Saturday the 29th saw us waving farewell to Linda, as we departed Port McNeill to cross Queen Charlotte Strait. We were up by 0600, and motor-sailed out at 0700, getting a nice push from the ebb tide. By 1030 we were past abeam Port Hardy, mid-Straits, and northbound in Ripple Passage. Up to this point we'd encountered only a very light chop on the water in light winds, but as we neared the top end of Vancouver Island a bit of a westerly swell worked itself into our world. It was only 1 to 2 meter swells, but the rolling motion of the boat with little wind to steady things made my crew start to feel a bit queasy. By 1300 we were approaching our anchorage at Skull Cove, greeted by a raft of sea otters.....Kelcy by this time was feeling too sick to look at them. But inside the anchorage the seas calmed, and all became well again. It was a pretty spot, with good shelter, and we were the only boats (Summer Breeze rafted to us) in the anchorage. Shane and Kelcy borrowed the kayaks from Summer Breeze and had a good exploration of the shoreline.
Kayaking around Skull CoveNext morning (Sunday) saw us departing at 0630, following the mainland side of the Strait, past Cape Caution. We had a light following wind but still needed to motorsail to maintain speed. At one point we thumped against a very large log adrift but mostly submerged....no apparent damage, but a bit of a scare nonetheless. I called Comox Coast Guard off Cape Caution to say goodbye to my friends there, as we were leaving their Area of Responsibility. Egg Island Lighthouse passed us by on our starboard side, with the wind picking up a bit, we were able to gybe our sails onto a nice broad reach to our next destination at the entrance to Rivers Inlet. Anchored between Penrose and Fury Islands we had a great anchorage, shared by 4 other boats. Shell and sand beaches on the shore made the spot look a bit like a South Pacific island, but the cool temperatures and passing rainshowers reminded us where we really were. We were now officially into the Central Coast area of BC, with much of the open waters behind us (Inside Passage waters ahead, with myriad islands protecting us from much of the "Big Waters"). We dined on Summer Breeze with roast beef and steaks, and Ray introduced us to his newest drink invention, a martini made from Pyrat Rum and Drambuie - yum! There had been no seasickness on this part of the crossing, so things are looking up.
From Fury Cove, we continued next morning on a short sail northbound into FishEgg Inlet, and anchored in Joe's Bay. The protection here is amazingly good, and we felt quite snug and secure here as the winds outside increased to full gale force, but in the anchorage hardly raised a ripple.
The north end of the bay has an interesting set of tidal rapids, leading to a large lagoon. The turbulence from the waterfall/rapids creates foam in the seawater which drifts out for several miles.
Tidal Rapids/Waterfall, and foam. The green on Kelcy is her jacket...not motion sickness!We stayed here, safe from the gales outside, for two days, and managed to catch a couple of keeper-sized Dungeness crabs, as well as a pail of mussels for a steamed mussel dinner. In spite of the cool weather and incessant rainshowers, we managed to have some hot showers on deck, and clean up the boat a bit, as well as explore around the bay.
By late Wednesday morning, the gales had eased a bit, and we sailed out of Joe's Bay, and had a lovely beam and broad reach up FitzHugh Sound, arriving in mid afternoon at the deserted cannery town of Namu. Once a bustling cannery, and before that a native site (with 11,000 years of continuous habitation Namu is thought to be one of the oldest such sites in N. America), it is now a ghost town, falling back to nature. We met the entire population of the town, all three of them, within a few minutes of arriving at their dock. These three caretake what is left of the place for a vacant landlord. They have created amazingly rich gardens throughout the town, and many of their vegetables and flowers would rival those in Victoria. We were warned to watch for grizzly bears, however.....but the only four-footed creature we met was the caretaker's dog.
A walk around Namu.We had an evening fire in a rustic firepit area of the docks, and then retired fairly early.
Namu FirepitThe next day , Thursday, was again showery, but the wind was with us, and we sailed northwest with our sails out on either side, wing-on-wing. As we were entering Lama Pass, the BC Ferry "Northern Expedition" passed us by, apparently with my friend and ex co-worker, Art, aboard, on his way to his new posting in Prince Rupert. We passed by Bella Bella for a more promising dock a few miles east of there, in Shearwater. Here we luxuriated in hot showers, and made use of the laundry facilities, and pub. In fact, it was time for a dinner out, so we treated ourselves. In the pub after dinner, we met a couple from a commercial fishboat which had come from Comox. They were killing time on their way to a fishing opening in the Queen Charlotte Islands on June 15....so invited the five of us (Summer Breeze and the three of us) to go out on their boat and have a go at some sport fishing.
Adam and Jill on "Rennel Sound" made us very welcome, and we spent the entire day Friday trying to catch fish.....mostly to no avail - we managed to get two salmon on the line, but didn't land them, and ended up with a couple of rock cod.
A day on a Commercial Fishboat.
View aft from the flying bridge of Rennel SoundBeing Friday, there was a hockey game on - so off we went to the pub to watch the semi-final match between Chicago and Philadelphia. Likely the only game of the finals we will have been able to watch on tv. We treated ourselves to a prime rib dinner, and then back to the boat for a tidy up, and bed.
Tomorrow we continue our trek northward, toward Klemtu...although we will likely only get about halfway there. Summer Breeze is heading back south again, as we continue on our way. It will be sad to say goodbye to Ray and Kathy- they've been great adventure-mates!
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