Desolation Sound, British Columbia
Friday, May 25th – In high spirits, at 0930, we leave Victoria Harbor behind and start our 3-day trek to Desolation Sound. Joining us for this leg of our trip are Judy Hall and Warner Page, friends from Telluride. They will be sailing to Desolation Sound and then onto Campbell River with us. They are as eager to get started as we are.
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The Captain had planned to spend our first night at the northern end of the Gulf Islands in a bay with the romantic name of Pirates Cove, but he revised this idea after an intensive study of all our charts and books. Pirates Cove is a recommended anchorage, but one of his sources indicated that the depth in the entrance was marginal for our 9-foot draft. It was an easy decision to make. Arriving in the evening on a descending tide would not be the time to find out which guide was more accurate. We head to an alternate site, Herring Bay on Ruxton Island. Though that anchorage has a tricky entrance compounded by a “lurking” rock at the midway mark, it is sufficiently deep for us. With that rock marked on both GPS chart plotters, we creep in to drop anchor. These chart/book discrepancies we occasionally unearth continue to drive home the point that we cannot rely solely on any one chart or book. Since many of the guides were written with powerboats or sailboats with shorter keels in mind, we need to be cautious about depths. Since it is seldom in these waters that one can see as deep as Avante’s keel goes, The Captain has his work cut out as he flips back and forth between all our resources when planning our route.
This evening at dinner we decide that, weather and current permitting, we are going to push to reach the entrance to Desolation Sound tomorrow and arrive there a day early. It will make for a 10 – 12 hour day, but Desolation Sound is where the fun and exploring begin – so, let’s go!
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Saturday, May 26th – The day dawns in all shades of grey and stays that way throughout the day. Cold though it is, the soft coloring is really quite pretty with shading going from pearly white to velvety blue grey and deeper to steely gunmetal.
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As anticipated, it was a long, dreary passage starting at 0720 in the morning arriving 12 long hours later and covering 88nm. The Strait of Georgia is wide, and the only marginal spot of interest for the day is a bizarrely loaded barge being towed by an improbably small tug. With cars and trucks loaded on top of containers, it looks more like an arrangement a toddler would do with his blocks and plastic cars. Headed to Alaska it must be. We just hope a huge wave doesn’t catch it!
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Our destination is Gorge Harbor, which is just at the entrance to Desolation Sound. Gorge Harbor is named for the narrow and steep-sided gorge one has to go through to enter the bay. To us still novice cruisers, it is a spectacular harbor entrance. The Captain, as navigator, is moving up and down between his chartplotters below deck and his visual above deck. The First Mate, at the helm, is being given an inkling of the navigational challenges that lie ahead on this passage to Alaska. Narrow the gorge may be, but sticking to the center line, we are soon through and anchored.
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We head ashore where there is a small lodge with a convenience store, closed at this hour, but perhaps tomorrow morning it would have the fishing weight The First Mate needs.
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Sunday, May 27th – What a difference a day makes! Blue skies and sun greet us.
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After a relaxing morning with a trip to shore for showers and to visit the store, we exit The Gorge. There are supposed to be petroglyph carvings on the walls, but scanning the walls above us, none of us can pick them out.
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Once out into open waters, good wind greets us. Sails are raised, and we race across the official entrance to Desolation Sound going a brisk 9 knots.
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In the late 1700’s when Captain Vancouver sailed his ship, Discovery, into these waters, he encountered a dark and dismal world. Though he sailed at approximately this same time of year, he encountered cold, rainy, murky days as he sailed through an incomprehensible tangle of complex passages bordered by dark, densely wooded islands. His mood was further deepened by the overhanging cliffs, the dripping trees and the eerie silences punctuated by the sound of waterfalls heard through the gloom. The shifting winds, conflicting tides and currents coupled with the fathomless depths so near to land depressed him greatly. He named the place Desolation Sound and was glad to be rid of it.
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We, instead, exalt in it. Our days dawn bright and sunny with each one warmer than the next. We are awed by the beauty we see all around us and delighted at the way a sharply pointed snow-covered peak suddenly appears above the dark green of pine-covered mountains. We discover a place that is totally different from the one that oppressed Captain Vancouver
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Desolation Sound is very popular with boaters, but we are ahead of the season. There are only a few boats here now, and we are dismayed over seeing another boat already in our chosen anchorages. We know for sure that we prefer these conditions to the height of summer season where we would have to nose into crowded anchorages.
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The only unpleasant sight we see is Red Tide. Though we all know about Red Tide, none of us had seen it in real life. This naturally occurring infestation looks like manmade pollution. At least the good news is that it is not. Though its occurrence was spotty throughout the area, there was no missing it when it was there. The water would appear thick and heavy with the toxic mess.
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Monday, May 28th – We motor into Teakerne Arm to view the waterfall, Cassel Cascade. There is a deep channel right below the waterfall, and The Captain backs Avante until we sit just below the waterfall.
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What a position and what a photo! We cannot believe we are so close to the cascading water.
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After motoring to a more suitable spot to anchor, we launch the dinghy to head ashore. There is a hike that will take us above the waterfall to Lake Castell. Judy, the more daring one at the moment, decides to use a rope pull that was probably put there to help people climb out of the lake and up the rocks after a refreshing swim. The water is a bit too cold for a relaxing dip just yet, but the rope pull was still fun.
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Tuesday, May 29th –We decide to stop at Walsh Bay. where, arriving at noon, lunch is prepared. Sitting on deck in the warm sunshine enjoying our lunch, one of us notices a Bald Eagle perched regally on top of a pine tree near the shore. Quietly we sit on deck watching him watching us. We are silenced by his presence and amazed that he stays with us all through lunch. Shortly before we raise anchor, he spreads his wings and glides off majestically. What an incredible moment!
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Nobody is in a hurry to get going after lunch. We do not have far to go to our evening anchorage. The sun is warm. This place is so peaceful. We all just sit back and relax.
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Wednesday, May 30th – Another warm, blue sky day on this the last day for us here in Desolation Sound. How fortunate we have been with the weather this week! As we motor to a spot called Susan Islets for lunch, Judy and The First Mate pose for a photo shoot at the helm.
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Anchored in Susan Islets, we sit in the warm sun in T-shirts to enjoy lunch. So warm is it that The Captain, Judy and Warner declare that it is swim time. “You can’t be serious?” explains The First Mate. It may be a warm day, but at 57 degrees, that Pacific Northwest water is far from warm in the month of May. With much bravado and daring of each other, they change into their swim attire and in they jump. They may have called it a swim, but, from The First Mate’s viewpoint, it was a quick jump in followed by an explosive bellow of shock and an even quicker exit. “Refreshing”, they exclaim. “Heart stopping”, she thinks.
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The Captain decides that this a good time to test the weight belt that he bought to use with his wet suit when/if he needs to check something under the boat. The first time he had tested the suit was in The Channel Islands on our sail north from San Diego to Seattle. He had forgotten about a weight belt, and bobbing around like a cork, he wasn’t able to dive very far under the surface. With a thumbs up, he shows that the new weights are a success.
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That evening we anchor in Prideaux Haven, a very popular anchorage because of the spectacular views. In the summer, boats are crowded in here many stern-tied to shore or rafted together. At the end of May, we have the place almost to ourselves. The view is fantastic.
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We eat dinner on deck and linger there enjoying the evening until 2200 – in shirt sleeves and shorts. How fortunate can one be?
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Thursday, May 31st – We motor out of Desolation Sound and across to Campbell River. Again, the weather is beautiful. We are all hoping for a whale spotting, but, though that does not happen, we are treated to the sight of several Dali Porpoises leaping through the water as they speed past the boat. Campbell River proves to be a well-appointed fishing and tourist town. The facilities for private boaters are great with a large grocery store conveniently located near the docks. There is even a Starbucks. Back to civilization we are!
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Friday, June 1st – It has been great having Judy and Warner with us on this first leg. With sadness. we say good bye to them. After completing a few chores, we will depart Campbell River to press on north.
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The blog entries for 2006 have been transferred over from another site, but the comments from friends could not be brought over into the “Comments” section of this blog, they have been added below, for we do want to keep them as a memory.
Anonymous said:
Hi Sailors: What fun to read about your escapades! All is well in Cave Creek. We leave tomorrow to visit friends in Mo. (sounds rather boring compared to your venture) Will be in Telluride the first part of July. When do you return?
Keep those E mails coming. Love to see pic’s and hear where you are and what you are doing. Dave and Shari