Sailing Arctic Loon

We did it! We left the dock for another summer sailing voyage. There were moments that I wasn’t sure it was going to work out but thankfully it did and here we are. I hope you will follow along on our family sailing adventure this summer as we hope to sail farther and longer than we did last year!

The whole process of leaving felt so much harder this year. Maybe it’s because the girls are older and have more stuff or because they are busier so it’s nearly impossible to get anything accomplished while looking after them or maybe it’s just that I’m one year older and totally exhausted from motherhood. Either way, there was so much planning, packing and late nights to make this happen.

It is day 4 and we have already enjoyed Poets Cove on Pender Island, where we went for a lovely swim in the heated swimming pool and had nachos and beer at Crane & Robin in Montague Harbour on Galiano Island.

We even had friends meet up with us our second night out at Sidney Spit. We enjoyed their company and our daughter Maddie loved having a friend to play with.

From here, we are heading through the Gulf Islands to Silva Bay and the across the Strait of Georgia to Vancouver. Then we will sail up the mainland coast to Desolation Sound, where we are excited to visit some of our favourite places from last summer.

One factor that made prepping for this trip harder than last year was that we are trying to buy provisions for longer. This year we bought and stored 6 weeks worth of dry/non-perishable food on board and 7-10 days of fresh food. This will enable us to go longer before needing to reprovision and will also save us money because we purchased food in Victoria rather than the higher prices you find in small towns or villages. We also have about 500 diapers onboard, which should be enough to last Amelia all summer. This means that our boat is pretty packed right now.

Needless to say, even if the boat is organized and everything is in its place, we still have 2 small children on board and that means there are often clothes and toys everywhere.

Ellery installed two baby gates on board this year. One gate is to keep the girls out of the galley and Amelia from climbing the companionway ladder. The other gate can block off the head or it can swing to block the girls from going forward into their bunks. Both gates have been extremely helpful so far, for safety, containment and sanity reasons.

As for any trip the first few days can be challenging as you settle into a routine. I am telling myself the first week may be rough as the girls get used to sleeping in their bunks, riding in the dinghy and sailing for hours everyday.

Our motto is to keep sailing as long as it’s fun. Ultimately, we want to spend quality time together as a family, while showing our girls the beautiful B.C. coast from our sailboat.

More pictures to come.

Closing the circle on our trip around the Strait of Georgia we went into anchored in Silva Bay on Gabriola island. This place has seen better days. There was once a vibrant wooden boatbuilding school and marine repair facility. Also the Silva Bay Marina, one of only two marinas in the harbour, burned down last winter leaving only the docks in place. We did enjoy a dinghy ride around to explore the surrounding islands.

The next day we had one of the best downwind sails of the trip as we passed down the outside of Valdes and Galiano island to drop anchor in Whaler Bay.

What a lovely place Whaler Bay is with its great views and few other boats. In fact we were the only boat at anchor and enjoyed the peacefulness of the place. Depending on where you drop the hook it can be somewhat exposed to the Strait of Georgia. I laid out a stern anchor to keep our bow pointed into the light swell coming into the bay.

We went ashore at the government wharf the next morning and took a short stroll along the winding country road to the little village at Sturdies Bay. We enjoyed muffins and coffee at the Bowline Cafe and picked up a few provisions at the general store.

We left Whaler bay in the afternoon to catch the right tide through Georgeson pass and into Winter Cove on Saturday island. It was not surprising that it was packed with boats and I immediately thought about how interesting it is that people continue to go to the same anchorages despite there being other spots nearby that see hardly any visiting boats even in the height of summer.

We spent two nights at Winter Cove as we were waiting for my parents to rendezvous with us on their boat Arpeggio on the middle day. Murray also flew into Lyall harbour from Vancouver to cruise with us for the weekend.

Before everyone arrived, we went for a dinghy ride over to Lyall Harbour on Saturna to get some coffee at Wild Thyme Coffee House, which is an old bus that has been converted into a kitchen and seating area. We enjoyed our delicious coffee on the upper deck of the bus.

Then we headed over to hike the short trail from Winter Cove to Boat Passage.

Winter Cove was a cool spot to have a brief family gathering. The following day we cruised with Arpeggio to Tumbo Island. This is one of our favourite places to visit. Great beach walking, great views and few boats.

We were quite low on fuel, provisions and hadn’t had a shower in about a week so from Tumbo, we headed to Sidney to tie up at the Port Sidney Marina. We were able to get propane, groceries, have showers and do laundry all in under 4 hours so we left the marina and motored over to Sidney Spit late that afternoon.

At this point we had decided we were heading home in a few days but we were looking forward to a few more nights on the boat.

We stayed at Sidney Spit for 2 nights and enjoyed a beach day on the middle day, well except for the forest fire haze that set in.

Our last night of our trip was at Royal Victoria Yacht Club in Cadboro Bay. We used our reciprocal privileges and tied up to the dock. We went ashore to Gyro Park and Starbucks for the afternoon.

Day 77, our final day we rounded the Victoria waterfront and arrived in Esquimalt Harbour to CFSA by 1030. Within 2 hours we had packed up the necessary belongings, loaded the car and were headed home.

We have now been home for a week and we are finally settled in. The transition was tougher than we thought it would be and although we are happy to be home and have more space, we all miss living on Arctic Loon.

– Ellery & Chari

Day 60 we hopped over to Plumper Cove marine park on Keats Island in Howe Sound and picked up a mooring ball for the night. While at anchor a man from another boat jumped in and swam over to us to say hi. He came to tell us he liked our blog and that it was cool to run into us out cruising. When I asked him how he learned of it, he said he was a fan of the Westsail 32 and was just Google searching all things westsail. This was the first time that we realized that some folks other than just friends and family are following our adventure. Plumper Cove was a really nice spot, not too busy and only a mile and a half from Gibsons. It had a lovely grassy area for a picnic and we got Maddie flying a kite for the first time which she loved. We met another cruising couple with a little girl a little younger than Maddie at the park and had an impromptu afternoon picnic. They were out on their sailboat “Northern Valour” a CS 33.

The following day we braved stronger winds rounding Bowen island and tied up at the Union Steamship Company Marina in Snug Cove. Now being tied up in the richest municipality in Canada (West Vancouver/Bowen Island) (Moneysense.ca 2017) I thought it might have a stuffy feel to it. I was surprised to find it had a welcoming and down-to-earth kind of feel where I didn’t feel out of place. The boats in the marina were a mix of very modest smaller boats to larger more comfortable liveaboards but nothing approaching a superyacht status.

There was one boat in particular though that was tied up at an adjacent dock only 100′ away.  This little sailboat of approximately 24′ was borderline derelict status that hosted a forest of marine life clinging to its hull. Later in the evening before sunset there was a man, whom I presume to be the owner, onboard puttering around.  He hoisted the jib which hung like an old cheesecloth in the to the forestay in the breathless evening air. It was soon apparent that he was not about to leave the dock for an evening sail but rather he wanted to be sure that his two buddies that showed up soon after knew they were on a sailboat. In no time it was a full on riffraff party complete with a stereo blasting gangsta rap, copious beer drinking, and other smokables wafting across the marina. It was like a tailgate party on the dock. At one point one of the buddies was doing “doughnuts” in his inflatable dinghy with a little outboard motor. It was quite the scene and this carried on well past sunset until they all pile into the dinghy and zoomed off out of the harbour with only the cherries of their cigarettes to light the way. Did I mention we were tied up in WestVancouver/Bowen Island? Now I’m not judging anyone here, everyone has a right to have a good time, I was only surprised as it was the last thing I expected to see and hear in the quaint and beautiful village of Snug Cove. The only part that bothered us was the noise as it was a bit excessive and we didn’t want it to wake our two little girls sleeping below.

The next day we headed across to the West Vancouver Yacht Club. We had our slip arranged the day prior so we knew exactly where we were going but it was a very tight squeeze into the slip and there was a moderate cross wind to factor as well. Luckily I had my expert teammate Chari on the foredeck to ensure that we made it alongside without scraping someone elses boat or our own hull.

Heading across English Bay to False Creek in Vancouver was pretty exciting. Chari was fascinated by all the deep-sea vessels anchored in the bay that we got to see up close. We entered False Creek by passing under the Burrard and Granville street bridges. The shores on both sides of the channel are congested with a multitude of marinas thick with boats in every slip and backed by towering glass and concrete condo towers.

As we passed the first designated anchorage we heard someone whistling at us from another boat. It was our friend Stephen from Tango. We circled around and motored by close to exchange greetings and get information on anchorage options. We found a spot nearby and just across the channel from Granville Island. It was a neat way to experience Vancouver while still maintaining the security bubble of our little floating home.

Everything we needed was just a short dinghy ride away, which made reprovisioning quite easy. We had my brother Murray come join us onboard every evening he was available. Maddie loved having Uncle Murray there to play with too.

The waterway of false creek is busy with little passenger ferries, sailboats and powerboats coming and going, tourists on paddleboards and in kayaks, larger party boats taking guests on dinnercruises and dragon boats. Some boats passed by our boat a little closer than we liked.

We also happened to be there for some fireworks, which made False Creek an even busier waterway. We enjoyed the fireworks from the comfort of our boat, while the girls slept.

We explored Granville Island, Science World and a playground while we were there. It was fun to focus on Maddie and watch her have lots of fun. The toddler exhibit at Science World was a highlight.

After 4 nights anchored in False Creek, we were ready to get out of the busy city and sail across the Strait of Georgia back to the Gulf Islands.

Leaving Lund the forecast winds of 10-15 NW were spot on and we had an excellent downwind spinnaker run to Powell River.

We made quick work of the reprovision chores, laundry, groceries, showers, garbage and water while tied up at the dock. Powell River was a challenging place to reprovision. The visitor dock we were tied up to was not connected to the main dock and so we could either walk a dusty trail to the showers/laundry or take the dinghy. We chose the latter. It was also quite hot and Powell River is hilly so we found getting groceries to be a little tricky. We carried the girls up hill to the grocery store early one morning before it got to hot and then after our shop, we arranged to have the groceries delivered to the dock later in the day. This worked out well because we had other errands to do on foot and still ended up carrying the girls and a heavy load back to the boat.

Next we made it to Musket Island Marine Park nestled next to Hardy Island. We happened to arrive just as the last boat was leaving so we had our pick of the place to anchor just where we wanted. It is extremely rare to have an anchorage all to yourself at this time of year. It was short lived as another sailboat pulled in 5 minutes later and by sunset there were over a dozen boats in the anchorage. Although there was not a lot to do onshore, the anchorage was beautiful and calm. We were also able to go swimming and get out on the SUP.

After two glorious days at anchor we headed to Pender Harbour. I had been to Pender Harbour once before with the navy a few years ago but had never been ashore. The harbour is well protected from all weather and has many smaller bays within that each have marinas and numerous private docks along the entire shoreline, which we explored.

We anchored next to S/V Full Circle a Kendall 34, from Nanaimo, which is the sister ship to the Westsail 32 (same hull, different deck). I had met the owner Ken earlier in the trip when we were in Nanaimo but did not have the time to visit his boat. This time I had a tour and then we had drinks in the cockpit while discussing all things sailing.

We were able to find a much needed kids playground for Maddie and a grocery store to do a big reprovision.

From Pender Harbour, we headed back to Jedediah and it was well worth the return visit. Again we spent two nights anchored there in cozy Deep Bay. We went walking ashore both days and enjoyed the tranquility of the easy forest paths and quiet bays. We once again heard the wild sheep and spotted them before our presence scared them away.

We once again bumped into other cruising friends from Tango and Nimuie as we were returning to our dinghy from our second shoreside hike. The conversation covered the usual topics of where each other had been, where to next and other relevant quirks and salty dips. It was also a welcome distraction from the full-on-out-of-control tantrum that Maddie was throwing.

After Jedediah, we headed to Welcome Passage, where Secret Cove and Smuggler Cove are located. Secret Cove provided us with a few provisions and showers, which we were very grateful for.

Smuggler Cove is a tight entrance and I can see how it got its name. Even using GPS in daylight, the entrance to the cove is not easily spotted until you are quite close. Once inside there are several nooks in which boats with shallower drafts might easily hide. You can imagine why Smuggler Cove used to be used for boot-legging on the coast. I always like to arrive at a new anchorage at low tide so you can be certain to be clear of any dangers.

We promptly set the hook and stern-tied in the first basin next to S/V Firesong a Cal 34 with a family onboard. Their two daughters Zoe and Odessa were having a blast playing on their paddleboards and swimming. Maddie was really excited about the prospect of having new friends to play with and immediately wanted to invite them over despite the 10 year age difference. We had their family over to our boat in the afternoon and Maddie was so happy when Odessa played with her and read her some books. We were then invited over to their boat after dinner.

This family was only the second couple cruising with kids that we met on this trip so it was fun to discuss where everyone sleeps and how the cabin is organized.

Smuggler Cove was a perfect place to explore with the SUP as it has three basins and a couple of lagoons. At low tide, we enjoyed showing Maddie all the sea stars.

On our rest day, we did a morning trip via the dinghy from Smuggler Cove to Buccaneer Bay on Thormanby Island to have some beach fun.

From Welcome Passage, we headed to Gibsons, which we were really looking forward to. I had been there years ago with the Navy and I was certain Chari would like it. We tied up to the public wharf and promptly went ashore to explore as we arrived Sunday afternoon and wanted to make the most of our time. Gibsons had a festival happening on their main street so we went to check it out and arrived just in time to see a fly-past, which was very cool.

It was really hot so we decided to go find the aquarium that we’d read about. We arrived at the aquarium and it turns out admission was by donation. The aquarium was spectacular; there were tanks at Maddie’s eye level and touch tanks as well. We were able to teach her about various sea stars, sea cucumbers and anemones.

We did do a grocery shop in Gibsons but for the first time on this trip, we used a taxi to get the groceries back to our boat. We spent the remainder of our rest day beating the heat by hanging out at the library in the children’s section and going to the only air-conditioned cafe, Beachcombers.

We finished off the day and our time in Gibsons by taking the girls out for Mexican as it was our 7th Wedding Anniversary. We had to wait for a table so we picked blackberries nearby. We had a great time and Maddie only spilled 2 glasses of water, which was actually refreshing when it dropped on us because it was so hot!

Now we head to the big city, Vancouver!

– Ellery & Chari

For anyone who needs a quick update or hasn’t been following our adventure from the start, here is a quick update to get caught up. We are currently on day 65 of our trip and just anchored in False Creek in Vancouver. We still have just under a month to go however it’s also fun to look back what we’ve done so far.

Islands visited – 18

Orcas spotted – 8

Humpbacks spotted – 5

Nights at anchor- 45

Nights at a dock- 20

Nautical Miles travelled- 485

Loads of laundry done- 21

Playgrounds found- 9

Crossings of the Salish Sea- 3

A Sunshine Coast blog post is coming soon!!!

It’s summer holiday season now and could I ever use a holiday?! This summer of sailing is more like a trip than a holiday or vacation. There is very little relaxing and it is definitely more work than just staying at home.

About a week ago, we were feeling sooo good, loving this life and then bam! We are currently deep into some parenting challenges and feel pretty shattered.

I realized we have been with our girls 24/7 for nearly 2 months now. We have had a few visitors but no real break. Thankfully we have a few coping mechanisms and one of them is coffee. My wonderful husband makes coffee first thing for us every morning. I know for sure that I couldn’t do this adventure with anyone else. A good partner in parenting is so important.

We do trade off occasionally so one of us gets a break but it’s usually to go ashore and have a shower or some other self care activity. Sometimes I just need someone else to entertain my girls, which is why we go on adventures off the boat all the time. The world entertains them, whether it is a coffee shop, a playground or just a walk along a quiet island road collecting berries.

I also like to seek out locals to talk to as they have a wealth of information on the area we are in but also most people like kids and capture their attention for a moment. Even if the attention is fleeting, I am grateful for the wee mental break. I’ve definitely considered trying to find a babysitter but I tell myself that this is just a summer. In a month we will be home and we hopefully have more help either from daycare, family or I’ll be looking for a babysitter for real.

We do choose to spend a lot of time together as a family because that is what this trip is about for us. We are trying to create and build bonds with our girls now. We are also trying to instill resilience and grit into our girls subconscious so they can draw on it later in life. These traits come from experiencing challenges and working through them to move forward. This is something that we do everyday out here.

Living on a boat isn’t easy. When we are tied to a dock the boat is relatively still, when we are at anchor the boat moves with the wind, currents and passing boat wake. When we are sailing the boat is moving side to side as we tack or gybe our way along. All of these are more challenging than living at home where the ground stays still.

We do have some home comforts like refrigeration but we don’t have pressure water or hot water. We have just enough space for the 4 of us and often the boat feels too small. We use the cockpit and deck space under the Bimini to extend our living space in the evening. Maddie is a growing boisterous toddler who can fill our small salon easily with her movements, voice and toys.

Many of our challenges are ones we would have at home. We are trying to encourage independence in Maddie but then everything takes longer. Like getting dressed or in our case, every time she goes into the cockpit she has to put on her life jacket. She has also recently figured out how to escape out of her bunk, which is quite frustrating. She can be quite a jack-the-box escaping multiple times in a couple of minutes. We have googled ways to prevent this and are now armed with a plan. We will see how it goes…

Maddie also practices yelling and running at times and this is when I wish I could just open the door and send her into the backyard to run around. This is one reason we are always on a quest to find a playground.

Amelia is nearly 7 months old and has grown a lot on this trip. At first she would just lay on her back, roll and play with toys. Then she started crawling. We had her in a round bassinet but then a couple weeks ago she nearly escaped out it. Now she is pulling to stand and cruising around. The only fully safe place for her is in her bunk in the main cabin because the lee cloth is quite high. I just feel like I’m just barely keeping up with her development.

Now that Amelia is eating solids, meals take longer and are way messier. This is when I wish we were at home with a tub and I’d just give her a bath afterwards.

Of course the other aspect is the interaction between the two girls. One minute everyone is happy playing peekaboo and the next Maddie is screaming because Amelia took her toy. Maddie doesn’t fully grasp sharing yet and Amelia just wants anything and everything in her mouth.

At this point we are knee deep in dirty laundry, out of fresh produce and short on patience.

We have been making our way down the Sunshine Coast and I couldn’t be more excited to get to Gibsons!

From Teakerne Arm, we sailed the spinnaker to Refuge Cove again as we needed more water and fresh produce.

We decided to anchor off Refuge Cove that night as we spent the latter part of the day on shore, walking the docks, having showers and getting a bite to eat at the cafe Upcoast Summers.

Our next destination was Laura Cove, near Prixdeux Haven where we ended up staying 3 nights. This was a first on this trip but it felt wonderful to relax a bit more. As any parents out there know, there is limited relaxing when you have young children. We really enjoyed the warm water swimming in the ocean, the great views and the secure anchorage. We finally inflated the SUP again and spent lots of time paddling around, usually with Maddie sitting onboard.

We also had extra time so we went fishing and caught our first fish, a greenling. Maddie seemed to enjoy the whole fishing experience, even the chowder Ellery made that evening. Now we are excited to catch more fish!

At this point, we finally started to get accustomed to a routine of eating, swimming, rest/nap and repeat.

After Laura Cove, we headed to Refuge Cove one final time for more fresh produce and a load of laundry. We didn’t stay the night at Refuge Cove and instead we continued on to Tenedos Bay, where we anchored with a stern-tie to shore.

The weather has been really warm and we have had to be creative to beat the heat. Some of our ways include: setting up the bimini for more shade, securing a hammock under the boom for some real relaxing and filling a Tupperware bin with saltwater for Maddie to play in, in our cockpit. This keeps her cool and occupied. We also have a water bag sitting out in the sun so later in the day we can all have warm fresh water showers on deck.

During our rest day at Tenedos Bay, we got in the dinghy just after 0800 in the morning to go ashore and hike to Unwin lake to swim. It took us going to three spots by the lake to find one that was flat-ish, hence toddler and baby friendly. We got all ready to swim and then the wasps showed up. They wouldn’t leave us alone and even though Ellery used his ninja skills to kill them, more wasps just kept showing up. After we all got a short swim in, we decided it was time to go. It sure was beautiful and without the wasps, we may have been tempted to stay all day.

From Tenedos Bay we headed south to the Copeland Islsnds. We had decided it was time to start the journey back towards home. We sailed out of Desolation Sound in a light westerly wind with main and jib up for most of the day. The started dying around 1430, so Ellery started the engine and we motored south into Thulin pass.

Very shortly afterwards we heard a pan-pan on the VHF radio. A pan-pan is an international radio message that someone onboard a vessel uses to declare that they have a situation that is urgent but not life threatening; it is a state urgency.

A motor vessel was in the Copeland Islands taking on water and their bilge pump was not keeping up. We listened to the radio conversation and wondered if they were nearby because we were just heading to our anchorage in the Copeland Islands. When the coast guard asked if any nearby vessels could help, Ellery figured out we were close by radioed and said that we would be on scene in 7 minutes.

Amelia was sleeping on me at this point and Maddie was napping but we headed toward the motor vessel. When we arrived, all 5 passengers were outside on the aft deck. The skipper told us that their water problem had stabilized and that the coast guard was 10 minutes away. We stayed with the vessel on standby until the Coast Guard fast rescue craft arrived, just in case. The Coast Guard arrived promptly and we watched for a few minutes before radioing them we were on our way. We were thanked and we all waved bye.

We went straight to anchor and could actually still see the motor vessel from our anchorage. It was interesting to see that after a second Coast Guard vessel arrived, another large Coast Guard vessel arrived as well. Shortly after C-Tow arrived and towed the vessel away. I found the whole situation super interesting and was glad we were around to help and experience it.

The following morning we woke up in the Copeland Islands and decided to go exploring after a slow morning. We did a short hike to a beach and to a bluff overlooking our anchorage.

Next, we went on a dinghy ride to explore the rest of the Copeland Islands. Maddie loved zooming around in the dinghy with her hair blowing in the wind.

Once back at the boat, we wondered what we would do for the rest of the day. We decided to motor a few miles into Lund and spend the night at the dock.

We had a lovely afternoon walking around Lund. We had lunch at Nancy’s Bakery, checked out the shops, had showers and ran into some new and old friends.

I think we got a little over zealous because we decided to go out for dinner, which we rarely do. We felt so good after our showers, so we even put in a little effort, I mean I wore a dress with my hair down. Anyway, in the first 15 minutes of sitting at the table, Maddie has her crayons in her water, has coloured on the chair, I bumped Ellery’s beer and spilled a bit of it and then Amelia grabbed my beer glass and spilled it all over me! Well, at least we were sitting in the corner and no one noticed and our table was on a dock so no clean up was even needed. It was just me that felt gutted. Oh well! I guess you can’t expect too much with small kids around. At least the food was good and the company entertaining!

I wonder what kind of adventures await us as we sail down the Sunshine Coast?!

– Chari

After our first week in Desolation Sound, we were running out of fresh produce so on July 5th, we sailed to Heriot Bay on Quadra Island to reprovision. We pulled up to the Heriot Bay Inn and Marina to get fuel and then tied up at a slip in the marina as we planned to stay the night. Ellery filled up our water tanks, while Amelia and I walked a short distance to the Heriot Bay Tru Value Foods. This was the biggest grocery store we’d been to in a while so we stocked up on everything. Tru Value even drove our groceries back to the marina. At this point we decided that we’d rather go to anchor in Drew Harbour a short motor away. Ellery went to ask for a refund and then we were on our way.

We are getting pretty quick at reprovisioning now and find it works best if we each take a kid and divide and conquer. We used to always tie up at the dock to reprovision but this costs money. It can be anywhere from $0.74 to $1.65 per foot. We are kind of proud of ourselves as we haven’t tied up as much as we did in June, which saves us money.

We found a spot at the head of Drew Harbour to anchor. It was quite windy but we went for a quick dinghy ride ashore to the beach as Maddie hadn’t been off the boat yet that day.

The next day we decided to head back to Gorge Harbour on Cortes Island for the weekly market and some more time in the pool.

We made it to the market in time and enjoyed chatting with the locals and eating some yummy food. We spent the afternoon in the pool and finished the day with beer and appies at the restaurant overlooking the harbour. Later that night and the next night, we listened to some great live music from our boat as it was being played on the patio at Gorge Harbour Marina. What a treat!

We spent a couple days at Gorge Harbour, mainly because of the pool and the space for Maddie to run around, we didn’t have to entertain her much. She was happy just out doing things with us, even if it was just colouring at the restaurant while we enjoyed a beer. Gorge Harbour was also a really easy place to do laundry and we enjoyed talking to lots of other boaters and campers.

We actually met a couple, Laura & Mike from Orcas Island who had their 4 kids onboard their 36ft sailboat Cascadia. They did have grandparents with them to help but I sure was impressed. We hope to meet up with them again in the future!

After Gorge Harbour we headed to to Teakerne Arm via Sutil and Lewis channels. Ellery had been to Teakerne Arm a couple times before and was really excited to take me there.

On the way we saw Humpback Whales in Sutil Channel. We watched the Humpbacks breach and splash for about an hour while we drifted in the calm weather and ate lunch. Maddie saw them and I know Amelia heard a splash at one point too.

Teakerne Arm was beautiful. We recognized another sailboat, Cariba and anchored with a stern-tie next to them. It was late in the day so we quickly got in the dinghy for a short ride to see Cassel Falls. I think this may have been Maddie’s first waterfall.

When we returned, we invited Susan & Brian from Cariba over to our boat for appies. It was great to see familiar faces and fun to socialize as well.

The next day, we all slept in and had a yummy egg breakfast before getting in the dinghy to head to shore. We planned to do the short hike to Cassel Lake, which is known for having warm water for swimming. We were so proud as Maddie hiked the whole way there, up a steep trail, although she did need Ellery’s hand for help quite a few times. Ellery and I took turns swimming in the lake as the girls didn’t come in. It was sort of overcast and there was a bit of a sloping rock to scramble down to get to the water so it wasn’t very toddler friendly. We did have the whole lake to ourselves though, which was wonderful!

Teakerne Arm was so peaceful and definitely one of our favourite places so far.

We arrived in Lund about a week ago and have been exploring Desolation Sound and Cortes Island since then. Lund is a quaint little village on the Sunshine Coast and is the gateway and launching point for exploring Desolation Sound. It’s also the end of the road on the Sunshine Coast.

We arrived in Lund and quickly found Nancy’s Bakery for a snack. We ended up walking the 1 km Lund Loop, searching for a kids playground for Maddie. The only one in the area was in the yard of a preschool but we were told she could go in and play. Maddie spent all of her time in the sandbox making us ‘stir fry.’ We also found some Salmon Berries to pick and eat. Yum!

We enjoyed the bustle of Lund as everyone is going or returning from a trip so the atmosphere is really festive. There were landing craft boats taking people and their cars to islands not serviced by BC Ferries, people going on sea kayaking trips and boaters like us stopping for provisions. I had to mail a letter and found the Canada Post office just before it closed and the woman working there was so friendly!

We headed to Grace Harbour the next day under cloudy skies and rain showers. Grace Harbour is one of the popular places in Desolation Sound park. We did a short forest walk in Grace Harbour but it was very buggy and still spitting rain.

From there we went to Squirrel Cove on Cortes Island. We had a nice quiet anchorage and checked out the community of Squirrel Cove. We had fish tacos at the Flying Squirrel for lunch and looked in the Cortes Island Craft Co-op at all the locally made goods.

The next day was Canada Day and we decided to go to Refuge Cove as we heard they do fireworks at night. It was a great decision and we had an awesome day. Refuge Cove is on West Redonda Island and is only accessible by boat. It is a small community where everyone lives in a land co-op. About 20 people live there in the summer and 8 in the winter. There is a well stocked general store, a cafe/pub and an art gallery. We decided to tie up and enjoy the festivities.

Ellery and Maddie had met a cruising couple, Courtenay & Rich earlier in the day. We enjoyed chatting with them and decided to meet at the pub for beers at happy hour.

Maddie enjoyed an ice cream cone, we explored the village and then headed to the pub. We enjoyed discussing sailing and Desolation Sound with Courtenay & Rich over beers. Courtenay held Amelia a couple of times, which was a wee break for me. We showed them our boat afterwards and Maddie convinced Courtenay to read her a couple books.

We ran into a couple other people sailing with kids and even gave one woman and her daughter a tour of our boat to show her the lee cloths that act as a play pen for Amelia.

The day ended with spectacular fireworks that we could see right from our boat! Neither of the girls woke up so we had a few moments to ourselves to bask in the excellent day.

From Refuge Cove we headed back over to Cortes Island in search of beaches for Maddie to play on. We spent one night in Cortes Bay and then headed to Mansons Landing.

We anchored in a beautiful spot with a great view. From the public dock at Mansons Landing, it is a 20 min walk to Hague Lake, which has a lovely sand beach. We went to the beach twice and we all enjoyed a fresh water swim and a picnic. We also met and chatted with some locals and Maddie had some little kids to play with.

From the lake, it was a little further walk into the village to the grocery store and cafe. We really enjoyed the village and found everyone super friendly and welcoming. We carried the girls and all of our beach gear just so we could get a bit of fresh produce as we were running out. We felt like awesome, strong parents as we hauled the kids and everything 25 minutes walk back to the boat.

We met some American sailors at anchor in Mansons Landing and we ever got invited aboard their boat for some wine! What a treat. They had sailed in the South Pacific and had some great stories to tell. I just love meeting other cruisers!

From Mansons Landing, we motored a couple miles to Gorge Harbour on Cortes Island as we had heard about a pool and hot tub!

We anchored quickly and headed in to do laundry and use the pool. It felt so refreshing to have a swim and Maddie really enjoyed jumping into the pool. After the pool, we went to the restaurant for chowder and beer. Maddie was given some markers and a colouring book, while Amelia napped on me. It’s these moments when we really feel like we are winning as parents.

We also finally got out the fishing rod and have tried a little jigging but so far we haven’t caught anything.

We can’t believe how busy life is here on the boat. Although we get a little bit of time in the evenings now, we usually use it for passage planning. I have found a few stolen moments to read a book though, The Curve of Time by M. Wylie Blanchet. I am really enjoying it as she writes about a lot of the places we are sailing.

Since Amelia turned 6 months recently, we have been feeding her solids which is so messy! It is fun to see her enjoying food so much though.

We are so grateful to have this time out here with our girls, exploring the coast. The connectivity is very spotty but I will write more soon as we have more of Desolation Sound to see.