Best laid plans….🤔

 Even the best laid plans can run amok…sigh. After a wonderful visit with friends in Powell River, we set sail for our favourite anchorage on Hardy Island. Not only was the weather perfect but we also had the anchorage almost to ourselves…it was beautiful.  Then, to my horror, I realized I had cracked a tooth. You guessed it.  We are now scurrying home having abandoned what was supposed to have been a glorious week at anchor. Disappointed?  You bet we are; but there are some things in life that demand your attention and just get worse if you don’t deal with them.  This is one of those. We came down to Pender Harbour yesterday and head across to Dodd Narrows today.  We expect to overnight in Pirates Cove and make it home tomorrow.  I’ve already been in touch with my wonderful dentist and she will see me as soon as she can.  With luck, we’ll be able to head back out on the water soon and while we still have the time available. That’s the news for today. Hope your plans unfold smoothly and you’re able to enjoy every day.  CJ

Tucked in at Beach Gardens Marina (Grief Point / Powell River)

 

 It’s day three of a wonderful visit with our old friends here in Powell River (PR). Not only are we having a lot of fun but we also had the pleasure of attending the annual PRISMA Festival.  This is a collection of symphony quality musicians from all around the world (representing 17 countries this year) that gather in Powell River and deliver amazing music for those who are able to attend.  We were lucky enough to arrive in time to attend the free beach concert delivered at a beautiful beach/park site on the outskirts of PR.  

I’ll admit Mother Nature provided enough of a challenge to separate the curious people from those dedicated to the wonderful talent displayed by some amazing young musicians and conductors. It was absolutely fabulous!  Given the unsettled weather of late the organizers did their best to provide some cover for the fortunate few who fit into a small set of bleachers under an equally small canopy… BUT despite a torrential downpour that was heavier than standing under a shower faucet, and despite the instant puddles and soaked chairs and half open umbrellas … hundreds of us stuck it out and were rewarded with a warm sun driving away the thunder clouds and providing opportunities to dry things out and enjoy some local and indigenous food before the actual symphony began. They were spectacular and I found myself humming along (even surprised myself that I remembered the pieces from exposure to them many, many years ago).   Anyway, what a lovely and lucky experience. The rest of our time here is, and will be, spent on some minor chores about the boat, shopping and topping up supplies, and super wonderful visits with our friends who spoil us rotten. We’re here until Friday morning when we will slip the lines and wander off. We’ll know where we’re going when we get there.  The photos below are of a thunder storm that visited two evenings ago… quite amazing and at one point there were two rainbows and, as you’ll see, one of them was complete…quite a rare sight (the first for me).  Besides being naturally beautiful the thunder shower that hit the boat cleaned the decks very well and was a good test to the two leaks I had repaired with 🤞that my re-sealing would work…and it did :-).  Must go, the day is calling.  Hope all is well with each of you…and that you have a good day.  CJ

The wind, she does blow…

 And so it is. We are still in Roscoe Bay (this is Wed. the 14th) and we’ve been here since the 10th - a little longer than planned. The Northwest winds have been energetic with exciting gusts which draw SSpirit into a slow dance around her anchor - and that’s inside this “all weather” anchorage.  Some folks, with shorter keels than ours (eg power boats) have been able to leave during the morning hours when the winds are lighter but the rest of us continue to enjoy the beauty and hiking trails of Roscoe Bay. We’ve had our swim in Black Lake and Kathy and Maddie enjoyed a vigorous hike up the mountain. We’ve met several other cruisers including a young couple on a 23’ shallow draft sailboat who launched in Anacortes and are ambitiously planning to cruise to Alaska and back.  

Luckily we packed lots of food and are doing fine (although the shopping list grows longer each day :-). Another frustration is the lack of connectivity. Funny (sad really) how quickly we take weather reports, emails and phone calls for granted and then let their absence (and being ‘off the grid’) frustrate us. We hope to break out of here this afternoon and head to Refuge Cove for the night. There is a specific time the tide will be high enough for us to cross over the shallow bar at the entrance (our keel is 6’ long and we need at least 7’ to cross safely). We will begin to wind our way back into the Powell River area anchorages as the weather allows (the NW wind will be blowing for several more days).  A few photos of our time here follow.  Hoping all is well with each of you.  CJ and Kathy

Just around the corner…


No matter where we go or where we've been there's always something new - just around the corner. Take for instance the cruising ground within a triple home run (or there abouts if there is such a thing) of Lund, BC. Guided here by friends newly met, we find ourselves in a quiet corner of Mother Nature's 'best yet'. It's not the perfect spot for Maddie (not too much in the way of a sandy beach or grass field) but it's an opportunity for her to take her exercise like any other boater….enjoying the ups and downs of raised decks, lowered dinghies and stair cases. For us, it's quiet, clean, unpopulated (save for an old fish farm further down the inlet) and provides a chance to hunker down with a good book while SSpirit (as we call her) serenely does a very slow dance on her ground tackle. We're protected from most winds and, while the skies are mostly grey today, the sun lurks merrily behind them, peeking out from time to time. Ahhh, nothing like a cold beer and a good book surrounded by the beauty of a BC coastline. A few photos of our lazy day follow. Best always… CJ 

A peaceful anchorage for SSpirit

First order of business - dinghy trip ashore

Can we go faster? 

Off to set the prawn trap!

Waiting for her next dinghy ride.

How much is too much wind?

A friend of mine recently asked this question.  She could just as well have asked, how much is too little?  There are many, highly technical answers involving aerodynamic principles and realities to these questions…most above my pay grade; so I thought I’d take a stab at explaining my answer for those of us less technical. Now remember, I’m barely authorized to respond using my knowledge gained from a lifetime of sailing… I know far less about power boats. There are significant differences. They are worlds apart when it comes to steering, stability in rough seas, windage caused by high superstructures, etc., etc.

Every make and model of sailboat has unique dimensions.  For this question the relevant measurements include the keel (that which hangs below the hull and comes in different, shapes, sizes, and materials.  Longer, heavier keels do better at keeping the boat upright. Shorter keels… not so much). They also include the type of standing rigging that holds the mast up (some heavier than others and of various designs) and the sails (different sizes, shapes, materials and abilities to be reefed) and depending which sails and how much of them are employed at the time of said wind… well that is what makes sail boats lean over and move through the water at various speeds. The balance between the sails and the keel and the hull design create the essence of the vessel. Some are designed for speed (light weight, go fast, racing boats of all lengths). Some are designed for cruising (with heavier sails and fuller keels along with wider hulls and better living spaces below). I think you may start to see why “how much is too much?” is a hard question to answer.  

For me, with my boat designed for cruising and filled to the rafters with all the things we like to have along (from tooth brushes to rum)… well my answer involves comfort.  You heard right… “comfort”.  This is not to say I don’t enjoy a lively romp through choppy seas in a brisk wind; of course I do (at the right time, in the right place, and with a crew that equally enjoys the thrill).  But, when I’m fully loaded for a longish cruise and we’re out to have a pleasurable time, I’m more interested in working with Mother Nature to do my best to provide comfortable crossings and passages (sometimes motoring at the same time to keep pace with the swells).  When there’s time to slow down (travelling at a maximum speed of approximately 5 knots (9 km) and usually wanting to be at the dock or anchored well before sundown can require keeping up the speed so we can arrive at our destination at an appropriate time)… then I’m happy to stop the engine noise and sail gently along towards our destination.  At this pace, I’ll even troll a fishing line if we’re in the right place. 

Regardless of the timing, the destination, or the desire for adventure - there are times when we experience ‘too much wind’.   These include winds that are unstable and gusting to the point they hit the sails so strongly the boat responds by trying to lay down on her side… not fun (and the clean up below from exploding cupboards and all things loose and not nailed down taking flight- even though you had secured everything you could before leaving - the clean up is no fun either. It also includes winds that are working at odds with the seas and this can happen quite quickly. It feels like you’ve sailed into a mix-master… again, not much fun.  Funnily enough, it also includes winds that are too light and don’t give the boat enough of a push to keep up with the waves, leaving the boat wallowing between the swells. These are times when the best way forward is using the engine to maintain a more comfortable speed.

Needless to say, I could go on but I’ll slow down here to say… when the boat and crew meet up with a delightful combination of wind and sea… the result is so magnificent it’s hard to describe;  and IT is the drug that keeps us sailors coming back for more - that and the opportunity to explore new shores and anchorages.  

The silent swish of the hull moving gently through the quiet sea is the nectar that calls us back, time after time. Sailing quietly through pink fog as the morning sun warms and slowly dissolves the fog around you and sailing in the (distant) company of whales or porpoises well that is just plain awesome.  And, let me not forget to mention the delightful people, the fellow sailors (power and sail) we meet along the way. All of these reasons are why I keep coming back - even if sometimes there is too much or too little wind.  

As John Masefield said in his famous poem ‘ Sea Fever’

“ I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;

And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sails shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.”

Wishing you all calm seas and gentle (but steady) winds.  We’re off to Lund today.  We may even get to sail 😊

Rule #1: Don’t scare the crew…

On our way to who knows where…

 Hola. Yes, we have ‘set sail’ and will be exploring anchorages (old friends and new) as we creep up the coast a wee bit.  Plans for an adventurous foray into the wilds of the Broughtons succumbed to the sober second review of our plans and we decided to take a more relaxed and leisurely approach to our familiar cruising grounds this year. While it’s cooler than July or August, the anchorages in June are less crowded and, hopefully, the sea food will find us.  We’ve already had a wonderful feast of BC Spot Prawns ($$ but well worth it). They were right off the prawn boat shortly after it docked in Pender Harbour. 

That being said, our northerly intentions have slowed down and we are hunkered into a small bay on Texada Island while we wait for Mother Nature to take a breath and ease up on her NW winds. Even though we’ve weathered worse, gusts of 30 and 35 knots are not to our liking these days so we’ve decided to get to know Texada a little better while we wait. That is, in fact, the theme of this years cruise… we’ll know where we’re going when we get there 😊.

We did have a little excitement while crossing from Nanaimo to Pender Harbour. We were joined by a couple Grey Whales paralleling our course. They, of course, had more horse power so we waved goodbye to them. They didn’t wave back but carried on their way north.

Hope all is well with each of you and your winds are to your liking.  CJ