newcastle island
Date: August 7, 2019
Time Start: 7:15 a.m.
Time Finish: 2:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Comox, Vancouver Island
Cruise To: Newcastle Island (Nanaimo)
Engine Hours Start: 1075
Engine Hours Finish: 1082
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny! S.E. winds, upper 70's
Off we go, leaving Comox just behind the trio of "Morning Light", "Crazy Heart", and "Current Obsession". We are all headed to Nanaimo today. Our cruise starts with flat calm water, but after a couple of hours the S.E. winds turn the surface into a sea of white caps. We head into the waves all the way to Nanaimo, getting plenty of salt water spray over the top of NORTH STAR. See the waves in the video below.
Time Start: 7:15 a.m.
Time Finish: 2:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Comox, Vancouver Island
Cruise To: Newcastle Island (Nanaimo)
Engine Hours Start: 1075
Engine Hours Finish: 1082
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny! S.E. winds, upper 70's
Off we go, leaving Comox just behind the trio of "Morning Light", "Crazy Heart", and "Current Obsession". We are all headed to Nanaimo today. Our cruise starts with flat calm water, but after a couple of hours the S.E. winds turn the surface into a sea of white caps. We head into the waves all the way to Nanaimo, getting plenty of salt water spray over the top of NORTH STAR. See the waves in the video below.
Sea planes are taking off as we arrive at the Gas 'n Go in Nanaimo for fuel, adding to the boat traffic in the channel between the city and Newcastle Island. We are able to wash the salt off of NORTH STAR after we fuel.
We have been wanting to visit Newcastle Island and are happy to find a vacant buoy for the reasonable price of $14 a night. Our cruising friends have also found available buoys for the night. Across from us is the hustle and bustle of the town of Nanaimo, with all of the accompanying noises - boats, planes, trains, sirens, music. All of these sounds resonate across the narrow stretch of water to the island that is in stark contrast to the city it fronts. The island is a natural park.
The lights of the city are wonderful as night arrives, along with a beautiful moon reflecting on the water.
Date: August 8, 2019
Newcastle Island layover day
Weather: Partly cloudy morning
Mellow music plays on our Fusion stereo as we enjoy Dan's blueberry pancakes on an equally mellow morning at Newcastle Island. We're going ashore to enjoy the trails and explore before cruising further south later this afternoon. Bruce and Debbie are ashore for a walk with their dogs, and we say goodbyes as they leave. Next time we see them, they will have moved to an R29, still keeping the name "Morning Light". Near the dock is the pavilion dating back to 1911 when the island bustled with life, supporting not only a resort, but a shipyard, coal mining, and quarries for sandstone. A passenger ferry now connects the island with Nanaimo.
Newcastle Island layover day
Weather: Partly cloudy morning
Mellow music plays on our Fusion stereo as we enjoy Dan's blueberry pancakes on an equally mellow morning at Newcastle Island. We're going ashore to enjoy the trails and explore before cruising further south later this afternoon. Bruce and Debbie are ashore for a walk with their dogs, and we say goodbyes as they leave. Next time we see them, they will have moved to an R29, still keeping the name "Morning Light". Near the dock is the pavilion dating back to 1911 when the island bustled with life, supporting not only a resort, but a shipyard, coal mining, and quarries for sandstone. A passenger ferry now connects the island with Nanaimo.
Trails weave throughout the island, giving access to shorelines, forests, and historical sites, as well as great water views, especially across the narrow channel to Nanaimo.
Remnant pulp stones, used for grinding wood into pulp for making paper, remain at the quarry sites. Anyone see a fish in the pile of stones?
A few more photos at the dock, where we meet up with the crew of "Current Obsession" for a chat: (They live in Placerville, California, where we spent couple of years of our lives! Carol is a poet, and John an author. He circumnavigated Vancouver Island and wrote a book about the cruise called "Counter Clockwise".)