Middle Watch Musings
• Jul. 8, 2007 - The Central Coast
Once again we have covered a little ground since our last opportunity to post an update. After leaving Echo Bay we motored up to Shawl Bay and spent two fine days relaxing on the docks. We enjoyed the company of several other sailboats all heading north and had a good time at "Happy Hour" on the dock.
Water, despite the abundance of rain, is at a premium here. Most of the marinas have water but it is a dark brown from the iron/cedar staining as it runs down the hillsides. We heard the best water locally was at Kwatsi bay so off we went. Kwatsi Bay is surrounded by waterfalls and filters the runoff so it is crystal clear. It is run by a couple school teachers and they do a great job. They tucked us in the back, the last boat they could fit, for the night. We felt like "The Little Boat That Could" lying amongst all the big American power boats. It was a pleasure listening to them whine about fuel prices at the potluck dinner the owners organized that evening. We filled the water tanks and took off the next day for Sullivan Bay.
Sullivan Bay was a disapointment. Moorage was very expensive and the place was not as friendly as the others we had visited in the Broughtons. They even charged me $10 to dispose of the old oil despite the fact that I bought the new oil from them. It is popular because it has fuel and an "International" airport for float planes. We spent one night on the empty docks to do an oil change and fuel and left early for Blunden Harbour.
During our cruise up the coast we have been checking in on the Great Northern Boaters Net, run for Ham Boaters by Darlene (KL0YC) in Alaska and Barbara (VE7KLU) in Sidney every morning starting at 0730 Pacific Time. We have been lsitening to many other boats check in and Blunden was our first time meeting one of the boats. Randy and Sharon on BLUE HERON (N7WJ) were anchored in Blunden as was Jean in PO-TOLO (KA7BIW). Randy invited us for a visit and we enjoyed a great cobbler in their immaculate boat.....thanks.
From Blunden we headed north intending to stop at Allison harbour but the weather was good for rounding Cape Caution so we continued around to Millbrook Cove in Smith Sound. We were the only ones in the quiet cove and enjoyed the solitude while we sat there in the pouring rain. The following day, with the promise of fair weather we set off for Pruth Bay on Calvert Island but once around the corner on the open ocean the winds came up to about 25 knots and the seas quickly built. Fortunately we were running with it but it was a wild sail with an unhappy wife. Once tucked in behind Calvert the sea settled down and we safely dropped the hook in Pruth to wait out the impending gale. During our wet stay there we spent some time exploring West Beach, one of my favourite wilderness places in the world.
After two days of 25+ knot winds things settled down and we sailed north again, bound for Namu. Namu is another of the BC ghost towns with a permanent population of 4. There are lots of deteriorating buildings left over from the fishing processing plant and community that used to be there but most are out of bounds for safety reasons. The locals were very friendly but a little on the odd side. Just our type!
From Namu we motored north to Bella Bella. We got the sails up for a couple of hours but it was against wind and tide so motoring was the order of the day. Bella Bella is a crossroads for all Boats heading north and south. With their large reasonably priced grocery store and government liquor store it is popular with cruisers, fishermen and all other boaters. We filled our larder and motored across to Shearwater to spend a couple nights on the "Yachtie" docks there. After one night on the main dock, the women filling in for the missing dockmaster was overwhelmed by the number of boats coming and offered to let us stay on the commercial wharf for half price. We jumped at the chance to save money and moved over for a night with the fishing boats. (The docks were only 50 yards apart) While there we met some more Ham Boaters, Dave and Marcia on JUNIATA heading for Mexico and Lowell and Sue on GHOST RIDER cruising the coast. Both couples were very friendly and we had a great chat on the dock.
Dave gave me many tips to improve my unproductive fishing techniques so we left Shearwater bound for Ocean Falls trying them out. No joy! We still didn't catch a thing. We did however have a great feed of crab. Not because my crabbing improved but because some kind gent on the docks gave us a bunch. We had crab omelets for breakfast, crab cold plates for lunch and crabcakes and crab legs for dinner. We have had enough crab for a day or two.
So here we are in Ocean Falls. Once a city of 35,000 now a village of 50, it is another of my favourite spots. As soon as we stepped off the boat we saw three bear hanging around the lodge. Nancy, Bear Woman, is happy to have finally seen bear. We had a quick walk around the village but saved the best for tomorrow. The great docks, neat little "Shack", free internet and great prices have convinced us that we will be here two days at a minimum.
Cheers,
Gary
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