Photo: Looking up Shelter Inlet in Clayoquot Sound towards Bacchante Bay.

The weather radio promised southeast gales so we decided to head up Shelter Inlet to Bacchante Bay to hide for a couple of days. We left in weather so perfect it was hard to believe in the gales: northwest winds, blue skies and warm air. The northwest wind followed us up inlet, winding around bends, all the way to Bacchante Bay, giving us one of the best sails we'd had all summer.

We anchored off the marsh in Bacchante Bay and sat in the cockpit watching a sea lion catching salmon. He would surface with a salmon in his mouth, shake it to break its back, then dive again. Flocks of gulls circled overhead waiting for leftover morsels. In less than an hour, we watched him catch three salmon. It's easy to see why the fishermen dislike these animals!

On one of our visits to this bay Jigger fell overboard during the night and rescued himself! I tell the story in Voyages to Windward. Thank goodness the sea lion wasn't here that night!