Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Who: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
Port: Bellingham, WA

Return to Bellingham

10 August 2015
The forecast in the morning was for winds of 10-20 knots in Georgia Straight. Canada Coast Guard indicated that Whiskey Golf, the military testing area along our route, was not active today so we could go wherever we wanted in the Strait. We planned to stick our nose out by the Merry Island Lighthouse and test the waters. It was to be wind against tide today. The tide would be there for sure and if the wind piped up the waves could get steep and make for a bumpy ride. If things got too bad, we would head for more protected waters on the far side of Georgia Strait.

Going down Welcome Passage, there seemed to be little wind. At Merry Island Light, there was little wind as we passed a big log boom, pulled by a tug. We headed out.

The winds continued light so we kept on pushing south, staying just outside the traffic lanes of the ocean going ships that come into Vancouver. These are clearly marked on our charts. Between Tawassin, BC, on the mainland side, and Nanaimo, on the Vancouver Island side, there was frequent ferry traffic. These took people from the mainland of BC to Vancouver island. You have to watch these big boys because they scoot along at over 20 knots and can be on you in a heartbeat. We monitor them on our AIS, radar, and channel 11 – Victoria Harbour Control. This channel is used by ferries and other harbour traffic in the area. We threaded our way around a couple of ferries to Nanaimo and continued south. Next up were the ferries between Tawassin, BC, on the mainland side, and Active Pass, on the Gulf Island side. These big boys also zoom along. They are headed to the Sydney area on Vancouver Island. Our timing was perfect. We passed right between and inbound and outbound ferry and a tanker tanking fuel to Gulf Island destinations.

Then, we had to cross the traffic lanes that big ocean going ships used to get to Vancouver. Rules call for crossing traffic to cross these lanes at 90 degrees to shorten the time in the lanes. We did so. There was only one ship headed north to Vancouver and that was easy to avoid. After we crossed the lanes and entered US waters, Deb called US Customs for clearance procedures. We have NEXUS cards and all the associated information to clear customs with just a phone call but they sometimes want you to stop at a customs dock. We planned to stop at Point Roberts, WA if they required this but Deb got us a free pass and we did not have to stop. It was about 4 pm so we continued to Bellingham, passing by Lummi Island and entering Bellingham Bay. Change of Latitude was like a horse headed back to the barn, she picked up her feet and literally galloped across the bay. Deb put on our lines and fenders and we landed in our slip, back home.

We tied up, connected the power cord and washed the boat down with fresh water, getting rid of the salt from a 5-week journey. We had a dinner of left overs, cheese, salsa, chips and other food we had on the boat. We watched a bit of news on our sat TV and then I headed to bed while Deb read for a bit. It had been a long day.
Comments
Vessel Name: Change of Latitude
Vessel Make/Model: Grand Banks CL 42
Hailing Port: Bellingham, WA
Crew: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
About: We live on the East Coast but enjoy wilderness cruising in the Pacific Northwest.
Extra: We enjoy crabbing, shrimping, fishing, and clamming. Some of us are crazy enough to swim in Northwest waters during the summer.

Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Who: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
Port: Bellingham, WA