Early January, and it is time to set off on a crossing of Georgia Strait. The excitement of having a new boat in the driveway and wanting to try it out was too great. So, with victuals aboard and a full tank of fuel, I set off on a solo trip to the southern Gulf Islands. There was some trepidation crossing the shipping lanes because a novice just doesn't know how to judge speed and timing of approaching cargo ships. And there were these! With that behind me, I arrived at Boat Pass, ran through it on an ebb and anchored in Winter Cove. Boat Pass is very narrow, but no obstacles are to be encountered in the narrows itself. Watch the approach from Georgia Strait, however. Winter nights are incredibly long. One sure gets time to catch up on one's sleep out on the water. Next day it was off to Ganges and a night at Ganges Marina. Wind came up overnight and I bobbed at the dock. The next day was blustery. I cruised to Montague Harbour Marine Park which is the first marine park established in British Columbia in 1959. What a spectacular midden beach is to be found here. It just goes on and on and the photos do not do it justice. Before nightfall, I moved from the dock to the south side of the harbour to escape the chop. Another long, long night. In the morning, I was up early and with running lights on, started for Active Pass to catch the slack. I hovered a bit waiting for the large Spirit-class ferries to clear the pass then started through. An unanticipated ferry, a Queen-class, was soon upon me and I hugged the Mayne Is. shore to let him pass. In my nervousness, I contacted Victoria Traffic (Ch. 11) to alert everyone of my intentions, but being so close in on Helen Point, my transmission was too weak for Traffic to copy. The ferry, however, would have clearly heard me and be aware of my plans. More lessons learned. Transit through Active Pass on this, my first time, took about half an hour and rounding Georgina Point and making for Point Roberts, I literally heaved a sigh of relief. No sooner had I done this when a sea-lion breached between 10 to 15 feet in front of my windshield. It was as big as a fridge and I got that "zing" down my spine one gets at the creepy parts in a horror movie. I had nearly rammed it. I made it home to a relieved spouse and relived many experiences and lessons learned. Great first cruise!