Since our last post, we passed through Shearwater, Ocean Falls, Pruth Bay, and around Cape Caution to the Walker Group and now in Port McNeill. The weather has been sunny with blue skies that add to the beauty of the mountain peaks that still have snow fields on them! The crux of
this stretch is passing around Cape Caution. It's main problems are two fold. First, numerous small islands and rocks litter the coast line. Many of them are just below the surface causing the ocean swells to break over them. Second, the weather and ocean swells combine to make the timing
of rounding the Cape a serious safety issue for smaller boats. For example, our passing Cape Caution started with flat calm seas at 0800 in Fitz Hugh Sound. When we were off Cape Caution itself at 1400 (2pm), the seas had built to a mixture of 6-8' ocean swells from the NW, and a
confusion of 4-5' waves coming from the West, along with reflective waves bouncing off the Cape and the Islands from all other directions. If there is a stiff enough breeze, a sailboat can hold its line through this mess. But the winds had died to almost nothing, leaving the aftermath of mixed
seas. We were grateful to find an anchorage in the Walker Group at 1745 (5:45pm) well on the way to Port McNeill where we are currently at a dock provisioning and laundering. Tonight we had dinner ashore at the local pub: halibut tacos, green salad, and dessert while watching a MLB
game on TV between the Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers!