Blaine to Comox Summer Vacation 2012 - Days 11 - 15

Day 11 – 7-29-12 – Sunday – Comox to Newcastle Island

         
We left Comox at 6 a.m., and had absolutely glassy seas all the way to Nanaimo! Our first stop was the fuel dock at Nanaimo Marina for gas and ice, and then over to Newcastle Island. We took 51.8 gallons, which added to the 30.5 used since Blaine, means we have used 82.3 gallons so far.

About 60 Ranger Tugs of all sizes (25, 27, 29 and 31) were coming into Nanaimo and I heard Jeff Messmer and Andrew Custis of Ranger Tugs, so I gave a call, and let them know we would like to come over to say hello. Jan and Stacy (Stacy flew into Comox Friday to join Jan) and Patty and I each loaded into our dinghies and motored across and tied up to Willie's Tug, owned by our friends Herb and Willie Stark of Port Isabel, Texas, who have been based in Anacortes for the past four months. It was an incredible sight to see all those tugs, representing 10s of millions of dollars!

After we returned to Newcastle Island, we had drinks and appetizers on the dock followed by flank steak and grilled peppers. Our new friend Marv Glover, was still there, and he came over to our boats and we chatted a bit, then finished a very pleasant evening with a nightcap and converation on the dock with Jan and Stacy.

NM 175.3 / 82.3 gallons = 2.1 NM / gallon (2.4 statute miles per gallon)

Day 12 – 7 -30-12 – Monday – Newcastle Island to Maple Bay

After showers and breakfast, we headed out at about 7:45 a.m. to catch slack tide through Dodd Narrows, which is just south of Nanaimo, and really the only way back south, unless you want to run outside in the Strait of Georgia. We caught Dodd Narrows just before slack, and the current was actually pushing us through. Had we waited until much after slack, we would have been fighting the current, which at its height would be an 8.3 knot current against us. A 9 knot boat would just be making headway at less than 1 knot, and slower boats would actually be going backwards! Even with our 20 knot C-Dorys, it would not be comfortable for us, even though we could power through it. Knowing something about the currents is very useful in a place like Dodd Narrows!

Patty and Baxter at "Dog Head"
at Maple Bay Marina

We were originally going to meet Garry and Vicki on Amy Marie at Cowichan Bay, but they were uncertain of fitting three boats in together, so they called for reservations at Maple Bay Marina. It took us just over two hours to reach Maple Bay Marina, and get settled into our assigned slips. This is the most expensive place we have stayed so far, and the docks are in a bit of disrepair. But the dock boy was there to catch our lines, guide us in and get us tied up, and provide the extension cords and adapters we needed to connect to shore power, so it is all good I guess.

Shortly after we arrived, the Seattle Yacht Club flotilla began to arrive in mega-yachts! They have pretty much filled up the Marina, and we felt a bit like the poor relations! But, as we say, the gin tastes just as good on a C-Dory 25 as it does on a 75 foot mega-yacht! And our fuel stops are in the hundreds of dollars while theirs are in the thousands or even 10s of thousands!

We had a nice dinner in the Maple Bay Marina Pub, and retired to our boats – the Seattle Yacht Club folks were having a grand evening, talking, laughing and singing until the wee hours. We got a good night's sleep nonetheless.

One distinctive feature of Maple Bay Marina is all kinds of old boat engines painted red and white all over the grounds - very nice touch really!

NM 201.7

Day 13 – 7-31-12 – Tuesday – Maple Bay to Tod Inlet (Butchart Gardens)

C-Change at Tod Inlet

Amy Marie at Tod Inlet 

We had a leisurely breakfast on-board and then departed Maple Bay Marina at 10 a.m. - the water was glassy, and we cruised comfortably to Tod Inlet, where we anchored up. Tod Inlet was an unexpected jewel as well – a protected anchorage with room for quite a few boats, and an undeveloped shoreline where we could land Baxter. 

Main Building at Butchart Gardens

Butchart Gardens 

After lunch, we all headed to the Butchart Gardens Cove dinghy dock and spent the afternoon enjoying what must be the premier formal gardens in the Northwest. This is best shown in pictures rather than trying to describe it!

Daylily

Dahlia

Cosmos and Petunias

Snapdragons

Water Lily 

After supper we decided to go back to Butchart Gardens for a ballet performance in their performance venue – big mistake! It started at 8 p.m. and was still going on when we decided to leave at 10 p.m. Jan fell asleep and the rest of us were wondering when the pain would end...it was a mishmash of classical and jazz and it mostly seemed pointless. But maybe that is just me. We walked a bit more around the gardens which are lit up at night and give a different view.

NM 217.4

Day 14 – 8-1-12 – Wednesday – Butchart Gardens Cove to Matia Cove

A bit of a change in plans, as we had intended to spend the night at Sidney Spit. Garry and Vicki decided to clear customs at Roche Harbor early and then head for Sucia so they could get an early start to Blaine to retrieve, as they need to be in Oregon on Friday for their granddaughter Gracie's 4^th birthday. That is a whole other story, as Gracie is one of the bravest little girls alive, having fought off flesh eating bacteria and coming through some major surgery with just an “Angel Kiss” (her barely perceptible scar).

So we had lunch at Sidney Spit and said our goodbyes to Jan and Stacy, and then headed to Roche Harbor after lunch. Jan and Stacy are headed to Victoria before they go back to Seattle. We suggested to Garry and Vicki that they might want to go to Matia Cove rather than Sucia, and so they did, and we joined them in time for drinks and dinner. They had anchored up, and we anchored a short distance in front of them and then let out enough rode to raft up. Then after dinner, we separated and pulled in our rode. This is a technique we learned from our friends Bill and El on Halcyon.

Matia Cove is truly an undiscovered jewel. It is not named on any chart, or written up in any cruising guide – I wrote the Active Captain review, and we are actually glad that it remains substantially overlooked as an anchorage.

The moon rising over Lummi Island viewed from Matia Cove tonight was simply spectacular!

NM 258.9

Day 15 – 8-2-12 – Thursday – Matia Cove to Blaine

We left Matia Cove early, and immediately hit some heavy water right outside the cove, limiting us to about six knots, and for the first time in a long time, I got seasick. I think the last time was in Mexico in 1984 on a tour boat. The water shortly improved and we ran back most of the way at 12 – 14 knots.

But about 6 miles out of Blaine, the engine alarm came on, so we shut the engine down. Checking the Honda manual, we quickly determined that it was the alternator alarm. We confirmed this when we turned the key back on and the red charging system malfunction light came on and did not go off. So we put the tie rod on between the main and the kicker so Patty could steer from the helm, and I ran the throttle and shifter at the kicker. The alternator does two things – it charges the batteries, but first and foremost, it provides the power for the spark plugs to fire. We might have gone some unknown distance using the batteries in emergency parallel mode (we have one engine and two house batteries) but did not want to take a chance on running on the batteries. So we covered the last 6 miles at 4.5 to 6 knots.

When we got back to the ramp, there were two Lummi fishing boats tied up, one on each side of the float, and the guy was working on the engine on one of them! Bad manners to say the least. Eventually they moved the second boat around to the other side so we could get in and load the boat on the trailer, but we had to stand off for what seemed like an eternity.

So now our cruise is over but we have a couple more days of vacation! We got back to Birch Bay, had lunch, unloaded the boat, flushed the engines, and pretty much just chilled. Friday we will wash the boat and take it in to West Coast Marine in Bellingham. Saturday hopefully we will relax, and then head back to Fall City on Saturday evening. We need Sunday in Fall City to decompress!

NM 273.4

Blaine to Comox Summer Vacation 2012 - Days 6 - 10

Day 6 - 7/24/12 – Tuesday – Ladysmith to Pirates Cove

We left Ladysmith Harbour after breakfast headed for Pirates Cove on DeCourcy Island. The water was as close to dead calm as it could be and we ran just under 7 knots, with no wind or current against us – ideal for fuel economy!

We love Pirates Cove, checking my log book, we were here in 2005 and 2007. In 2007, Austin was in the dinghy and did everybody's stern ties – very helpful!

Daydream Stern Tied at Pirates Cove

Pirates Cove is fairly small and tight, so to maximize the use of the available space, boats set their anchors and then run stern lines to rings in the rocks on the shore. That way each boat does not have to have swinging space. A couple of sailboats that had been stern tied left shortly after we arrived at Pirates Cove and we were able to get four rings for stern ties next to each other. We did miss Austin though – four years ago, he handled taking each C-Dory's stern line to the ring on shore, this time is was every man for himself! We finally all got our anchors down and stern lines tied.

Anna Leigh, Amy Marie, C-Change and Daydream Stern Tied at Pirates Cove

Garry, David, Patty, Vicki and Jan on MBYC Float
at Pirates Cove

We dinghied out to the Maple Bay Yacht Club float for afternoon drinks and appetizers, and then we took our hike around the island. Baxter loves it because he gets to be off leash! There is another little bay on DeCourcy Island directly across from the end of Pirates Cove with a nice sandy beach. Today there were quite a few sea kayaks there.

Sea Kayaks at Small Bay Opposite Pirates Cove

We all retired to our separate boats for dinner. We spent a pleasant evening reading and turned in early, since we want to get out fairly early tomorrow to catch the slack at Dodd Narrows.

64.59 NM / 24.1 gal = 2.68 NM / gal

Day 7 - 7/25/12 – Wednesday – Pirates Cove to Newcastle Island (Nanaimo)

Eagle Seen on DeCourcy Island

We left Pirates Cove around 9 a.m., hoping to get to Dodd Narrows while current was still favorable, almost made it! The current was running only a little bit against us in Dodd Narrows, but when we came out the other side, we were open to the Strait of Georgia, and were bucking big waves, 3-4 footers, never felt unsafe but definitely uncomfortable!

We fueled up at the gas dock at Nanaimo Marina. The Navman fuel flow meter had us at 33 gallons used but fill was only 30.5 gallons. The Navman LCD display has also become next to impossible to read, so not sure how we will track this on a daily basis now. Baxter took a flying leap from the boat to the fuel dock and missed, and took an unintentional swim! Fortunately, the gas attendant was able to reach down between the boat and the dock and pull him right back up. He was dog-paddling like crazy, and we were afraid he might swim under the fuel dock.

There was ample dock space for us all to get tied up at the Newcastle Island dock. The whole island is a marine park, and it is simply a great spot! There are restrooms with showers, and a pavilion, which unfortunately was closed today. We plan to stop here again on our way back down from Comox.

The boat across from us was a 25 Albin, which is fairly rare, and we talked to the owner, Marv Glover, who is 93 and still cruising. Talking to Marv, he is friends with our amateur radio friend Norm Lim, who has an Albin 30. They are both in the Albineers club in Sidney, B.C. I hope to be vertical and lucid at 93, and being able to cruise our boat would really be frosting on the cake!

We took the little ferry over to Nanaimo from Newcastle Island. We were on a mission, Patty had mistakenly taken the wrong bottle of meds, so she had her local doc call in a two week supply to a pharmacy in Nanaimo – only problem, this pharmacy did not have the main med Patty needed. They called every other pharmacy in town and finally located it and faxed the prescription there, a drug store on the outskirts of Nanaimo. It was a $30 taxi ride each way, but Patty did get her meds. Bonus for me, I got a pair of suspenders in the same mall, so now my shorts won't be riding around my knees!

Nanaimo from Newcastle Island

We finally got back to Newcastle Island just in time for drinks and appetizers. Patty did not feel much like either cooking or eating, so I had a couple of hot dogs and a beer and called it dinner. After showers (a looney for two minutes) at the park shower facilities, we had a nightcap with our friends at the end of the dock, and marveled at the view before us of the water, the boats, the Nanaimo skyline and the mountains – this is truly a beautiful spot!

Our plan is to take off for Hornby Island as early as possible tomorrow morning, and if the water is smooth, to continue on all the way to Comox and arrive a day early. The alarm on the iPhone is set for 5 a.m.! Garry and Vicki will be heading back south to Ganges tomorrow on Amy Marie for the Ranger Tug rendezvous, and the C-Dorys will head back down south from Comox on Sunday, and hook up with Garry and Vicki on Monday somewhere around Cowichan Bay, if all goes as planned!

74.75 NM / 30.5 gal = 2.45 NM / gallon

Day 8 - 7-26-12 – Thursday – Newcastle Island to Comox

I got up at 4:50 a.m., turned the alarm off and got the coffee going. It was still pretty dark, and I walked out to the Georgia Strait side for some sunrise pictures. Then a BC ferry sailed right into my viewfinder! Some times you just luck out!

BC Ferry in Strait of Georgia at Sunrise

After coffee and cereal we were underway at 6 a.m., leaving Amy Marie on the dock! We had a little chop in the Strait of Georgia, but pretty soon we settled in at a comfortable 14 knots, and the water actually smoothed out the farther north we got, about as good as the Strait of Georgia gets.

When we reached the south tip of Denman Island, it was only 9:30 a.m., and so we decided to push on for Comox. We arrived at the Government Docks in Comox about 10 a.m. This is also a great facility, and I have WiFi, so I can catch up on everything, add pictures to Days 1 – 5.

Anna Leigh, Daydream and C-Change
Tied Up at Government Dock at Comox

We were the first to arrive, so Anna Leigh, Daydream and C-Change got tied up and registered, then as the day went on more boats arrived – not too much room left on D Dock, and most of the boats coming have not arrived yet! Although it seems there is plenty of room here, we may be spread out a bit. We spent the day on the boat and on the dock, helping others with their lines as they arrived. Per usual, drinks and appetizers on the dock at 5 p.m. 

Shrimp Boat at Comox

Cooking the Big Shrimp!

The highlight was the shrimp boat's arrival at the dock at 6 p.m. - a pound of big shrimp tails (head already removed) for $10! Most everybody bought a pound and immediately sauteed them in butter and garlic – we all shared, but we still have a big bowl of shrimp for today! These shrimp are really fresh and just melt in your mouth!

As we were cruising here, our Navman 3100 fuel flow meter LCD display became completely unreadable, it had been marginal before but now it is completely useless, so I can record distances traveled but not our fuel economy. I will miss the display of fuel remaining the most, and will probably try to fuel more frequently now!

124.6 NM

Day 9 – 7-27-12 – Friday - At Comox

Lazy day! More C-Dorys arrived this morning. A lot of talking with everybody on the dock, and a walk up to the town. Replenished liquor stocks, we are enjoying lunch time gin and tonics, and sundowners have been Manhattans for me and a martini (big glass of cheap gin) for Patty. I still have some Bowen Island Pale Ale from Nanaimo, and I bought some Strongbow dry cider here as well, which is very tasty!

A grand surprise! Our C-Brat Head Nerd, Bill Giese, walked down to the Comox dock in his motorcycle gear. He has recently moved up from California to the Port Angeles area, and took his Triumph Tiger from PA to Victoria on the Black Ball Line MV Coho, and then up the island highway to Comox. C-Brats exists because of our web site, www.c-brats.com, founded by Mike Barber (Tyboo) and Bill (DaNag). Bill is the bona fide techie who built the site, has kept it running and continually improved it over the years.

We have been using our Edgestar ice maker here at Comox, since we have shore power – it has been working great, better than we seem to remember in the past, and we have basically filled our round cooler with ice we have made on board. We bought this with Lake Powell in mind, where ice may be hard to come by. Ice is readily available here, and we have been buying block ice for the big cooler.

We had our first official function, a meet and greet in Comox Marina Park, which is (as you might guess) just above the marina, and is a wonderful park with two pavilions, lots of well kept lawn and flower beds, a little trailer that sells fish and chips, and nice restroom facilities. Our host, Martin Bridges, had a grill set up, and we enjoyed hamburgers, chicken burgers and hot dogs. Baxter enjoyed being off leash in the park for a little while and running crazy with dogs from many of the other boats. He is a great boat dog!

We bought another pound of big shrimp tails for $10 and 5 pounds of smaller shrimp at a dollar a pound! We boiled up the little shrimp and will saute the big shrimp with butter and garlic tomorrow morning.

This CBGT (C-Brat Get-Together) is off to a grand start!

Day 10 – 7-28-12 – Saturday – At Comox

I got up early after a great night's sleep, and took Baxter up to Comox Marina Park for morning duty. Then I shaved and showered and did laundry – all activities that pretty much require a marina (or a much larger boat than a C-Dory!). Bill Geise headed back to PA around 11 a.m., and so will miss the major event today, our traditional Saturday afternoon potluck.

We walked up to town again, and bought a few more things, and fortunately we did not need to contribute any more to the BC Liquor Store system!

Jack, the 11 Year Old
Guitar Virtuoso

Martin Bridges, Our Host
at the Comox CBGT

The potluck, as always, started at 5 p.m. Our hosts, Martin and Andrea Bridges, really outdid themselves for the potluck program! They raised the bar for all subsequent C-Brat potlucks, with a speaker on the Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue program in Comox, an 11 year old virtuoso guitarist, and a lot of great prizes, which were awarded by drawing boat names and letting the owner pick. There was at least one prize for each boat. Martin had not even purchased his C-Dory when he volunteered to coordinate the Comox CBGT. Patty was at first a little reluctant because she thought Comox was just too far to go for a CBGT – I think her mind has been changed, and we will be the first to sign up again the next time this one comes around!