Bunsby Island to Klaskino Anchorarge

July 5,2007

We left the anchorage and the other boats at sleep and made an early run around Brooks Peninsula, Solander Island, and Cape Cook. This passage can be nasty so we wanted to make our rounding before the forecast afternoon NW head winds built. We had calm, flat seas until approaching Solander Island when the wind started to build, and we were getting some spray in the cockpit, but Teal rode it out in good order. When we rounded Solander the wind and seas laid back down and we had a smooth, dry reach over the 6 to 8 foot swells into Klaskish Inlet.

We went through the very narrow passage into totally protected Klaskish Basin (50° 15.361’ N / 127° 44.007’ W), and took one of the three unoccupied floating moorings. There was a fishing party on an aluminum charter boat tied to the other.

We kicked back, watched seagulls vying for space on a single drying rock, and numerous eagles diving for herring, and enjoyed the warm afternoon sun and a peaceful evening/night on the mooring.

July 6, 2007

Awoke to a great sunny morning and listening to our satellite radio of a slow speed chase on I-5 in the “Grape Vine” vicinity of southern California, as we cruised along – closest we’ve been to highway traffic since we left Bellingham in May.

We had a smooth passage through the reef into Klaskino Inlet, and through Scouler Pass to a beautiful anchorage (50°18.400’ N / 127°48.620’ W).







We set the crab and prawn traps before anchoring and kicking back to enjoy the scenery in the warm sun. This summer stuff is all right, for a change.




More to come,

George and Joanne

Kyuquot to Bunsby Islands

July 4, 2007

About the time we were getting ready to shove off for Bunsby Islands, Roly and Marianne on Tropic Isle came into the cove and tied to the dock. We visited with them for a while. He brought Marianne here to catch the plane and head back to work. We missed having a chance to get to know her. She’ll be back with Roly before the summer is over, so maybe our paths will cross again.

Late morning we headed out in a light drizzle for the Bunsby’s. It was a fairly smooth run and the sun was breaking through.

After getting through the passage through the reefs, we saw some interesting sea caves and water falls along the way. This is just one of several equally spectacular grotto's.

There are two nice coves in the Bunsby Islands, we took the west nook (50° 05.943’ N / 127° 31.557’ W). There was a US Grand Banks 32 at anchor in the cove and shortly after we set the hook, a US sailboat came in and anchored. It must be summer as we are seeing more and more boats, most all heading south. It really felt good to bask in the warm sunshine for a change.

Mid afternoon Roly came in and pulled along side, held up about a 35 pound Smiley (Canadian for spring run Chinook Salmon) and said “You want some?” I replied, ”Certainly.” He moved a short distance to anchor and cut up the fish. The skippers from the other two boats, who had been communicating with him on HAM radio, went over to Tropic Isle and visited for a while. After they left Roly put his skiff in the water and came over with a large hunk of that fish.

The three of us dined on that beautiful salmon and had a wonderful evening talking about our adventures. Roly has been cruising British Columbia Waters for 40 years, and routinely cruises north along the west coast of Vancouver Island to the inside waters of the Broughton Islands, where we first met him at Joe Cove two years ago, and north coast of British Columbia.

Roly returning to his boat after dinner)

More to come,

George and JoAnne

Dixie Cove to Kyuquot

July 1, 2007

Awoke to a marine layer with the promise of a fair day. Our cove companions had already departed and were on their way south.

We pulled anchor around 9 am and stopped to retrieve the trap. 35 prawns…

and some super jumbos. Good eatin’ tonight!

We had a great passage into Kyuquot thru the section of water locals call the Rock Garden.

The sun was out and the scenery was beautiful. Canada Day!

George spotted two humpbacks broaching. I grabbed the camera, and caught the hump of one just before he showed his full tail and disappeared under the surface.

We arrived in Walters Cove (50° 01.593 N / 127°22.509’ W) mid afternoon threading our way in around rocks and shallow water. We’re amazed that floatplanes and the freighter Uchuck III meander in thru this same channel.

We tied Teal to one of floats on each side of the well-designed and free-of-charge public dock. Everyone we encountered was smiling and commenting about the sunshine and the possible arrival of summer after all.

The little community of Kyuquot at Walters Cove is just hanging on to what’s left after the demise of the logging and fishing economies. The little store is restocked every Thursday when the Uchuck III brings freight, passengers, and the necessities to keep a small village operating. The store is open 7 days a week from 1:00 to 6:00 PM and we noted shoppers landing and departing on the docks throughout the afternoon. Miss Charlie’s restaurant is the only place to launder clothes and take a shower. Sam the owner only serves dinner to passengers that accompany supplies on the Uchuck III every Thursday.

Summer was to be short lived. There we sat for three days waiting for the southeast gales to calm down and the rain to let up. We learned that what we thought was fog, was really “rain thick” according to our new friend Mike, fisherman and resident of Kyuquot.

More to come,

George and JoAnne

Queen Cove to Dixie Cove

June 28, 2007

It was only a 25-mile passage to Dixie Cove, so we didn’t get going as early as we usually do. After collecting our trap with 18 small prawns, we went through Rolling Roadstead and around Obstruction Reef. Before heading up the coast to Mc Quarrie Islets, we turned into Clear Passage, and along the somewhat sheltered water behind the Barrier Islands. By the time we made Mc Quarrie Islets the wind had built to the point where we were surfing off good-sized swells at up to 9 knots. (5.5 is Teal’s standard speed). After we made our turn into clear passage, the swell diminished but the winds kept building as did our speed. By the time we passed Grogan Rock, a nasty looking 23-foot pinnacle that captures one’s attention, and rounded Rugged Point, it was blowing near gale with rain sheeting off the main sail like a waterfall. Timing is so critical in this part of the world. We have noted that so far on our cruise along the coast there has been a weather change after 6 to 8 hours of fair weather.

The further into Kyuquot Sound we got the calmer it became. When we entered Dixie Cove (50°03.241’ N / 127°12.283’ W) it was just as reported in the cruising guides, “completely protected and dead calm.” We anchored on a mirror-like surface in a misting rain and counted our blessings.

Later another boat, a Catalina 36, came in and anchored. Although we haven’t seen many cruising boats thus far, the numbers have been slowly increasing as the season ages. As we go north we encounter more folks circumnavigating Vancouver Island in the other direction.

June 29, 2007

Sun upon arising in spite of rain thru the night. The sky promised a fair day, but that was not to be. We headed to Fair Harbor and planted the prawn trap in 350 feet on the way in. By the time we arrived at the public dock (50° 03.241’ N / 127° 06.970’ W), the rain was coming down.

We tied to the dock and went up to the “Swan Song” store and visited with the owner. She gave us a weather report off the net, as the VHF weather station isn’t accessible in this part of the Sound. We headed back to the boat to have lunch and watched boats from all around coming in for Friday fuel, as the truck had just made its delivery. This is the only fuel between Zeballos and Winter Harbor. Fair Harbor services the Indian Village boats as well as fishing boats operating in the area. We considered the propane situation and decided to top off the tank we were currently using as we weren’t sure we could refill it at Kyuquot. (As it turned out, we would not have been able to.)

We headed back to Dixie Cove to sit out the storm. Upon entering we passed Sestina a Catalina 390 anchored in the outer cove. We went back and anchored in our same spot in the inner cove. The Catalina 36 had departed while we were gone. Before too long Sestina’s skipper, Mike approached Teal in his dinghy, inquiring about the water depth. He and his wife June who was celebrating her 78^th birthday brought Sestina in to join us in the inner cove. We spent time with them the following day sharing adventures. They have been cruising waters all over the world for the last 50 years. They had some great stories to tell. By the time we left their boat, the sky was breaking into blue… Maybe we would see the blue moon afterall – NOT! By nightfall the clouds came back in and we had sprinkles – again!

More coming,

George and JoAnne

Zeballos to Queen Cove

June 27, 2007

Wednesday morning we had a nice visit with the lady at the fuel dock. We told her how cute the sea otters were and she rolled her eyes. It seems the otters were re-implanted here a few years ago as they had become extinct many years back due to over hunting for the pelts. That was a long time ago. Well, there is a group flying over the area, hired to count those little critters. They were up to 600 and told her that they expected another 1800 before the count was done. This is a problems for the fishermen, and those abalone and crab lovers among us, cause these “cute” little creatures are devastating the sea life. Yea for man’s interference with nature!

We loaded up with fuel and good spring water and headed off to our prawn trap at the bend. We were quite pleased to find a decent catch. Three dozen prawns with half being jumbos. Yea for the cat food!

The trip started out in good weather but by the time we set the prawn trap went into Queen Cove the weather was deteriorating. The converted gillnet boat we moored next to at Tofino was anchored in the cove. The folks that live on her appeared to be teamed up with a dive boat that was diving in the area. We saw them diving as we headed up the coast the next day.

We saw a bear foraging along the beach as we sounded the cove (49dg 52.929' N / 126dg 58.980' W) for a good anchor site out of the wind. After getting anchored and getting settled in we had a wonderful dining experience on those succulent hand-sized prawns.

More to come,

George and JoAnne

Tahsis to Zeballos

June 26, 2007

Awoke to fair skies. After visiting with a group of sailors, that came in yesterday from Deep Bay Yacht Club doing a circumnavigation of Vancouver Island, we collected our full propane bottle and topped off our water tanks, We then cast off for Zeballos, via Tahsis Narrows. What a beautiful passage it is through the narrows, very park like. (Sorry no Photo opportunities.)

After turning north up Zeballos Inlet we came across several sea otters floating on their backs and a bear foraging at the mouth of a creek all at the same time. Jo didn’t know just where to focus the camera.

The otters were too fast for our digital camera, but we did get two.

We set the prawn trap in about 350 feet before going into the small craft harbor at Zeballos (49dg 58.717' N / 126dg 50.653' W) and securing moorage. After getting squared away we went to town to look around and stretch our legs.

This is “supposedly” where the TV series Northern Exposure was filmed – Cicily Alaska look alike. That’s according to the guide book, but narry a soul in town could confirm that fact. Most of them were surprised at the inquiry. Granted the show was on a long time ago, and some of them weren’t living here then, but interestingly they weren’t a bit impressed they were living in an area of infamy. Very low key these folks, in this remote rustic, old gold mining village.

We found this cute park along the inlet named, none other than, Golden Gate Park. As you can see by the photo, it has a different “urban” setting than the one in San Francisco. (see picture)

The showers here were working, but they didn’t have hot water either, much the same as Ahousat. Cold showers were free. We proceeded to the well stocked, albeit small, grocery store and stocked up on fresh veggies and other essentials for the anchoring days ahead. We purchased cat food, as we were told that the smell on top of the bait container would start the prawn attraction to the trap. We were soon to learn that this just might have been the success of our next two retrievals.

More to come,

George and JoAnne

Thank you Jennifer

We would like all to know how much we appreciate the effort our daughter Jennifer has mustered not only as editor extraordinaire, but also producer and director of our blog.

Thank you Jenni, we are forever grateful.

George and JoAnne

Port Alice/Rumble Beach

Got a call from G&J when they arrived in Port Alice. Foiled again - no wireless! They plan to round Cape Scott by Friday, then on to Bull Harbour heading for Port Hardy arriving by Saturday night - they will undoubtedly have internet there. And hopefully won't have to beg for electricity or use multiple extension cords linked end to end just to charge the batteries.

This is wildnerness folks!!!

Stay tuned for some REAL updates sometime this weekend.


~Jennie
(guest blogger and editor extraordinaire)

Winter Harbour

George and Joanne arrived in Winter Harbour this weekend (7/7/07~! lucky!). Lucky, that is except for the lack of internet access.... with a population of 20, it's not shocking. They were launderin' it up and waitin' out the rain - it's far from the 'end of the road' for G&J so... watch for updates sooooon!

Jennie
(guest blogger & editor extraordinaire!)

Kyuqot Sound Update (alt. title: Oh Canada!)

Due to lack of internet - I'm guest blogging a short update for George & JoAnne.

Mom and Dad are currently at Kyuquot Sound.






When they move out, once the rain subsides, they will be heading for Winter Harbor (population:20!) to arrive in approximately 3 days weather permitting.

They will round the top of Victoria Island toward Port Hardy where they will provision (buy food and supplies), and update the blog before heading North again, internet access permitting.


I spoke to Mom on Sunday evening and got the update about the sleepy little sound and the adventures involved in not getting internet, practically divining for water (with Toonies), "pirating" electricity (and getting caught), and not paying through the nose to rush through a load of laundry.

Oh! and it was Canada day when they arrived!!!! Oh Canada!... give those cruisers a break!! ^-^

ta ta!
Jennie

Bligh Cove to Tahsis

June 24, 2007

We awoke to broken skies with occasional sun breaking through, and after breakfast headed for Tahsis at the end of Tahsis Inlet Via a passage through the Spanish Pilot Group. We had a mixture of sunshine and showers along the 20-mile trip, and saw a bear foraging on the beach across the inlet from Santiago Creek.

It was a joy to find Westview Marina at Tahsis, such a nice, clean, and well managed marina. It is an outstanding facility with accommodating management.






After registering, and having a Mexican lunch at the Marina Cantina, we took advantage of the sunny weather and walked the .8 of a mile into the community of Tahsis and visited the small store.

Not much happening in Tahsis these days now that all the lumber mills have closed and been torn down.

By the time we got back to the marina and back on board Teal to discover we were able to get on line wireless from the boat, and get a load going in the first rate laundry room, it was raining again.Teal t laundry room, it was raining again. After dinner we made it to the very well-maintained showers while fishermen at the half dozen fish cleaning tables worked into the night cleaning and packing the day’s bountiful catch.

June 25, 2007

Beautiful sunny blue skies greeted the day, but more foul southeast weather forecast to come in. We took the opportunity of sunshine to dry out the boat, hanging the sleeping bags out to air, and pulling out and drying out stuff that was stashed in all the nooks and crannies that has been collecting moisture over these last few rainy weeks. At the time of this writing, all is dry and warm and we are happy about that. The sky is threatening again. So we feel smug that we got drying out done in the knick of time.

The marina allowed us to use their courtesy car to get our propane bottle refilled in town at the hardware and home center. The guy that is licensed to fill propane tanks? went home sick and there wasn’t anyone available to do the job until the owner, also the school principal got off work late in the day. We will go back at 9:00 Am tomorrow morning to see if we will have propane in our back up bottle.. Much to do about nothing!

George & JoAnne

Hot Springs Cove to Bligh Cove

June 22, 2007

Friday Morning we left the Hot Springs dock at 6:45 am to make our way to Friendly Harbor in Nootka Sound (49° 35.683 N / 126°.37.031 W).

It was a breaking cloud morning with the promise of sun. However, the sunbursts were few and far between. We experienced easy folowing seas on a fast reach to Estevan point. From there a fast run on surfing seas to Nootka Sound. The closer we got to Friendly Harbor, the rougher the waters got.

We saw a lot of small fishing boats in the area near the entrance to the harbor. The weather was deteriorating, it was low tide, and there was not very much room in the cove to maneuver. The captain chose to seek shelter elsewhere and headed for Ewin Inlet and Bligh Cove .

Getting across Cook Channel into Ewin Inlet was very gusty and it was raining buckets, somewhat like a squall. Shortly after getting into the inlet things settled down and by the time we reached Bligh Cove all was calm and serine.

Bligh Cove (49° 39.097 N / 126°31.156 W), named for the infamous Captain Bligh who prior to the Bounty saga served for Captain Cook at the time Cook discovered Nootka Sound and landed at Friendly Cove, circa 1778.

We spent two nights at Bligh Cove watching it rain, staying snug, dry, and warm, anchored on a glassy surface completely out of the wind.

George & Joanne

Ahousat to Hot Springs Cove

June 21, 2007

Mid morning, we departed Ahousat and headed for Hot Springs Cove via Hayden Passage We fished, without success, here and there as we went. As we approached the mouth of Sydney Inlet the swell and wind chop made one realize how spoiled we become cruising all the calm protected water ways.

We tied to the park dock at Hot Springs Cove (49° 21.735 N / 126°15.917 W) along side a sailboat from Vancouver we had tied with at Tofino, and were immediately approached by the Roley the temporary harbor master.

We had met Roley aboard his converted fishing trawler “Tropic Isle” two years ago while anchored in Joe Cove in The Broughtons. He said he was watching for us. He is a Ham radio operator and had been talking with Neil & Nancy of Harmony. They asked if he had seen us yet, as they figured according to our blog we should have been there by then. Nice to know you’re being watched out for. Jo is going to look into Ham licensing when we’re back home this fall.

We visited with tour boat drivers and crusing folks on the dock while waiting for the tour boat crowds to leave and return to Tofino and make room for us at the Hot Spring pools.

Around 5pm we left the dock garbed in swim suits under our cloths and comfy shoes, towels in back pack and proceeded on the 45 minute hike along the well-maintained board walk to the Hot Springs.

How wonderful experiencing the rain forest with its ferns and flowers, and many trees growing it seems in mid air. Some large cedars have taken root from old fallen trees and are towering into the sky balanced (for many years) on these old moss covered nurse logs. Quite a site. The Park department has done an awesome job with this long boardwalk. It’s wide enough for folks to pass each other coming and going from the Springs. A majority of the boards have boat names carved into them; some very intricate and artsy.

We arrived at the Springs and there were only about 4 people there. It is amazing how hot those sulphur spring waters are. The hottest part is the water fall at the top. The water gets cooler the closer you get to the ocean as the surf brings cooler water into the bottom pool. We were hoping the tide would come in while we were there, but that didn’t happen. It was a most enjoyable experience. We dried off and headed back to the dock, only to look forward to the next hot spring adventure to come further up the line.

George & JoAnne

Tofino to Ahousat

June 19, 2007

After chores we took two rock crabs from the trap and headed for Ahousat (ah Howz it going?) under partly sunny skies. We saw for the first time this year Coho salmon jumping, and that prompted us to do a little, unsuccessful, trolling along the way.

By the time we got into Ahousat (49° 16.928 N / 126° 04.309 W), the skies were threatening and by nightfall were raining on us.















Ahousat is a relic from a time when there was more industry on the coast. Besides the hostel, general store, that has just about anything you could imagine, there are sheds and yards full of stuff from that era as well as an old boat yard facility and restaurant.


Huey, the second generation owner of Ahousat General Store, and enterprises, told us that he had a buyer coming to take a look at the end of the month. The place has been for sale for a long time.



It rained most of the next day while our clothes were washing and drying in machines that looked like they had been resurrected from one or more of the junk piles scattered about the various yards and sheds around the general store, café and boat yard.

Two more rock crabs were taken from the trap and we had a crab lunch.

George & JoAnne

Bedwell Sound to Tofino

June 18,2007
We awoke to a completely different scene than what we anchored in. The nook was more rock than water, yet we were sitting in 15 foot of water a boat length away from the shoal as predicted. The area we had rowed in our skiff the previous evening was now exposed rocks and bare limbs. As you can see from the photo, very colorful.

Mid morning we collected our traps and found only two small rock crabs in the crab trap and one small fish and one small prawn in the prawn trap. We then headed to Tofino (49° 09.331 N / 125°54.450 W). The trip was made through the vast shoal area with its strong currents, making these water ways so different from the usual deep water ways of the rest of the Pacific Northwest.

This time we tied to the Government dock (“Whiskey Dock” so dubbed for all the obvious reasons) because it is closest to the COOP where we were going to shop. After stowing our provisions, we attempted to post to the blog and then head out for Ahousat. However, the water taxies and stop-and-go boat traffic making such huge wakes made that impossible. It was getting a little late for the trip anyway, so we went to the other end of town to the small craft harbor and secured moorage for the night.

George & JoAnne