British Columbia

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Days 20 and 21| Ucluelet to Joe’s Bay

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September 8 – The weather in Ucluelet was breezy and foggy, with pouring rain this morning. The forecast called for worsening conditions through tomorrow, when winds were predicted to climb to 30-40 knots with heavy rain. Might  this be the first taste of fall? With a lousy forecast, we headed for Joe’s Bay. This is a huge anchorage, with moderate depths, excellent protection, and good holding. We’d stay for a few … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 19 | Ucluelet

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Sometimes, when on a flotilla, it’s fun to take a commercial fishing charter from a port where fishing is good and expert guides are available. You get to see what gear an expert professional fisher-person uses, what techniques they apply to maximize the catch for their clients, and some of the current local hotspots for bagging fish. Occasionally, everyone has a bad experience with a business. Usually, we all just … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 18 | Hot Springs Cove to Ucluelet

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We’ve been spoiled by the weather this trip. Other than a few hours of beam seas around Cape Scott, and maybe 45 minutes of head seas north of Seymour Narrows, conditions have been pretty darn calm. What little wind we’ve had has been from behind us—northwesterlies are typical during summer—and we can’t imagine a smoother trip around Vancouver Island. Unfortunately, the summer weather pattern is beginning to fall apart. Today … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 17 | Friendly Cove to Hot Springs Cove

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We left the anchorage at Friendly Cove around 7:00 a.m. The reported wind at Estevan Point was 5 knots at 6:00 a.m., and we felt very little swell as we got out of Nootka Sound and into the open Pacific. By the time we were abeam of Estevan Point, we showed 1 to 2 knots of wind and a very light chop with maybe a 1 foot swell. We could … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island | Flotilla Day 16 | Hisnit Inlet to Friendly Cove

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We left Hisnit Inlet on the early side this morning. The anchorage at Friendly Cove isn’t all that spacious, so we wanted to get in early enough to be sure there was room for everyone. Turns out we were the only boats there! When we visited last month, the light keeper told us they’d soon be doing construction to rebuild the  tramway, and when we arrived, we could see they … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 15 | Tahsis to Hisnit Inlet

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In the morning after a bit more of an internet fix and a few more fishing items purchased, the boats left the marina. The staff puts what’s left after fish-cleaning operations out on the breakwater for the birds, and these young eagles were having breakfast as we motored past. It was foggy in the early morning, but by the time we left the marina it had started to clear, and … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 14 | Nuchatlitz to Tahsis

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We left Nuchatlitz first thing in the morning and headed up Esperanza Inlet toward Tahsis. On our way up Tahsis Inlet, we ran into a pod of orcas (perhaps even the ones we saw out near Nuchatlitz the other day!) We arrived  at the Westview Marina in Tahsis to find it much less busy than when we were here last month. Last month we were just in time for the … Read more

Circumnavigating Vancouver Island Flotilla | Day 13 | Nuchatlitz

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Today we stayed put at Nuchatlitz! This morning’s change in wind direction brought smoke from the nearby wildfires our way, and our anchorage smelled a bit like last night’s campfire. It did make for a few moody sunrise photos, however. Ralph and Jeanette, Vince, and Kevin and Laura took Airship out for a little salmon fishing, while others explored the anchorage and nearby islands by dinghy. A few too-small chinooks … Read more