Between Echo Bay and now, we returned to the Southern Broughton Islands for some more relaxed exploring. First, a stop at Mamallilicula, the largest of the recently occupied native villages in the archipelago. All that remains are some of the Great House posts, some crumbling homes and community buildings from the mid-20th century, and some decaying totems. Fascinating sense of history, though, at this native metropolis built on a 12 foot high midden hill.... more on middens later.

We took up anchorage for the next three days back a Mound Island, where we knew Biscuit had a large, open, predator-free (relatively) forest to romp in and a white midden beach to swim from. We chose this anchorage to wait out a 30-40 knot gale in the Queen Charlotte Strait, which was only 1 mile and two small islands away. Our new ground tackle performed flawlessly as the winds gusted to 20 or so knots in the anchorage. Despite the blow, we had plenty of warm sunshine and some fun on the island.

Well, this catches us up. As of this morning, we have crossed over to Port Mcneill to take care of business items - doctor calls, laundry, shopping, etc. 12 hours after a 40 knot gale, the strait was glass smooth, windless, and somewhat foggy - go figure. We'll probably be here a few days as there are some boat parts we are awaiting to be shipped in to fix some minor issues. The good news is that we'll be "on the grid" for the weekend, so can catch up on correspondance.