La Foule
Perfect music for this setting!

06.24 Up again late at 0900 hrs. Taking it easy these days. And I slept like a log. Leave it to Smuggler Cove to provide a restful night. Departed at 1020 on O/B. Tried the sails later on in light winds. Just drifted with the flood tide till 1300 hrs when I switched to O/B again. I arrived at the dock in Pender Harbour at 1430 hrs. A super nice day (10/10) all around. I made a final shopping at the Madeira's Red & White store and went to drop anchor in the bay across (Garden Bay). What a beautiful spot this is. Found the leanest, reddest ground steak at the local butcher shop I had ever seen. Bought three pounds of the stuff. I don't have a cooler but I'm going to use the old trick! Stored the meat in my sealed bucket and deep-sixed it in thirty feet of water. Bet the fish would like to get hold of that lot. Looks like I'll pig out on hamburgers for the next three days or so. Beautiful! Just beautiful Along the way, I took a photo of the first mountain with snowy peaks. I was about two miles south of Francis Point. Also took three shots of Canada geese crowding the boat at supper time. Darn it, they ate right out of my hand! And to think some folks have never seen one of those birds up close, much less fed them! How lucky can one get? They just love soda crackers. This is going to be the best trip ever. The boat is behaving beautifully and so is the motor, as long as I keep the plugs clean. I wish Jules could have come and experience that trip. I will try to convince her when I come back to return right away for the month of August. And I haven't seen Princess Louisa yet! I will try to sleep in the cockpit tonight. if it turns cold, I can always move inside. I energized the Porta Potti today. What a convenience, and it doesn't even smell at all. It should also be easy to empty (down-wind, of course), while under way. Might as well use it and I don't have to wait until I hit the open sea, out of sight of everyone, before emptying the 'honey bucket' as I used to have to do. Besides, the seat contour of the toilet is softer on the behind than the regular bucket. Those ragged edges can spoil your day, especially on those ten-foot waves days! On the way to Deserted Bay - Looking back! George has control.... And to think that I spent the entire summer of 86' with the Porta Potti in the boat but, not used! Stupid moi! A super nice, sleek two-master sailboat came in tonight, all four sails set. What a beautiful sight. Very quiet for a busy harbor. 06.25 Up at 0800. Slept very well under the stars. Not cold at all. That new sleeping bag sure is warm. Gassed up and departed for Princess Louisa Inlet at 0930. Boy, what a day! Got a beautiful sail for most of the way up the various Inlets (Prince of Whales, Princess Royal etc). I had to use the motor a few times to get through periods of calm but made most of the way, running under sail. What a beautiful area to sail! It's beyond description. It is quite far but very much worth it for sure.I wanted to drop anchor at McMurdy Bay around seven o'clock as I couldn't possibly make the slack at Malibu Rapids for today but I missed the Bay and ended up too far to turn back so I had to switch to power for two hours and made it to Deserted Bay at the end of Queens Reach. Once at Deserted Bay, I was to drop anchor at the SW end of the bay, as suggested in the pilot book, but then I saw a nice dock (property of the Sechelt Indian Band) and I availed myself of the facility. Within thirty minutes of my tying up, the caretaker for the area dropped in. Vick was his name. A very nice fellow. I invited him aboard for a coffee, after having received his permission to spend the night there, and we talked for over an hour. Looking down toward head of Queen's reach.... 12 miles away, from Deserted bay. It seems that the entire Band has moved inland to Sechelt when the government closed all their school facilities here. And it's a shame, as there are quite a few transportable housing units here which are going into disuse. One drawback to this place: mosquitoes and bears. But Vick assured me that they don't come close to the dock area. Good! I sprayed inside the boat with repellant and I hope the bugs leave me alone tonight. It is now 2300 hrs and I will hit the sack; not in the cockpit tonight.