June 22, 2010
Our last update had us at Refuge Cove in Desolation Sound on Wednesday, June 16th. On the way out we dropped our garbage off on a garbage barge. Somebody has set up a little business here where boaters can dropped off their garbage for a fee - $5 for a light bag and $10 for a heavy bag. This is really needed as there is no place to leave garbage in this area. All garbage needs to be hauled out by boat to, I’m guessing, Campbell River.
Our destination this day was Shoal Bay, but to get there we have to go though a few passes where the water can be just like a fast running river. One has to time this passage for slack current or when the tide is close to its highest or lowest level. At this point, the current stops and in short time, reverses direction. Anyway, we got though these rapids OK as do 99.9% of other boaters in spite of the horror stories you hear. We then headed to Shoal Bay for the night. It turned out to be a 2 day stay because of a bad weather forecast. Although we stayed mostly because the fun people we met there. It is owned by a single guy named Mark. He somehow gets people to stay the summer maintaining and improving the place for room and board (and free beer!), so he gets some real characters. Most of them are retired, but one fellow (that looked like a young Robert Redford!) was an architectural student from England. He was there to try out some of his ideas while on summer vacation. Another was a musician and singer from Brownsville who provided entertainment in the evening. Everyone had a great time.
Our last update had us at Refuge Cove in Desolation Sound on Wednesday, June 16th. On the way out we dropped our garbage off on a garbage barge. Somebody has set up a little business here where boaters can dropped off their garbage for a fee - $5 for a light bag and $10 for a heavy bag. This is really needed as there is no place to leave garbage in this area. All garbage needs to be hauled out by boat to, I’m guessing, Campbell River.
Our destination this day was Shoal Bay, but to get there we have to go though a few passes where the water can be just like a fast running river. One has to time this passage for slack current or when the tide is close to its highest or lowest level. At this point, the current stops and in short time, reverses direction. Anyway, we got though these rapids OK as do 99.9% of other boaters in spite of the horror stories you hear. We then headed to Shoal Bay for the night. It turned out to be a 2 day stay because of a bad weather forecast. Although we stayed mostly because the fun people we met there. It is owned by a single guy named Mark. He somehow gets people to stay the summer maintaining and improving the place for room and board (and free beer!), so he gets some real characters. Most of them are retired, but one fellow (that looked like a young Robert Redford!) was an architectural student from England. He was there to try out some of his ideas while on summer vacation. Another was a musician and singer from Brownsville who provided entertainment in the evening. Everyone had a great time.
Shoal BayOn Friday we left Shoal Bay and continued north again going though Greene and Whirlpool Rapids and then headed into Johnstone Strait. It has a bad reputation for high winds and waves, and since it started blowing about 20 MPH, we (Karyl and the dogs!) decided to stop for the night at Port Neville. I have been to Port Neville before and remember the quaint little museum and store, but Karyl had not been there before. However, when we arrived we found out it had been closed for a few years because the owner was in poor health. It was still a nice place to walk around and the dogs liked all the grass. There is also still a small dock which we took advantage of. We had no trouble docking as the wind pushed us into the dock. Thank goodness for a couple of boaters that grabbed our lines!
Port Neville StoreThe next day, Saturday, we got underway at 5 A.M. because high gale force winds (20 to 30 MPH) were predicted for Johnstone Strait later in the day. Usually the winds are not too bad in the early morning, as it was in this case. On the way to one of our favorite places in this area called Lagoon Cove Marina, we checked out Port Harvey, a place that was recommended to us. It had a small dock and store, but we did not stop. Lagoon Cove Marina has been our first stop in the Broughtons, another famous cruising area. Lagoon Cove Marina is owned by a colorful character named Bill Barber. Its claim to fame is the nightly happy hour where Bill provides freshly caught prawns. He goes out everyday and catches the evening feast and everybody on the dock brings a dish to complement the prawns. Part of the fun is that Bill is a very good story teller and he never ceases to get a good laugh. We met several people heading to Alaska our first trip here and got many good tips on places to go, etc. They have a couple of small hiking trails and it is a good place to go exploring in a kayak. It has become a tradition that we stop here on our way north.
The Dock At Lagoon Cove MarinaAfter Lagoon Cove we headed up into the Broughtons and set the anchor in another favorite spot called Waddington Bay. This is a very protected basin that has a complicated route to get into it. It looks easy but if you follow the easy way, you’ll be on the rocks.
The next day, Monday, we went to Joe Cove. This is another favorite place of mine and is again, very protected. It has a small float anchor in the middle with room for two boats. When we got there, a sailboat had one side of the float so we took the other. We got down the kayaks and did a little paddling around the bay. The people in the sailboat where very nice and we enjoyed talking to them.
Tied To The Float In Joe CoveOn Tuesday we headed further up into the Broughtons to a small marina called Kwatsi Bay. This is way up Tribune Channel where we passed a neat waterfall and tied to the dock. We had heard that this was a must see place and even though it was 20 miles up and 20 miles back, we did the trip. The place really looks like a work in progress and I was surprised the owner has had it for 12 years. But we did have fun and meet some nice people. I have an internet connection so I will try and send this out but it is very slow.
Tomorrow, we’ll start heading back to a big town called Port McNiell so we can do shopping and do the laundry. Hopefully, we’ll be there on Thursday.
Tomorrow, we’ll start heading back to a big town called Port McNiell so we can do shopping and do the laundry. Hopefully, we’ll be there on Thursday.
Kwatsi Bay Marina
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