Day 31 to Day 37 - Walsh Cove to Ladner (via Cortes Bay, Garden Bay, Secret Cove, Silva Bay, & Ruxton Island)

And now we are back into familiar waters. After leaving Walsh Cove on Redonda we stopped at Refuge Cove, a neat co-op community which serves as the main pit-stop for folks boating in Desolation Sound. Somehow in all of our boating journeys over the last several years we have never stopped here, but now we know it’s a great place with a lot of charm and ample provisions. As we were getting diesel, a local man approached us and told us he had spent several evenings on the boat down in Mexico. Turns out he knew the previous owners, Gary & Judy. This is the first time someone recognized the boat from its previous life, and we all got a kick out of it!

From Refuge Cove we over-nighted in Cortes Bay. Two nights, actually. The next day we headed south and tied up overnight to a dock in Garden Bay, a small bay in Pender Harbour on the Sunshine Coast. From there we headed south and tied up at Secret Cove, also on the Sunshine Coast.

The next morning we headed out west over the Georgia Strait. Knowing there was a strong wind warning, we were excited to get both the geniker and the mainsail (reefed in a bit so it wouldn’t steal all of the wind) up. Unfortunately, with the good winds came some choppy water, and I had my first bout of sea-sickness this whole trip. Not much I could do except lie down and wait until our journey was complete. Thankfully the dried ginger we have on board did take the edge off. Argh, just when I thought I had the whole sea-sickness thing beat!

Our destination had been Ruxton Island, but Cap’n Adam realized as he fired up the motors that during our sail we lost use of one of the motors. Somehow a port-side cable, which enables the motor to go into forward, neutral, or reverse, had stopped engaging. We needed both motors to be able to comfortably get through Gabriola Pass, so we threw down the anchor in Silva Bay to see if it could be fixed. About 6 hours later, after a trip to the local boat yard for a quick welding job and plenty of cursing & head-scratching about how to get the damn thing working, Cap’n Adam jerry-rigged a broom handle to the gear box, and the problem was (sort-of) solved. To be fixed proper at a later date.

The next morning we headed to Ruxton Island, and spent the day relaxing, and dingying, and just enjoying our last day before heading home. And this morning (actually, as I write this) we are headed back across the Georgia Strait to Ladner and our home moorage.

This year’s trip was different from last year’s. The pace was much more laid-back, and we put far less hours on the motors, and we sailed more. Which means we also used way less diesel, and didn’t spend as much $$. We caught up on a lot of sleep, ate a lot of seafood, soaked up a lot of rays, met some other cruisers, and realized how very little we have actually seen of this magnificent coastline.

My highlights this year were:

1) The first 5 days with Shannon, Shawn & Marla – I’ve come to a place where I feel like I actually understand sailing somewhat. As always, it was great to have you guys onboard! Thanks for the laughs and the memories!

2) Our first salmon meal with Mike & Jeannette – ranks in the top 5 meals I’ve had in my entire life

3) Mound and Village Island – what an amazing place, what an amazing couple of days, what a trip.

4) The dancing at Alert Bay – we were invited to dance around the fire with them at the end, and while it may have been the smoke, it was also the emotion of it which made my tears stream and stream and stream...

5) Mondae – little bird, you touched my heart. Bless you.

6) The pink & blue geniker – what a fabulous sail, and a great way to travel!

7) The pod of orcas in Blackfish Sound, the dolphins in Broughton Lagoon, the otters in Pender Harbour, the seal nursery at Polkinghorne Islands, and the momma seal nursing her baby in Blind Channel. Marine mammals pretty much rule.

Now to think about next year’s trip. Back to the Broughtons to see some parts we missed? Go past Cape Caution and hit the mid-coast near Bella Bella? Focus on Desolation Sound and the Discovery Islands? Jervis Inlet & Princess Louisa Inlet? Not sure yet, time will tell.

Thanks for reading the Thunderblog, hope you enjoyed it. Have a safe, happy, healthy Autumn!!

Day 30 - Blind Channel to Walsh Cove (West Redonda)

Another hot and sunny morning. We hoisted the anchor, and set out south through the Discovery Islands. The “Discovery Islands” are the group of islands at the north end of the Georgia Strait, so nick-named because of the major waterway (Discovery Passage) between them and Vancouver Island. Cortes, Quadra, East & West Redonda, Read, Maurelle, Sonora, Stuart, Raza, and East & West Thurlow are the biggest of them. Like most of the coastal communities, their populations are dwindling as society shifts to more urban centres. But because they are so much closer to the major centres of Vancouver & Victoria, the amount of boating traffic increases quite dramatically when compared to the Broughtons and what are referred to by the locals as the “mainland islands” (Hardwick, the Cracrofts, and the smaller islands nestled amidst the coastal mainland). We are no longer in the remote wilderness.

Our original destination was going to be Big Bay on Stuart Island. But as we passed through the tidal rapids in Cordero Channel, the water was so whirly and fast that all Cap’n Adam could do was barely keep out of the back eddies while trying to avoid the huge logs which were being thrown around like toothpicks. Forget about trying to cross the channel and stop in the bay on the other side. At one point, our net speed was 13 knots, which means that the current was carrying us at more than twice the speed that Thunderpussy can travel on her own volition. On flat water with no current, she can travel about 6 knots. If we had been trying to go north instead of south today, we would have been going at -1 knot (ie backwards). This was the limits of Cap’n Adam’s comfort level – as always he handled it like a pro, but we both breathed a sigh of relief when we got to the other side.

Our revised destination became March Cove Provincial Marine Park on West Redonda Island. A lovely spot with about 6 other boats already anchored in it, we threw down the hook and tied a stern line to the shore. Our Wagoneer guide told us that there were pictographs to be found, so we went exploring in the dinghy and were not disappointed. Pictographs – old, OLD skool tagging before tagging was Hip-Hop. These ones were great – an image of the Spiritman, fish, dolphins, stick men. Some we were able to climb to and see up close, others were high enough that some sort of ladder must have been used to place them. There is something so haunting about viewing ancient street art. Love it.

The Spiritman. When we saw the native dancing at Alert Bay, they told us about his legend, and they even dedicated a dance to him. He is thought of as the spirit often seen on the beach, nervous of humans and best left to himself. Some think he represents the spirits of those who have crossed to the other side, some think he is the spirit of the medicine man. Others believe he may be an actual human or a medicine man, on a vision quest and on their own in nature. Others think it refers to what we know as Sasquatch, a real or spirit form two-legged creature that lives in the forest. Whatever he represents, he is one of the major spirits revered, together with the bear, the eagle, the orca, and the salmon. His image is made into masks, carved into totems, and as we saw today, painted in pictographs.