| Desolation Sound A 3-Month Cruise in Paradise |
Elephant Walk
Not too many elephants in these parts...but eh!
one can always fantasize!
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06.23 Up at 0830. Did not fall asleep until 0130 as there was quite a bit of noise starting around midnight. Strike out Nanaimo as a preferred stopover point. Dock fees also more than doubled to over seven bucks! Oh well, no one ever said the cheap times were to last forever! Departed at 1020 under O/B and switched to sail at 1100 hrs. The range was active so I had to sail around the south end. But I got a beautiful run for about four hours when the wind sort of went kaput. By that time, I was out of the range so I just hummed along until I got close to Merry Island then I switched to O/B (at 1800 hrs) for the run to Smuggler Cove. Arrived at 1915 hrs. All in all, a beautiful sunny day and a fantastic sail.
If you cut across Wiskey Golf... you see lots of action Shot taken on a previous trip I monitored the VHF throughout the crossing. it gives one a nice feeling of never being quite alone even though you can't see any other boat traffic for miles around. I even monitored a Mayday call; a small cruiser off Gabriola Island. Dropped anchor in my usual spot at Smuggler. This place never ceases to amaze me; so beautiful and restful. I made a new 120 foot anchor line for the light Danforth. But I have a very long and heavy chain to go with it so it should prove satisfactory. I will try that new anchor for the next few days. It is much easier to get back on board than the heavy Danforth. Better save that heavy (read: expensive) Danforth for those days when the wind means business. And, remembering the tornado at Beausoleil Island.... I have over six hundred feet of line onboard. I'm ready! I was going to work on the book tonight, as I did last night for over two hours, but it is so difficult to concentrate in such a nice setting. Talked with people familiar with Desolation Sound. I was told again not to miss Princess Louisa. And I won't. I should enter Jervis Inlet in two to three days. Just can't wait. But first, I must go to Pender Harbour (Madeira Park) where there is a large food store. I need to buy some bulk food to last me for at least three weeks (like pancake, noodles, mix etc) and, hopefully, some cheaper coffee than at Nanaimo.
Getting closer, and closer! Just saw, and felt, my first mosquito of the season. Hope it doesn't have too many relatives. I have started drinking tea and love it. Made a thermos of boiling water just before leaving this morning then, while in the Gulf, I just had to throw a tea bag in the cup and voila! No muss, no fuss. Beats having to mix coffee (at eleven bucks a jar). I have just finished making cigarettes and am presently listening to 'Nocturne' on cassette, while watching the skyline. Although the sun settled a while back, it is still very clear (and it's a quarter past ten). it is moments like this one which makes an early retirement worth it. I just wish Georgette were here to appreciate this scene with me.
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