Lyn's Log, 28th May 2008
Desolation Sound

Campbell River, BC.
N50º02', W125º15'
17,166 miles.

The first day out of Vancouver we only ventured a little way north and anchored off Gambia Island in the Howe Sound. During the night the wind turned around and blew straight in on us and continued to blow strongly into the sound making our attempt at exiting a very wet experience. We had made only four miles after motor-sailing several hours and so decided to anchor in a sheltered spot off Keats island, just inside the sound, following behind a yacht named Loch Fyne, also seeking shelter. The next morning could not have been more different. The sea was smooth and the sun shone, even though the air still had an icy sting. We had a wonderful day’s sailing northwards to Pender Harbour. We turned into the anchorage and saw another yacht sporting a red ensign, Integrity II, and there was an English couple on board. This was the first English yacht we had seen since New York. It poured with rain all the next day so we all stayed put and spent much of the day together going over charts and books and stories. They had a lovely wood-burning stove.

Having been told that the Princess Louisa Inlet should not be missed, we set out early the next morning in the rain, (brave or foolhardy?) to start the forty mile motor along the Agamemnon Channel, Prince of Wales Reach, and the Princess Royal Reach to arrive at the short stretch of rapids leading to the Princess Louisa Inlet at slack water. The further we went the higher and steeper were the mountains. The rain stopped and gradually the clouds lifted. The scenery was stunning. We returned to Pender after a couple of days as we knew we could stock up on LPG, diesel, petrol, water, and food, and visit the Post Office.

At midday we started raising the anchor and the windlass stopped working. It took quite a while and a lot of energy winding it up with the windlass handle, but then we had a good sail, mostly goose-winged, all the way to Lund, arriving after seven in the evening. Here we tied to the inside of the breakwater, the only place for visitors, behind Loch Fyne again. We immediately started taking our windlass apart. A yacht behind us had purchased a bag of prawns fresh off the boat when it had come in. They had more than a dozen too many and gave them to us; making a delicious late dinner, quickly cooked in garlic butter. The next day we stayed put, doing the laundry, getting the windlass to work and getting some paint back on the motor’s casing. Having repainted Nellie we now spent a couple of hours putting a new piece of split hose around her top edge by way of a bumper.

We continued into Desolation Sound and found it lived up to its name as we approached, with low-level cloud and rain obscuring our view. The wind hit us from different directions in great gusts that made sailing an exciting experience A tug that was very slowly towing a huge collection of logs, actually gave way to us as we crossed the waterway to stop in Refuge Cove for lunch. After the next shower, we thrashed to windward for the afternoon before entering the peaceful Melanie Cove of Prideaux Haven. While enjoying the peace and beauty of this cove the following morning, Ken arrived in his dinghy. Dragons Taill was anchored in Laura’s Cove around the headland. So we joined them in the afternoon, when the windlass was put back in service, and had a pleasant time together. It rained again at night, but the sun cleared away the misty clouds in the morning.

We traversed much of the labyrinth of waterways of Desolation Sound, some six miles wide, some only a hundred feet, and some only to be tackled on slack water. On each side were moss covered rocky mountains with light and dark fir trees, beech and birch, and the red trunks of the arbutus trees, growing wherever they could get a toe hold. We found many cosy anchorages and walked many miles of trails through the rain forests, some not in the intended direction. Although everything on the islands was covered in thick green moss, we encountered few boggy patches on our walks. The hardest parts of the trail were climbing over, under or round fallen trees. We went to Campbell River on 27th May, where Andrew got a bus to Vancouver for his appointment with the eye specialist.