Haida Gwaii Update

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 Channel as my refuge during the upcoming stormy weather. The guide book pronounced it bombproof. Things looked good when I got there. Thankfully I rejected my first anchoring job and anchored a little further out in deeper water with a lot more anchor rode out. As it turned out the anchorage was fairly well protected from swell and waves but the wind roared down out of the mountains. Of course the gale force winds started it the middle of the night. In the dark in the torrent of rain in the screaming wind I had to go on the pitching deck to deal with various lines that were loose. The dinghy had become airborne and was snagged on my stern anchor. It was not a restful night as I lay on the settee fully clothed with my survival suit and abandon ship bag near by.

Broken outhaul fitting

Things eased off the next morning but there was a storm warning for that night. Of course all hell broke loose during the night with the added bonus that the wind switched direction 180 degrees and came at gale force.
During all this a few small things blew off during the night. The outhaul fitting on my boom suffered severe damage. On top of all this the weather forecast called for more gales. And overiding everything was the fact that my engine was overheating on a regular basis.
It was time to retreat with my tail between my legs.
This time my timing was not perfect and it ended motoring against a strong current. And of course my engine overheated. After a night in QCC I motored over to Sandspit Marina. Yes my engine overheated.

There was a very nice family staying on this boat. Spencer gave me some needed help and encouragement on the engine job

Sandspit has a marine store about a five minute walk away. Previously I had attempted to get parts sent here so I could take my cooler apart and clean it. As if it was an act of god they had finally arrived. The next day I started taking my heat exchanger apart. This is not a small job.

Of course as I was going along a bolt broke off. So now I had to find someone to extract it and supply another bolt. I was very fortunate that the manager at the Marine store was able to fix it. A few more hours of carefull assemby and I was back in business. Today I torture tested the engine and I am pretty confident things are fixed.
Tomorrow I am heading down the East Coast and at some point will take off across Hecate Strait.