2019 Sail Trip Boris And Yammy

Finally it was time for Yammy to leave. Suddenly things were immensely more lonely and I was forced to up my self sufficiency game. quiet times at QCC anchorage canadian coast guard anchored near us After a few final chores in Queen Charlotte City it was time to head out to the West Coast. The weather forecast was nothing but doom and gloom but I was pretty confident I could find a quiet anchorage to hang out until things improved. Bear at Armentiere anchorage NOT AN ENCOURAGING FORECAST Skidegate Narrows is a skinny crack between Moresby and Graham Islands. At high tide the average depth is 15 - 20 ft. The thing you really have to pay attention to is the tidal current. You want to take the flood into one end of the narrows and then take the ebb out the other side. You don't want to be fighting a current that can attain speeds of 7-9 knots. Anyways my timing was perfect and it all worked out. I had chosen Armentiere Chan...

I was tempted to make up a fictitious account for this leg. Among other things, Yammy roped to the mast pledging never to set foot on a boat again as waves washed over her head. But I am a changed man and will stick to the truth as boring as it sometimes is. A Contest 44, a very yachty boat Approaching Haida Gwaii We left at 0530 just as it was getting light. We motored out into a flat calm strait. The forcast was for 5-15  knots from the south and that is exactly what we got. We motorsailed for the first hour then blessedly turned off the engine and stayed on a beam reach for 53 miles. Despite having to reef the sails midway and a little choppy water for a short time, the trip was uneventful. We arrived at the Skidegate Inlet bar just as the Prince Rupert ferry was arriving and a tall ship was heading to sea. The gods smiled on us and we were able to keep sailing into Skidegate Strait with a favourable wind ...

We motored to Prince Rupert and stayed the first night in Pillsbury Cove an anchorage about 3 miles from downtown Prince Rupert. The next morning we pulled into to the Prince Rupert Yacht club and got busy provisioning and tending to various chores. The next morning we left with the ebbing tide and headed to Welcome Harbour on Porcher Island which is on the edge of Hecate Strait. While there we met a nice couple that were living full time on their Westsail 32. Cargo Ships waiting to get into Prince Rupert Rhinoceros Auklets Common Murres That other boat is a WestSail 32 The next day we waited for slack tide and a lifting of the fog and proceeded out into an intricate passage which took us to a flat calm Hecate Strait. Tumultuous Hecate Strait  Ten miles later we entered Kitkatla Inlet, a beautiful protected waterway. We anchored at Crab Trap Cove. First Nations town of Kitkatla The next day saw us heading...

 First some pictures from Ketchikan. A boat fantasy Ferries tied up to dock in Ketchikan due to strike. After leaving Ketchikan we motored towards our last anchorage before crossing the Dixon Entrance in to Canada. About halfway there the heat alarm started blaring on out motor. It was a very unwelcome sound. We shut off the motor started sailing and started troubleshooting. We did not figure out the problem until we disassembled the water pump and discovered the impeller was damaged. This was a great relief as we knew what the problem was and promptly replaced the part. The next day we had an uneventful crossing of Dixon Entrance. About half way across a Peregrine Falcon briefly tried to land on our mast. As we were entering Brundige Inlet on Dundas Island we saw these two beautiful wolves walking along shore. Later that day we met Gary a solo sailor out of Prince Rupert who gave us a tour of his gorgeous Maple Leaf 42. Then it was on to Prince Ru...