Gulf Islands Cruise - July 6-13 2011
Firstly, I apologize for the dust spots on my camera's sensor. It drives me nuts, so possibly you as well.
It is always nice to get away on a cruise, but especially nice when Rosa can be there as well. In addition, we were able to connect with our old friends in Sidney and have a day outing to Sidney Spit. Together with them cruised to Sidney Island and hiked around the park before making a delicious steak barbeque dinner and enjoying some wine with it. The evening cruise back to Sidney was accented by a spectacular sunset and great music. Very memorable.
Our cruise of the islands incorporated stops at various Gulf Islands National Park locations but started off with a visit to the mooring of Red Current at Saturna Island. Although no-one was home, the cabin invited us for a walk ashore where we visited East Point Light and the grounds around it. The views are spectacular and the current below us brought many seals to feast on the in-coming banquet. From here we circumnavigated Saturna Island finding, in the meantime, a secluded spot at Narvaez Bay. A walk ashore led us to beautiful Echo Bay and it's azure water. Later that night, a gale blew in and we were hard-pressed to find a decent place to anchor. Winter Cove became too choppy for comfort and we made a run for Cabbage Island late in the evening, arriving just in time to tie up to a mooring buoy. Although choppy, we at least were pointed into the wind and did not have to endure a night of lateral roll.
Our next stage took us to Poet's Cove on Pender where one can enjoy a swim in their pool. This wonderful convenience comes at the price of enduring a noisy harbour. After that, a day at Russell Island brought us back to a quiet setting. Lying at anchor gives one a sense of privacy that cannot be had by tying up at a busy dock. Russell Island was followed by the aforementioned trip to Sidney and time spent with our friends Joe & Shelley.
With cupboards replenished, we left Sidney for Pirate's Cove on DeCourcy Island. Our lunch stop was at Thetis Island which is a pretty and pleasant locale.
Pirate's Cove, as usual, gave us an opportunity to hike the trails and meet other boaters. Most noteworthy was Gerta on the SV Millenium Dragon who was an extremely pleasant volunteer host and parted with her copy of the abridged Don Quijote (in Spanish). Now-armed with reading material, we made a short cruise to Wallace Island and Connover Cove the following day. There, we went on a good hike where we met with a trio of baby raccoons that were hungry and crying for their mother to return and feed them. Cute.
Our trip home was uneventful, although unnerving. The weather report called for strong winds south of Tsawassen which is where we usually encounter the worse of the chop. After transiting Active Pass, we were faced with a very placid-looking Georgia Strait. We opted to attempt the crossing rather than pulling into Whaler Bay, which had been our plan until then. We were glad we did, for the crossing ended up being one of the most calm that we have made. Such is the state of our weather reporting in the the Strait of Georgia. Wish it were more fine-tuned! The other annoyance was when my GPS froze up and for several minutes, I was making course corrections that were taking me toward the rocks at South Beach (Pt. Roberts). I grew suspicious when I noticed that the readings were unchanging and turned the unit off and then on again. It functioned well after that. First time that it happened and I can offer no rationale for it.
After this cruise, I am more determined than ever to do something about the fuel regurgitating from the fuel vent when we are in rolling seas. Another thing to drive me nuts too.
It is always nice to get away on a cruise, but especially nice when Rosa can be there as well. In addition, we were able to connect with our old friends in Sidney and have a day outing to Sidney Spit. Together with them cruised to Sidney Island and hiked around the park before making a delicious steak barbeque dinner and enjoying some wine with it. The evening cruise back to Sidney was accented by a spectacular sunset and great music. Very memorable.
Our cruise of the islands incorporated stops at various Gulf Islands National Park locations but started off with a visit to the mooring of Red Current at Saturna Island. Although no-one was home, the cabin invited us for a walk ashore where we visited East Point Light and the grounds around it. The views are spectacular and the current below us brought many seals to feast on the in-coming banquet. From here we circumnavigated Saturna Island finding, in the meantime, a secluded spot at Narvaez Bay. A walk ashore led us to beautiful Echo Bay and it's azure water. Later that night, a gale blew in and we were hard-pressed to find a decent place to anchor. Winter Cove became too choppy for comfort and we made a run for Cabbage Island late in the evening, arriving just in time to tie up to a mooring buoy. Although choppy, we at least were pointed into the wind and did not have to endure a night of lateral roll.
Our next stage took us to Poet's Cove on Pender where one can enjoy a swim in their pool. This wonderful convenience comes at the price of enduring a noisy harbour. After that, a day at Russell Island brought us back to a quiet setting. Lying at anchor gives one a sense of privacy that cannot be had by tying up at a busy dock. Russell Island was followed by the aforementioned trip to Sidney and time spent with our friends Joe & Shelley.
With cupboards replenished, we left Sidney for Pirate's Cove on DeCourcy Island. Our lunch stop was at Thetis Island which is a pretty and pleasant locale.
Pirate's Cove, as usual, gave us an opportunity to hike the trails and meet other boaters. Most noteworthy was Gerta on the SV Millenium Dragon who was an extremely pleasant volunteer host and parted with her copy of the abridged Don Quijote (in Spanish). Now-armed with reading material, we made a short cruise to Wallace Island and Connover Cove the following day. There, we went on a good hike where we met with a trio of baby raccoons that were hungry and crying for their mother to return and feed them. Cute.
Our trip home was uneventful, although unnerving. The weather report called for strong winds south of Tsawassen which is where we usually encounter the worse of the chop. After transiting Active Pass, we were faced with a very placid-looking Georgia Strait. We opted to attempt the crossing rather than pulling into Whaler Bay, which had been our plan until then. We were glad we did, for the crossing ended up being one of the most calm that we have made. Such is the state of our weather reporting in the the Strait of Georgia. Wish it were more fine-tuned! The other annoyance was when my GPS froze up and for several minutes, I was making course corrections that were taking me toward the rocks at South Beach (Pt. Roberts). I grew suspicious when I noticed that the readings were unchanging and turned the unit off and then on again. It functioned well after that. First time that it happened and I can offer no rationale for it.
After this cruise, I am more determined than ever to do something about the fuel regurgitating from the fuel vent when we are in rolling seas. Another thing to drive me nuts too.