We have finally accessed an internet connection since leaving Port McNeill, so there is a fair bit to catch up on. We departed our anchorage early in the morning to catch the favorable current into Queen Charlotte Strait, and it was a great decision. Once in the Strait, it was virtually no wind or swell, and it was overcast but not foggy. The trip to Allison Harbour was uneventful, and we arrived to an anchorage all to ourselves. After settling in, I set the crab trap in the mid-afternoon. When checking it after dinner, there was only one undersized male in the trap, so I returned it to the bottom for an overnight drop. I awoke early next morning in anticipation of a full trap, but to my great disappointment it was empty. We had decided the night before that if the crabbing was not good, there was no reason to stay for a second night, so we were soon off to points further north. Our first encounter was a large group of sea otters floating on their backs, either feeding off of sea urchins or mothers carrying their pups on their bellies. I also briefly spotted a pair of Orcas, one male with a very large dorsal fin. Once in the open water, the first task was to round Cape Caution, a notorious place for large waves because it is very shallow for a few miles offshore, so the wiser navigators stay out in deeper water to avoid the possible danger. It adds for a slightly longer trip, but discretion is always the better part of valor. There was actually minimal wind and only a moderate swell of about one meter as we made our way north, and when we passed the Cape well offshore, there were a few other boats traveling in both directions that were following the safe course. After passing that point, we turned slightly to starboard to head to our destination for the day, and we ended up in a bit of a beam sea (swell hitting us perpendicular to our directdion of travel) which caused Lion’s Paw to roll slightly side-to-side as each swell passed. We decided to set the mainsail to counter the motion since there was enough of a breeze to fill the sail. Sure enough, it totally eliminated the rolling even though we continued under motor. The rest of this segment proved uneventful under continuing overcast skies.

We approached our intended destination, Fury Cove, a place we had not visited in the past, although it is a very popular stopping place for boats transiting the Cape, either before or after depending upon the direction of travel. We furled the mainsail and entered the cove through the narrow, shallow entrance without incident. There were 3 other boats already at anchor, and we eventually found a suitable spot to anchor. We settled in for the day, continuing our daily games of cribbage and dominoes, but we had decided to add a third-rummy, a game I had learned crossing the Pacific on Nomad. After several days of practice, we had decided to add it to the daily challenge. During the practices, I seemed to have a fairly strong upper hand, but since adding this competition to our daily challenge, Debra has yet to lose! I have only managed to win one round of the best 2 out of 3 scoring, and Fury Cove was no different. We settled in for dinner, Neflix and a good night’s sleep, awakening as the only boat remaining in the cove. We had decided to spend an extra day at the cove and take advantage of the beautiful white beach which looked like pristine. It was July 1st, Canada Day, and we observed a couple of skiffs going ashore and setting up a picnic, flying the Canadian flag. We launched our dinghy and landed close to their skiffs. As we walked towards the beach we had a chance to briefly talk to the four people who we learned actually lived on a nearby island and annually visited the beach on major holidays. They had two very large dogs who were very eager to make contact with us, but the woman put them on their leashes (they had been running free) and continued to have them on leashes as long as we were on the beach, as well. The first thing we realized was that this was not a white sand beach; it was a midden of massive amounts of crushed sea shells, the remnants of First Nations people who had obviously made this their home at one point in the past. We walked a bit around the area stepping on the boulders of black volcanic basalt strewn amongst the midden and sat to enjoy the beautiful views of Fitzhugh Sound and the cove and Lion’s Paw (see the lead photo) before returning to Lion’s Paw, where Debra continued her domination of rummy. We were joined by a few other boats for the evening.

We arose this morning with our next destination well established-Pruth Bay, the home of the Hakai Institute, a marine research center. We were looking forward to this stop for two reasons- (1) There are five beautiful beaches which are within walking distance and face out to open ocean, and (2) We have internet access which allows me to post this latest blog. We have set anchor in the harbour and are settling in for an extended stay before moving further north. Travel to this anchorage was under continued overcast skies, but the skies have begun to clear with sun breaking through. Hopefully this will continue for the remainder of our stay.

I think that this is enough to bring an end to this blog. Our next likely blog will be in 4 days or so when we reach Ocean Falls which advertises free wifi.