I have to start off by saying just how much we love this place! The sun hasn't stopped shining since we arrived, we have been kayaking, swimming in the ocean & simply working on our tans! If you have never been here or to Quadra Island, I would highly recommend it. The island is rich in greenery, & the people are very helpful & friendly. We have met some wonderful people, touring their boats as well as showing our own & simply hanging out. We are currently stern tied in the most beautiful spot in the bay, with driftwood piled high on the shore & trails on the spit that we enjoy with Missy each day! It is a scenery that you just don't tire of! Even today we are still in amazement each morning as we wake to find the sun shining once again! Suffice it to say, this is really hard to take!
On a side note, the addition of the freezer on board has made life aboard so wonderful! Next to this, the solar powered dinghy has been so amazing, I don't know how we ever got along without it! We have not used our gas powered outboard once in the seven weeks we've been away. We travelled 3 nautical miles at 3 knots to top up our provisions in Heriot Bay. This was our farthest trip so far & we were prepared that we might have to paddle part of the way back. Thankfully, it didn't disappoint us & we were able to ride on solar energy the entire way! It is just so convenient, and proving to be a real conversation piece amongst boaters. Darren has been encouraging people to take it out and try it & they are just amazed & very interested in purchasing a kit! Once we settle in CR, he is most definitely persuing this as a business venture!
Well, that is it for now as far as an update. I will add another blog whenever we decide it's time to move on!
Love & hugs,
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Comments [3]
ev
We returned to this spot as it is just so beautiful! I would often sit in Port McNeill & imagine myself in the Octopus Islands, paddling around in the kayak enjoying the complete solitude. It was particularly busy this time, but we are slowly adapting to sharing anchorages with other people! Something you rarely have to do on the north island. We have been spoilt and we know it, so this is part of our adjustment phase to being south!
We read about and hiked a trail there to get some exercise with Missy & discovered a beautiful islet at the end of the trail. It was so serene & beautiful that I have attached a pic to share. Once the winds died down, we were able to get out & in the kayaks. We kayaked the marine park & came across a couple of racoons, a martin running to and fro, as well as a deer eating from a tree that was not afraid of people at all! We sat simply admiring the deer as I have never come across this before when paddling along the shoreline. It proved to be a long, enjoyable paddle which we pondered over while enjoying a glass of wine in the cockpit! We had put down our crab trap in the morning in hopes of a few crabs for dinner, but the trap had all females with the exception of a small male, so we were on our own. We decided to go ahead and make sushi anyways, with some smoked salmon we had on board and enjoyed a wonderful feast!
We stayed here for another few days & then timing the slack at Surge Narrows we headed on to Quadra Island.
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After our virtual non event travelling Johnstone Strait to Port Harvey, we were humbled by our trip from Port Harvey to Owen Bay. The weather forecast predicted the winds to pick up later in the day & as we left just after first light we thought we were in for another quiet transit. Wrong! Oh well, we did have the foresail out for a little while, so enjoyed that until the gusts became just too much. Johnstone Strait was at its finest in some areas with wind gusts to 40 knots! The seas developed to 4 meter haystacks, and then thankfully died down to a 1 meter swell just outside of Kelsey Bay. After we rounded Chatam Point we were able to raise our sails again & enjoy a few hours of sailing to our next destination of Owen Bay.
It is a beautiful secluded anchorage, surrounded by cabins of all sizes & stature on land with boat access only. The winds picked up here and the forecast was a gale in both Johnstone Strait & the Strait of Georgia so we decided to just lay low & enjoy the sunny, windy weather for a few days. This spot proved to be a spectacular spot for star gazing, as we found ourselves waking in the middle of the night to enjoy the scenery from the cockpit!
During our stay there, we awoke one morning to find a new neighbour & from our viewpoint almost up on the rocks of the shoreline! This being every boater's nightmare, Darren hopped in the dinghy & went to knock on their boat to offer assistance in pulling them away. They had apparently woken a few moments before as they heard a huge bang & scrape as their hull settled against the rocky shore. This rescue was a great testament to our solar dinghy, as Darren pulled them off of the rocks & into the centre of the bay where they could re-group!
We left later that day timing our exit with the rapids with our destination being the Octopus Islands.
Love & hugs,
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We left Port McNeill on a record morning. The sun was shining it was 7:00 am & you could already feel the heat in the sun, which is not something you are accustomed to as a resident of the north island! It proved to be an awesome day weather wise with the exception of the lack of wind. Johnston Strait can be so intimidating with it's usual high winds or a non event like it was today. We have traveled this part of the passage during both conditions & actually the non event & beautiful scenery would be my first choice! We had hoped for a great sail to our destination of Port Harvey, but unfortunately the winds were just too light. We were blessed with three whales surfacing just right of our bow, so that kept us entertained as we marvelled at just how beautiful they are. Port Harvey is a newly owned marina & anchorage to us, and proved to be a real beauty! We were surrounded by snow peaked mountain tops, beautiful greenery & porpoises playing in the bay today for hours! It is so picturesque and so quiet here we fell in love & decided to stay here for days!
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lots of love dan
What a wonderful time we have been having! We have been very fortunate to see a lot of varied wildlife on our journey. There have been countless birds, a very close encounter with an Eagle, seals, sea otters (love them) as well as porpoises & humpback whales surrounding the boat! These experiences simple force you to take it all in & cherish where you are.
We arrived back to Port McNeill harbour late after traveling by motor for 14 hrs. Not our favorite form of travel by far, but the other option we have when there isn't enough wind to sail! It was a long trip, but we decided to do it as the weather was expected to turn again for the worse the next day. Upon waking the next morning with the boat bopping up & down in the protection of the harbour, with white caps forming in the bay & 20 knots of wind we were happy to discover that we made the right choice!
It's been fun being back in our hometown, spending time with dear friends & embracing what we love. It is always so bittersweet pulling into the harbour & spending time here. The sun has been shining, the whales have arrived and local fisherman lining up at the cleaning tables to clean their catches of the day!
After the past two days of bustling around between oil changes, laundry, re-provisioning & socializing with new friends along the dock it is now time to head out and continue on to new discoveries. We are heading south now with Quadra, & Cortez on our list of definite places to hang out & get a tan!
We have had a wonderful journey so far, & we count our blessings each day that we are fortunate enough to have this time together!
Again we will update as opportunites allow, but until then we wish everyone a wonderful summer & safe journey!
Love & hugs,
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ev
