Don/30 knots of wind
07/22/2010

Here we are heading out, with Change of lLatitude in the background, at anchor.

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Don/ Breezy
07/22/2010, The Walker Group Islands

Our first day at the cove in the Walker Island Group. We are enjoying this anchorage so very much. It is tight, just enough for three boats anchored separately, unless some are stern tied. It faces Northwest so winds can come down it, though. The island is not high to block out all wind. Still, it has good holding with a sand and mud bottom and it is only 16-20 feet deep. We have about 120 feet of chain out (6-1 scope) and our anchor bridle on. In the Northwest, chain is mandatory given both the depths that are common and the rocks that abound. (This anchorage is uncommonly shallow. More typical is 40-60 feet of water.)

What is a bridle? A bridle has a metal fitting that attaches to your anchor chain. It is connected to lines that each go through a front hawser and attach to the port and starboard bow cleats. Thus, the pressure of the anchor chain is taken up by the bridle, rather than by the winch and capstan. It is a much more secure way to anchor. An anchor bridle also accomplishes another important trick --- it reduces the angle with which your boat is connected to your anchor, thus improving your anchor's holding ability. Once you fasten the bridle to your anchor chain, and secure it to your bow cleats, you let out chain until the bridle is taking all of the pressure of the anchor. This drops it about 10 feet under the surface of the water. So, in our 16 feet of water, it is only about 6 feet off the bottom. That increases the holding power of your chair. With 120 feet of chain out, the bridle, in effect, increases the scope from 6-1 to 20-1. Change of Latitude will be perfectly secure in a storm with that type of scope on the anchor chain.

Today was a day to go fishing so I put on my lucky fishing t-shirt that Katie gave me some time ago. It is from the University of Maryland and says, "Fear the Turtle." (A turtle is their mascot.) Last year, I caught my summer salmon with it when Katie and I went fishing near Foggy Bay, Alaska, so I figure it must be lucky.

We loaded 3 rods and reels, tackle box, frozen herring, and salmon net and took off in "Rubber Ducky," our 11 ½ foot Nuvorania ridgid inflatable boat (RIB) with a 25 hp Yamaha 4 cycle engine. It is the best fishing inflatable per foot that I have seen. We headed out to the leeward side of the island, to reduce the amount of waves and trolled north along the east side of Kent Island. There was a lot of kelp near shore so we trolled as close to the kelp as we dared. Katie thought the kelp made for a perfect home for sea otters and we were both surprised not to see any. With the rocky shores, kelp, and swells, it reminded us of Monterey, California. We picked up a black cod almost immediately and thought it was going to be a very fishy day. Alas, that was not to be. We fished all the way to the end of Kent Island without another strike. We were using herring, trolled slowly behind flashers, with 6 oz trolling sinkers. It was the perfect combo for salmon in these parts. Nada. The wind and waves increased as we got to the end of the island. Just about then, Katie noticed that the dinghy was feeling underinflated. She was getting wet in front. We quickly pulled into a cove and secured the boat in a kelp bed. We got out the foot pump and added a bit of air to the boat. Then, we went on our way back out to the East side of the island, again, and trolled our way home. Nothing else hit the entire way home. Bummer!! It was not our day for salmon.

On the way into the cove, we noticed that another boat had anchored, a Nordic Tug about 40 feet long, Peacemaker. We stopped and chatted with a retired police officer from Carmel, CA and his small white dog. He was on his way north, to Alaska for the summer. He keeps his boat in Campbell River, BC but lives in California.

When we got back to our boat, we had lunch and took a short rest. Then, I started cutting up the black cod we caught to use for bait in our crab pots. Just as I cut its head off, a gust of wind came up, my wonderful Tilley hat blew off and, as I tried to grab it, the a very sharp fillet knife in my hand slipped and sliced a finger on my right hand. I did not even notice that problem, I was so focused on my hat, floating away. I had to run inside to get the keys, start up Rubber Ducky and head across the cove to retrieve it before it sank. Luckily I got it just in time. Then I noticed the blood all over the boat. I was bleeding pretty badly so I washed my hand in salty sea water and got back to the boat where I put a compress on it. Then, I cleaned it up with our first aid kit and put on a butterfly bandage to hold the skin together. It seemed to stop the bleeding and looked pretty professional. I hate cuts. I seem to get them often while boating and they always turn into low grade infections, with swelling an some discomfort. They get in the way of a great boating trip with cribbing and fishing. I always have to clean them each night an morning so they the infections do not get out of control. Our new first aid kit does not contain Bacitracin which seems to work best for me. I will need to get some on our return to Port McNeil.

After that adventure, I did not even put out the crab pots. Instead, Katie and I watched Godfather II and then Godfather I. I had never seen them. I really enjoyed the movies and especially spending time with Katie. Oh so many killings, though!!

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Don/30 knots of wind
07/21/2010

You can see, from this island how beautifully rugged the terrain is here. It reminded us of Monterey, CA, minus the multi-million dollar houses!

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Don/30 knots of wind
07/21/2010, Walker Group Islands

You can see in this photo how narrow the entrance to the Walker Group Islands is. There was kelp to the right of us, kelp to the left of us, and kelp in the center of the entrance. Had I not read about this anchorage, in advance, I doubt I would have tried to enter.

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Don/ 71 degrees breezy
07/21/2010, Queen Charlotte Straits

The Walker Group Islands

I slept 12 hours last night, recovering, I guess, from the journey north. It was a good sleep. Then, in the morning, I was in online mode posting our blog, checking email, reading the news and generally wasting the morning away. Fortunately, Katie politely suggested that maybe we should get going since a fog bank appeared to be moving in. That brought me to attention so we readied the boat - coiling and stowing the hose, after having filled the water tanks yesterday; checking Rubber Ducky to make sure its gas tank was filled; disconnecting the power cable, cleaning up inside and stowing things in case it got rough; packing things neatly in the lazarette, etc. We stowed the spring lines, turned on the engines, and prepared to leave. Katie had tied the lines for an easy release from the boat so taking off was a breeze.

We backed neatly out from the dock with me in my fisherman's backing up position (up on the fly bridge) a move that I learned from a fisherman at the Alert Bay wharf and that I love to show off whenever I can. (Basically, you stand at the helm station facing backwards, using the twin controls for the engines to maneuver the boat as you back up. It is an awesome move.) The fisherman I learned this from backed his 60 foot boat out of a tightly packed set of boats at a good throttle and went right down the long center lane that was open, slick as could be, facing backwards. Everyone's head turned, mine included, and people even applauded his bold and very cool move. I practiced that move when no one was looking and now it is mine. I use it whenever I can and especially when there are a lot of people at the dock. I keep waiting for applause but somehow that never comes. â~º Maybe some day!

As we headed out of the harbour and toward the end of Malcolm Island, we concluded that our main Simrad chart plotter needed a new map chip for these latitudes. I guess Change of Latitude changed too much latitude and needed an additional chip for the charts in this area. Since I have another, laptop, chart plotter (using MacEnc software and all the official Canadian and US charts) and since we have paper charts, too, we meet the basic standard of having backup charting gear. We will be fine, we concluded, until we can pick up a new chip.

Using MacEnc and my laptop plotter, we set a course for the Walker Group Islands, keeping an eye on the fog bank ahead. I turned on our radar, just to be safe. Fortunately, it never lowered and gradually was pushed to the East. The Queen Charlotte Strait was minding itself today. Winds were from the Northwest at about 5 knots, gradually increasing to about 17. There was a slight 2-foot swell and the seas were rippled at the beginning and about 2 feet at the end. It was a pleasant crossing. If you have Google Earth, you might wish to view the Walker Group Islands. (50°53'49.75"N 127°31'51.44"W) I have been looking at them all winter on Google Earth and got excited each time I saw how rugged and remote they were. Most importantly, they are the first set of islands that salmon see on their way in from the ocean on their way to the Frasier River and other rivers of southern BC. They look fishy as can be and wild and beautiful. Just what we were hoping to find.

We arrived at the incredibly narrow entrance to the tight little anchorage inside. I will try to put up a photo so you can see why so many people miss the anchorage when they go by. We felt our way in cautiously since we had never been here before and since there was kelp everywhere in the main passageway. (Kelp indicates rocks below, often near the surface. Not a nice thought for our boat.) We made it easily inside and started checking depths to find the best anchorage. Unfortunately, some not very thoughtful soul had left a buoy right in the middle at the best anchorage. We had to settle for a position a bit to the side and closer to the rock walls than I would have liked. We dropped anchor in 16 feet of water and backed down to set the anchor, then checked around to make certain the place felt comfortable. It did, so we set our anchor bridle and turned off the engine. We had made it.

The water, on the way in, sure looked fishy. I bet salmon abound and we should get some as long as the winds lay down. We wanted to look around and double-check the depths in the small harbour here so I showed Katie how to lower the dingy solo. There were a few mistakes but in a brief minute, Rubber Ducky was down and in the water. We picked up our emergency gear, life jackets, and hand help VHF radio and took off, with Katie at the helm. (I hate to say it but she does better than I do! I post a photo that also shows she looks so much better at the helm than I do, as well!) We explored the harbour, surprised at how much depth there was, at least 10 feet in most places and it was low tide at the time. We even went outside a bit and explored. I will post photos of the rugged beauty and a few starfish that were eating the barnacles on the rocks. Katie found fish on the fishfinder nearly everywhere she looked. (The fishfinder is why we got the dinghy and the dinghy is why we got the boat, or so Debbie claims! She may be right!)

Returning, I fixed a steak dinner with wine, salad, and baked beans for us. We wanted to watch our satellite TV, which had worked after we had anchored, a new record for northerly reception!. For some reason, though, it could not lock in on a signal after dinner.

After dinner, Katie watched a movie and read a book and I did the dishes. It was a wonderful beginning here in the Walker Group.

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07/21/2010, Johnston Strait

Here is an inside shot when the winds and waves were up a bit in Johnston Strait

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07/21/2010, Johnston Strait

Here is Johnston Strait when the winds died.

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07/21/2010, Alert Bay, BC

Here is the U'Mista Cultural Center that Katie said was really a worth while trip. It is at Alert Bay. We passed it yesterday. More info is at: http://www.umista.ca/home/index.php

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07/21/2010, Johnston Strait

It is not uncommon to see working traffic like this, a tug in tow. The tug is pulling a barge loaded with something. It is an inexpensive way to move goods up here. You never want to meet one in a tidal pass, though. Nor, do you ever want to mistake the two signals on your radar, in fog, as two separate ships and try to go between them!

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Don/Getting fish-geared up
07/20/2010, Port McNeil, BC

Katie and I are pretty pleased that we made it to the northern end of Vancouver Island (Port McNeil) in just 4 days of cruising. (We do not count the short 2-hour jump to Sucia Island at the beginning, since we could have just as easily left from Bellingham the next day.) We took advantage of every weather window and we made exceptional decisions along the way about where to stay, including decisions to push on past Tribune Bay, going up the Georgia Straits, and to stop short of Port Neville in Blind Channel Marina when the winds were predicted to act up in Johnston Strait. It was good, together, problem solving.

Speaking of problem solving, Katie said the other day that cruising on a boat was perpetual problem solving. She may have something. Many, many problems appear during the day and require you to use your brain to solve each one. Maybe that is why I enjoy cruising so much. It is both perpetual problem solving and perpetual learning. I love the learning part. Maybe fewer problems would be nice, though.

This morning, at Blind Channel Marina, both Katie and I got up about 4:30 am. We checked the engine room (The engines are in great shape. Just one or two typical oil leaks on the pads. Better than our trip in May.) We also caught the weather forecast online (no change from last night), and managed a complicated departure from the dock without a hitch. (Nice work, Katie!!) We were underway at 5:15, with a quiet exit, being considerate of the other boaters.

The wind was still up from the Northwest and the tide was with us, heading north. Wind against tide made for sections of rough water but nothing Change of Latitude could not handle. Today was Katie's mix day and she put on a wonderful collection of 60's tunes. (I think she was thinking of her dad!) It was wonderful cruising through the waves listening to Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, and was that ShaNaNa?? Great sounds from the past. We talked a bit about how in the heck our brains could recognize a song from just the first three notes. It is pretty amazing if you think about it.

We caught Race Channel at slack and breezed right through that section, even though there was 20 knots of wind blowing. Reaching Fanny Island, always the roughest part of Johnston Strait, it got lumpy but we kept on going, right past Port Neville, putting confidence in the Canadian weather folks who said the winds would drop later that morning. We were rolling with a slight tidal current with us all the way and right on cue, the winds started dropping. (Thank you, Canadian Marine Forecasters!)

Near Robson's Bight (an ecological preserve for the Orcas who call it home) we saw what looked like an observation station on the right, overlooking Johnston Strait. Someone was up that morning having a cup of coffee and looking for Orcas. It must have been a scientific research project to keep these beautiful creatures safe and well. There is a really active research group since photo identification took place and initial patterns of individuals and family groups (pods) were discovered. Each pod has been well studied, including the northern pod that lives around here. You can even hear Orcas (the southern pod groups) talking underwater from links at this site online: http://www.orcasound.net/. Check often since they are not always around the hydrophones. The research that has been done suggests that each pod has a unique dialect.

We kept our eyes peeled hoping to see them. A little latter we saw 3 boats stopped in the water, something most unusual up here, unless something interesting is taking place. Getting closer, we saw the blows and large dorsal of a male and the smaller dorsal of a female, cruising south. We stopped Change of Latitude, too, so as not to disturb them and took a few photos. I will post them but the sky was cloudy and the light not very good. We were lucky to see such beautiful creatures. The northern group hangs around Johnston Strait at this time of year, since it is a funnel for all the salmon heading south to spawn in the Frasier River and the other rivers of southern BC. It is summer feeding season for them.

We went by Alert Bay on Malcom Island and Katie pointed out the wonderful indigenous people's museum there. She visited it last year on our way south from Juneau. Katie said it was pretty spectacular, well worth a visit.

About 12:30, just before the winds picked up, we arrived at Port McNeil and made a wonderful landing in pretty tight quarters between two boats. We spent the afternoon catching up on email and texting until the wireless seemed to collapse. I spent some time gearing up all our salmon rods and checking to make sure we had everything we needed. You never know and I need only a little excuse for a shopping trip to the local fishing store!

We also filled the water tanks and got some extra gas for Rubber Ducky, our fishing boat and dinghy. Then we headed up to town to pick up some butter, in anticipation of a successful crab hunt, and some breakfast pastries (yum!). Then, over to Gus's for a bite to eat and back to the boat. Katie suggested that we come back a day early to get the boat ready for everyone and to go grocery shopping. So, we made a reservation for July 24th as well as the 25th. It is sometimes hard to get a slip reservation here but they found us a space so we are all set.

Tomorrow, we hope to visit the Walker Group Islands for a fishing and exploring adventure. The only anchorage there is kind of tight so it might be that someone will have taken it already. If so, I have a few backup plans with good fishing nearby. It might be that more problem solving is ahead for us. In any case, we will be out of wireless so it may not be until July 24th when I can add more posts and photos.

Oh, a final note. We continue to experience that red "error" light coming on the inverter. I think I may have set something incorrectly. The batteries appear to be charging fine, though, so it looks like I have a bit more reading to do in the inverter manual.

Tomorrow we head out to the Walker Group Islands in Queen Charlotte Sound. We plan to hang out for a bit fishing and crabbing. It is far away from any Internet signal so it will be several days before we post a new entry.

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