A Sail Over to Pender Harbour Jazz Festival

Pender Harbour - Group Excursion 

Even though How was still recovering from achilles surgery...  what better way to spend the last of the summer than with a trip across the Strait of Georgia to Pender Harbour?  Especially when the Jazz Festival is in full swing? (pun intended). 

Six vessels from Nanaimo Yacht club met at the Fishermans Resort outstation in Hospital Bay on Friday the 19th - Silhouette, Propinquity (Mary & Rick), Dance Lightly (Barb & Harv), Dolphin (Rita & Dan), Wiley Coyote (Robin & Dave) and Alaunia (Leanne & Chris along with daughter Sarah).  Friday night we all went ashore to the Garden Bay Pub where we enjoyed dinner and some bluesy jazz music.  A beautiful moonlit walk back to Fishermans Resort was in order for most while H, because of his walking cast, hitched a fun dinghy ride home with Rick & Mary.   

Saturday opened with a trip ashore to Madeira Park where the gang walked around the town, listened to a few musical groups at different venues and generally just basked in the sunshine and unseasonally warm weather! 

Cool how those bright Cuban red pants match the spinnaker...

Happy hour on the docks was planned, with entertainment provided by our own jammin musicians; "Great Balls of Fire" Rick  & "Howlin"  Howard  (along with special guest kazoo player "Shanty Man" Dan)...  and of course a rousing rendition of "Waltzing Matilda" from our visiting Aussies on Alaunia.

    

So much fun was had that we went wa-ay past dinner time and most had to do with happy hour snacks until breakfast! 

Sunday was departure day, with our Australian buddies on Alaunia heading northward 

  while the rest of the group enjoyed a last jazz concert just close ashore 

then made a short days passage south to Smuggler's Cove.  

    

Nestled in the cozy inner basin we had a delightful happy hour ashore where the dogs could play and we all could take in the view. 

 We even managed to make it back to the boats in reasonable time for dinner aboard our floating homes

Overnight the wind blew from the SE upwards of 25 kts outside the anchorage, the forecast called for winds in Georgia Strait to decrease to 10 - 15 kts after noon.  After the skippers meeting it was decided that we would depart after 10 am when winds would hopefully be abating...  with reefed sails in overcast skies we made a slow passage upwind through Welcome? Passage and then turned SW to cross the strait.  Silhouette encountered winds between 21 & 24 knots across most of the strait until just outside Departure Bay where winds were still in the neighbourhood of 17 kts;  but all made it safe and sound with a fast passage back to Nanaimo just in time to get an hour or so of sunshine before the fall rains set in.

What a great way to end the summer!

Gulf Islands - Summer 2014

Returned from the San Juan islands via Ganges on Saltspring Is.  Anchored in our favourite little spot just east of Goat Is and stayed for three nights.

     Enjoyed the Saturday Saltspring market; as much as we could anyway, since dog-owners need to either leave their pets at home or take turns walking through the market while someone stays behind and dog-sits...

         

 speaking of the dog, a humorous event when Skipper was watching intently while Linda fed geese off the stern - he leaned further out against the dinghy until he had pushed it out enough he couldn't retreat - and fell into the water!  I caught the moment before it happened on camera, then had to drop it quickly to retrieve the disgruntled pup from the brine...  

             





After Saltspring we sailed to Wallace Is. and enjoyed a night at Princess Cove,

 then on to Kendrick Is where we anchored for two nights.  Kendrick is particularly nice in settled conditions; when the tide is high it almost covers the reef separating the bay from Georgia Strait enabling wonderful mainland views of the city of Vancouver and even Mt. Baker in northern Washington state. 

         

We enjoyed walking on the south shore (the north side is leased by West Van YC) Linda even braved a swim off the boat while I chickened out when the water hit the 49th parallel. 
Our last night was in the north bay of DeCourcey Is. where the hot weather unfortunately did not deter the mosquito population...

        

A Quick Trip to San Juan Islands

SUMMER 2014   -   A Quick Trip to the San Juan Islands

On July 16th we headed out for a two week trip down through the Gulf Islands and over to the US San Juan Islands.  On the way we stopped in at Todd Inlet and anchored for two nights and went ashore to the Butchart Gardens (which Howard had never seen, even though growing up in Victoria).    

 

      

Watched the Saturday night fireworks from the boat and had a couple nice hikes around the area...

      

    

First stop in the U.S. was Roche Harbour, which was rocking in mid-season form.  We loved the facilities and enjoyed the "Sculpture Walk".  Skipper says he definitely liked the dog park.

     

     

     

  




Had to do a small repair on the anchor windlass, as the "Pressure Arm" had broken, (luckily had a spare), re-greased the clutch cone while at it, since the manual release was sluggish...  

     

One little note of humour - a little barge is available to pump out the holding tanks;  it's aptly named MV "Phecal Phreak"... ;)

If visiting Roche Hbr; it is well worth the time to watch the colours ceremony on the docks at sunset...

Next few days we visited Stuart Is and Johns Is before heading in to the docks at Friday Hbr. for supplies and libations.

A Summer Visit with Grandson Eligh

SUMMER   -   July 1 - 15

Where has the time gone?  As I write this, summer is almost over.  I am in a cast from heel/achilles surgery, so a good time to sit at the computer and update this blog!
On July 1st I travelled to Toronto to pick up grandson Eligh and bring him back for a west coast  visit.  While in TO I took his dad and him on a hot July 2nd to a Blue Jays game (which the Jays won in a bottom-of-the-9th rally and home-run!)

On the 3rd, after a flight across Canada and a ferry ride across the Strait of Georgia, we were in Nanaimo.  Perfect timing as Grandma Linda had just got back from a long flight herself!

We spent a couple days around home, went to Parksville for mini-golf and beach time; 4H petting barn, the aquatic center, twice, as well as parks and arcades... whew!

 

   
 It was time to introduce Eligh to boating so what better destination for a grandson's first sailing adventure than "Pirate's Cove"!  Only a short two hour trip from Nanaimo harbour, through Dodd Narrows and around the south end of DeCourcy Island.

 

     

Pirate's Cove was once known as the home of the secretive "Brothers XII" clan, there was even thought to be a buried treasure at one time.  Now-a-days there is a refurbished "treasure chest" ashore, where you 'leave one/take one' childrens 'treasures'; as well as awesome trails to explore and calm waters to row around.

         

We spent a couple of relaxing days, tried our luck "fishing" and grandpa celebrated his 60th. 







Soon we were back home and then off on a thrilling float plane ride to Vancouver to visit Eligh's other grandma Bonnie, Auntie Diane, Uncle Jason and cousin Evan!
                              

   

        Cousins!

 

Next: A Trip to the San Juan Islands....