April 13th to April 19th Port McNeil

Daniel arrived in all of his glory! Now we must wait out a 3 day gale blowing 35 to 40 knots with 6 to 10 ft. seas

April 14th Port McNeill Waiting for Daniel's Arrival

No, this is not and optical illusion! this little tug is pulling this great big barge into harbor at Port McNeill. We have re-provisioned and are anxiously awaiting Daniel's arrival.

April 13th Port Harvey to Port McNeill

We passed the ancient pictographs dipicting trade between the natives and English ships.

It had been a long day and we looked forward to the protection of Port Harvey for the night.

In the morning we awoke to the glass like reflections of the snow capped mountains. Lou changed our weathered "Courtesy Flags" that had seen one year of cruising this incredible place. We had breakfast and pulled anchor to continue the last leg of our journey to Port McNeill.

April 12th Johnstone Strait

Sometimes things all come together in a glorious chain of events. We departed Campbell River, fueled up at $1.20 Canadian per litre (3.7 litres per US gallon Ouch!) and made our way to the infamous Seymour Narrows exactly at slack. Not a single boat was to be seen. The ebb tide and southerly wind gave us a fantastic 8 hour ride averaging 9 knots all the way. Since conditions were so wonderful we passed possible anchorages of Thurston Bay and Port Neville pulling in at Port Harvey for the night. It was without a doubt the best voyage on Johnstone that we have experienced in the past! Snow capped mountains lined the inside passage. Black fins of the porpoises would occasionally break the surface as they fed at the many inlet entrances that we passed.

April 12 Campbell River to Port Harvey

First and most importantly: "Happy 41st Birthday to our son Daniel!" While in Campbell River we docked at Fisherman's Wharf which is half the price of Discovery Marina and Coast Hotel Marina. It was great seeing the familiar faces of the Harbor Mistress, tug boat captains and live aboards. We did some necessary repairs including having our refrigerator re-charged and it is now maintaining a steady 34 degrees. Campbell River is a great town for marine repairs with many choices and expert repairman. Saturday morning is our day to navigate Seymour Narrows at a slack ebb tide.

April 9th Depart Comox for Campbell River

For the next two days we rested our weary bones and enjoyed conversing with the local characters on the dock. After hearing our story, one fellow said: "If you need anything just take my truck to town." We thanked him for his offer but chose to walk to town to buy a new shackle for the dinghy. Along the way we saw a quaint Italian Ristorante called "Toscanos". In need of some comfort food we enjoyed the best Paninis we have ever eaten. We returned the next day also.
We departed Wednesday morning at 7:30 AM at high tide to transit the Comox Bar. It had snowed lightly the night before and the dock was covered in a sugary white ice. Lou had to use great caution as he untied the frozen dock lines. In the distance the mountains were covered with newly fallen snow. We vigently followed the "Red" markers on the sand bar and make the turn at Cape Lazo. We are on the way to Campbell River in a light wind and a smooth sea.

Lou unties the frozen lines on the icy dock.

The colorful boats of Comox Harbor.

As we depart we see the freshly fallen snow on the mountains.

April 6th The Revelation in the Light of Day!

The morning light reveals the possible hazards of the night before. First the fish boat that our bow almost struck, then the larger boat on the next dock our stern almost struck. Further investigation reveals the shallow water surrounding the harbor. We do have a guadian Angel!

This is the boat that our bow came within inches of being blown into by the gusting 30 knot wind.

The stern of Seventh Heaven came within inches of hitting the large boat on the next dock over as we were being blown by the wind.

The Harbor appears to be in a "puddle" at low tide surrounded by drying flats. It is extremely shallow! Fortunately it was high tide the night before.

April 4th Nanaimo to Comox or From Heaven to "HELL"

We departed Nanaimo at 8 am. It was a perfect day with a 15 knot southerly wind and a following sea. We put up the foresail and were cruising along at 7 knots. The wind started building from 15 knots to 18 knots and then 22 knots. The sky darkened as a huge black cloud formed. Long dark grey tendrils of rain gave the cloud an ominous appearance. With the incoming tide and the mounting southerly wind, the chop formed close together swells of 8 to 10 feet. As we were being pounded by the wind and swell we heard a loud bang! The painter line to the dinghy snapped and "Wings" disappeared into a deep troft.
We slowed the boat and pointed her into the wind so that we could bring in the foresail. Lou hit the "Man Overboard" button on the chart plotter to mark the location. As we turned we were hit broadside by the mounting swell and wind now 25 knots. We scanned the rough water searching for a sign of our run away tender. We caught a flash of the Yamaha motor bouncing in the distance and then disappearing again. In these conditions we knew that it would be impossible to retrieve the 14 ft. boat by ourselves.
Last year we experienced something similar on the other side of Texeda Island near Pender Harbor. We did retrieve the boat but with great difficulty. We were cautioned by friends in the Coast Guard never to attempt it again as it often results in disaster.
We were north of Qualicum Beach and Parksville. We called the Coast Guard giving them our Lat and Lon position and sea conditions. They informed us that they do not retrieve property but they would put out a "Pan Pan" to all boats in the area to help us.
THERE WERE NO BOATS IN THE AREA THIS TIME OF YEAR! For about an hour and a half we circled the "run away" being pounded by the wind and swell especially when we were broadsided by the sea. The Coast Guard called back to ask if we were in peril. Lou informed them that if he were to retrieve the boat WE WOULD BE IN PERIL! They said they would send a boat to help us. Within 15 minutes we spotted the familiar bright orange inflatable with two brave souls aboard. They came along our starboard side having to gun their powerful engines as not to ram us because of the turbulent water. After we explained the situation they bravely set out to rescue "Wings". We watched helplessly as they fought the swell and captured the fugitive. They attached a line and gallantly returned with "Wings" in tow handing over the line to Lou. We exchanged information and thanked them profusely. We waived goodbye and they disappeared into the mist.

The connection just before it snapped!

The Coast Guard arriving.

Coast Guardsman gunning his powerful engine as not to ram us in the turbulent water.

The fugitive is captured!

Our Heros collect our names and information then wish us well.

Off they go to save the next soul in peril.