sail and fired up the trusty motor. This part of the coast is a minefield of rocks and reefs and I felt we needed the added maneuverability that we get when using the engine.

We picked our way through the labyrinth of islands, islets, rocks, reefs, etc. until we were able to round the south end of McNaughton Island, then back north to a very cozy inlet where we tucked in for the night.

This is a very beautiful and rugged area and there are absolutely no other cruising boats around - kind of nice after the busy anchorages we have been experiencing lately (When you are used to having places to yourself, even 2 boats is 2 too many).

We explored some of the immediate area with the dinghy before stowing it on deck. This is the first time we have tried this on this trip, and is a prelude to what could be some rougher waters tomorrow as we attempt to go outside of the rest of these treacherous rocks and make our way south to Pruth Bay. Should be exciting!
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Codville Revisited

What a difference a day makes.

Last evening, when the winds finally calmed down, the sun came out. It would have been quite nice except for the deer flies. I would call them horse flies except there are no horses around here (actually I could think of some worse things to call them) - they basically made it uninhabitable in the cockpit. So we sat inside, with most of the windows closed and watched DVDs. Not our favorite anchorage.

This morning, we made an early start, paid a brief visit to the nearby Sir Alexander Mackenzie Rock for a little history, then motored back down Dean Channel.

There was not a breath of wind the entire morning and by noon we had motored all the way out of Dean Channel, into Fisher Channel and back to Codville Lagoon, the anchorage that we stayed at just prior to our mechanical problems. When we were here last, we had the entire place to ourselves, except for one late arrival on the 2nd day of our stay. This time we are sharing the back cove with 7 other boats. I guess the cruising season has really started now.

This is a very nice place, and the weather has turned for the better, so we may stay another day and check out the trail to Sagar Lake. Some fellow cruisers have told us is worth a visit.
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Spirited Sailing

Yes, we did some sailing today.

Up and gone by 6 AM to catch high-water slack at Gunboat Passage at 8:15, then proceeded to Dean Channel. As soon as we entered Dean Channel we encountered a following SW breeze and immediately launched our Genoa. After a couple of hours drifting along at 3-1/2 knots, the wind freshened, and we soon found ourselves handling more and more waves as well as wind. The winds kept rising until, by 1:30 PM, we were surfing in 25 to 30 knots downwind, making a boat speed of 8 knots through the water at times (although with the current against us we only achieved about 7 knots over ground), with lumpy seas from every direction - quite uncomfortable but we were making good time.

By 2:00 PM, we were in Elcho Harbour (a pretty little 2-mile long fiord) and had the anchor down in about 70 feet of water, and were mostly out of the wind. All in all, we sailed for about 4-1/2 hours, all of it in the direction we wanted to go. And we covered almost 40 miles. Yee-haa!

Now, looking at the charts, it appears the only way out of here is basically back the way we came, and we can expect the same wind pattern tomorrow. So we will get up early again so we can motor back down the channel before we have to face the nasty wind and waves on the nose. A bit of a cop-out I know, but it is really not that much fun trying to fight upstream in these narrow fiords.
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Turning Point

Yesterday I plotted a long course north up Finlayson Channel, continuing on the traditional Inside Passage route. We planned on an early start and expected to be motoring the entire way, into the prevailing NW winds.

This morning, we slept in and were greeted by a gloomy, overcast sky that did not make us eager to go anywhere. So, after some discussion about what we wanted to achieve on this trip, we decided that we have gone far enough for now. I started up the diesel heater to get some of the chill out of the cabin, while Susanne baked up some fudge brownies. As all the other boats in the harbour left, we stayed put and just relaxed.
By 10 AM the skies cleared off and the sun came out and we had a really pleasant day, keeping an eye out for all of the wildlife (mostly bears) that we were assured would be plentiful here. Nothing appeared.

Tomorrow, our intent is to start heading back south, visiting some of the places we skipped on the way up. We have been making a list of things we need to do when we get back to Nanaimo and the list is getting long enough that we now feel we need to be back there by mid-August to accomplish them all, so that is the new plan. We just don't think we have enough time to do a trip further north, or around Vancouver island, any justice. And we are really looking forward to doing some sailing for a change, as we should be able to take advantage of those NW winds and the relaxed time-table for our return trip.

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Sine Timore Rides Again

Four nights in Shearwater and a couple of boat-bucks later, we are again mobile.

The engine mounts have been welded up (and somewhat reinforced), and we have replaced the flexible disk coupler which was squeezed in between the transmission and the prop shaft. This coupler probably saved the day, as it took up the flex in the drive when the engine fell, sacrificing itself in the process, as it is designed to do. This is the part that we had to wait for 2 days to get shipped in from Vancouver. It is not the cheapest piece of rubber in the world, but well worth it.

So, this morning, after a final breakfast at the resort, we motored for a couple of hours north, to Wigham Cove on Yeo Island - sort of a test for the engine and drive-train, and to get us back in the habit of anchoring again.
So far, so good. Actually, the engine seems to be quieter and have less vibration now than it ever did before - maybe this is a good sign.

As for Shearwater, we were really impressed with everybody there. The harbour master was great at getting us a place to stay for as long as we needed, the mechanics were very quick and hard-working. All of the staff treated us very well. If we had to have problems, there are a lot of worse places we could have been. We highly recommend it, if you are ever up this way.

Wigham Cove turns out to be a very nice anchorage, with only a few hazards to avoid when coming in. We have a spot with lots of swinging room and a well-set anchor, which always makes for a restful night, even if the winds do come up later. A note in one of our cruising guides mentions that the bottom is stinky mud known locally as `loon shit`. I guess we will face that when we pull the chain up tomorrow.

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Disaster at sea!

When things go wrong, they really go wrong!

After a quiet night in Codville Lagoon, we decided to head towards Shearwater.  Leaving the anchorage around noon, we first circled around Codville Island which is in the center of the Lagoon.  As we came to the west side, we were hit by some pretty nasty winds and the weather seemed to be turning for the worse and we were not even in the open strait yet, so we decided to just keep going around the island, and ultimately ended up anchoring right where we started.  Total mileage about 2.7 for the day.

The next morning, the weather seemed much calmer, so we headed out of the Lagoon, back into Fitz Hugh Sound and, about an hour later, into Lama Passage, a relatively narrow channel that would lead us to the settlements of Bella Bella and Shearwater.

As soon as we entered the passage, strange noises started coming from the engine compartment.  A quick survey seemed to indicate that the Raw Water pump was failing.  We quickly turned off the engine and attempted to sail upwind through the passage, while I attempted to further assess the damage.  It became apparent that the pump was OK but was its pulley was rubbing against the thru-hull fitting that should not have been that close to it.  Thinking that the raw water pump mount must be bending, I jury-rigged a quick fix with some lumber to hold the two apart, allowing us to run the engine although it still did not sound too good.

Fighting a now 20 knot wind against us, and some building seas and pouring rain that suddenly came from nowhere, we managed some slow progress up the channel to the nearest anchorage I could find on the chart - a place called Fancy Cove.  We managed to get the sails down and get into the cove where we got the anchor down.  This was not a great anchorage for the prevailing winds, but better than nothing.

While the boat wandered around on its tether, I further assessed the damage, only to discover that the problem we much worse than I originally thought - one of the front engine mounts had snapped in half, explaining why the front of the engine had dropped so far down to allow the pump pulley to come into contact with the thru-hull fitting.  The pulley had managed to carve a pretty good grove in the soft bronze fitting, fortunately not all the way through as yet - the pulley itself seemed to be perfectly OK.

As we were only about 10 miles from Shearwater, I decided we could get there under our own steam with a little more jury-rigging.  I rigged a block and tackle from an outside cleat, through the overhead hatch and connected to the top of the engine to allow me to lift it to approximately the right height.  This solved the raw water pump issue but left the prop shaft somewhat unaligned - not much more I could do for it though.

In the morning, after a restless night, we got away about 7 AM to take advantage of the perfectly calm conditions that usually persist at that time.  Indeed, we had no wind at all and the seas were flat.  Although we could only motor at severely reduced RPM, we were able to limp all the way to the Shearwater Marina by about 9:30, where they found us a spot near the mechanics. Fortunately for us, this is the only place between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert that has any major marine repair ability.  When we took a really good look at the problem, it became obvious that both of the front engine mounts had broken - I'm not sure what was holding the engine up before I got my block and tackle on it.

By the end of the day, we had the engine lifted up, the broken pieces of the mounts off and re-welded (and hopefully a little better reinforced) and had the engine back down again.  As I write this, we are awaiting another mechanic who will attempt to get our prop shaft re-aligned - the way it is now we would not get far.

On the down side, we are somewhat stressed out.

On the plus side, the weather has turned quite pleasant again and they have a restaurant and pub here.

BTW - Since I have found internet access here, I have added a couple of pictures onto the last couple of posts, reflecting happier times.

Northern Exposure

How to describe the wilderness up here?

Yesterday, we wanted to sail but there was no wind. So we made a short day of it and just motored a couple of hours up to Fish Egg Inlet, and into a small anchorage called "Joe's Bay". We had the whole place to ourselves and took the opportunity to explore a bit with the dinghy.

At the head of the bay is a narrow channel that leads to Elizabeth Lagoon, but it is only passable at high water slack - the rest of the time it is a raging rapid. High water slack for us would have been at 11:15 PM, so we had to be content with just getting close to the waterfall during the day. The turbulent waters create a mass of foam, which runs like a river through the bay, forming what look like bergy-bits all around the boat - very different setting.
Sitting on the boat in the calm of the evening, the only sounds are the fish jumping as a lively seal is chasing them back and forth around us.

Today, we traveled a bit further north, about 30 miles in just over 5 hours, engine on the entire way. With the complete lack of wind it is hard to figure why we need a sailboat at all. We spotted whales (most likely humpbacks) on three occasions, but always at a fair distance off - they seem to prefer the shallower water along the edges of the channel and we are usually out in the middle somewhere.
We are anchored tonight in Codville Lagoon, a marine park just off Fitz Hugh Sound. This is yet again another incredibly beautiful spot. We have a little bay mostly to ourselves (one other boat did just come in), and you can sit in the cockpit and just watch nature at its best. Again, a seal is entertaining us by splashing all about, chasing some schools of fish, often scaring them into mass jumps out of the water. Sort of eerie - kind of reminds us of the movie "Lake Placid", expecting to see some monster sea creature emerge at any moment.
The hawks are circling and swooping down to catch fish about 40 feet behind our boat right now - impressive.

So here we are, in the midst of mother nature, living a primitive life on a small boat, in the middle of nowhere. I would say we are really back to basics except I notice we have had the inverter on for the last 6 hours to charge the electric toothbrush.
For the record, the last two days have been very hot, between 25 and 30 degrees in the afternoon - quite a change from a couple of weeks ago.
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Long Day

And just like that, it was gone!

We started early today with the intent of reaching Allison Harbour before the strong NW winds started up. We motored with a very slight SE following wind (not enough to sail with) and reached Allison by 8:30 AM, so with the conditions so benign, we decided to press forward and attempt the dreaded Cape Caution today.

Once we were out of Queen Charlotte Strait and into Queen Charlotte Sound, we were completely exposed to the Pacific swells coming in from Japan, and they made their presence known, rocking and rolling the boat in every which direction. The crew made it almost all the way to the Cape before feeding the fish (first time on this trip). The winds stayed away and we continued on past the cape until we were back in the protected waters of Fitz Hugh Sound, shielded by Calvert Island, before anchoring for the night in Fury Cove on Penrose Island. 9-1/2 hours altogether with all but 1-1/2 using the engine - a total of 46 miles. This is a long day for us as we are used to little 15 or 20 mile days.

Shortly after getting settled in the cockpit with our sun-screen on and drinks in hand, we were treated to a tail-thumping exhibition by a humpback whale, just outside the entrance to our bay. Talking to the people on the other 2 boats in the anchorage, they tell us that the whale was right in the bay earlier in the day - maybe he will come back at high tide to let us get a closer look.
Weather is spectacular right now, about 25 degrees and calm with lots of blue sky. Not sure where we will go tomorrow - just follow the wind I guess.
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The Best Laid Plans...

After much discussion between executive officers and crew, we decided to play it safe today.
We listened to the marine weather forecast diligently, noting that there would be strong NW winds today that we really did not want to be fighting. Instead, we decided to get up early while everything is calm, motor out into the strait, and then do a nice down-wind sail back to Claydon Bay (where we had come from prior to Port Hardy). In this way, we would actually be able to enjoy the sailing and maybe come back this way again in a few days, when the winds were more favorable.

So, early this morning, we made a spectacular exit from the marina. The watching crowds were complimenting me on the smart way I got the boat turned around in the channel that honestly did not look wide enough to do so - I didn't have the heart to tell them it was completely unintentional. All's well that ends well.

We made a quick trip to the nearby commercial fuel dock to top up our diesel (the hose was just a little larger than the deck opening on the boat, resulting in a bit of a environmental disaster - I think it was designed for fueling up mega-freighters or something).

Then out we went into the Queen Charlotte strait again. The winds were, of course, coming from the east - exactly the direction we had decided to go. We sailed for about an hour, close-hauled into the wind, until the wind died completely and the waters became a smooth, glassy surface. Wind, what wind?

So change of plan. We motored the relatively short distance directly across the strait to Blunden Harbour, where we had the anchor down in time for lunch. The weather has turned really nice. About 25 degrees and blue sky all around. What a treat to sit in the cockpit, having a cold drink (drinks from the refrigerator and ice from the freezer), courtesy of our solar panels that have us fully charged up every day by early afternoon, no matter what we throw at them. Pretty sweet!

The NW wind has come up in the late afternoon, which seems to be the pattern we have noticed for the last few days.
Tomorrow we will probably get up early again and try to use the calm morning (and hopefully more light east winds) to make our way further NW up the strait, finding an anchorage before the gale force winds hit in the afternoon. In this manner, we may be able to get safely around the dreaded "Cape Caution" the next day.

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The Waiting Game

Here we are, still in Port Hardy.

The weather has finally settled into its typical summer configuration (so we are told), with a high pressure ridge just off the Vancouver Island western shore.  This produces nice clear skies and reasonably warm temperatures, but also brings s steady NW wind.

We made the mistake of listening to the skippers of a couple of boats that have just come back from up north, telling tales of strong winds and high seas as they fought their way down Queen Charlotte Sound. And they were going with the wind as they approached Port Hardy - we will have to beat our way against the flow if we want to make it around the infamous "Cape Caution".
Actually, we do have a choice of going around the northern tip of Vancouver Island instead (as we did 5 years ago) - we would just have to fight those same winds till we rounded the infamous "Cape Scott" instead.  Sort of between a rock and a hard place.

So here we sit, waiting for a weather window and also, incidentally, pinned down in the marina as long as the winds keep blowing us onto the dock (our boat does not do well in reverse with contrary winds).  As a result, we have had to settle for walking around the town, admiring the circling eagles, and trying some of the local trails; these have turned out to be surprisingly interesting.

We spent one afternoon hiking along the Quatsi River to the salmon hatchery, where we got a very personal tour of the facility (owing to the fact that few people were willing to trek all that way in the, at the time, iffy weather).  Of course, we did not know where we were going and neglected to take a camera along, so you will just have to take our word for it that we were there.

Port Hardy, by the way, is not the most prosperous looking place.  I guess the copper mine closed down some 10 years ago and the population has been shrinking ever since.  Strangely enough though, the property that we see for sale does not seem to be all that cheap - go figure.

While the temperature outside is not too bad for Port Hardy (low 20s), the wind continues to feel a little cool, so sunbathing has been kept to a minimum.  This morning, in addition to the wind, the strait looked a little fogged in, which did not make it any more appealing.  Sometimes we start asking ourselves why we are really doing this - maybe we should have just headed south instead.

We are hoping that tomorrow morning there will be a nice lull in the winds and we can cast off.  We shall see.

The Eagle Has Landed

Back in civilization again.

Yesterday we decided to make the run across Queen Charlotte Strait to Port Hardy.  After our experience with Johnstone Strait, we were prepared this time; everything was thoroughly battened down and we had our rough weather gear on, ready for a challenging day of sailing in the open strait.

Needless to say, this did not happen.  Dead calm and glassy seas made for a quiet motor-only day, covering the 30 miles in less than 5 hours.  Upon arrival in Port Hardy, we were able to snag a spot in the Quarterdeck Marina and made good use of the accompanying pub for supper.

One of the startling sights here has been the huge eagles (think large turkeys with wings), that like to perch on any high object and stare at you like you are some kind of tasty rodent - very intimidating!
This poor boat next door has the honor of hosting a full-time resident at the top of his mast, basically destroying any of the equipment that was up there.  We are right next to him and are only hoping the beast is not eyeing our mast as a slightly better vantage point.
So far, so good.

Since we have a decent internet connection here, I will go back and add some pictures to the previous posts, just in case you can't visualize everything from my elaborate descriptions.

Change in plans

We left Simoom Sound this morning right on time and motored for all but about 10 minutes (not enough wind for our heavy boat) all the way to Sullivan Bay, only to find that the marina was full - reservations required. I guess the long weekend is not the time to show up unexpected around here. On that note, we were amazed at how many boats there are here, about a 50/50 mix of sail and power - we are not used to seeing so many. Last time we came up here, in a cool September, we felt like we were the only people alive. Not so now!
Bypassing Sullivan Bay, we made our way to a nearby anchorage at Claydon Bay, where we will plan our next move.
On the plus side, we were settled on the anchor by 2 PM, so Susanne took the opportunity to bake some bread. I don't think she made bread more than twice in the over 20 years we lived in our house in Edmonton, so this is quite an event. Turned out fantastic too.
So once again, life is good.

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Lazy Days

On the last day of June, the weather changed for the better. The sun was out and the winds were calm. We found that the little cove were are in is one of the most picturesque we have ever seen and, while we see quite a few boats passing by at a distance, we still have this place completely to ourselves. We took the dinghy out and explored the surrounding shore, especially interesting at low tide. Exploration on land is limited as the woods here seem to be completely impenetrable. We found a small creek emptying into the bay, with a small waterfall just upstream, but had to admire it from a distance as we were not willing to tackle the rough terrain to get closer.

On one of the little islands that we did land on, Susanne had a close encounter with an enraged hummingbird; I thing it was just attracted to the bright red life jacket she had on at the time. Really though, this was one of the largest hummingbirds we have ever seen and it made a noise not unlike a WW II fighter plane as it zoomed around.

Today we were originally going to go on the village at Sullivan Bay, but because it is July 1st, and our cruising guides suggest that it can be very busy on Canada Day, and especially on the 4th of July (lots of U.S. boats up here), we elected to wait till tomorrow to slip in, in between the two holidays.

Today, while I did some more exploration in the dinghy, Susanne remained on the boat and was rewarded with the site of a Mama bear and her cub walking along the shore behind the boat. I was, at the time, out of site around a outcrop of land. observing an eagle attempting to dive bomb some unwary fish. All in all, it has been a great place to spend another day, although today we never saw the sun, and it is starting to rain as I write this.

Tomorrow will be even better I think.

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