Moorage fees in most cases are based on 40' boat length.

03/31/97 - Nakia is hauled out.
04/08/97 - we are off Nakia.  Boat is ready to be put on truck.
04/10/97 - Nakia hits the road.
04/14/97 - Nakia is unloaded at the yard.  Some rain.
04/16/97 - back in the water, mastless.
04/21/97 - mast is stepped (I was very sick with the flu).

It's usually full, but we liked Ballard Mill Marina near Seaview East boat yard.  $18/night; clean showers and laundry.  Splurge at Chinook's in the Fishermen's Terminals near Ballard.  Try the alder-planked salmon and don't miss the blackberry cobbler a la mode for dessert.

04/24/97 - I am well enough and Nakia is ready to go; lock thru to Bainbridge Island.  Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park is one long dock.  Tie to either side.  Honor system envelopes are supposed to be at launch ramp area.  There were none available in the box while we were there.  Toilets are only open during daylight hours.  Easy walk to Winslow Wharf Marina further up the harbor.  Card key bathrooms there, but someone always let me in (for showers).

04/26/97 - Poulsbo. Rain.  Anchored out first night, then moved to Poulsbo Yacht Club. Very nice facility with showers and laundry.  Easy walk into town.  Be sure to stop at Sluys Poulsbo Bakery.

04/29/97 - Oak Harbor, Whidbey Island.  Some rain.  We anchored out in this relatively unattractive harbor and did not go ashore.  This was an easy day hop from Bainbridge Island.

04/30/97 - Anacortes.  Some rain.  Stopped in charming La Conner for brunch at the Calico Cupboard.  $8/day and $16/night use fee for public floats in La Conner.  Docked in Anacortes at Cap Sante Boat Haven ($20/night).  Safeway and KFC within walking distance.  Restrooms/showers/laundry open 24 hours/day; no gates/locks.

05/01/97 - Spencer Spit, Lopez Island.  Cold, but clear and sunny.  Free pre-season mooring.  Pit toilets, pay phone.  Dungeness were plentiful.

05/02/97 - Blind Bay, Shaw Island.  Some rain.  Uninteresting.  Try Indian or Picnic Coves instead.

05/03/97 - Friday Harbor, San Juan Island.  San Juan Island YC has end tie on F dock.  Check in with harbormaster.  Island Yacht Club wasn't on their list so John had to be pushy.  No gates/keys.  Try the Hungry Clam near the ferry for burgers/fries.

All prices from here are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

05/04/97 - Victoria, B.C.!  Gorgeous sunny day.  $23 US for City of Victoria Causeway (James Bay) directly in front of Empress Hotel.  No gates/keys for showers/laundry.  Victoria's Info Centre was helpful.  $5/day unlimited bus pass took us to Butchart Gardens ($14) and grocery shopping in Sidney afterwards. Murchie's on Government St. is heaven for stocking up on tea and coffee.  Victoria is the place to stock up on Loonies ($1 coin) and quarters for showers/laundry.  Poured rain all day on the 5th.

05/06/97 - Annette Inlet, Prevost Island.  Mostly cloudy.  Intended to go to Sidney Spit but it was a lee shore and we were sailing well so we passed it by.  A power boat beat us to the best spot farthest in, but this was a lovely place.  Saw our first bald eagles and river otters (in the anchorage) on this day.  Private property notices were posted so we didn't venture on shore.

05/07/97 - Pirates Cove Marine Park, De Courcy Island.  Beautiful, sunny day.  Left Annette very early to catch a fair tide out as was a bit shallow for our 5 1/2' draft.  Motored to Wallace Island to look at Conover Cove.  Very pretty and small, but shallow so we passed it by and went on to Princess Bay which was lovely.  Anchored swinging since we were only going to be there for the morning.  Other boats had sterns tied to shore.  Rowed to little peninsula and picked up an easy trail back to Conover Cove (pit toilets).  About 30 minutes each way. Watched two river otters come and go.  Pirates Cove was okay though not nearly as nice as Annette or Princess.  Hiking at Pirates was very buggy.  Pit toilets.

05/08/97 - Nanaimo.  Clear, sunny days.  Went thru Dodd Narrows at slack. Uneventful, but fun as it was our first narrows.  We went after three other U.S. boats started in.  Nanaimo has a floating pumpout station.  No one seemed interested in collecting the fee ($3).  Nanaimo YC offers one night reciprocity, then it's .50/foot.  Nice facility.  Pay showers/laundry.  Enjoyed walking along waterfront promenade.  Ate at The Lighthouse restaurant behind the float plane dock.  Nice view, but this is the only place where we were double charged on our VISA bill.

Anchored between Protection and Newcastle Islands our second night.  Took the Island Mist ferry (no charge) to the Dinghy Dock Pub for dinner.  Next time we will stay long enough to visit Newcastle Island which looked charming.

Save provisioning for when you're on your way out and stop at the public marina's guest dock (three hours free).  It's closer to the grocery store/ATM at the mall.

05/11/97 - Smuggler Cove Marine Park (on mainland).  Clear and sunny.  Our first bow anchor and stern tie to shore!  Stressfull but successful.  A beautiful place with Canada geese (agressive!) and goslings.  Several other boats right next door.  Wish we could have stayed longer.

05/12/97 - Harmony Islands Marine Park, Hotham Sound.  Gorgeous day.  Got underway early for Francis Peninsula to Agamemnon Channel, which runs between Nelson Island and the Sechelt Peninsula and took us to Hotham Sound.  We looked at Junction Island in St. Vincent Bay first, but was very rocky and had too many "Keep Off" signs (oyster farms).  We had a hard time figuring out the Kipling Cove anchorage which had "Private Island" signs all over it.  After making an elaborate spider web of an anchoring job elsewhere, we realized we should have just anchored in the 40' deep channel.  Next time we would make Egmont our jumping off point for going up to PLI.  Warm enough to shower on deck!

05/13/97 - Princess Louisa Inlet.  Gorgeous sunny day.  John made bread.  We were early for slack at Malibu Rapids, so we set the spinnaker and drifted around for a couple of hours.  Chatterbox Falls is short and fat, not a skyscraper like the falls we saw coming in, but pretty.  Float was nearly full with 14 boats tied up because of the excellent weather so early in the season.  Pit toilets.  Unlimited water, but not potable.  Saw Harlequin ducks outside Malibu Rapids.  We wouldn't bother with the long trip in again unless the weather was perfect.  This first trip in spoiled us!  Lots of spectacular waterfalls all along the way to Malibu Rapids.  Lots of socializing at PLI.

05/15/97 - Hardy Island, near Fox Island, Blind Bay.  Mostly sunny.  We followed Jean on Jambo III through a skinny entrance and rafted to her.  Saw a mink on shore.  Very pretty anchorage shared with other boats.

05/16/97 - Westview/Powell River. ($17)  Mostly sunny/breezy.  Had a nice sail from point to point.  Instead of asking for directions to the grocery store, be sure to ask the harbor master how to get to the liquor store instead.  That way you will get to the main mall (a left turn at the main road), instead of a rundown shopping center (to the right).  Mall has an A&W, DQ, WalMart, Radio Shack, and a nice grocery store ("Overwaitea") with an amazing assortment of food sold out of bulk bins.  Good pizza and salad's at the place just up from the marina.  Good coin showers.  Laundry nearby.  We liked this stop, which was a good thing because it blew a gale the next day, preventing us from leaving.

05/18/97 - Tenedos Bay.  Clear.  A beautiful motor trip along the coast and through the Copeland Islands Marine Park, which looked like a nice place to explore.  Tenedos isn't spectacular, but has a short hike to a fresh water lake. Caught tiger prawns.  Saw two black bears and a mink.  Thunder and lightening storm our second night.  Five other boats shared the anchorage.

05/20/97 - Melanie Cove, Prideaux Haven.  High overcast.  Much crashing through the woods, but we never spotted clear signs of Mike's cabin or the apple trees (from Curve of Time).  Lots of neat swimming ledges in the walls of the bay for later in the summer.  Visited Laura's Cove by dinghy the next day.  Same drill.  We were unable to find signs of Phil's cabin, though there were some lovely
lilac bushes.  Rained that afternoon.

05/22/97 - Refuge Cove.  Rain showers, cleared later.  Tied up to government dock.  Nothing open yet, so no charge.  Phone only takes credit cards.  No garbage drop.  Want to go back some time when the gift shop/bakery is open (June 1) after reading all the rave reviews posted outside.  Several private
homes/walkways.  Water at dock.

05/23/97 - Squirrel Cove.  Overcast.  Anchored in the inner cove, a long dinghy ride from the store/laundry/showers, but nice.  Only walking is on the road running from the store.  Boring, but good for a stretch.  Garbage drop and pay phone available at dock.  Unfortunately, "Bill, the Baker" chose this summer to retire, so no mouth-watering, home-baked-by-someone-else goods for us.  He still seems to enjoy visitors though, so you might take him something to share at cocktail hour.  Fun to run the "rapids" from the cove into the lagoon when the tide is flooding.  Just make sure you have enough power to make it back through them - we had to rescue a dinghy full of teenage girls who had been skinny-dipping in the lagoon!

05/25/97 - Octopus Islands Marine Park.  Overcast cleared.  Beautiful trip through Hole in the Wall.  Caught ling cod and saw a mink.  We anchored in the second main cove.  Wonderful area for more extensive exploring.

05/26/97 - Port Harvey.  Heavy overcast cleared later.  No problems at Upper and Lower rapids.  Caught the latter right at slack.  Took Race passage to take advantage of the current and had our most exciting ride there.  Several small whirlpools and a GPS reading of 12k at one point!  Water temp was 48 degrees (had been 58 degrees in Desolation Sound).  Saw a sea lion and Dall's porpoise, and deer on shore.  Met the people on Tangaroa Taru and Samurai, with whom we traveled from Octopus.

05/27/97 - Port Elizabeth.  Rain showers.  Had brunch at Minstrel Island.  Saw a bear and caught one Dungeness.  Lots of logging in this area.

05/28/97 - Waddington Bay.  Rain showers.  Stopped at Mamalilaculla on the way. Very interesting abandoned Indian village.  Nice walk, but make lots of noise as there was evidence of bear all along the trail and a foot print on the beach.  Heard and then found a grouse thumping on a rotting totem.  Look for the salamander totem which is in the best shape.  Waddington is a gorgeous glassy anchorage.  Lots of islets to explore.  Eagles everywhere.  Would definitely return to this area.

05/30/97 - Port McNeil Boat Harbour.  ($24)  Rain showers/windy.  Decided to bypass Sointula at the last minute since there were more services at Port McNeil. Post Office, grocery store, pizza, ice cream.  Potable water at the dock.  We liked this much better than Port Hardy for easy access to services.  No gate.

05/31/97 - Port Hardy Quarterdeck Marina & RV Park.  ($32.10 included power, water and free showers)  Rain.  Gated.  Long pleasant walk into a nicer looking town than Port McNeil.  Good Chinese dinner at the Green Apple, but very small non-smoking section, so John was back-to-back with smokers.  Shopped at Overwaitea Foods.  Had a mediocre dinner the second night at I.V.'s Pub next to the marina.

06/02/97 - Finn Bay, Penrose Island, Fitz Hugh Sound.  Rain.  Made the crossing of Queen Charlotte Strait and round Cape Caution without much fuss.  Took Dramamine and had jacklines/tethers rigged just in case, but SE wind and SW swell made it an easy ride.  This is a pretty, protected anchorage spoiled by a floating fishing resort, which fortunately wasn't open yet.  Give it a miss.

06/03/97 - Sea Otter Inlet, Hunter Island, Fitz Hugh Sound.  Rain showers.  Very pretty.  No shore access, but lots of nooks and crannies to explore.  We were the only boat.

06/04/97 - Kynumpt Harbour, Campbell Island, Seaforth Channel.  Rain showers.  Spotted a gray whale and calf at Kaiete Pt. (entrance to Llama Channel).  Pretty anchorage.  We were the only boat.

06/05/97 - Bottleneck Inlet.  Rain showers.  No shore access, but beautiful rowing with great close up views of the huge jellies we'd been seeing (yellow, orange or red ones with long nasty looking tentacles).  Very pretty, quiet anchorage shared with two other boats.

06/06/97 - Bishop Bay (Hot Springs).  Rain.  Long day of motoring to get here (0745 to 1700), but definitely worth it!  As I wrote to the folks at the Waggoner Guide:  "Yes, it's off the beaten track, but I think it's worth recommending taking the side trip, as it's well worth it.  We liked this far better than Hot Springs Cove (p. 208).  We never saw a float plane land here, and there were no tourists coming in by boat.  The people who come here are cruisers, and recreational or commercial fishermen.  There is a small float to raft up to, a log float to tie to, or you can anchor in deep water.  This is not a `natural' pool, so purists should skip it.  But the water is just the right temperature, clean, with no odor, and has been collected in a reinforced pool inside a cinder block hut, big enough to stretch out and float in.  There is a small tub outdoors in which you can soap up and wash in, before enjoying a soak in the big pool.  Both have drains so they can be emptied, cleaned and refilled if necessary.  People have written their boat names and left mementos inside the hut which is charming.  Volunteers from the Kitimat Yacht Club and high school maintain everything.  We were told it can be crowded on the weekends.  It rained the entire time we were there, so maybe it wasn't a busy time, but people were very considerate in sharing the pool so that everyone got to have it to themselves for a half hour or so.  This was heaven compared to Hot Springs Cove [on the outside of Vancouver Island]!"

06/08/97 - Lowe Inlet, Grenville Channel.  Rain showers.  Coldest day of the trip.  Saw a huge family of otters on our way out of Bishop Bay early in the morning.  Nice short falls and beach at low tide in Lowe.  Good exploring though we never found a way through the bush to get closer to the falls.  Saw an otter.

06/09/97 - East (Klewnuggit) Inlet, Grenville Channel.  Clear, but windy in the channel.  Meant to go to Kumealon Inlet, but didn't feel like fighting the wind.  Nice and protected, but no shore access.  More of a hidey hole than a destination.  Shared with another boat.

06/10/97 - Prince Rupert.  Overcast/rain.  Left at 0600 with no wind, and at 1030 decided to press on all the way to P.R.  Arrived at 1330 and checked in to the Prince Rupert Rowing and Yacht Club ($20).  We never saw Donna, but Chris gave us outstanding service.  He was always there to help boats in to the dock, he directed us to a spot at the public dock right next door when he couldn't find space for us at the YC on our southbound trip (and let us use PRYC's shower anyway), and he even ran an extension cord into the bathroom so I could use my hair dryer! The Cow Bay area in which PRYC is located has lots of fun shops to check out.  Laundry is a problem because it's so far away.  I took a cab and recommend the laundromat around the corner from the Maytag laundry for a better selection of machines.  Had a good pizza at Angelo's and went to the movies.  The older gentleman at the Novel Ideas bookstore in Cow Bay let us exchange some of our paperbacks for his used books.

06/12/97 - Lucy Islands.  High overcast.  Just off of Prince Rupert, this was one of our favorite places.  Best to wait for settled weather, if you go, as it's a bit exposed.  Nice white sand beaches at low tide and a raised boardwalk through the interior forest.  "Lagoon" anchorage is nicest.  Other is an open roadstead open to southerly swells.

06/13/97 - Trail Bay, Work Inlet.  High overcast/rain.  Long day of motoring.  Supposed to be a good fishing area, otherwise we would not have made this side trip.  Lots of charter boats, but no luck for John.  Saw three Orcas on our way in.

All prices from here are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.

06/15/97 - Foggy Bay, Alaska.  Rain/clearing.  Very tricky entrance (reefs, narrow, shallow), but pretty anchorage.  A bit open to swell.  Saw a black bear on shore.  A few other boats.

06/16/97 - Ketchikan.  Clear.  Motored the whole way in mostly calm, good conditions.  Left at 0830 and arrived at 1500 PDT.  Stayed in Bar Harbor section. Lots of room, but way at the airport/ferry end of town.  Showers ($2/10 minutes) are at the nearby laundromat.  Bought charts at Tongass Hardware.  Be sure to give Jimbo's a miss.  Bought our User's Fee decal from Customs.  Pioneer Pantry is a good meal.  Kay's Place, near Bar Harbor is also good.  Rained the second day.

06/18/97 - Port Johnson, Prince of Wales Island.  Overcast.  Meant to go to Moira Sound, but it was dead upwind.  Nice cove at Dolomi, spoiled by a logging camp with a float plane that lands regularly.  We anchored at the head of the inlet.  Deep, but protected.

06/19/97 - Johnson Cove, Moira Sound, PWI.  Rain showers.  Recommended by other cruisers, but we didn't think it was anything special.  Saw a black bear on shore on our way in.

06/20/97 - Troller's Cove, Kasaan Bay, PWI.  Sunny.  John hated this entrance, but I thought it was well worth avoiding the rocks to get in to this very pretty place.  Saw our first U.S. Forest Service camping hut ($25/night; sleeps 4) and mooring buoy.  Nice exploring by rowboat, but we saw a black bear on shore, so I was nervous walking on the beach after that.  Met Arctic Star.

06/22/97 - Kasaan, PWI.  Sunny and hot.  Tied up to the dock (no charge in spite of what it says on the sign).  Got eaten alive before we knew what was happening.  A small black fly, not mosquitos.  This is a small settlement of 21 adults and a few children.  We met Louis Thompson.  He and his wife, Annette, run the Country Lace B&B.  He was very friendly and told us a lot about the history of Kasaan.  Walk through the residential area to the trailhead at the Thompson's place. Nice trail through the woods paralleling the shore.  Make lots of noise because there are black bears here.  The trail takes you to a building that Louis told us had been a residence.  He said that the totems inside were original (including the paint), dating from the 1800s, but that many of the exterior totems were replicas.  Lots of biting flies, but an interesting place which we had all to ourselves.

06/23/97 - Karta Bay, Kasaan Bay, PWI.  Overcast/showers/partly sunny/rain overnight!  Great trail here, but very buggy.  Cover up, spray down with the strongest bug spray you can stand, and take a noisemaker because there are black bears here.  Saw lots of salamanders or newts.  Forest service hut and mooring buoy at this anchorage which is at the mouth of the Karta River.  One note about these buoys - better to anchor if you can because the buoys will leave black skid marks on your hull which are very hard to scrub off.  This particular hut is very popular because of the great fishing here.  We met four men in both this hut and the one further up the trail at Little Salmon Lake.  A couple was staying in the hut at Salmon Lake, and all were fly-fishing for big sockeye salmon.  All of them had been dropped off by float plane.  Great crabbing in the anchorage.  Good trading for sockeye!

06/26/97 - Ketchikan.  Overcast.  Back to Bar Harbor marina to get ready for visit from friends from the Bay Area.  The following stops are those we made with Rick and Vera.

06/29/97 - Karta Bay.  Sunny and breezy.
07/01/97 - Kassan.  Overcast.  Met Mike, who works for the city, mostly on the water treatment facility.  He went to high school in Concord, CA.  Very nice guy.  We offered him a beer and chatted for awhile.  He went home after talking about smoking and canning salmon, and came back with two 1 lb cans of home smoked sockeye for us!
07/02/97 - Troller's Cove.  Sunny.
07/03/97 - Ketchikan.  Overcast.  Wanted to go in to the Yacht Club float in Thomas Basin, but there were no empty slips.  Rafted to an unoccupied sail boat on the city float.
07/04/97 - Ketchikan.  Gorgeous day.  Moved to the KYC dock (float 2).  Ed Pervis on Arctic Star (a Krogen) was the port captain for 1997.  He gave us a key to the yacht club so we could shower.  $12/night plus $5 for power to stay here - great location.  Watched the small town Fourth of July parade.  This was one of the hottest days of the entire trip.  Probably mid-70's.  Taquan Air was having a special on flightseeing packages.  We all took the Misty Fjords one - well worth the $109/per person.  Fireworks didn't get going until 11pm PDT (we never bothered changing over to Alaska time).  Ate at Papa's a couple of times, also Pioneer Pantry again.  The Five Star Cafe, just across the small Creek St. bridge, is a nice place to spend some time reading over coffee and dessert on a rainy afternoon.  Salmon Etc. has a good deal on Silver Lining canned smoked sockeye by the case.  Cedar Chest, across the street from the KYC has nice KYC souvenirs. Had a nice dinner at the Bistro.  We liked Ketchikan.  It has a split personality because of the cruise ships.  It's a lively/touristy shopping mecca when the ships are in, and a bit of a ghost town when the shops close up at weird hours of the day after the ships have reboarded their passengers.  We found it to be a friendly town.  Don't miss the lovely little city park over by the fish hatchery.  That would be a nice place to take a book and a picnic lunch in fine weather.

07/08/97 - Moth Bay.  Rain showers.  After Rick and Vera left on July 5 we waited out a few rainy days before moving on.  The weather was still against us though, and we weren't making any headway, so we ducked in here after we'd been out of Ketchikan only four hours.  Anchorage a bit tight, but well protected from the worst of the weather.

07/09/97 - Prince Rupert.  Sunny.  No room at the PRYC. so we had to squeeze in to the city dock right next door.  No one ever came to collect so we didn't mind the lack of privacy.  Had dinner at the restaurant next to Smile's, from which we could watch Nakia, but it was too much like a pub, cigarette smoke and all. Be sure to get cash before departing PR if you are going south via the outside route!  There is no place to get cash again until Zeballos.

07/10/97 - Elliot Island.  Sunny.  Provisioned and refueled before our departure.  Had a glorious spinnaker sail once we were through the PR fishing fleet.  Wind was really building by the time we were ready to douse the spinny and anchor.  This was not the greatest spot, but it worked for the weather we were in.

07/11/97 - Patterson Inlet.  Mostly sunny.  This was really a pretty trip and we made great time with the current through Petrel Channel (9.5 reading on the GPS).  Sailed the rest of the day after we were out of Petrel.  Weather turned to rain so we holed up here for a few days.  Pretty anchorage all to ourselves.  Saw a deer swim from our section of the bay across to the opposite shore.

07/14/97 - Monk Bay, Laredo Channel.  Rain showers.  Anchored in 25'.

07/15/97 - Mouat Cove, Seaforth Channel.  Overcast cleared.  On our way out of Monk Bay we saw a deer swimming out in the channel, not what I would consider close to shore at all!  Didn't seem like the best way to travel, but maybe it doesn't bother them.  Pretty anchorage with a tug and a Tollycraft.

07/16/97 - Shearwater Marine Resort.  ($21/night with no water or power)  Sunny.  Back in pleasure boat country again.  Was going to do laundry, but so glad another lady beat me to it - her whites were terribly stained by the brown water.  Must have been the cedar tannin from all the rain they've been having.  Scalding showers (with reversed taps) at one Loonie per 30-60 seconds!  Then the fuse blew when the lady in the shower next door and I both used our hair dryers at the same time.  Needless to say I was not impressed by this place!  Fortunately we had a nice meal at the restaurant, and we met some really nice people on the docks.

07/17/97 - Ocean Falls, Cousins Inlet.  High overcast.  This was a last minute detour based on the recommendation of a couple we met in Shearwater.  It's a must see.  The docks were full when we arrived, but we managed to grab a spot when another boat decided to leave.  Unlimited water and power (20 amp) included in the dock fee.  We were short on cash so the nice man with dreadlocks
let me write a U.S. check for $14 ($17.31 CA).  Showers, laundry, small cafe and a ping-pong table are in one building.  Post Office is in another.  Nice walk to the lake and dam.  Also can walk to Martin Valley where there is supposed to be a small store, but we missed that.  Read more about this fascinating, bittersweet ghost town in the guide books.

07/19/97 - Sea Otter Inlet.  Mostly sunny.  We were out of Canadian cash so we made a detour to Bella Bella where I thought there was an ATM machine, and to top up our fuel tanks.  Turned out there was no banking, so I bought groceries and got a $50 cash advance on my VISA.  The fuel dock here is extremely busy and chaotic, and the market is two aisles of food and two aisles of everything else.  Skip this stop if you can.

07/20/97 - Pruth Bay, Calvert Island.  Overcast.  Had a nice afternoon motor trip through a back route which was much more scenic than Fitz Hugh Sound.  The swells were really rolling in through Hakai Passage, reminding us of how close we are to the Pacific again.  We anchored in the south arm of Pruth Bay.  Most boats were anchored in the west arm, in front of the deluxe Hakai fishing resort.  This another must see stop because of the beaches.  The resort allows you to tie your dinghy to their dock and walk through their grounds to West beach.  This is a gorgeous white sand beach (best walking is at low tide), reminiscent of the Monterey/Carmel area with several rugged islands in the bay.  A more challenging trail (25 minutes, a bit rugged) leads to North beach, which you should have all to yourselves.  This was our jumping off point for the outside of Vancouver Island, so we were waiting for a good window to round Cape Scott.  Had a couple of days of rain.

07/25/97 Sea Otter Cove, Vancouver Island.  High overcast.  Just like going out the Golden Gate, the worst part of the trip for me was in getting offshore.  The easiest part of the day was rounding the Cape - gentle, glassy seas and warm sunshine.  We motorsailed for 12 hours to cover 71.4 miles.  Tied to a free mooring (hull skidmarks).  Pretty, but watch it - we saw rocks under the surface on our way out (go slow!).

07/26/97 - Winter Harbour, Quatsino Sound.  High overcast.  We liked this settlement even though all it had was a phone, small market, cannery/fish plant and some homes.  $16/night at the government dock; no power; be sure to ask before using the laundry, as it is supposed to be for the fishermen.  The fuel dock runs the other "marina" for $15/night.  No water or laundry, but the best feature is that they took credit cards.  There is a very nice walk on the wooden boardwalk that runs along the shore in front of many of the homes.  Post office has limited hours.  Very friendly people.

07/28/97 - Klaskino Inlet, Brooks Bay.  Low overcast.  John caught a salmon on our way out.  Saw sea otters and tufted Puffins on our way into Brooks Bay.  The Puffins were part of a large group of murres and gulls collected on the water. We were in company with a sailboat we met in Winter Harbor, and were the only boats on the four mooring buoys here.  Watched something (elephant seal?) catch and eat several salmon.  Explored the remains of the fishing hut (circa 1992) near the river mouth.  Saw a black bear turning rocks over on a beach (we were in the dinghy). Slow Lane left us for Klaskish Inlet.

07/30/97 - Columbia Cove, Jackobson Pt., Nasparti Inlet, Brooks Peninsula.  Mostly sunny. Three mooring buoys; we took the unoccupied one.  Slow Lane and another boat were on the others.  This is a don't miss stop for the fantastic beachcombing.  Head up the stream to the BC Parks trail head sign.  This is a 15-20 minute rugged hike to the beach on the other side of Jackobson Pt.  There were tons of plastic fishing floats.  We searched for hours, but didn't find any glass ones.

08/1/97 - Barter Cove, Kyuquot Sound.  High overcast.  Our plan was to stay in Walter's Cove after the big build-up Waggoner gave it, but we were disappointed.  The government dock is free, and the market takes plastic, but without any cash we couldn't eat at the one and only restaurant.  The fish packing plant was running a noisy generator, and there wasn't a nice walking area like we had at Winter Harbour.  So we moved back out to anchor in Barter Cove which was very pretty and fine in settled weather.

08/3/97 - Dixie Cove.  Rain showers.  A bit hairy getting through Crowther Channel, but once "inside" again, things were calm and pleasant.  Saw a black bear and eagle's nest with one big baby and one adult.  Protected anchorage, but no shore access, and fishing in this area is restricted.  We took the dinghy out to Rugged Pt.  where there were several small boats fishing.  Nice sandy beaches on either side of the point.  Very pretty, and you might get away with anchoring overnight in settled weather.  We shared Dixie with another sailboat for part of our stay.  Also met two women from one of the nearby fish farms.  They urged us to come to the farms for a visit, so if you see one, don't be shy about asking for a tour.  These people were happy to have visitors and it was one of the highlights of our trip.

08/05/97 - Zeballos, Esperanza Inlet.  Gorgeous day.  Skipped Queen's Cove, which is supposed to be very nice.  Government dock put us down as 32' and still charged $18.83 which seemed high for this area.  But it's a nice sleepy town, and best of all one of the older lodges gave me a $200 cash advance at their bar!  We felt rich again.  Met some nice people from Washington on sailboats at the dock.

08/07/97 - Santa Gertrudis Cove, Nootka Sound.  Clear, sunny and hot!  Saw a very young black bear which wasn't at all afraid of two kayakers who got very close to it.  This is a nice, well protected anchorage, but you'll probably have to share it with small fishing boats.  There are several charter resorts in the area and they all converge upon Yuquot Pt. - I counted 35 small fishing boats at one time.  This is a must see stop because of an area right around the corner at Friendly Cove.  The natives want a $7 landing fee, but it's worth it.  Take the trail to the church.  If we had been there a couple of weeks later, the blackberries would have been ready for picking - the bushes were loaded with them.  There is a trail from the church along the shoreline which leads to a lake and cabins similar to the Alaskan ones we saw.  Be sure to wear or take your swimsuits because the lake has a nice clean gravel bottom and was wonderfully refreshing.  The ocean beach just opposite the lake has the most beautiful pebbles I've ever seen.  I wanted to bring half the beach home with me!  Although we didn't visit it, people are welcome to ask for a tour of the lighthouse here, according to Waggoner.

08/09/97 - Hot Springs Cove, Sydney Inlet, Clayoquot Sound.  Clear and hot.  We'd give this a miss next time.  Too touristy, and the springs are not nearly as comfy as the one at Bishop Bay.  You will have to share it with other people, who may or may not be nude, and there is no soaking pool, nor are you allowed to wash with soap here.  The half hour hike in to the springs is buggy but very pretty.  Ugly anchorage.  Met up with our new friends from Zeballos.

08/10/97 - Young Bay, Sydney Inlet.  Sunny.  Tried to find the "trail" to the lake, but it wasn't well enough established to be discernible.

08/11/97 - Tofino, Clayoquot Sound.  Clear and breezy until we got into the fog around Tofino.  We really liked this town, but at $27.14 for a side-tie at the 4th St. dock we weren't eager to stay long.  We should have stayed on one of the moorings, I guess, as there didn't seem to be any good place to anchor.

08/12/97 - Ucluelet, Barkley Sound.  Very foggy the whole way.  Navigating in and out of Tofino in the fog is tricky, but radar helps.  Slowed to fish when we got to the Y42 buoy and 10 minutes after John threw the hook over, he had a nice pink.  Went to the "52 steps" dock.  No power or water and is furthest away from everything, but it's cheap.  Steve is the nice harbor master who collected the fees every evening with his black lab.  John mumbled "33 feet" and Steve said he'd just charge us for 27' so it was only $13!  Ucluelet was a nice, but very ordinary town.  We never found a restaurant we really liked, though we ate at Roman's Galley several times.  Not much shopping of interest, nor the number of galleries that were in Tofino.  Pretty much a residential area, not as geared towards tourists as Tofino is.  We ended up spending a lot of time here, and while it was pleasant, I found it a bit boring.  There is enough water for our 5 1/2' draft to tie up on the inside of the dock, so take advantage of the extra protection, if you can.

08/14/97 - Effingham Bay, Effingham Island.  Fog/clearing.  Pleasant anchorage, but the real treat is the hike to the beach on the other side.  The trail head is at the head of the small creek, and it's a short hike through lovely, open woods.  The beach is small, but white sand and very pretty.  We met a few people from other boats here, which was nice.

08/16/97 - Wouwer Island.  Clear.  We wanted to go see the sea lions, but it was too rolly in the inner anchorage so we went back around on the outside of the island and stern tied there with a few other boats.  Spent a wakeful night even so, with all the noise from the sea lions.  We found the "salal tunnel" mentioned in Waggoner, but found the beach it leads to to be a disappointment - full of debris and no sand.

08/17/97 - Ucluelet.  Clear.  Had to come back in to pick up our mail.  Walked all the way down to the small craft harbor where the main marina is located.  Nothing much more down at that end, and according to the rate sheet, 40' is $28, so no better than Tofino.  Had a lousy meal at the Harbour View restaurant.  After a couple of days Steve helped us track down our mail.  He even had it delivered to the boat.  Steve also drove John to have our propane tanks refilled.  He was just great to us.  Before we left we hiked out to the Amphitrite Point lighthouse.  Unfortunately it was the most non-descript lighthouse we'd seen in Canada.  All the others had looked very charming.  But it was a good long walk, which we needed.

08/19/97 - Turtle Bay.  Clear and breezy.  Except for the people we met here, Turtle Bay doesn't hold many happy memories.  This was the site of our worst boat experience yet (a grounding), after which we were stuck waiting out bad weather.  We spent several days here socializing, waiting for the weather to improve, cleaning the boat, fishing, and getting things ready for our upcoming passage to San Francisco.

08/25/97 - Ucluelet.  Rain and windy.  We thought we'd seen the last of this place, but John decided we needed to order some harbor charts.  Had a very bad motorsail to get here, but the wind was aft so we slugged it out with the sloppy seas.  When the weather finally cleared a bit we caught a shuttle van to Tofino for the day, just for something to do.  Had the best meal of our whole trip at the Rain Coast Cafe, and visited the shops and galleries.  That evening in Ucluelet we walked out to Big Beach to watch the sunset, and I spotted some Orcas through the binoculars.  A fine ending to a very good day.

08/29/97 - Dodger Channel, Diana Island.  Sunny and breezy.  Topped fuel and water before departing Ucluelet, and cleared the decks of unnecessary junk.

08/30/97 - Offshore passage begins.

09/01/97 - At 1400 we were 43.5 miles off of Cape Foulweather/Depoe Bay, OR.

09/06/97,0642 - Arrived San Francisco!