Refuge Island to Dodger Passage

Black bear near our anchorage at Refuge Island.

Saturday & Sunday, July 18-19, 2009

Leave: Refuge Island 0945

We stayed two nights at Refuge Island because it was such a perfect anchorage. It was quiet, protected, scenic and great kayaking. Friday night we took the dingy up a small inlet to the end and discovered a beautiful river emptying into the inlet with waterfalls and pools. So, Saturday morning we took our towels and soap and headed up in our kayaks for a swim and a bath! It was wonderful!

Today we have had some discussion about whether or not to head out of Barkley Sound today or stay one more night. The winds are favorable for a trip today, but it is getting late to get started. Tomorrow the forecast is for light winds, not the best scenario. We are still undecided... tune in later for more details!

The verdict is in, we are staying one more night.

Arrive: Dodger Passage, 1600

We had a great afternoon sail across Imperial Eagle Channel, with winds up to 22 knots. We are settled in for the night now, the wind has mostly clamed down. We will get a very early start in the morning...... probably about 5:30 to head down Juan de Fuca to Port Renfrew or further if things are going our way.

Adventure Cove, Meares Island

After watching the black bear at low tide on the beach in Bottleneck Cove, we have determined that he has actually set up crab traps and he comes to check on them at low tide. These rocks were all lined up at the same level on the beach, and the bear stopped at each one, turned it over, keeping it along the same level, and ate whatever he found under it. There was another row of rocks a little further along the same beach, and he looked under each one. Hmmm.. you never know, do you?

Wednesday July 2
Depart: Bottleneck Cove 0830
Mostly cloudy, small bits of sun coming through 17 C
Arrive: Adventure Cove 1600 3.5 miles NE of Tofino
Trip Log: 618.4 nm

Hot Spring Cove

Tuesday July 1
Depart: Hesquiat Harbour 0700
Overcast, foggy, 17C
Stop: Hot Spring Cove 1015
We wanted to get to the hot spring a little earlier to try to beat the crowds, but did not get organized in time. As it was, there was only maybe about 10 other people in the hot spring when we got there, instead of 20 or more as we have heard. It is not a very big hot spring, I don't even think 20 people would be able to be there at one time! The best thing about the stop was the beautiful boardwalk that has been built by the park. It is 2 km long, and all very nicely done in cedar planks.
Back at the boat, we had lunch and then pulled up the anchor to find a quiet place for the night.
Arrive: Bottleneck Cove 1600 Lat: 49 26.75 Lon: 126 12.99
Trip Log: 588.9 nm Day: 23.1nm
Bottleneck Cove is just like it sounds.... the entrance is like going through a wine bottle neck and then it open out to a very beautiful quiet cove. And of course, it has the resident black bear as well. We watched him scrounge the beach at low tide for crabs and such.

Our friend in the Bunsbys

This black bear hung around the little cove where we anchored all day.

Monday June 23
Depart: Columbia Cove 0730
Another sunny day, some scattered clouds, 12 C (switch water tank)
Arrive: Scow Bay, Bunsby Islands 1130 Lat: 50 06.27 Lon: 127 30.96
Trip Log: 419.7 nm
A short trip today, but we wanted to check out this area before we went on. After dinner, we decided that the anchor chain was making an unusual amount of noise as it dragged across a rock, and not sounding the way it usually does when it drags. So, as an after dinner activity, we pulled the anchor up, but it did not come easily. After tugging, yanking, and heaving, we figured we had the chair wrapped around a rock and as it shimmied up and down the rock it was making a vibrating noise right through the rigging on the boat. Our solution was to use the dingy to pull the anchor out of the mud and then around the rock (reverse the direction it was laid). It worked, much to our relief. We then reset the anchor, and slept very soundly!

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.

Warm Springs Bay

July 7, 2007
We slept in today until almost 9:00! This is going to be a day of relaxation as our plan is to head over to the little “town” in the dingy and have a soak in the hot spring and then take a nice long bath in the bath house. This is another community with no roads, just boardwalks. The general store is apparently only open when the owner feels like it. Today is not one of those days. We continue on just a short 10 minute walk out of town and find a beautiful hot spring right next to the rushing river. I was thrilled, Jerry didn’t like all the gunk in the water! But it felt soooo nice, our legs had trouble taking us back to town. We stopped to chat with the resident caretaker. He told us they had 34 feet of snow this past winter. That would explain why we can still see snow down next to the water in some places. His main job in the winter is snow removal from all the boardwalks!
Before heading back to our boat, we stop at the community bathhouse. There are three rooms, each with a large tub being constantly filled with water from the hot springs. As you soak in the tub, you can look out over the bay towards the surrounding mountains covered with snow. Ahhhhh, this really is a nice place and one that I would come back to in a heartbeat. Jerry and I soaked until we couldn’t take the heat anymore.
We slowly made our way back, feeling that nothing could be better at this very moment. We did some more exploring in the rest of the bay and come across a brown bear feeding on grass. At first we surprised him, but then he became unconcerned and continued to eat. I was able to get some great pictures.
Back at the boat, we feasted on BBQ’ed salmon, greek salad and rice pilaf with tea and date bars for dessert.
It’s not where we go, it’s the journey we take.

Chichago Island, Ghost town of Chichago

June 30, 2007
Time: 1015
Humidity: 75% Temp 15 C Foggy and drizzle rain.
Lv: Porcupine Bay
Course: Gulf of Alaska > Imperial Passage > Surveyor Passage > Odgen Passage > Klag Bay
We were going to stay at this anchorage today and go to White Sulphur Hot Springs in our tender, but since it is such a yucky day weather-wise, we decide to carry on. The rain does lift and we get a bit of sun and it warms up to 21 C. Lots of sea otters around here, they are sooo cute!
Arv: Klag Bay, Chichago Island
Lat: 57 39.74 N
Lon: 136 05.53 W
Time: 1600
Trip: 23.5 nm Log: 3572.4 nm
We are anchored in the head of Klag Bay where there is an abandoned gold mine. From our boat it looks worth exploring. This turns out to be our lucky day…. I found the shoulder blade from what looks like a sea lion (I wanted to find one from a whale, but this one will do), and we spot a grizzly bear (we were back in the tender, fortunately) and were able to get close enough for some pictures. He was really not too concerned about our presence (since he is at the top of the food chain) as he browsed on grass close to the shore.

Meyers Chuck, after kayaking

June 16, 2007
Time: 0730 Hrs: 839.9
Humidity: 67% Temp: 18 C Sunny, no clouds, wind 10 knots
Lv: Ketchikan
Course: Tongass Narrows > Clarence Straight > Meyers Chuck
The weather forecast is calling for moderate NW winds in the morning and then building to 25 – 35 knots for the afternoon. We did manage to get the sails up for a short time before we had to change course and head directly into the wind. For most of our trip, the wind has been coming straight towards us so we haven’t done as much ‘sailing’ as we would like. Close by our next stop we spot our first orca and then not too far away, we saw what looked like a humpback whale feeding close to shore. The orca was alone and just cruising by. Unfortunately, I did not get any pictures. But I am sure there will be other opportunities. That was pretty exciting, at least for me. Jerry doesn’t get as excited about this kind of stuff.
Contrary to the weather report, the wind died down to about 5 knots in the afternoon.
Arv: Meyers Chuck ( I love the name!)
Lat: 55 44.38 N
Lon: 132 15.48 W
Time: 1400
Trip: 29.4 nm Log: 3208.2 nm
This is a small community with a public dock. They have one telephone and a mail box and a gallery. Eight people live here full time, but the population grows to about 50 in the summer. The gallery had some very nice work from the locals. We bought Jerry a pair of hand knit wool socks and a very nice birthday card for Margie. Got the kayaks off the boat and had a little tour around the area. We saw a small black bear close to the water’s edge, but it took off before we could get very close. The winds picked up in Clarence Straight to about 30 knots and blew in a couple more boats. Splendid Mane is rocking a bit at the dock and we can hear the winds howling through the rigging. This is the kind of night we are glad to be in a protected harbour tied up to a dock rather than at anchor.

Princess Royal Island, home of the Spirit Bear

June 6, 2007
Time: 0840
Humidity: 79% Temp: 13 C Overcast skies
Lv: Windy Bay
Course: Sheep Passage > Finlayson Channel > Hiekish Narrows > Princess Royal Channel > Wright Sound > Coghlan Anchorage, Promise Island
We traveled past Princess Royal Island today, where the Spirit Bear lives. We did not have the pleasure of seeing one, but just looking at the island we could sense his presence. It is a beautiful island, laced with waterfalls and misty valleys.
This was our longest day so far, and we were very tired when we finally anchored. We were the only boat in the anchorage so we had lots of room. We put out a lot of rode because the weather forecast is for a windy night. Quick leftovers for dinner and then off to bed. One thing I have not mentioned yet is how light it is when we go to bed. The sun is setting after 2200 now, and because we hit the pillows pretty early, I have to block out the light from all the windows with cardboard. That way we can also sleep in past 0400 when the sun comes up.
Arv: Coghlan Anchorage, near Hartley Bay
Lat: 53 23.90 N
Lon: 129 17.27W
Time: 1915
Trip: 56.1 nm Log: 3004.8
We should have stopped at Butedale. There is a caretaker who looks after the dock and when visitors come, he has a bonfire on the beach and tells stories about the Spirit Bear. And usually one will come around when visitors are there. But we were not aware of this little tidbit of information until we talked to some other boaters in Hartley Bay. Darn!