Destination: Farewell Harbor

Day 1     85.3nm       

We eagerly departed Discovery Harbor at first light, along with some water taxis on their first run of the morning and a few crew boats. Discovery Passage weather was clear and breezy, but the winds picked up as soon as we made the turn at Chatham Point into Johnstone Strait. Typically 10 to 20 knots winds running into an opposing ebb current can make for a chunky run, but Rhapsody’s stabilizers helped to smooth out the ride.

Photo: Entering Chatham Channel

We missed slack water at Blackney Pass, so we detoured on a slightly longer, scenic route up Havannah Channel and Chatham Channel. The area is peppered with interesting sights; old homesteads, newish homes and docks, First Nation reserves, middens and ruins which hint at once-livelier times. Chatham is a narrow, shallow, boulder-strewn passage with range markers as navigation aids. Nobeltec navigation software has made these shoreside markers obsolete, but it’s fun to use them to doublecheck our course.

Next came a brief sidetrip along Clio Channel into Potts Lagoon to check out friend George’s crew camp vessel, Salmon Seeker.  

Photo: Salmon Seeker in Potts Lagoon

Photo: Potts Lagoon logging site

Loggers were busy sorting and stacking logs near the shore while George’s crews were uphill somewhere building or rebuilding logging roads. Signs posted along the shoreline warned of blasting activity, but no alarms sounded while we were there. Nonetheless, Potts Lagoon was a busy place on that day!

Continuing on along Clio Channel into rock-strewn Beware Passage, we finally arrived at Farewell Harbor on Berry Island, a favorite and familiar destination. It felt great to drop the anchor, still in bright sunshine and out of the wind, and realize the adventure has really begun.

'Farewell Harbor was named in in 1870, by the officers of H.M. surveying vessel Beaver, because it was the last place surveyed, and that in the Beaver they had “Fared well, and now it was good-bye, Farewell.” (John Walbran)'

Photo: Farewell Harbor Lodge, Berry Island, BC

Photo: Farewell Harbor Lodge, Berry Island, BC

The Last Few Projects

It seems there's always "just one more thing", some essential machine part or unfinished project that adjusts our departure schedule. This year outfitting and provisioning was nearly stress-free. An unexpected generator issue caused some concern when a replacement part was hard to source in town. Then Altech Diesel came to the rescue - not only did they have the essential part in stock, the only one on Vancouver Island it seems, but Parts Manager Ken jumped in his truck and delivered it within minutes. Wow, that's great service! Thank you Ken and Altech.

One important non-mechanical tradition has been to plant a container of herbs, a smallish pot sufficient to last through our many months afloat. Lately the cheerful staff at Campbell River Garden Center has done the planting honors. 

Photo: Pat (l) and Barb (r) with the 2015 herb pot

This year Barb planted three pots and Pat helped with the selection of basil, chives, rosemary, mint, oregano, sage, Italian parsley, and one lone heliotrope. Why the purple flowering heliotrope? for the hummingbirds, of course. The biggest fully-packed herb planter is positioned on Rhapsody's upper deck, and two smaller pots of tender basil and aggressive spearmint now rest on a galley countertop. These little gardens will definitely keep this cook happy.  

Our dockside neighborhood is changing daily as the annual migration of vessels picks up speed. Several boats that moored here during the winter months have moved on and scattered up and down the coast. Their slips don't stay empty for long. 

Photo: M/V Scorpius departs for Alaska

Scores of small boats, big boats, working boats, charter boats, fishing boats and the occasional mega yacht arrive to fill up the docks. Some vessels stop briefly for overnight moorage, others stay longer for repairs, for major provisioning, or to pick up guests or crew. Then they too depart, most heading north. We'll join this waterborne flock very soon, after one more project... or maybe two.

The arrival of a barge and crane with vibratory pile driver meant the neighborhood really is changing. I've suffered before through the annoying repetitive din of pile drivers pounding away for hours while installing dock pilings, but this week my noise concerns disappeared as soon as work began. Vibratory drivers are nearly silent compared with those older impact drivers. Hooray! Discovery Harbor is extending F Dock, adding additional 45-foot slips along the north side and providing more room for side-ties on the south. 

And now it's time to head north. Tomorrow's 5:50 a.m. scheduled departure is set by a desire for slack-current passages in several spots along the 78 nm (nautical mile) route. Why do we care about slack currents? Here's one example: tomorrow the current at Seymour Narrows ranges from near zero to 10.4 knots, all within 3 1/2 hours. We travel at 9 knots, so for safety and stress-free cruising, careful planning matters. Next post from Ketchikan following 7 to 10 days of cruising beautiful northern British Columbia. 
    

Fishing Action at the Dock

The fish cleaning station on neighboring F-dock has hosted occasional activity during the past week. While not as busy as it will be during the peak salmon run season, we have seen some nice sized fish arrive, one or two per day. Seals and sea gulls instantly appear at the same time, ready to snap up the discarded bits. Do they have scouts that keep watch and sound an alarm?!

Unexpectedly a large loon showed off his fishing skills as he cruised along our fairway, disappearing for long minutes before surfacing with a big-for-him little fish. Loons typically keep their distance from the boat, almost as if they know the reach of my camera lens. This bird was all about fishing, disregarding proximity to people and vessels alike. He dove and surfaced repeatedly, following wherever the small fish traveled, occasionally popping into camera range just long enough for me to grab a shot.  

This afternoon a local boat returned with seven fishermen, an empty case or two of beer and two very heavy fish coolers. How heavy? it took two men to carry each one. The biggest cooler was lifted into a dock cart and rolled ashore. I wonder what it held. The second cooler, carted over to the cleaning station, produced 13 large Dungeness crab. It took mere minutes after the first crab was cleaned for a seal and a swirl of seagulls to arrive. Who set off the first alert?