End of trip stats

Hours on engine: 400
Fuel: $745.75
Moorage: $660.00
Car rental: $214.08
Park fees: $237.70

The End........for now.

Yes, Charles is happy to be home. He spent the rest of the afternoon sniffing around his house and letting the birds know he was back. He was a bit miffed because he could smell another cat and two dogs who had lived here while we were gone, but once he determined they were no longer here, he relaxed a bit. He is looking longingly towards the sea.... where he was the king of his boat. He actually followed Jerry back down to the dock on one of his forays to claim more stuff from the boat.
Thank you to everyone for following along with us on our trip. It made us feel like we still had one foot on the ground. We enjoyed all your comments and questions on our blog. And we hope that some of you have been inspired to take a trip of your own, on land or water! We are already planning our next summer trip....... circumnavigate Vancouver Island, taking 6 weeks or so. We had wanted to do the west coast of Vancouver Island but in the end we decided that we did not have enough time to explore all the little nooks and crannies. Next year!
Cheers, Kathy and Jerry

The Last Push

Aug 11, 2007
Time: 1100
Humidity: 67% Temp: 18 C. Overcast, a small hope of sunshine.
Lv: Evening Cove
Course: Ladysmith Harbour > Allen Dock
Now that we are getting close to home, the work begins! It is going to take us several days (or longer because we are back on "island time") to unpack the boat and get it cleaned up. So, while Jerry motors down our harbour, watching out for speed bumps (boatspeak for kayaks), I am packing things up.
Arv: Allen Dock
Lat: 49 00.75 N
Lon: 123 49.51 W
Time: 1200
Trip: 22.8 nm (includes yesterday) Log: 4669.9 nm
We're home! Many of you will want to know if we are glad to be home and the answer is yes and no. Yes, because well, it is our home and we have our nice big bed back! (the thing we missed the most). And no, because we had such a wonderful time with so many new things to see that we would have liked it to continue on. We found living on a sailboat to be quite comfortable and easy to get used to. We kept ourselves busy with reading and daily chores and we had lots of quiet times, each of us lost in our own thoughts. Charles took a little longer before he accepted his new life. It was about 6 weeks into the trip before he stopped meowing at the windows after we went to bed, and not until towards the end when he felt brave enough to relax in the sun on the cockpit bench while we were under way.
So we have to get busy and unpack Splendid Mane (ugggghhh!!) and then pack up for our next trip in 3 weeks.... we are chartering a sailboat in Croatia for 2 weeks in September with friends.

Mystery Animal

We are trying to figure out what animal this skull is from.... any guesses out there? It was found on a beach on a small island in the middle of Johnstone Strait. It has teeth somewhat like a dog but really big eye sockets.

An evening in Evening Cove

Aug 10, 2007
Time: 0845
Humidity: 61 % Temp: 21 C. Cloudy, light SE winds. Rain clouds off in the distance.
Lv: Dengen Bay
Course: Gabriola Passage > Tricomali Channel > Stuart Channel > Evening Cove
Very lazy day, we are not in any hurry to end our journey.
Arv: Evening Cove, Norman Mooring Buoy
Lat: 48 59.19 N
Lon: 123 45.92 W
Time: 1515
We are almost home (only a hour's sail away) but we were kindly invited to have dinner at our good friend's Walter and Mavis Norman house. Mavis fixed a beautiful dinner of lamb and produce from her garden (15 different items!). We also had blackberry/apple pie (both from their yard) for dessert. What a nice treat. After dinner we made our way back to Splendid Mane using "Crawford", Walter's dingy. Charles was mad at us when we got back because it was already dark and his routine was disrupted... dinner and then bed before dark. Things are gonna change when we get home!

The line up in Smuggler Cove

Aug 09, 2007
Time: 0845
Humidity: 74% Temp: 19 C. Winds are calm, overcast sky, a generally blah day.
Lv: Smuggler Cove M.P.
Course: Georgia Strait > Dengen Bay, Gabriola Island
Arrived in good time to go through Gabriola Passage, so we anchored in Dengen Bay instead of Silva Bay. We had a look around Silva and it was way too busy for us! Boats going all over the place. As the days count down, we don't feel like we are in a hurry to get home. We could just keep going south and maybe end up in Mexico!
Arv: Dengen Bay
Lat: 49 08.08 N
Lon: 123 42.89 W
Time: 1500
Trip: 27.9 nm Log: 4647.1 nm
We can see a thunder cloud forming over Ladysmith and then the lightening and thunder started. Soon, it was over us and raining hard. Hopefully this weather is going to change because we have had enough rain for one summer!

Work, work, work......

Aug 08, 2007
Time: 0930
Humidity 80% Temp: 18 C. Cloudy, wind 10 knots. Rained hard last night, but looks a bit brighter today.
Lv: Thunder Bay
Course: Malaspina Strait > Secret Cove (fuel) > Smuggler Cove M.P.
Jerry is checking the stock markets as we sail down Malaspina Strait, looks like an up day, but that counters yesterday that was a down day. Wouldn't everyone like to have an "office" like this?
Stopped for fuel in Secret Cove: $72.98 73 litres Hrs: 1119.2
Arv: Smuggler Cove M.P.
Lat: 49 30.94 N
Lon: 123 57.89 W
Time: 1420
Trip: 20.3 nm Log: 4619.2 nm
Very busy in this small cove and lots of mosquitoes! Must be because it has been such a cool wet spring, and now they are hatched and very hungry.

Copeland Islands Marine Park

Aug 07, 2007
Time: 0800 Hrs: 1108.8
Humidity 74% Temp: 19 C. Overcast, calm in the cove, moderate winds in the strait.
Lv: Copeland Islands M.P.
Course: Strait of Georgia past Lund > Malaspina Strait > Hotham Sound > Thunder Bay
Our plan is to anchor just inside Hotham Sound today. We have a 10 -15 knot wind directly on our bow, so will be motoring unless the wind changes. Still lots of boats around, and whenever a big powerboat passes us we rocked by their wake. It is not very comfortable today. Charles has moved to his "I'm feeling seasick" location on top of the engine. He is getting pretty smart about what to expect in different sea conditions.
Arv: Thunder Bay, near Stillwater
Lat: 49 45.89 N
Lon: 124 16.20 W
Time: 1420
Trip: 33.6 nm Log: 4598.9
We passed our 2000 nautical mile landmark today.

Sun setting in Gowland Harbour

Aug 06, 2007
Time: 0830
Humidity: 60% Temp: 18 C. Sunny clear sky, wind 5 -8 knots.
Lv: Gowland Harbour, Quadra Island
Course: Discovery Passage > Strait of Georgia > Copeland Islands Marine Park
Beautiful sunny day passage, lots of boats out on the water on this holiday weekend, going all directions. Looks like everyone picked this weekend to do some boating.
Arv: Copeland Islands M.P.
Lat: 50 00.70 N
Lon: 124 48.73 W
Time: 1300
Trip: 20.6 nm Log: 4565.3 nm
There are not too many places to anchor here because it is mostly exposed to the winds or too deep. We found a cove sheltered from the wind but open to the wake from passing boats. All day long, boats went both directions past us we had to rename Thulin Passage "the I-5". You'd have to look both ways before you crossed! The spot we anchored in was somewhat protected from the wakes, but other sailboats close to us were getting rocked. We are having a hard time getting used to so many boats around.

Gowland Harbour, Quadra Island

Aug 5, 2007
Time: 0750
Humidity 74% Temp: 16% Partly cloudy, wind 3-5 knots, current 3.2 knots on ebb tide.
Lv: Billygoat Bay, Helmcken Island
Course: Johnstone Strait > Discovery Passage > Seymour Narrows > Gowland Harbour
We have the current in our favour for the time being so we are heading out. Lots of other traffic this morning. We saw some orcas, about 6 or so, close to Chatham Point, but not close enough to get any pictures. We stopped in Plumper Bay for a couple hours to wait for slack water in Seymour Narrows. Going through the narrows, we had a cruise ship breathing down our necks. We wanted to put up the sails and start doing some tacking!
Arv: Gowland Harbour, Quadra Island
Lat:50 04.66 N
Lon: 125 13.53 W
Time: 1830
Trip: 35.2 nm Log:4544.7 nm

Splendid Mane resting in Billygoat Bay

Mainland mountains reflected with the setting sun in the background.

Eagles on Helmcken Island

On our walk we were being bothered by a pair of eagles. I started to think they must have a nest around somewhere, but we couldn't see it. Then just as we started to head back to our boat Jerry spotted it up in an old tree. They settled down once we turned and started moving away.

Charles on rat patrol.

Charles is getting a lesson from Jerry about how to keep rats off the boat. We haven't had any, but we want to make sure he knows what to do just in case.

Sailing down Johnstone Strait

Aug 4, 2007
Time: 0845 Humidity: 71% Temp: 17 C. Very cloudy but looks like it might get nice later today. Wind 7 - 10 knots, forecast is for 15 -25 knots in Johnstone Strait increasing to 25 - 35 later today.
Course: Blackfish Sound > Whitebeach Passage > Indian Channel > Beware Passage > Clio Channel > The Blowhole > Chatham Narrows > Johnstone Strait > Billygoat Bay, Helmcken Island
We had the sails up on and off most of the day. Sailing through Johnstone Strait with a 15-20 knot NW wind was fun. Then the wind started to pick up and we had to reef the main and then take it down altogether. But we were rockin!
Arv: Billygoat Bay, Helmcken Island
Lat: 50 24.23 N
Lon: 125 52.53 W
Time: 1740
Trip: 44.6 nm Log: 4509.5 nm
Really nice anchorage here. It is quiet (we are the only boat) and nicely out of the current and wind. We went for a walk on Helmcken Island after dinner and watched a cruise ship slowly move through Race Passage with the current and winds against him.

Hanson Island anchorage

Aug 3, 2007
Time: 0949 Hrs: 1088.0
Humidity 71 % Temp: 19 Partly Cloudy, wind 9 knots.
Lv: Port McNeill
Course: Broughton Strait > Blackfish Sound > Hanson Island
We are going to head across Broughton Strait and have a look around Sointula on Malcolm Island. Then find an anchorage for the night. We have noticed that the boat traffic has increased dramatically. No more deserted anchorages or voyages, there are boats EVERYWHERE!
Arv: anchorage near Double Bay, Hanson Island.
Lat: 50 35.12 N
Lon: 126 45.04 W
Time: 1500
Trip: 20.2 nm Log: 4464.9 nm
One other boat here but by the time we head to bed there are 5 of us in this little bay. The wind has been blowing up to 22 knots most of the day.

Sun setting over the Pacific

How's this for a funny picture? This is the sun setting as we were crossing Queen Charlotte Sound, bouncing along through 3 - 4 metre waves.
I also forgot to mention that we hit a shark as we were sailing just south of the islands. We were going almost 7 knots with both sails up and heard a large thunk thunk. Looking back we could see what looked like a shark swimming in small circles behind us, not looking too good. There was not much we could do except carry on. But we didn't hold out much hope that it would survive being run over by a 17,000 pound boat.
We also saw a small pod of whales that we believe to have been Baird's Beaked Whales but they were a little too far away for us to make a 'for sure' identification. They were not humpbacks, we know that much.

SGang Gwaay house corner post

I like this picture of the corner post of a house and a tree growing right through it. Our guide told us that this happens quite often because as the corner post rots, it provides a healthy place for a new tree to start growing.

SGang Gwaay (Anthony Island)

Some of the totem poles still standing at SGang Gwaay Llnagaay (Wailing Island Town)

Hope Island

These are anemones above the tide line on the beach. Those are goose barnacles on the rocks as well. They are edible!

Sunset in Patrician Bay, Vancouver Island

Arrival in Port McNeill

Aug 2, 2007
Time: 0830
Humidity: 79% Temp: 17 C. Overcast, calm.
Lv: Patrician Cove, Vancouver Island
Course: following Vancouver Island coastline to Port McNeill
We spotted a couple humpbacks feeding close to shore near the airport in Fort Rupert. We are on the lookout for orcas now as this is their territory. It would be great to see the pod.
Arv: Port McNeill
Lat: 50 35.51 N
Lon: 127 05.36 W
Time: 1230
Trip: 15.8 nm Log: 4444.1 nm
Fill up with fuel: 118.0 L $122.45 Hrs: 1088.0
We are now sitting in the laundry mat doing clothes. Pretty nice that they have internet too. We will be leaving here tomorrow morning and heading across to Sointula and then down Johnstone Strait where the orcas hang out. Our internet connection will be on and off, hopefully mostly on!

Hope Island beach

Aug 1, 2007
Time: 1115 Hrs: 1080.5
Humidity: 68% Temp: 19 C, low fog, clear sky, looks like it will be a beautiful sunny day, finally!!
Lv: Bull Harbour, Hope Island.
Course: Goletas Channel > past Port Hardy to Beaver Harbour > Patrician Cove
This will be our first opportunity to do some navigating in fog (no problem, but it really wasn’t very thick). The sun burned it off after about 2 hours and we enjoyed our first sunny day in a long time. We put up the sails in a nice 10-15 knot wind from behind and cruised smoothly down the channel and almost right up to our anchorage.
Arv: Patrician Cove, Vancouver Island (near Fort Rupert)
Lat: 50 43.48 N
Lon: 127 24.87 W
Time: 1745
Trip: 25.5 nm Log: 4428.9 nm
Wind is still blowing at 15 knots but we got a good hold with the anchor.

Crossing the Sound to Bull Harbour

July 30-31, 2007
Time: 0930 Hrs: 1063.3
Raining on and off, overcast, very gray day, light winds.
Lv: Kunghit Island anchorage
Course: Hecate Strait > Queen Charlotte Sound > Nahwitti Bar > Bull Harbour, Hope Island
Our first overnight voyage. Heading out into Hecate Strait the weather starts to change, we get a little sun and wind from the south west, the waves get bigger and choppy. Good sailing all day until evening when the wind dies down. We motor the rest of the night and into the morning in 3-4 meter swells. It was quite the sight to see the sun go down behind us at about 10:00 and the full moon rise up in front of us at almost the same time, a beautiful orange ball. Only a few hours later at 4:00 the sun was rising over the water in front of us. It had gone full circle and we were still pounding away in Queen Charlotte Sound! A great passage and our longest yet!
Arv: Bull Harbour, Hope Island
Lat: 50 54.97 N
Lon: 127 56.22 W
Time: 1445
Trip: 145 nm Log: 4403.4 nm
This is a very quiet harbour with a public dock (one powerboat tied up). We decide to put the anchor down and then after dinner, get in the dingy and head over to the dock to meet our neighbor and do some exploring around. The other boater’s name is Dan Sewell (Sewell’s Marina in Horseshoe Bay) and it turns out he just bought a boat house in Ladysmith and he will be keeping his boat there in November. Small world! Back to the boat for a cuppa tea and then sleep!

Tidal flow in Houston Stewart Channel

This picture shows what happens in the middle of a channel when the tide, coming from both directions through the channel, gets together and has a party with the wind. This can be a very dangerous situation for small boats or kayaks.
July 29, 2007
Time 0845 Hrs: 1056.5
It is raining today.
Lv: Ikeda Cove
Course: Hecate Strait > Houston Stewart Channel going west > Anthony Island (Sgan Gway) > Houston Stewart Channel going east > Hecate Strait > Kunghit Island anchorage near Gull Islet.
Today we visit the last of the Haida sites. SGang Gwaay was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO (United Nations Education and Science Organization) in 1981. The island is located on the exposed southwest coast of Gwaii Haanas. The mooring buoy for visiting boats is occupied, so we put our anchor down on the lee side of a small island with a high rock face, hoping to get some shelter from the ocean swells. It seems to hold okay, but when you are anchored in that type of location, you can never really relax and know your boat will be safe. We take the dingy to shore and get a guided tour of the ruins in the village. As with the other sites, the beauty and serenity hits us as we walk quietly through the village. Well worth the trip to get here.
Our boat is still in the same place we left it :- ) even though the swells have gotten bigger. We have to head back to the east side to find a sheltered anchorage and a good starting point for our big crossing tomorrow.
Avr: Kunghit Island anchorage
Lat: 52 05.80 N
Lon: 130 57.91 W
Time: 2015
Trip: 38.4 nm Log: 4257.8 nm

Queen Charlotte Black Bear

July 28, 2007
Time: 1430 Hrs: 1054.4
Lv: Bag Harbour
Humidity 80 % Temp: 19 C. Rain, rain, rain.
Course: Burnaby Narrows > Skincuttle Inlet > Hecate Strait > Ikeda Cove
Since we are not in a hurry to get anywhere today, we thought we would wait around to see if the rain would stop. But it never really stopped, so we decided to leave anyway and maybe it would be nicer somewhere else.
Arv: Ikeda Cove, Moresby Island
Lat: 52 17.79 N
Lon: 131 09.31 W
Time: 1745
Trip: 9.55 nm Log: 4219.4 nm
I was hoping we would have the opportunity to see a bear while visiting Haida Gwaii. Luckily we happen to spot one on the shore this evening. The interesting thing about this black bear is that it is unique to the area. The bears on Haida Gwaii have larger jaws and teeth than those on the mainland, an adaptation that is believed to have evolved from the bears chewing on hard-shelled invertebrates in the inter-tidal zone. As we watch, he moves along the shore (it is low tide), turning over rocks to get at the little creatures underneath. Deer also come down to the water at low tide and it looks like they are eating seaweed. They are very small, only about the size of a large dog.

Hot Spring Island

Giant Pacific Scallop in the shell.

July 27, 2007
Time: 0745
Humidity: 77 % Temp: 17 C. Totally overcast sky, not even a hint of blue, wind is calm.
Lv: Murchison Island
Course: Juan Perez Sound stop at Hot Spring Island > east around Burnaby Island > Skincuttle Inlet > Burnaby Narrows > Bag Harbour, Moresby Island
After a cup of coffee, we head over to Hot Spring Island, the next Haida stop. We are the first to arrive this morning at this very popular stop. There are three hot spring pools for soaking; each overlooks the ocean from a different location, and a bath house for cleaning up before going in the pools. The water is hot and very clean, no algae because it is cleaned off regularly. What a nice treat to have the whole place to ourselves, we take our time and have a nice soak in each of the pools. Unfortunately, my camera batteries picked this very moment to go dead on us, so we don’t have any pictures.
Apparently, right around these hot pools, about 40 of the Keen’s long-eared bat comes each May to give birth and raise their young. This little bat is on the endangered list and the only other known maternity colony is in a tree stump near the town of Tahsis on Vancouver Island. Gwaii Haanas is home to 27 species of animals (land and marine) considered to be at risk in Canada.
Arv: Bag Harbour
Lat: 52 20.78 N
Lon: 131 21.90 W
Time: 1530 Log: 4209.9 nm
There are thousands and thousands of moon jelly fish conglomerating near the surface in this bay. Just a few hours later when we head out in the dingy to explore, they are nearly all gone, probably to the bottom to spawn.

Tanu house

This is what is left of a Haida house, the logs are the supporting beams, now almost completely covered with moss.

Windy Bay

July 26, 2007
Time: 0915 Hrs: 1043.7
Humidity: 80% Temp: 18 C. Mostly cloudy, but not raining. We can see some small bits of blue sky here and there. The forecast is for this weather to move towards the mainland but another front is coming in behind it.
Lv: Powrivco Bay, Lyell Island
Course: East and then south along Lyell Island shoreline to next Haida Heritage Site, Hlk’yah Llnagaay (Windy Bay) > Murchison Island anchorage
This is also an old Haida Village but the totem poles and house supports are all gone. It was abandoned long before the other villages and all that is visibly left are a few depressions in the soil where houses once stood and cedar trees that have had some of their bark removed (for baskets, clothing, ropes, etc). Windy Bay is the site where, in 1985, the Haida took their stand over logging on Lyell Island. Their protest ultimately led to the protection of the area and the creation of the Park. Our tour guide takes us on a one hour walk through the old growth forest to see a 1000 year old hemlock and cedar tree. Magnificent!
Arv: Murchison Island, north side
Lat: 52 35.65 N
Lon: 131 28.00 W
Time: 1710
Trip: oops forgot to record this information.
This anchorage has a mooring buoy for use by park visitors. It is easy to tie up to it, and then we get the kayaks out and go for a paddle around the island. We get out along the shore and explore the beach and nearby forest. I can’t believe how clear the water is here and so full of life. When we get back to the boat, I put on my wet suit and snorkel gear. I do some snorkeling/diving close to the shore as Jerry sits close by in the dingy reading a book (we put an anchor down on the dingy). The bottom is almost covered with purple sea urchins, turban snails, and starfish. Here and there I can see giant rock scallops. Finally I find one I can reach; dinner for tomorrow! I spend over an hour looking around until it starts to get too dark to see anymore.

Tanu

The corner post on a house where a tree has grown... see how it's root goes down the old corner post?
July 25, 2007
Time: 1015
Humidity 67% Temp: 16 C. Partly cloudy, calm winds, no rain in sight. Looks like a motoring day.
Lv: Thurston Harbour anchorage.
Course: Laskeek Bay > Taanuu Heritage Site > Powrivco Bay to anchor.
We are stopping at the second Haida Heritage Site, T’aanuu Llnagaay (Tanu) on Tanu Island. We are met by another Haida watchman, Frank, and two other visitors from Victoria who traveled here by kayak. Also staying here is Denise, Frank’s wife, and their two children. This village was home to between 400 and 700 people, making it the largest Haida village in the Gwaii Haanas. As we walk along the clam shell lined path, past the moss covered depressions that used to be houses, we can imagine the people, noises, smells and sounds that were once here. Now the only sounds are the eagles and waves on the beach. After the tour we are treated to fresh baked snicker doodles and a little show and tell of native crafts (basketry and cedar carving) that Denise and Frank work on. The kids have been busy collecting rock scallop shells (lots here!) and Red Turban shells and their operculum (little trap door) that are used to decorate native clothing. They also told us how they like to eat the purple sea urchin (raw), another traditional native food. Hummm.
Arv: Powrivco Bay, Lyell Island
Lat: 52 41.06 N
Lon: 131 33.20 W
Time: 1610
Trip: 12.8 nm Log: 4171.2

We motored sailed most of the day and a short time after we get anchored it starts to rain. The water is so clear here you can easily see 20’ to the bottom and make out all the different marine life.

Skedans

July 24, 2007
Time: 0950 Hrs: 1032.6
Humidity: 80% Temp: 16 C Mostly cloudy, but we can see some clearing in the distance.
Lv: Sandspit Marina
Course: South on Moresby Island through Hecate Strait > Louise Island > Skedans Bay > K’uuna llnagaay (Skedans) Heritage Site > Thurston Harbour to anchor.
We are visiting the first Haida Village Site on Louise Island. This is the most visited site since it is not officially in the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and you don’t need a pass to get here. There are five village sites; each has a Haida Watchman during the summer months when they get visitors. We get a very informative guided tour by a young Haida woman who has been a watchman for 11 years. This is a very beautiful setting and we can understand why the Haida chose it for a village site.
Arv: Thurston Harbour, Talunkwan Island
Lat: 52 50.52 N
Lon: 131 44.93 W
Time: 1910
Trip: 38.9 nm Log: 4158.4 nm

Sandspit

July 23, 2007
A short trip from Queen Charlotte City marina to Sandspit marina. The day starts off very warm and sunny, but by the time we get to Sandspit, only 10 miles away, it has clouded over and has localized rain clouds.
Fill up with fuel (diesel and gas for tender) : $51.83
Fill with water.
We get the bikes out and ride about 3 kilometers to the information centre, hang out there for a bit till the rain lets up, and then to the one and only grocery store to stock up for our Gwaii Haanas trip where there are no services of any kind.
After dinner, the sun is out so we bike to “the spit” to enjoy the warm breeze and view across Hecate Strait to the mainland (can’t see it though).

Tow Hill, the long beach of QCI

July 22, 2007
Another day to do some exploring on Graham Island. Today we have rented a car and are driving to the north end to see Massett and “the beach”. The northern end of Graham is very flat and the water around it is very shallow. Tow Hill is the only hill around for miles. It was formed through a vertical lava flow. We take the boardwalk all the way to the top, about a 30 minute walk, to see the view but today it is shrouded in fog except for a small opening about half way up. Back on North Beach we try our luck at catching crab with just a net (the way the locals catch them). I had a hard time seeing them because the water was too cloudy from the waves kicking up the sand. No crabs for us today.
We take the car on a gravel logging road to explore the western side, but have to turn back because the road gets too rough.

Haida Cultural Centre & Skidegate Days

July 21, 2007 Even though it is a bit rainy today, we have decided to go to the orientation session for the Gwaii Haanas Park at the Haida Cultural Centre and Museum. It is about a 45 minute bike ride and we have to be there by 9:30 am for the hour long session. After the orientation, we explore the museum. Today they are having the Grand Opening of this museum. They have been working on it since 2000 and we just happen to be here for this special day. It has been beautifully done with lots of information about the Haida people, their culture, art, totem poles, and food. We get to sample some dried smoked salmon and dried salted kelp. Afterwards, he head a few kilometers down the road to Skidegate where they just happen to be having their annual Skidegate Days fair! Skidegate has a population of about 620, mostly Haida, and they know how to put on a party! For dinner they put on a great salmon barbeque (with Dungeness crab). Yummmm!

Queen Charlotte City

July 20, 2007
Move to the nearby marina and squeeze in. Mostly commercial fishing boats here, but we do have the company of a couple other pleasure boats. We decide to take the bikes out to explore around Queen Charlotte City (not really a city, population is about 950 people) and do some laundry. The visitors centre is very well done, with lots of information and local arts and crafts on display. This little town has some colorful characters such as the man who runs a shop called Rainbows. He admits he is a collector and can’t help himself when he goes to the beach, he picks up just about everything. The front of his shop is covered with fishing floats, shoes, pieces of sunken boats, plastic buckets, driftwood, and just about anything else you might find on the beach. Inside he sells shells, rocks, jewelry, books, etc. It was fun browsing through his store.

Crossing Hecate Strait

I didn't take any pictures on this day because there really is nothing to see out there except gray. The water blends into the sky with the fog and everything is gray. We didn't even see another boat until we were almost over to Queen Charlotte and it was a fishing boat.

July 19, 2007
Time: 0705 Hrs: 1022.8
Humidity: 78% Temp: 16 C. Overcast, foggy, light winds as we leave anchorage.
Lv: Dolphin Island anchorage
Course: Browning Entrance > Hecate Strait > Skidegate Inlet > Bearskin Bay
We start off motoring, but once we clear the islands we are able to put up both sails in a 15-20 knot wind on our port beam. A very successful sail, finally!
Arv: Bearskin Bay, near Queen Charlotte City, Graham Island
Lat: 53 15.04 N
Lon: 132 04.81 W
Time: 1905
Trip: 65.7 nm Log: 4112.0

Fog Fog Fog

July 18, 2007
Time: 0900 Hrs: 1017.3
Humidity: 66% Temp: 19 C. Foggy, clearing in the afternoon to clear sky, winds 15- 25 knots.
Lv: Prince Rupert Harbour
Course: Chatham Sound > Ogden Channel > Dolphin Island
Arv: Dolphin Island
Lat: 53 47.00 N
Lon: 130 24.43 W
Time: 1645
Trip: 34.5 nm Log: 4045.5 nm