Ten Weeks: Vancouver Island
Date: June 6, 2016
Time Start: Noon Time Finish: 2:05 p.m. Cruise From: Conover Cove, Wallace Island Cruise To: Ladysmith, Vancouver Island Engine Hours Start: 403 Engine Hours Finish: 405 Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and warm, a breeze My birthday! Shh! Don't tell anyone, it's #70! And I get to wake up in a favorite and beautiful anchorage, Conover Cove. Early morning is still and peaceful with the sun rising over the treetops. Dan fixes eggs and toast for breakfast outside in the cockpit where we can enjoy the views of the cove. |
We make a visit to shore to stretch our legs and to check out the fun collection of signs boaters have left in the shed. We have left our mark here twice before, oyster shells with our boat names and dates. They are easy for us to find, but the writing is fading. Next time we visit, we need to bring a marking pen! (See blog posting from 2015 for North Star, and posting from our Hoku Kai blog in 2014, for lots more information and photos of Wallace Island.) Two past visits with our two Ranger Tugs, this makes our third visit with a Ranger Tug!)
We have a short but picturesque cruise to Ladysmith on Vancouver Island. Our friend Gail Beattie joins us on NORTH STAR, bringing a lovely bouquet of birthday flowers that fill my window vase in the cockpit.
We have a good visit, and then Gail gives us a lift to town for some provisioning at "49th Parallel" followed by a quick tour of Ladysmith, a city that sits on a hill. We are glad to be in a car for the shopping and sight seeing on this warm day! Patrick joins us all later for a wonderful dinner in the Saltair Pub. It happens to be steak and beer night at this scenic restaurant in an old house surrounded by lovely gardens. It is a treat, a perfect spot to celebrate with our boating friends. (Patrick and Gail led the way for us on our first two cruises to Desolation Sound!)
We are staying at the Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina. With lingering daylight and a warm night to enjoy our surroundings, we are able to spend some time checking out the amenities and historical displays at the marina. It is really a wonderful place to visit.
We are staying at the Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina. With lingering daylight and a warm night to enjoy our surroundings, we are able to spend some time checking out the amenities and historical displays at the marina. It is really a wonderful place to visit.
The marina is a community hub for the town of Ladysmith. Lots of activities and year-round events take place here, and the docks are home to a museum and a marine education facility.
Date: June 7, 2016
Time Start: 10:00 a.m.
Time Finish: 9:00 p.m.
Cruise From: Ladysmith
Cruise To: Deep Bay
Engine Hours Start: 405
Engine Hours Finish: 415
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and warm, a breeze, low 70's, windy and rough at Hornby Island
Purple martin nesting boxes are all along the docks of Ladysmith, and they are well occupied this morning! See and hear them in the video below.
Date: June 7, 2016
Time Start: 10:00 a.m.
Time Finish: 9:00 p.m.
Cruise From: Ladysmith
Cruise To: Deep Bay
Engine Hours Start: 405
Engine Hours Finish: 415
Weather/sea conditions: Sunny and warm, a breeze, low 70's, windy and rough at Hornby Island
Purple martin nesting boxes are all along the docks of Ladysmith, and they are well occupied this morning! See and hear them in the video below.
I am still enjoying my birthday flowers. Dan takes a walk up the hill to the local bakery to procure some of the cinnamon rolls we have heard so much about. And then it is time to leave Ladysmith behind us and continue to make our way north along Vancouver Island.
We are on our way to Dodd Narrows, needing to catch the slack there. A familiar yacht, Toy Box II, passes us! We remember her from our anchorage in Laura Cove last summer, the boat that made NORTH STAR look like a little toy tug! Boats are waiting near Round Island for the currents to ease, and then it is a slow parade into the Narrows. The passage is easy today.
Industrial sites and the ports of Nanaimo lie ahead. And it is windy. That makes for more chop on the water.
We bypass Nanaimo, continuing north, with Deep Bay in Baynes Sound our destination, making for a long cruise today. The Ada Islands are great refuges for birds, with the mountains of mainland B.C. visible in the distance. We spot cormorants, gulls, even an eagle!
Next are the Yeo Islands. No birds, but a pretty sailboat passes by.
The Captain calls for a switch in plans. We have never been to Tribune Bay on Hornby Island, let's check it out! And so, anchor is dropped in a lovely, large bay where we fix our dinner (chicken Waldorf salads with pumpkin bread tonight) while two foot swells rock us continually as the south westerlies churn up the bay. This spot will have to wait for another day, we soon decide to revert to Plan A, a spot on the dock at Deep Bay!
We leave for Deep Bay, and the swells and white caps along the way get us plenty wet and salty. As we pass the scenic Chrome Island Light Station we attempt to get some photos in spite of the conditions. It is hard to hold the camera steady!
We leave for Deep Bay, and the swells and white caps along the way get us plenty wet and salty. As we pass the scenic Chrome Island Light Station we attempt to get some photos in spite of the conditions. It is hard to hold the camera steady!
We arrive at Deep Bay (calm here!) and tie to the dock just as the sun drops behind the hills. There are purple martin nests here, too, along with a cat (obviously enjoying the bird population!) on the boat next to us. NORTH STAR gets a much needed rinse.
Date: June 8, 2016
Time Start: 11:15 a.m.
Time Finish: 2:15 p.m.
Cruise From: Deep Bay, Baynes Sound
Cruise To: Comox
Engine Hours Start: 415
Engine Hours Finish: 418
Weather/sea conditions: Clearing to sunny skies and warm, windy
We wake up to clearing skies after the lightest sprinkle in the night. The sounds of purple martins and swallows in the nest boxes fill the air. Such great efforts are being made along this coast to restore the population of these birds. Swallows compete with them for the nest sites.
Deep Bay Marina has a mixture of working vessels and pleasure boats. Some sport the character of much use or neglect. The surrounding mountains still have some snow. It is a picturesque marina, at the head of Baynes Sound, a prolific shellfish growing area, and a marine research center is nearby.
Time Start: 11:15 a.m.
Time Finish: 2:15 p.m.
Cruise From: Deep Bay, Baynes Sound
Cruise To: Comox
Engine Hours Start: 415
Engine Hours Finish: 418
Weather/sea conditions: Clearing to sunny skies and warm, windy
We wake up to clearing skies after the lightest sprinkle in the night. The sounds of purple martins and swallows in the nest boxes fill the air. Such great efforts are being made along this coast to restore the population of these birds. Swallows compete with them for the nest sites.
Deep Bay Marina has a mixture of working vessels and pleasure boats. Some sport the character of much use or neglect. The surrounding mountains still have some snow. It is a picturesque marina, at the head of Baynes Sound, a prolific shellfish growing area, and a marine research center is nearby.
We are on our way once again, making our way north in Baynes Sound. A cable ferry, new since our last cruise here, crosses from Denman Island to Vancouver Island. Boaters must now watch for the red and green lights on either shore before passing through the ferry crossing area.
There is a lot of oyster farming along the shores of Denman Island, and we slow to take a look.
Mountains with snow and even a glacier look cold on the Vancouver Island shore as we approach Comox.
After fueling at the Gas and Go, we tie up in the Port Authority Marina amidst the fishing boats. We are lucky, we are in time to score some live spot prawns off of one of the boats for our dinner.
We walk the short way up the hill to the commercial area of Comox, a nice area of shops and restaurants and other types of business. The supermarket is a great place to provision. Continuing our walk back along the waterfront park and marina areas, we are enjoying a beautiful afternoon.
And then we meet the biggest Ranger Tug fan ever! Alan Buckham is a wanna-be boat owner, has his boat name picked out ("Rarely"), and has carried a photo of a Ranger Tug in his wallet for literally years. To own one is his dream. He is thrilled when we invite him aboard, and we love his enthusiasm. We hope his dream comes true! Ranger Jeff, you need to send this guy a hat!
Dinner time, the prawns are delicious!
Laundry gets done, windows Rain-Xed, and then sunset is spectacular with lots of clouds - and two bald eagles!
Oh, those eagles! One sits atop the mast of a sailboat, another is perched atop a lamp post. (Be sure to click on these photos to get the full picture as some of them are verticals.)
And the sunset colors just keep intensifying! Can you spot the eagle on the sailboat mast?
Good memories are made in our visit to Comox!
Date: June 9, 2016
Time Start: 7:30 a.m.
Time Finish: 12:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Comox
Cruise To: Campbell River, Coast Marina
Engine Hours Start: 418
Engine Hours Finish: 423
Weather/sea conditions: Partly cloudy, windy, 60's
We have a little rain in the night. Captain Dan gets us off early and dodges lots of floating logs on the way to Campbell River. I have a bag of clothes spread out to dry on every available surface after a stored water jug leaked into my luggage. The cabin looks a lot like a teen room!
Date: June 9, 2016
Time Start: 7:30 a.m.
Time Finish: 12:30 p.m.
Cruise From: Comox
Cruise To: Campbell River, Coast Marina
Engine Hours Start: 418
Engine Hours Finish: 423
Weather/sea conditions: Partly cloudy, windy, 60's
We have a little rain in the night. Captain Dan gets us off early and dodges lots of floating logs on the way to Campbell River. I have a bag of clothes spread out to dry on every available surface after a stored water jug leaked into my luggage. The cabin looks a lot like a teen room!
The wind swells continue to rock us even after we tie up at Coast Marina in Campbell River. We head to the dockside fish and chip stand and find that it has changed ownership. The stand has been remodeled and expanded, with lots of new seating both inside and out. We learn that the previous owners (Dick's) have reopened in a new spot near the public wharf.
Dan has work to complete. I take advantage of the time to walk along the waterfront, revisiting sites from last year and enjoying the blustery afternoon (see 2015 Summer Cruise: Vancouver Island). I especially enjoy the Discovery Pier. A snack bar also rents out fishing gear, and watching people and taking in the scenery are great ways to pass the time.
Dan has work to complete. I take advantage of the time to walk along the waterfront, revisiting sites from last year and enjoying the blustery afternoon (see 2015 Summer Cruise: Vancouver Island). I especially enjoy the Discovery Pier. A snack bar also rents out fishing gear, and watching people and taking in the scenery are great ways to pass the time.
The winds die in the late afternoon. After dinner aboard NORTH STAR, we are ready for an evening walk, again along the waterfront toward the pier, enjoying the variety of boats moored in the marinas.
The Canadian Coast Guard has vessels in Coast Marina, and we are right next to the ferry terminal. Yes, this is where the Coast Guard gave us assistance in 2013 when I broke several bones in my foot after a fall at Gorge Harbor and needed to be transported to the local hospital. Good people! (Details in Hoku Kai blog.) And, what day would be complete without an eagle sighting?
Date: June 9, 2016
Campbell River Layover Day
We have a busy day! Today is dedicated to preparing for our cruise tomorrow when we will head into Seymour Narrows and then Johnstone Strait, waters known as the Discovery Passage and famous for their strong tidal currents. These are waters that can be very challenging for boaters. Captain George Vancouver described the Narrows as "one of the vilest stretches of water in the world." We hope not!
We shop for last minute groceries and other essentials, fill the water tank as well as two containers that each hold seven gallons, clean the windows, plan our route, catch up on mail knowing that we may be out of contact for awhile, etc. We go online to read about and watch videos of Seymour Narrows. Pretty sobering! Our fingers are crossed for light winds tomorrow.
Date: June 9, 2016
Campbell River Layover Day
We have a busy day! Today is dedicated to preparing for our cruise tomorrow when we will head into Seymour Narrows and then Johnstone Strait, waters known as the Discovery Passage and famous for their strong tidal currents. These are waters that can be very challenging for boaters. Captain George Vancouver described the Narrows as "one of the vilest stretches of water in the world." We hope not!
We shop for last minute groceries and other essentials, fill the water tank as well as two containers that each hold seven gallons, clean the windows, plan our route, catch up on mail knowing that we may be out of contact for awhile, etc. We go online to read about and watch videos of Seymour Narrows. Pretty sobering! Our fingers are crossed for light winds tomorrow.