Skull Cove was shrouded in fog when we woke this morning…no surprise really. We pulled our anchor and slowly motored through the narrow opening. The fog kept us company off and on (mostly on) until we reached Johnstone Strait. Our original plan was 47nm from Skull Cove to Mound Island (about 6.5 hours) but we decided to go farther, and aimed for Port Neville (71nm). We had some pretty swift … Read more
We left our anchorage at Mound Island just after first light this morning, around 5:30am. Conditions were calm, and according to weather information from reporting stations in and around Queen Charlotte Strait, things weren’t bad out there early but the forecast promised some ever-increasing wind in the afternoon today…so we opted to make our miles early. The group voted to cruise up to the Blunden Harbour/Allison Harbour to stage for … Read more
We set the alarm for 4am this morning to look at the updated forecast for Cape Caution today. The Environment Canada forecast for McInnes to Pine Island said: Wind light except northeasterly outflow 30 knots near the mainland inlets. Wind becoming northwest 5 to 15 early this afternoon then becoming light near midnight. Wind becoming southerly 10 to 15 Tuesday morning then diminishing to light Tuesday evening. Since the 30 … Read more
With Seymour Narrows behind us, the timing of our trip up Johnstone Strait was primarily about maximizing favorable current and miles covered. Thankfully the beginning of the ebb—which runs northwest in Johnstone Strait—was about 5:00 a.m., about the same time it’s light enough to spot logs in the water. Complicating matters was the forecast, which called for winds building to 25-35 knots in the afternoon. Both Environment Canada and the … Read more
We departed Skull Cove (in fog, again) and headed for Alert Bay via Ripple Passage. We soon spotted a small pod of orcas in the distance, and slowed to take a few photos. While we were focused on the distant pod, a few more surfaced much closer to our boat (almost too close to capture them with the long lens we were using!) Queen Charlotte Strait was shrouded in fog … Read more