Moods

The mayor of Bamfield, British Columbia opened her eyes at exactly 6:01am, without the benefit of an alarm clock.  She stared at the ceiling for a moment and then eased herself out of bed and walked sleepily into the kitchen.  Pouring water into the coffee maker, she looked out the window to take in her stunning view of Barkley Sound.   Instead, the view was obscured by low cloud and dense of mixed with steady rain.  She sighed.  "Doug and David must be visiting again."

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What a difference a day makes.  After a mixed bag of weather upon leaving Victoria, our Port Renfrew to Bamfield day filled us with a sense of well-being.  The forecast had promised sunny weather for most of our trip and now it had delivered.  We pulled into Bamfield like conquering champions, back to Barkley Sound for the sunny visit we were supposed to have two years ago.  We fuelled up, bought some extra provisions and proceeded to our first stop, Port Alberni Yacht Club.  PAYC is located in Robbers Passage between Flemming Island and Tzartus Island.  Unfortunately there was no one home.  This didn't stop up from tying up at the dock but it did preclude us from having the unlimited $2 hot shower that we remembered so fondly from our last visit.  The unlimited shower is owing to an active artesian spring the club has tapped into and a recently installed on-demand hot water heater.  No matter, we had all the peace and quiet we could stand in surroundings that were so beautiful they would bring a tear to your eye.

Mobile Update

For days there has been a strong wind warning for the Juan de Fuca Strait. Today the wind has died. That means a repeat of last time - a long day of motoring. Equally disappointing, the sun has disappeared even though there are no clouds in the forecast. As an added insult, we're struggling against an all-day flood tide that has kep our speed to 3 - 4 knots. At this rate we won't be at Port Renfrew until 10pm. 

With that said, 25kt winds on the nose are expected tomorrow so I shouldn't complain. Just coming up to Sheringham Point with its lovely lighthouse. 

 

Mobile Post: Juan de Fuca Strait

Good fun in Victoria last night. We had dinner and drinks at an old favourite of mine, the Sticky Wicket. The bar was filled with US Navy sailors on shore leave from their destroyer tied up nearby in Esquimalt. David, being the hyper-social guy that he is, began chatting them and buying them drinks. What ensued was inevitable, as was how I feel this morning. I'm the smartest guy in the world at 7am. 

Heading out of Victoria Harbiur as I write this and the view is expansive. The Juan de Fuca Strait lies before us with the Olympic mountains in the background. Race Rocks light station is just off our bow. I'd love to motor over and check out the sea lions that rest there but we have 50 nautical miles to get to Port Renfrew and the wind is right on our nose. Not a moment to lose. 

 
 

Mobile Post: First Night - First Problem

We got away in good time on Friday. By 10am we were on our way. After topping up fuel we motored out into the strait and headed South towards Active Pass. It was a pleasant and uneventful crossing with the wind on our stern quarter. 

As we got closer to Active Pass I checked in with an experienced sailing friend for options on anchorages inside the pass. JV suggested Annette Inlet on Prevost Island. We took his advice and enjoyed a peaceful evening at a beautiful anchorage (pics to follow).

This morning dawned with rain, wind and cloud. After enjoying a bacon and eggs breakfast we started bundling up for a cool day on the water. I went to grab my sailing jacket and....  Gone. I stared in disbelief at the empty hook where I normally hang it. Bad words were uttered. It was literally pouring rain outside.

David offered me one of his jackets but it was a little small. I hatched a plan. I called my long suffering partner Brenda and asked if she would send my jacket - and some other items I had forgotten, by Greyhound bus to downtown Victoria. I made the call and she reluctantly agreed, barely holding back her sarcastic remarks at my stupidity. 

A while later Brenda called and said my jacket was nowhere to be found at home.   At this point she remembered that last time she was on the boat she decided to nearly hang up my jacket in the aft locker. I never bother to do this so I didn't think to check there. A quick look in the locker confirmed - there it was neatly hanging ready for action. 

First problem solved. Now it's off into the rain. Victoria tonight. 

 

Barkley Sound - Revisited

A couple of years ago David and I struck out on the most ambitious sail we had attempted to that point.  We headed south past Victoria, around the southern tip of Vancouver Island, up the Juan de Fuca Strait and into open ocean.  Our destination was Barkley Sound on the west coast of the Island.  Inside the sound is an array of islands, fittingly known as the Broken Islands, that provide infinite possibilities for exploration and pristine anchorage.  What we didn't know was that August in that part of the world is known for fog.  As a result, much of the legendary scenery we were looking forward to was shrouded from view most of the time.  Today we are about to revisit that epic trip during a season of clearer weather.

Our route to Barclay Sound.  (Note, we will stop in Port Renfrew rather than Neah Bay to avoid customs hassles)

One notable improvement we've made for this trip is our dinghy.  The one we've been using was a hard shell Walker Bay model with only oars for propulsion.  To say this little boat was precarious with the two of us in it is an understatement.  Representing close to 500lbs between us, we made a comic picture rowing around.  So David splurged on a new, more buoyant inflatable dinghy and a small outboard engine.  This will make for safer and more enjoyable exploration once we get to our destination.

The old dinghy(above) and an example of our new one (below)

Provisions, as usual, are excessive.  In our tradition of wanting for nothing while we're afloat we spent close to $400 on food and roughly the same again for wine, beer, rum and a very nice bottle of scotch, all because, as we are fond of saying, "we're not barbarians."

The weather outlook is generally great, with just a couple of cloudy/damp days to face on our way out before a good stretch of sunshine and warm temps.

We are very grateful to Brenda and Pam for giving us this extended (10-day) pass to act like kids again and go exploring.  In just a few hours we'll be pushing off.  Can't wait.