Hauling Out

Out of the water...

...and under cover.

Rhapsody is at the shipyard, well-situated in a heated, covered building, ready for several projects on her exterior and interior.

Grab the Bird Book

"Who are those guys anyway?"

                                   Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Photo: Bufflehead, drab females and striking males, in winter plumage.

"Quick grab the binoculars... pick up a camera... find the bird books", and then poof! at some sudden unseen/unheard signal, an entire flock suddenly dives and disappears. Some days I'm lucky. I have my camera in hand when a sea bird pops back up, close enough to the boat to grab a shot or two before it dives again or speeds away. Those little guys are fast!

I can identify a Barrow's Goldeneye on the water with some certainty, it's distinctive spots and yellow eye provide major clues. But a quick glance at a black and white pattern on a fast-moving bird in flight might make me think "loon" instead. 

Cormorants have a distinctive shape, their silhouette alone identifies them in flight and at rest. There's no question who has claimed the red buoy below as their temporary hangout.

From a distance I still hesitate over some birds that should be easy to name. When seen through a telephoto lens, the vibrant coloration on the head and neck of this bird clearly shows it's a Bufflehead. Sigh. Identification isn't that easy when birds won't stay still. 

Dodd Narrows

Nanaimo, B.C. to Selby Cove, Prevost Island, B.C.
30.3 nautical miles                      4.25 hours travel time

Photo: Approaching Dodd Narrows from the northwest at slack current.

Dodd Narrows is a very narrow passage that we navigate on the route between Nanaimo and Victoria. A lot of water moves this restricted little channel twice a day; heavy currents of 7 knots or more rush through there at full flood or ebb. That's too strong for a vessel like Rhapsody since we routinely travel between 8.5 and 9 knots. We prefer to wait for slack water at Dodd, though slack is a relative term. The water never does stand still; whirlpools and eddies continue to swirl and shift about during the 15 to 20 minutes of minimum current. Fast boats may enjoy the excitement of roaring through this passage to challenge the faster currents, but not us. I have marveled at the idiots that race along to weave through crowds of traffic or zigzag around a slow-moving tug with its logboom tow. What were they thinking? Myself, I would rather travel through in slack water, negotiating the dog-leg turn without other vessels for company. Who needs excitement at Dodd Narrows?!

The current table listed slack before flood at the Narrows at 1:08 pm. The earlier slack before ebb had occurred several hours before dawn, but running through Dodd in the dark didn't tempt us at all. We cast off at noon and ran slowly, adjusting speed to arrive at the appropriate time. Once through Dodd Narrows we continued on south, cruising in sunshine against a 1 knot current all afternoon until we anchored in Selby Cove, Prevost Island.  

Photo: Shoreside walker takes photo of me taking a photo of her.

Photo: Sunset at Selby Cove, Prevost Island