Our pace over the next several days is dictated by weather at Estevan Point, one of the major headlands on the west coast of Vancouver Island. The only must-see Nootka Sound destination for our group is Friendly Cove, about 20nm from Tahsis. If the weather was perfect today, we could even leave Tahsis, stop for a few hours at Friendly Cove, and continue around Estevan Point in the afternoon. Alas, … Read more
September 10 – Since we arrived earlier than scheduled in Barkley Sound, we have some extra time to visit additional anchorages. Although the Broken Group is small—only about seven miles by five miles—there are many interesting anchorages. Today, we made the short run over to Nettle Island. This is another large anchorage in Barkley Sound, not quite as well-protected as Joe’s Bay, but perfect for most weather conditions. Sam took the … Read more
We left Ucluelet and cruised the short distance (11nm) over to Joe’s Bay, just north of Turtle Island in the Broken Group. Unfortunately, we had one boat fewer than normal. Throughout the trip, Mana Kai (a Kadey Krogen 44), has been experiencing intermittent engine problems related to the suction control valve on the common rail system. No amount of fiddling with filters or resetting computers has fixed the issue, and … Read more
We pulled anchor a little after 7:00 a.m. in order to arrive at the entrance (exit) to Ford’s Terror by about 8:00 a.m. We were a little early but knew from our experience coming in that the tidal swing was low and that meant a longer-than-usual window for transiting the rapids. Airship went through first and only noted about a knot and a half of opposing current, so the rest … Read more
Today’s cruise from Cannery Cove up to Tracy Arm Cove was just over 40 miles, so we headed out on the early side (basically, no different from any other day with this group). 🙂 Ralph got a nice humpback show out in Stephens Passage (he left a little earlier than the rest) and shared these two photos with us: We arrived and anchored in Tracy Arm Cove, and were the … Read more
The flotilla left Rescue Bay this morning by 9:00 am and headed up Mathieson Channel — destination Windy Bay. We are now entering the Fiordland Recreation Area, one of the most remote areas of our trip so far — where there is virtually no civilization, no cell service or internet connection, and very little boat traffic. We are rewarded with glacial fjords, steep granite cliffs, lush forests, and more waterfalls … Read more
After a busy day doing chores in Shearwater, we were ready to get back to the fun part of cruising—anchoring in remote, beautiful places! From Shearwater, we headed west out Seaforth Channel towards the ocean, then turned north, transited Reid Passage, and slipped through Perceval Narrows. This is a relatively complicated route, but it avoids the worst of the swells in Milbanke Sound. The south entrance of Reid Passage can … Read more
Another voluntary early departure! We left Pruth Bay shortly after 7:00 a.m. The water was glassy when we pulled anchor, and by the time we were out in Hakai Passage we were surfing some gentle swells back in toward Fitz Hugh Sound. Codville Lagoon is a scenic, spacious anchorage with a nice hike to Sagar Lake. We were even able to get a weak cellular internet connection here! After we … Read more