An October Sailing Cruise

Morning Star and Misty Blue at Dodd Narrows
Morning Star and Misty Blue at Dodd Narrows

We left home some 10 days ago. Three sailboats from the Friday Harbor Sailing Club headed north into Canada.

Our goal: Princess Louisa and Chatterbox Falls.  As it turned out the weather gods worked their will against us and we got no farther north than Nainaimo, BC.  Here is a photo of our two sailing companion boats just after we came through the ‘infamous’ Dodd Narrows (the gap with clouds behind Misty Blue).  You can see the “Northwest Grey” in full form.

At this point the weather forecast became more and more concerning.  “Gale Force’ and words like that were being thrown around.  So, we three couples enjoyed three days in Nanaimo visiting the museum and some shops and some restaurants.

Then, deciding that discretion is the better part of valor, we decided to head back south through the Gulf Islands. We started this move with some windy tacking in the Straits of Georgia just to the east.

IMG_9559
Leslie in Foul Weather Gear

Here is a cool Leslie steering in good winds en route to Silva Bay on Gabriola island.

Sailing south, we watched two furious gulls dive-bomb an eagle that was carrying another bird in its talons and witnessed “patterns in nature”.

Now the weather has changed and glorious fall arrived overnight, heralded by a lovely, clear sunrise. Nice northerly winds, mixed clouds and sun followed us for the rest of the week.


After a stop at Pirates Cove, Morning Star (Ken and Ruth Ann Krooswyk) headed back to San Juan Island and we and Misty Blue (Ken and Ruth Frazee) carried on to Genoa Bay and then Tod Inlet. We had sunny weather, good light northerly winds pushing us south and good hikes.


IMG_9717 IMG_9591IMG_9693
 

 

Sunrise in Tod Inlet, BC
Sunrise in Tod Inlet, BC

Tod Inlet is a skinny little fiord on the west side of the Sanich Peninsula just north of Victoria.  It is a beautiful and quiet little park-enclosed spot surrounded by the invisible suburban metropolis. At Tod Inlet, we spent a day at Buchart Gardens.

 

And, we took the bus to Victoria and spent a day in Victoria’s Royal B.C., Museum.


 IMG_9848  IMG_9851
This museum is huge with an especially dramatic display of Northwest coast masks.

.
.
.
.
.
Finally, we ‘flew’ home — actually no wind at all, but lots of birds flying!

IMG_9854

 

 

This Post Has 4 Comments

  1. Your travels are so much fun! Even when it’s been places I’ve seen. Your words and images are so delightful. Thanks for sharing!

  2. What a beautiful trip. I especially loved the colorful water patterns.

    XO,

    Julia

  3. I love the picture of Leslie tacking through stormy seas. So glad you ended up with good weather and fall colors for most of the trip. What an adventure!

  4. Looks like a wonderful adventure. I would love to experience Buchart Gardens someday — the gale force winds, not so much. Ha! 😉

Leave a Reply

Close Menu