Pierless Sailing Adventures

May 31th - Sunday- Departure Time 5:30  a.m.     37 Nm Traveled   We left Port McNeill at 5:30 a.m. in clear/calm conditions.  The ebb current pushed us NW past Malcom Island and into Queen Charlotte Strait.  This crossing puts us back on the mainland side, away from and north of Vancouver Island.  Our destination is Allison Harbour, a good staging location for rounding notorious Cape Caution on our way north.  It has lots of room for many boats, so the odds of finding no room are pretty slim.  This is often a consideration in this area where anchorages become fewer and smaller.  If you arrive to find no room, you may have to push on for hours to the next anchorage... Leaving Port McNeill Route to Allison Harbour Our route to Allison Harbour take us in a northwest direction, pretty much into the wind.  We motored, motor-sailed and sailed part of the way.  It became exciting when the wind freshened and we had to reduce sail! Dav...

May 30th - Saturday - Departure Time 6:1 5 a.m.     45 Nm Traveled Neville was a great refuge from the wind and currents.  The wind continued into the night, but by morning it was mostly calm.  Tika (our neighbor on the dock) departed around 4 this morning.  The kayakers were likewise long gone on their paddle toward Alert Bay. After the morning brew of java, we cast off our lines at 6:15 to head north.  Our initial plan was to go about 9 miles down Johnstone Strait, then cut north into Havannah Channel to get out of the rough waters and winds.  As forecast, the winds were quite low and the current with us, so we decided to wait until reaching Havannah to decide whether to push on down the strait to Port McNeill.  Continuing toward McNeill would get us farther in the direction we need to go to reach Haida Gwaii, so it was an appealing option.  In addition, Port McNeill was going to be our last stop for provisions and fuel before heading ...

 May 29th - Friday - Departure Time 4:45 a.m. We raised anchor and departed early from Douglas Bay (in Forward Harbour) to catch the ebb current down Sunderland Channel and into Johnstone Strait.  Douglas Bay was a great and well protected anchorage from the NW winds, so we were a little reluctant to leave the shelter it provided.  Winds were "on the nose" during most of this section, but the tail current kept us moving forward at a reasonable pace. Dave at the helm After exiting Forward Harbor and rounding Althorp Point, we had 12 - 28 Kts winds in the face.  The favorable current kept our average boat speed around 3 Kts.  As before, we hugged the north side of Sunderland to get some protection from the wind and waves.  This is a trick I used when canoeing and kayaking and it has worked fairly well thus far on our trip.    Wave action in Sunderland Channel We continued down Sunderland into wind and waves with a tail current.  We passed a lar...

  May 27th - Wednesday - Departure Time 5:45 a.m.   We are working our way NW to Johnstone Strait.  Johnstone is a difficult stretch of water this time of year because the prevailing winds are NW and the strait itself is oriented NW.  It is also know for frequent high winds.  This means when the winds are up and the current is moving NW against the prevailing winds, sea conditions can become quite dramatic...  We've been avoiding of Johnstone Strait so far, but there is 12 Nm stretch which cannot be avoided.  From Blind Channel we will stay north of West Thurlow Island, then cut north through Wellbore Channel to continue west above Hardwicke Island.  At the end of Hardwicke, we will enter this 12 Nm section of Johnstone Strait. Though not as bad as Johnstone, the channels we will travel are also oriented toward the prevailing winds, so it can still be challenging, though there are more places we can duck in for relief.  Gale force winds are s...

May 26th - Tuesday - Departure Time 8:00 a.m. Von Donop Inlet to Blind Channel / Charles Bay Anchorage We departed Von Donop at 8 a.m. on our way to Blind Channel.  This leg of our journey will take us through four areas with hazardous rapids, three of which are within a 4 nautical mile section.  Timing our arrival at each of the first three rapids will be important as well as getting through all three in a minimum amount of time.   The Three Rapids Slack tide at Gillard Pass was to happen just before 3 p.m.  We wanted to hedge our timing by arriving early for the passage through Yuculta, then Gillard and finally through Dent.  We arrived fairly early and attempted Yuculta, but the current was too strong against us to continue.  We dropped back and waited at a small indentation on the west shoreline for about 45 minutes.  Our next attempt got us through Yuculta (though slowly...) and then on to Gillard.  We were early on both passes, but this...

  May 25th Monday - Waiting out weather in Von Donop Due to high winds and rain, we decided to sit the day out in Von Donop Inlet and explore the lagoon near our anchorage.  We saw a  boat anchored at this location last year and thought it would be a great place to take a break.   Von Donop Anchorage looking into the lagoon We slept in for a change (what a treat!).  There was rain and wind overnight, but no where near what others experienced in the area.  It really felt like we were in a micro rain shadow.  Compared with last year when there were around 12 boats in the inlet, this year we saw two other boats. After eating, we set to work inflating and rigging our two paddleboards for use.  We both have rigid paddleboards, but they can not be stowed below deck, so we decided the inflatable type would be better since they can be stowed below.  They are also more stable which worked well for me as I am new to the paddleboard experience.  Da...

 May 24th - Departure Time 5:30 a.m. We left the breakwater at 5:30 a.m. expecting favorable currents all the way to Seymour Narrows.  In reality, the helpful current did not materialize...  We kept on course in the hopes that conditions would change, but to no avail.  After considering our options for moving north, we decided to go NE using the smaller waterways among the islands to work our way north.      Route to Von Donop Inlet This put us on a path between Quadra and Cortez islands.  We cruised this area last year, so were in familiar territory.  We headed to Heriott Bay Marina near Rebecca Spit for fuel but they closed shop at 3 p.m., so we were too late.  The winds were picking up and predicted to rise to gale force in some areas.  We raised the main and jib and headed NE to Von Donop Inlet, arriving about 7:00p.m.  Von Donop is a great area to explore and is quite protected from winds.  We spent 2 nights there las...

 May 23rd:  Departure Time 8:00 a.m.  -  Saturday After an engine check and minor adjustments, we untied from the mooring ball and headed over to the short-term tie at the port dock.  We needed some groceries and fuel, so paid for 3 hours at the pier. We left the dock at 10:30 to continue north.  The channel north from downtown takes you along the waterfront between Nanaimo and Newcastle Island.  It is narrow with lots to look at as you cruise by.  We passed one interesting wooden boat on our way.  We saw a family of 7 with a dog in a very small dinghy depart from this boat...   Boat at Nanaimo Heading north we pass Pipers Lagoon.  There is a small cluster of islands here with many small homes/shacks built years ago.  Descendants of the original occupants have been allowed to continue living there.     Route to Ford Cove From Nanaimo to Ford Cove there is very little to see or do as you continue north in Georgia ...