2015 Boating Season
Cruising 7/11/15
We spent five long days in Ketchikan,
waiting for the wind to die down, and very happy to start our cruise
south. There is only so much to see in Ketchikan. At 5am we took
Nichols Passage to Revillogigedo Channel and into Foggy Bay for the
night.
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| You have to watch for logs!! |
We met Purse Seiner fishing boats along
the way and saw two whales. A very large bear welcomed us into
Foggy Bay. As evening approached, our boat had turned just right to
look out into the channel and see the sunset. Russ said, “Wouldn't
it be perfect to see whales too.” Surprise, at that same time two
whales sprayed high in the air. Two eagles landed on a dead tree and
looked at each other. What a beautiful scene to end our day.
We left in the morning at 5:30am to
cross Dixon Entrance. Dixon is open to the Pacific Ocean so must be
crossed in good weather. It was a good day, spotting a whale on the
way to Prince Rupert, Canada. We got to the fuel dock at 11:20am,
called Canadian Customs and checked in. With a full tank of diesel
and an OK from Canada, off we went down Grenvelle Channel to Baker
Inlet. We entered through Watts Narrows, at slack tide, into a
scenic basin with glacier-scarred alpine slopes and glaciers still
high on top. Four miles back and we had the bay to ourselves. Can
you imagine the clean, sweet smell of fresh alpine air. I couldn't
breathe enough of it.
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| Rainbow |
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| One of several whales |
We woke up at 6:30am to low hanging
clouds, some fog, no wind and flat, calm waters. Good day for
cruising. It's a different kind of beauty, with the clouds so low on
the mountains. We slowly cruised down Grenvelle Channel along with
the whales this morning. We spotted two single and three together and
they gracefully swam right along with us. They must like this weather
too.
When cruising any waters, you must know
where your next fuel stop is going to be. On our way north, we never
had a problem getting fuel, knowing just how far we can go and where
the next fuel stop would be. Today our plans changed when a small
First Nations village decide to close their fuel pumps for a wedding,
for two days. So the side trip we were going to take will have to
wait until next year. We have just enough fuel to get to Shearwater
Marina, 119 miles away. Russ figures our speed, distance, and time in
order to have enough fuel. We go slower so we will have to spend a
night at anchor. (Which I don't mind at all!) But we won't get there
until 7PM.
From Fraiser Reach we take Princess
Royal Channel to Finlayson then cross through Jackson Passage and
anchor in Rescue Bay for the night. Here are several boats anchored
and it's a very calm and quiet night. Up by 5am, we are off to
Shearwater Marina for fuel. Again we are met with whales in the early
morning and along the way are Dall Porpoise to entertain us.
We spent the night at the marina and
had lunch at their restaurant. Water in Canada in limited right now
because they have had very little rain nor snow. We didn't get to
fill our water full but we always carry ten extra gallons with us.
Up again at 5:30 am and start our
cruise. Right away we feel something is not right with the boat. We
notice a small vibration. After 5 ½ years and 1000 hours of
cruising, you know what your boat is suppose to feel like. Luckily it
is a very calm morning so we stop in the bay. Russ decided there is
something wrapped around our prop. He strips down to shorts and
t-shirt, using googles and snorkel gear, slips over the side into the
COLD water!! With a big, sharp knife he goes under and slices for at
least 10 minutes. The rope must have been in the water floating, we
ran across it, tangling it into our prop. After he got back on the
boat, we put the shower hose out our bathroom window so he could get
warm water to rinse off with, stripped down and re-dress. He was cold
for quiet awhile so I made him a cup of coffee, hoping he doesn't get
pneumonia. What a start to the day! Then a little fog to go through
before we are finally out in Fitz Hugh Sound. And a beautiful sight
of four whales.
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| Morning sun rise |
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| My Hero |
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| The Problem |
Now was time to cruise around Cape
Caution. This was the crossing I said I was very cranky coming North but today is a perfect day. This is open to the Pacific Ocean for
a bit. But today there was no stopping. We cruised through Queen
Charlotte Sound to Queen Charlotte Straight, right to Port Hardy on
Vancouver Island. WOW( Eight to nine hours). We fueled and docked
on the local dock then walked up to the museum and dinner. (We had
only a blueberry muffin and peanut bar all day. )
After getting back to the boat it was
only 5:30pm so we decide to cruise on down to Port McNeil, only 16
miles. We anchored in the bay to calm waters. (We went about 120
miles and one long day. )
We wanted to get as close as possible
to Johnstone Strait. This passage is about 70 miles and seems to
always have gale force winds in the afternoon, so you must start
cruising as early as possible. I make a list of little places to pull
into in case the winds get bad.
Started at 6:30am, Russ slept in this
morning! A little foggy but clear enough to see ahead. We do use our
radar and it works great! There are Dall Porpoise this morning and we
met several boats headed to Alaska. Beautiful morning!! 6 ½ hours
down the strait and now we're anchored in Plumper Bay waiting for the
Seymour Narrows slack tide at 6:15pm. Once it is slack, we can go the
2 miles through and stay in Campbell River at Discovery Harbour.
There are several 'narrows' to go through in Canada and they all must
be timed when the tides are at slack. We have read some horror
stories about boats going too early or too late and I don't
want to be one of them.
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| Rough Water |
Made it through the narrows, it sure
has a strong currents!! Fueled and moraged in Discovery Marina at
Campbell River. Had a nice dinner and left early the next morning for
Nanaimo, Canada. Very windy and rough this morning so made it half
way and moraged in Deep Bay Marina on Vancouver Island. Cute marina
with live-a-boards and very nice people. Stayed overnight and left
early for Nanaimo. Very rough and windy. Could not turn around
because of rough seas so we had to head east across Strait of Georgia
to an Island called Lasqueti. Three hours later and three bays, we
found Old House Bay/Grave Yard Bay!! Holding was great but NW winds
still came through a valley on the island. All day and night there
were probably 25 to 30 wind gusts and finally calmed early morning.
At 5am we pulled up anchor and headed back across Strait of Georgia
to Nanaimo. Winds were calmer and the current and wind were in our
favor. After fueling we anchored and cooked breakfast, waiting to go
through Dodd Narrows and we will then be on the inside of the islands
where the wind is calmer. YEA
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| Ready to have a baby |
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| Can you see the mommy and baby? |
We made it through the narrows and went
from South Vancouver Island straight to Roche Harbour on San Juan
Island, USA!!
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| Whirlpools |
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| Whirlpools |
Checked into customs and are now
anchored in Blind Bay on Shaw island. We will head to Bellingham,
Washington in the morning and stay the night in the marina. We are
having dinner with our friends, Pat and Patty Anderson and hope to
see our kids, Cathy and Josh.
It has been quite the trip to Alaska.
We saw so much beauty and enjoyed every day. Thank you for reading
our Blogs and following us on our cruise.
Love to all our family and friends,
Russ and Toni on Traveler
Russ here: Toni was very brave for two days in the Strait of Georgia with near gale force winds, the weather reports are not always entirely accurate. Our boat handled the seas very good and always brought us to a safe place to spend the night. She always had a cove or harbor picked out in case things got snotty. I am lucky to have a mate and life partner like her.
