Sam Landsman 
With chores completed and a good weather forecast, we headed out of Shearwater around 8:30 a.m. The course to Rescue Bay runs west in Seaforth Channel, almost to the ocean, and then through narrow Reid Passage to Perceval Narrows. When the westerly is blowing, Seaforth Channel can be awful, and with swells crashing on nearby rocks, getting into Reid Passage can be frightening. Today the weather cooperated. The route passes … Read more
Cruising on the Central Coast is mostly about anchoring, so the occasional visit to a marina is usually accompanied by a flurry of chores. No other marina or town on the Central Coast offers the convenience and capability of Shearwater. Within just a few steps of the top of the dock is a surprisingly well stocked grocery and liquor store, coffee shop, pub and restaurant, excellent laundromat, chandlery, and boat … Read more
The flotilla left Codville Lagoon this morning between 8:00 and 9:00 a.m. We had a total of three crab traps out and one prawn trap, and the shellfish haul before we left consisted of two Dungeness crabs and six big spot prawns. Not too bad! We had a nice cruise up Fisher Channel, then up Cousins Inlet, and found ample space on the docks at Ocean Falls. This early in … Read more
We’ve been focused on “gates” since meeting in the San Juans a week and a half ago. First we had the Strait of Georgia, then the next day the rapids and Johnstone Strait, then a few days later Cape Caution. The “gates” are heavily front-loaded on this trip, and it feels good to have four of the five behind us. Now, for the next several hundred miles, as we work … Read more
Queen Charlotte Sound—rounding Cape Caution—is probably the most significant of the “gates” along the Inside Passage. Here, every vessel is forced from behind the shelter of Vancouver Island into the open Pacific for 40 miles. Since we left the Gulf Islands, we’ve been looking ahead for our opportunity to round Cape Caution. Tomorrow looks to be the day, so this morning we put the Broughtons behind us and headed northwest … Read more
We awoke to very different weather than we’ve had: overcast, temps in the high 40s, and light mist. The wind was also blowing, still from the northwest but at 15-25 knots, building to 25-35 knots. Given the wind, we chose the “inside” route around the east side of Gilford Island to get to Pierre’s. This is a little longer than the “outside” route, but it minimizes time spent in Knight … Read more
Today looked nearly perfect for running up Johnstone Strait to the Broughtons. Environment Canada called for light winds, building to northwest 15-25 knots late in the afternoon. Windy indicated “late in the afternoon” meant about 3:00 p.m. Given the 62nm cruising day, this weather forecast would suggest an early start. Getting north of Campbell River, though, requires transiting Seymour Narrows, which must be done near slack since currents can run … Read more
We’ve been patiently waiting for the Strait of Georgia to cooperate for several days now, and we’re finally ready to move into a position to seize the good weather that’s forecast for Thursday and Friday. Our plan is to put the Strait of Georgia behind us on Thursday, by running all the way from Nanaimo to Campbell River. Then, on Friday, we’ll (hopefully) hit the morning turn-to-ebb at Seymour Narrows … Read more