Sailing

I’ve wanted to go to Lasqueti Island ever since I saw a documentary about it a couple years ago.

According to www.lasqueti.ca, Lasqueti Island is about 74 km squared and has only 425 permanent residents. It can only be accessed via a foot passenger ferry from French Creek on Vancouver Island or by private boat or float plane. The island is not serviced by B.C. Hydro and residents either live without electricity or use alternative sources of power such as solar or micro-hydro.

We sailed from Jedediah Island to False Bay and anchored in the North end of the bay. We arrived just before lunch, so in the afternoon we headed ashore to check things out. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon when we motored over to the dock in our dinghy.

Just as we walked off the ramp, I saw a cafe to our left with a beautiful view of False Bay and across the Strait of Georgia. Finding a local cafe is the perfect start to any shoreside outing for several reasons. First, another hot coffee in hand can ease any lingering stress weather it be child or weather related. Second the person serving you that coffee is often a wealth of local knowledge about what to do and where to go for example where is the nearest (kids park, grocery store, pub, etc…). Third, there is always a posting board nearby which Ellery always finds interesting to see what people are buying/selling, events happening or other local island info.

We did find a community kids park nearby. It was right across from the small post office and art centre.

Before heading back we stopped at the pub and had beer and nachos on the outside deck overlooking False bay and across the Strait of Georgia. Chari remarked that it was “the best view from any restaurant I have ever been to.” It certainly was magical there and well worth a stop for anyone passing through. It had a certain element of eclectic island life with a friendly vibe of longtime locals enjoying the company of friends. Just the sort of place where you can step off a boat without having showered for a week and still fit right in!

Our leg across to Hornby island was uneventful with a perfect SE wind and a glorious spinnaker run to Ford Cove. We wanted to stop in Tribune Bay with its long fine white sand beach but it is open to the south east and would make for in uncomfortable night at anchor. Ford Cove had a small government wharf and was a nice all weather spot to wait for better winds. It also had a small store that was in a state of slow renovation but actually well stocked.

We passed Chrome Island, a lighthouse at the southern end of Denman Island.

The following day we made an attempt at Tribune Bay again but the weather would not cooperate and we went into Deep Bay on Vancouver Island. It was challenging anchoring in Deep Bay as there was not much room to swing and we ended up moving to reset the anchor once. At 2200 I still wasn’t happy with our position so I put out a stern anchor as quietly as possible so as not to wake the kids. We left early the next morning and went all the way to Comox for some much needed showers and provisions.

Our passage from Schooner Cove to Jedediah Island across the Strait of Georgia was a little rough. We spent the morning watching the marine weather forecast and waiting for the wind to decrease, which it did a bit. We left at 1500 because we saw that the wind was decreasing according to the ocean buoy reports.

The sea was very lumpy. The waves were bigger than we expected and the motion of the boat was pretty uncomfortable. Ellery and I discussed our options but we decided to just keep going as the whole crossing was only about 2 hours and 14.5 miles. We kept the engine on with the sails so that we could go a bit faster.

I felt a bit sick in the cabin so eventually we all came out into the cockpit. Up on deck I was holding onto Amelia with one hand and holding onto the boat with the other so I didn’t get thrown side to side. Ellery held on to Maddie to keep her safe. Maddie thought it was great fun, she didn’t seem concerned at all. She even did a ‘nature’ pee in the cockpit.

I was the one concerned as there were some bigger waves every so often that really threw the boat around. Luckily Amelia didn’t fuss at all, in fact she slept through the entire passage.

Finally we reached calmer waters in Bull Passage. We realized after the crossing that the big waves were likely due to previous high winds and that the wind did not decrease as much as we thought it would.

We also had not secured for sea that well as all our books came off the shelf into the floor. Anything else that wasn’t secured was thrown onto the cabin floor but nothing was broken.

We motored through beautiful Bull Passage into Deep Bay where we dropped our anchor around 1745. This is quite late in the day for us to arrive at anchor. As the name implies, it is deep but narrow so we also tied a stern line to shore. There were three other boats when we arrived. We had a quick dinner of Annie’s mac & cheese with broccoli and we were off to bed.

We slept well and the next day right after breakfast we got in the dinghy and Ellery rowed us to shore so we could explore Jedediah Island.

We were loaned a book titled Jedediah Days by Mary Palmer and I was able to finish it while we were anchored in Deep Bay. I didn’t know anything about Jedediah previously but reading the book got me really excited to explore the island.

A brief history: in 1949 Mary Palmer and her first husband bought Jedediah Island. Jedediah is 243 hectares in size. It didn’t have any services and only two people were living on it, a house and a few out buildings when they purchased it. She brought her young boys with her to live on it during the summers of the 50’s & 60’s. She researched the pioneering lifestyle and succeeded in living there for a whole year at one point. She always dreamed of retiring there and in 1973, she and her second husband moved to Jedediah full time. The two of them lived there until they were in their 70’s in the early 1990’s.

We walked a lovely path from Deep Bay, through an old growth forest and a meadow to Home Bay.

We saw about a dozen rogue sheep (see below) on the way and enjoyed listening to them baaaa.

Home Bay is where Mary and her family lived and it was fascinating to see the old house and barn. The orchard is still there with fruit growing on the trees.

Above is looking from the house into Home Bay

Above is Mary Palmer’s house.

When Mary Palmer and her husband Al Palmer decided to leave Jedediah in the early 1990’s, they wanted to make sure it was protected and could be enjoyed by everyone.

Due to the fact that Jedediah Island was privately owned for many decades and is now a B.C. Marine Park, it is a reminder of the diversity and vulnerability of the natural ecosystems of coastal BC.

As a result of the Palmer’s generosity, the fundraising efforts of Friends of Jedediah, a gift from the Dan Culver estate and many other contributions, Jedediah became a B.C. Marine Park on March 6, 1995.

We really enjoyed Jedediah Island because of the history and because it is so beautiful. We are definitely going back again!

Later than afternoon, we went for a dinghy ride to check out the other bays nearby where we could anchor. We love exploring and we also got to chat with some other boaters, which is always enjoyable.

Ellery also let Maddie try driving the dinghy.

We had another cozy night at anchor in Deep Bay before we headed to the very laid back Lasqueti Island the following day.

We arrived to Dodds Narrows just in the nick of time. We planned to arrive at slack but when we arrived the currents had already changed and we had to fight a 2+ knot current to make it through. We made it and were motoring through Northumberland channel in company with Our friends on Nordri. past the Nanaimo waterfront in no time. Once again, we had a great view of all the industry as we dodged log booms, tugboats and ferries.

Nanaimo Harbour is busy with float planes, ferries, sailboats, pleasureboats, tugs, rowboats, kayakers and people on SUPs. We had lots to look at as we motored to the visitor dock at the Nanaimo Yacht Club.

Once again we were tied up next to Kal and Chris aboard S/V Salient a Truant 37 with another cruising couple that we first met at Wallace island. It’s fun to see some of the same cruisers along the way because when you say “goodbye” you never really know when you’ll bump into them again. It’s always nice to swap stories and information on where you’ve been or beta on where you’re going. In this case we swapped cruising guides for the day and they shared a tub of ice cream with us which needed to be eaten as neither of us has a freezer only a fridge.

Nanaimo is an excellent place to re-provision and we were able to get all of the “big five” points done here. The big five are: Showers, laundry, groceries, water and fuel. Other minor points of a re-provision stop include having a meal out, finding a decent kids park and doing a more thorough clean of the boat.

The clubs or marinas we tie up at usually have showers, laundry and water but groceries is always the biggest challenge. Humping a huge load of groceries back to the dock with two kids in tow is challenging at best to downright miserable at worst. This time we put in a grocery order with Save On Foods the night before and it was delivered to the dock the next morning! No sweat, this was awesome, now we had the rest of the day to relax and do other chores and maintenance.

After stowing groceries, we headed out in the dinghy to do a few small errands and take Maddie to the local park.

We spent the afternoon exploring Newcastle Island, which is a short dinghy ride across Nanaimo Harbour. Newcastle Island is a marine park with beaches, fields and a playground. Perfect for a toddler and we enjoyed all of it. We even brought a picnic for dinner so we didn’t have to rush back to the boat.

Shortly after we returned to Arctic Loon, our friend Cara and her two little girls stopped by to say hi as they live in Nanaimo. We like to catch up with friends when we are in port and we were excited to see Cara and her nearly 3 year old girl Abby and meet her new baby girl Izzy. Maddie and Abby enjoyed playing together on deck under Ellery’s watchful eye, while Cara, I and the babies visited in the cabin. It was a short but sweet visit.

The next day we motored to Schooner Cove as there was no wind.

We tied up at the Schooner Cove Yacht Club, using our reciprocal privileges. Not long after we arrived, Ellery saw a 30 foot sport fishing boat not tied up properly and asked if he could be of any help. The man explained that his anchor chain had somehow become wrapped around his prop. Ellery volunteered to get in his wetsuit and dive down with snorkel gear to inspect it. Ellery easily unwrapped the anchor chain from his prop and cut away some line that was also fouled around the prop shaft. The man was lucky it was an easy fix.

We spent the afternoon doing laundry, having showers and going for a dinghy ride around the cove.

We had a nice view into the Strait of Georgia in the evening and were looking forward to our crossing to Jedediah Island in the morning despite the uncertain weather forecast.

– Chari & Ellery

Well this post is coming a little late because we are finding ourselves quite busy! I thought I’d just explain what keeps us busy on Arctic Loon.

We think about where we are going in the following days and all the planning that goes along with that ex: route planning on the chartplotter, reading the cruising guide, checking the weather, tides, and currents. We are also cooking all of our meals and rationing our fresh produce so it lasts until the next time we can reprovision. We try to keep the girls on a bit of a routine so we do at least one nap for each girl on the boat in a bunk. Ellery is constantly doing maintenance, minor repairs and trying to improve something on the boat. If we are at anchor, we go ashore to explore a beach, village or go for a hike for the morning. If we are tied up, we are focused on reprovisioning (groceries, fuel), filling up the water tanks, doing laundry and getting showers. We also have been visiting with some friends recently which has been great fun! This does not include parenting two very busy girls, general tidying up and then of course, sailing!

If and when we have free time, which we don’t get much of, we usually have a beer and relax. This is why the post is a little late and why we haven’t yet gone fishing or used our inflatable SUP.

We left Ladysmith Marina late morning and headed to Pirates Cove on De Courcy Island. The entrance to Pirates Cove is narrow and shallow and the draft of Arctic Loon is 5 feet. This means we had to wait until the tide rose a certain amount before we could motor in. Ellery did all the calculations and went over them with me so we could be sure we had the timing right.

It was a straight forward sail from Ladysmith and we arrived too early to enter Pirates Cove. The wind was blowing SE so we hove-to in Pylades channel and waited. Heaving to is not something that coastal sailors commonly do although many know the theory of it. This was a good time to practice the manoeuvre to figure out what works best on Arctic Loon.

When the tide was high enough, we motored into Pirates Cove. We anchored and tied a stern line to a ring on shore. It was lovely evening and the water was like glass. Our girls were both asleep by 2000, which rarely happens.

We woke the next morning to find the wind had changed to NW and increased substantially, as predicted. We let go our stern tie so we were pointed into the wind, which is more comfortable on a sailboat. We thought about anchoring deeper into the cove but it was so shallow and we just didn’t feel safe so we stayed put.

Ellery took Maddie to shore in the morning while I stayed onboard with Amelia as she napped. Ellery and Maddie discovered a treasure chest near the sign at Pirates Cove, which was filled with a variety of kids toys. Maddie was very happy to explore the depths of the chest but was especially taken with a Cabbage Patch doll.

Around 1300, which was low tide, we watched a sailboat come through the entrance to the cove and run aground. Neither of us had ever seen a grounding before so Ellery hoped in our dinghy to go talk to them. As Ellery was talking to the boaters, another sailboat was headed in! Ellery quickly bombed out that boat in the dinghy and informed them that one boat was already around as it was low tide.

Later that afternoon the tide rose and the sailboat was able to motor into the cove and anchor. We spent the windy afternoon ashore exploring and checking out the treasure chest again.

It was a windy night onboard Arctic Loon and neither Ellery or I slept very well. It was never unsafe, just uncomfortable.

The next morning as soon as everyone was awake we weighed anchor and motored out of Pirates Cove as it was near to high tide. We motored around the island of De Courcy to another bay, locally known as Wally’s Bay, where we would be more sheltered from the strong NW winds.

We were so glad we moved to a new anchorage and after breakfast we headed ashore to go on a short hike and explore the beach.

The afternoon of our second full day in the area, some of our friends arrived, onboard their sailboat Nordri, to meet up with us. We had been looking forward to Kim & Scott’s arrival so we could visit, talk sailboats and so our toddlers could play together!

We visited Kim & Scott on their boat and then had them over for dinner on our boat. It’s always great to see other sailboats and this was no exception, especially people who also have kids onboard. It’s just so helpful to see how others in a similar situation are doing it. We had a yummy dinner of burritos followed by cream and strawberries for dessert!

Our final full day was Fathers Day. Ellery got a rare snuggle in bed with Maddie while I got up early and made coffee. I surprised Ellery with a picture Maddie had coloured a few days earlier. We headed to the beach after breakfast and I just felt so grateful to spend Fathers Day with Ellery on our sailboat and hanging out on a beautiful beach with our girls.

We met up Kim and Scott and their kids on the beach later that morning. Farren & Maddie really enjoyed looking in the tide pools at crabs and sculpins. We finished the morning by going for a hike to show them the treasure chest. It was a super fun morning and the weather was gorgeous.

We had a relaxing afternoon on the boat, napping and Maddie enjoyed a bath in a Tupperware bin. We were lucky to see about 8 Orca whales from our boat late afternoon as well. We think they were transients. They were tail slapping and showing us their pectoral fins. I think there was even a baby there. So amazing!

Kim & Scott joined us for dinner again but this time they brought delicious Mango Curry. We provided the Port & chocolate. It was so lovely to visit with friends while out sailing, we hope to meet up again!

The next morning we weighed anchor and headed through Dodds Narrows to Nanaimo.

We motored into Ladysmith Harbour and were surprised at the extent of the lumber industry. We knew there was a mill here but it’s so different to experience a town from the water side as opposed to the highway. There were log booms everywhere. We pulled up to Ladysmith Yacht Club as we have reciprocal privileges through our club, CFSA in Esquimalt. The visitor dock was right next to an operating mill that ran until midnight and then started again at 0700. It was interesting to hear the mill sounds and see the log booms right outside our boat.

After Maddie’s nap, we spent the afternoon taking turns having showers and doing laundry again.

The next morning, we decided to motor over to the community marina as it is closer to town and the local beach. We tied up to the visitor dock at Ladysmith Maritime Community Marina and just a 1 minute walk down the dock is the Oyster Bay Cafe. Another coffee for me and next to the lovely, little Maritime Museum was a sandbox for Maddie to play in! We were so thrilled to find such a welcoming, kid friendly marina that we decided to stay the night.

We spent the rest of the morning letting Maddie explore the docks, wearing her life jacket of course, while we had coffee.

During Maddie’s nap time, I carried Amelia and an empty backpack up the hill into town to get groceries and check things out. It was only a 10 min walk, which was great because I felt like I had time to explore a bit. My first stop was the Old Town Bakery for their famous cinnamon buns. I got one to go so Ellery and I could share it later. Next, I went to the grocery store and bought a few too many things, considering I had to carry it all back. Then, I headed to the liquor store to pick up a few tall beers. I managed to get all the groceries and beer in my backpack but it was heavy! Then, my last stop was a garden store for a peat brick for our composting toilet. The only size they carried was 5kg so I carried that back too. Good thing, it was a short downhill walk back to the boat because I was definitely carrying the max I was capable of. Of course, Amelia slept in the carrier the whole time!

Later that afternoon, we all walked to Transfer Beach Park so Maddie could play at the playground and on the beach. We also enjoyed some nachos from a food truck for an afternoon snack.

We planned to leave late the next morning but first we had showers and breakfast at the lovely Oyster Bay Cafe.

Off to Pirates Cove! Arrrr matey!

On day 11 we headed from Wallace Island, Princess Cove to Chemainus. It was only a hour and we motored there after breakfast in the morning. We had decided that Chemainus was a good place to reprovision as we needed everything: water, groceries, fuel (diesel, gas & propane), showers and to do laundry. We texted Sue, Ellery’s mother (she lives not far away in Cowichan Bay) and she came to take Maddie to the park for an hour and lent us her car so we could get groceries. We tied up at the government dock, which was very convenient for getting everything done. Water was at the dock, showers were at the end of the dock and laundry was a short 5 minute walk into town. Fuel was not available because there was a recent fire at the fuel dock last winter and was undergoing repairs, so we would have to get that elsewhere.

Above is a view from where we tied up our boat in Chemainus.

During Maddie’s afternoon nap, I took Amelia and two bags of laundry into town. It’s been awhile since I’ve been at a laundromat and it brought back memories of doing laundry with my mom when I was a kid. The Chemainus laundromat was very pleasant, in fact only one other person was there other than us and Amelia was very entertained by the clothes going round and round in the dryer.

With two kids, we went from doing laundry every day or two at home to every 6ish days out here. It’s a good reminder in conserving water and energy.

While I was doing laundry, Ellery filled our water tanks and took apart the composting head (toilet) and gave it a good clean.

Once Maddie woke up, we headed to a playground so she could run around. Then after dinner, Maddie and I went to have our showers, 1$ for 2 min. We used 2$.

The next morning on day 12, we bought a few more things and were on our way by 1100. We headed to Telegraph Harbour which is made between Thetis & Penelakut Islands.

It was another short trip and we arrived at anchor by lunchtime. This anchorage is small and shallow so it was a bit unnerving anchoring in 7 feet of water. Ellery set our stern anchor to prevent us from swinging since there was not much room between the other boats at anchor.

Above is Maddie watching Ellery set the stern anchor.

Maddie’s nap is a great time to get things done so Ellery took the dinghy over to the fuel dock to fill the jerrycan with gas for the dinghy and our propane tank. We weren’t exactly sure how much propane we had left so we thought it best just to fill it up. Ellery spent the rest of Maddie’s nap working on line splicing while I napped with Amelia.

That afternoon, we were determined to find a playground for Maddie and since the cruising guide said there was one near a marina on Thetis Island. Well, no playground at the marina but I asked around and found out there was one a 10 min walk away. As Ellery, I and the girls walked along a quiet island road, I thought that a theme for this trip could be ‘finding playgrounds for Maddie.’

The playground we were directed to turned out to be at a Bible Camp and we arrived just as about 50 kids plus chaperones were also arriving. Going past us with their rolly luggage reminded us of a train going by and Maddie was mesmerized. This did not deter us and Maddie went on to play on the very small, rickety playground.

As we sat together at dinner that night we realized that this is our 12th day, so our longest trip and also the farthest we’ve ever sailed, as a family with kids. We felt proud and enjoyed a lovely, fleeting moment where everyone was happy.

Day 13, we woke up excited to check out the other marina on Thetis Island as the guidebook said there was a cafe with coffee! We zoomed over in the dinghy after breakfast to find a sign saying dinghy moorage was 5$. This put us off as you never have to pay for dinghy moorage. Then we get to the marina grounds and are told the facilities are only for ‘boaters only.’ Ellery says ‘we are boaters, we did arrive on a boat.’ Nope, not good enough as we weren’t staying at the marina. Off we went, we decided we didn’t want to wait for the deserted cafe to open. We headed back to our sailboat and decided to weigh anchor and continue on. No need to stick around when you don’t feel welcome.

Here’s Amelia and I happy to be heading into Ladysmith Harbour.

– Chari

From Port Browning, we flew the spinnaker in a light to moderate SE breeze to Montague Harbour on Galiano Island on day 7 of our sailing journey.

We had never visited Montague Harbour because it is quite busy in the summer but at this time of year it wasn’t too bad. We tied up to a mooring ball the first night right off the beach at the marine park.

In the late afternoon, we got in the dinghy and Ellery gave me a lesson on how to use the outboard motor, as we went to shore. We walked through the forest and along the beach, looking at crabs and just enjoying being outside.

I took us for a spin around the harbour just to solidify my outboard motor skills.

The next day in Montague Harbour we decided to start our day by going ashore to the cafe to get some coffee and to explore.

We quickly found another family with a 2 year old onboard their sailboat and her and Maddie became fast friends. They spent an hour running around the docks and looking in the water. I just love how kids bring people closer. This was such a wonderful start to the day and Maddie got to play and run around which is exactly what she needs.

The second night in Montague Harbour we decided to anchor out front of the marina to attempt to get better connectivity. It’s funny, we are on this trip to disconnect a bit but yet we enjoy connecting with friends back home through our website and messages.

That afternoon we decided to stay onboard, clean up and get some more things done. It worked out well as Maddie had her life jacket on and just ran around the deck while I had Amelia in the carrier for a nap. The girls also both had baths onboard in a Rubbermaid bin we brought with us! This was the first time on the trip that we felt we were finally settling in onboard.

Arctic Loon feels more like our home now and we are all more comfortable. We are getting into a routine and figuring out what works best. We are fine tuning our storage of things and adding more hooks to keep everything well organized. We love turning on the diesel heater on a cool day because it provides a nice dry heat that keeps everyone toasty warm and dries out the boat. We drink a lot of tea, play music and Ellery jams with Maddie on their ukuleles.

Maddie has really taken to the boat. We have managed to keep Maddie’s sleeping routine intact. She is climbing up and down the companionway ladder like a pro now. She can climb into her new bunk and is using the potty we brought with us.

The challenges that we experience are really around parenting. With Maddie, it’s tricky to keep her happy in the cockpit when we are sailing for long periods of time. She wants to move around and touch everything, which is not possible when the boat is moving.

Amelia on the other hand, is a baby so the challenges with her are exactly the same as at home. She loves to be held upright which isn’t always possible. Amelia doesn’t really want to go to sleep at night until at least 9pm and needs to be nursed to sleep. So, needless to say, Ellery and I have yet to spend any time just the two of us onboard, never mind drinking beer in the cockpit in the evening.

I’m telling myself that this is all just a season, the girls will change and grow and things will get both easier and harder in new ways.

Chari

After a couple of days at Royal Cove on Portland Island, we sailed to Port Browning on North Pender Island.

We chose Port Browning because there is a little village only a short 10-15 minute walk away. Here we were able to reprovision, do laundry and shower! We decided to tie up at the marina so that we could do things more easily and also so Ellery could repair our dinghy as it seemed to have a leak.

Ellery got the first load of laundry in, had a shower and went to get groceries all within Maddie’s nap. It was probably faster for him to do it on his own but I had some serious cabin fever, being stuck on the boat with 2 sleeping girls.

We were desperate for some fresh produce but groceries sure are expensive on the Gulf Islands so we didn’t stock up quite as much as we would have liked. We are also still finding our groove in the galley. We really need to find more easy recipes we could make on the boat.

Once Ellery was back and the girls were awake, we all headed out to the village as I knew there was also a cafe where I could get a coffee. It was great to stretch our legs and let Maddie run around. We also chatted with some locals, which is a great window into the island life. Having kids definitely makes us more approachable and Maddie is pretty friendly these days. Amelia also wins the hearts of locals, especially the older ladies.

Here we are walking along a calm island road to the village.

We tied up at the marina for two nights and the middle day Ellery was able to repair the dinghy (see picture below) and get a couple other things done.

It was my job to get the second load of laundry in while hanging out with Maddie. I was so distracted with her that I took the freshly washed clothes out of the washer and put them into the machine beside, which also happened to be a washer! I didn’t notice my mistake until Ellery went to take the clothes out of the dryer but found them still wet in the washing machine. I felt like such an idiot! At least the clothes were clean and we did eventually get them dried.

We spent one afternoon on the beach exploring and showing Maddie crabs, shells and shipwrecks. She had a bucket and collected treasures in it, which mainly turned out to be rock weed.

Above is a picture of Ellery and Maddie with one of the shipwrecks on the beach.

Our time staying at the marina allowed us to see and meet some of the local and transient boaters. Our last evening, I watched as the local Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue, which is a volunteer organization, return a man’s dinghy which had floated away. The man lives on his boat in the harbour and he hadn’t tied up his dinghy so it had floated away.

We were excited to leave the marina and sail to Montague Harbour next!

– Chari

Nothing seems to go exactly as planned when you’re out sailing with kids.

We left May 31 but a bit later in the day than planned. We chose this day mainly because we wanted to leave before June. We had already delayed our departure date so we didn’t want to put it off any longer. There will always be more to do on the boat but some things can actually be done while underway.

We realized that it really was an arbitrary deadline but we needed a goal.

We finally left the dock late afternoon and spent our first night in Esquimalt Harbour just a short 20 min motor away. It was too late in the day to go further but we had to leave the dock.

Ellery woke up at 0400 the following morning so we could move with the current along the Victoria waterfront. The seas were a bit lumpy and I ended up feeling quite seasick. It wasn’t a great way to start the first day. Ellery steered the boat into Oak Bay about 0630 and we took a breather. While Amelia napped and I rested, Ellery and Maddie took the dinghy to the Oak Bay Marina Cafe to get coffee and scones.

After lunch the currents were in our favour again and we sailed to Sidney Spit. Maddie had an epic nap and missed most of the afternoon sailing again.

The late afternoon and evening are a division of labour as we have to occupy the girls while making dinner, cleaning up and then getting ready for bed. Sleep has been a little hit or miss so far. Sometimes the girls konk out easily and other times, they are both up crying until 2030. It’s the latter when we have to remind ourselves that parenting is hard at home too and they will eventually go to sleep.

The morning we woke up at Sidney Spit, we went ashore. Maddie had a great time playing in the sand while Amelia napped in the carrier.

On our way out of Sidney Spit, we motored by some friends, Tim & Aoife who were anchored nearby. aboard their sailboat Waimangu. We would have liked to stay and hang out but we had planned to carry onto Royal Cove on Portland Island.

This ended up being a very challenging afternoon of parenting as Amelia was fussy, Maddie did not nap and we were battling an opposing current with no wind to help. Maddie is also still getting used to the sound of the engine and the movement of the boat.

We finally arrived at Royal Cove only to discover we had run over a crab trap at some point and Ellery needed to cut the lines away from the propeller. In his wetsuit, Ellery quickly remedied the situation and found there to be no damage. A nearby boater was retrieving his crab trap at the same time and offered us two Red Rock crabs, which we gratefully accepted.

Maddie was very interested in how Ellery killed the crab, cooked it up and broke it open to eat the meat.

We have had both successes and challenges so far and I’m sure that will continue. We are still finding our rhythm out here but waking up to the sound of water lapping softly against the hull and birds circling each new anchorage is so worth it.

– Chari

We’ve been planning this trip for a long time. After we found out I was pregnant with our second baby and we realized we would both be off this summer, we knew we had to do this trip.

Once Amelia arrived and we were all settled in at home, then we really started working on our to-do lists. We would stay up in the evenings and talk about our plans while Amelia napped on one of us. Ellery kept the to-do lists related to refitting the boat and I had lists about everything else.

It’s fun and easy to plan but it takes a lot of work to get a boat ready for longer cruising. Having a new baby at home meant that I spent a lot of time on the couch with a breastfeeding or napping baby. At times I felt bad that I couldn’t help Ellery out with the boat but I was able to do lots of research and planning while sitting in the couch. Meanwhile, Ellery spent every spare moment that he wasn’t needed by us working on the boat or in the garage working on something related to the boat. Basically, neither of us have had much time to relax lately.

The list of things to do on the boat grew so much that we had to rank them in order of priority. Ellery chipped away at the list and got all the really important things done.

The week leading up to our trip was so busy and we really just wanted to be on the boat heading out of the harbour. Especially with two little kids, I don’t even know how we got it all done!

I made lists and I set things aside in assorted piles, while Ellery kept bringing gear to the boat. We made a loose menu plan and grocery shopped for dry goods.

Amelia and I joined Ellery on the boat one day last week so we could stow our gear and food together. It helps when both parents know where everything is, especially the beer and diapers!

This picture below we call our sin locker, as it contains beer, wine, port, chips, chocolate and cookies.

It’s amazing how so much stuff we brought to the boat and yet somehow we found space for it and our boat has actually never felt more organized.

We’ve used small bins and hammocks to keep everything off the floor and the settees. Ellery has installed more hooks for hanging sweaters & coats.

Below is Amelia in her bunk playing while we are underway; hammock is filled with hats.

The last thing we did before we left was buy fresh groceries and we are very pleased at how well it all fits in our newly installed fridge.

Our boat really feels like home now and after all, home is where the anchor drops.

– Chari