The morning had been wonderful right up until L, upon completing a picture-perfect tack, said that it was spec-tack-ular. Then she followed up by calling it fan-tack-stic. That was the end of a pleasant morning. Sigh. Punsters should be outlawed.

I wanted to mention the swallows yesterday at Sullivan Bay. There were at least 4 or 5 pairs swooping around. One pair have a nest above the entrance to the laundry and if you were patient, you’d see Mama (or was that Papa?) swoop in and these ugly (in a cute way), bulbous baby-bird heads that were 90% beak pop up for dinner. I’ve always loved swallows and miss our family from St Albert. They kept me entertained for our entire visit to Sullivan Bay.

We slept in and missed the morning call but no worries. I settled up. Moorage is reasonable, but power is outrageous, so it evens out to be a fair price. As L predicted, as soon as another boat started setting off I got antsy, and after my third trip back to the store, I started making ready to leave. Somewhere around there L noticed my activities and wondered what the rush was.

We cast off and headed southish. We are in the Broughtons and now working our way slowly back home. In fact, today’s destination is in the Broughton Archipelago itself. We will have to weave in and out of islands and islets to reach Waddington Bay.

As soon as we cleared Sullivan Bay the wind came up to 4 or 5 knots and by the time we rounded the point it was 10-15. Up went the sails, off went the motor and we merrily tacked our way up and down Sutlej Channel. Of course the winds climbed right off the bat, so after a couple of tacks and some nice heeling over we threw in the first reef. At which point the wind dropped down to a comfortable 10-12 knots.

Behind us R Shack island was screaming along and Corus was behind them. Ahead we saw Ocean Grace also with sails up but they soon disappeared behind an island and we didn’t see them again until Waddington. After a nice sail the winds started to die in the lee of the island so we shortened up our tacks. Unfortunately the wind soon died altogether, and we were actually becalmed at one point. We fired up the engine with sails still up to try and find some wind, but it was all in vain.

In came the genoa and we motored with the main up for an hour until I decided to drop it. The passage was beautiful and as we passed Echo Bay (tomorrow’s destination), the passes and channels got narrower and windy. Soon we were in the archipelago and dancing around rocks and tiny islands. Eventually we curved around Fox Island and caught sight of a few masts in our anchorage.

Just before we turned into our last passage between the scattered islands, I spotted a small fin ahead. L popped up and we both maintained watch. A few seconds later we spotted it again and for a minute or so we watched the dolphin pop up and down until our approaching engine made him stay down for good. At the entrance to Waddington, I spotted him or his cousin again and we watched him surface two or three times as we passed by.

These fellows looked smaller and more greyish than the Pacific White-Sided dolphins we had seen in Johnstone Strait. I think they were porpoises but I will have to wait until I’ve got internet to check.

The first place L and I picked scared us so we moved back into a small bay and dropped anchor like we somehow knew what we were doing. Soon after Corus and then R Shack Island followed. Electra motored in not long after and everyone was here except for the perennially dawdling Intrepid, and Simply Irresistible, who would be meeting us tomorrow.

Time for a beer.

[flexiblemap src=”http://macblaze.ca/kmz/Day16.kml”]
5h23m 25.9nm

Anne and Laurence were going to pop over before dinner so we cleaned up the place.

It was a glorious sunny day now that we’d arrived. The clouds burned off and the sun was actually scorching in the cockpit. We sat and basked in the sun until it became too much. L went below and I put the motor on SD and went for an explore.

Ian had brought a collapsible kayak that he’s never used before so he was up on Corus’s fore deck with 12 pages of instructions and more parts than a Star Wars Lego set. I left him to it.

I chatted with Dave and Margaret for a bit. Dave promised if we got Margaret drunk that she had some interesting tales to tell about the aberrant sexual behavior of sea otters. Now I still think the furry buggers are cute, but Margaret promises that after her story we will be quite put off. I await the tale with prurient delight.

Back at the boat we sat and relaxed and jeered when Ian finally launched his kayak. He made the rounds proudly showing off his creation, then headed out of the bay to explore. It started to get late so I went to work on supper. Pork loin encrusted with mustard balsamic, BBQ roasted potatoes in herbs and garlic and, of course, tomato salad. About five minutes after I’d started the Kayak Telegraph Service came by with a message that Anne and Laurence were begging off on account of the halibut.

It seems Single Guy (from Raven Magic)–that was how he had been introduced; his real name is Bill–had taken Howard and Andrea out fishing. They had come zooming back about 10 minutes earlier and you could hear the squeals for miles. Just as they were pulling up their lines she had a bite and successfully landed a lovely 10-lb. halibut.

Apparently this caused a bit of a problem as the necessary fish killing-cleaning-filleting skills were sadly absent aboard Corus. The entertainment from across the anchorage carried on for quite a bit.

So I cooked dinner and we chowed down on one of my better attempts. The loin was just about perfect: thank you, Carmen. After dinner we dumped the dishes in the sink, climbed aboard Stupid Dinghy, and went out to explore. In perfectly calm water, after a week of practice and absolutely no shifting of weight, SD is almost usable with two passengers; I still have major doubts about the rated three.

The sun was low in the west (although I swore up and down it was the north) and the light shimmered and bounced off the water to make the firs, spruces and cedars dance on the shorelines of the archipelago. Day shift was over, so we didn’t see any wildlife. I’m pretty sure the critters are unionized here, and the BC gov’t is tight with its overtime. Maybe tomorrow. We cruised some islands and islets and then gently puttered the perimeter of Waddington Bay, arriving back at the Shearwater.

I stowed the motor etc. and then went to wash dishes with L. After chores I grabbed another glass of red and enjoyed the dying light in the chilling air while writing a bit and snooping on the neighbours. Then it was time for bed and a bit of reading.

The days keep exceeding my expectations.