Beresford Inlet to Rose Inlet via Hot Springs Island

Anchor up at 7:15 am and off we went to Hot Springs island. After a short trip of 7 miles we all set our anchors. Captain Rich did not want to raft any more, and I can’t blame him. Deception, Patos  and Grand Adventure dropped anchor in the rocky “marginal area” in front of the Hot Springs while Change of Latitude, Dream Catcher and Alaskan Dream continued around to the shallow and more protected spot between Hot Springs and House island. Our anchor set well and we headed off in the mist on Deception's "ferry dinghy" to the Island, not certain whether we were going to lounge in one of the hot spring pools or if we would just explore.

Part of the fleet anchored in front of the Watch Keepers cabin

We took quick showers ashore in the facility provided on the island and then headed back to the small hot springs "pool" away from the cabins and showers. It was fabulous;: not too hot, clear, cozy and private. We enjoyed it so much, we stayed in for about 40 minutes. While in the pool, the rain stopped and it was pretty magical. Jordan ferried us back to Alaskan Dream and we left at 10:38am.

Karen enjoys one of the hot springs pool

The Watch Keepers bring in supplies from the supply boat in the protected bay

 Jordan is very busy running the ferry service

The schedule changed enroute and we skipped an overnight at Mathieson and preceded directly to Rose Inlet in preparation for SGang Gwaii tomorrow. It was a good idea so we can make up our lost extra day in Prince Rupert.

There were swells and we rolled some for one and a half hours. I made yummy egg scramble with hot sausage, tomatoes, boat cheese, curried onions and green peppers and a fig balsamic glaze. Yum! I nearly fell over a few times making breakfast while Karen was at the helm. After two hours we traded off, and Karen slept for 45 minutes. The weather changed to calm and the sun was thinking about coming out. It was a +5 hour run with swells, but not too bad overall.

I continued to try to get the watermaker working, but to no avail. As we approached the entrance to Rose Harbour, we did see one whale. Deception put the pedal to the metal and rushed up Rose Inlet, made a hard right turn, and dropped anchor behind Ross Island. We continued a bit further up the inlet and found a nice spot to anchor.

Everyone else got protected spots behind Ross Island. We were the furthest up the inlet and less protected, but the calm conditions made for a peaceful night. Had a beer and some snacks and soon Jordan came to look at the watermaker and declared that the raw water pump was dead.

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Rose Harbour anchorage

Tomorrow only Deception and Dream Catcher travel to SGang Gwaii to limit our impact on the small anchorage. We get to ride along on Dream Catcher with Lance and Kathy along with the crew from Patos. Jordan will come over and ferry us to Dream Catcher at 7:45 AM. We are happy to not be one of the two boats because we do not need to clean our boat in anticipation of guests!

We did see a small Sitka Black Tail deer on beach behind us. And one noisy seal bared his teeth at us when we went on the bow to deploy the bridle.

Karen loves the glazed carrots

Dinner was hoisin pork tenderloin and maple glaze carrots.

Crescent Inlet to Beresford Inlet via Tanu & Windy Bay

A hardy breakfast in preparation of a busy day

It’s another early start for our first day of experiencing Haida culture. We have two stops planned at Haida historic sites. 

Our neighbor in Crescent Inlet

A pretty morning as the clouds lift

Karen at the helm

Jordan ferries the fleet in

In less than two hours we were constructing an all-boat raft in the anchorage at Tanu. Despite the rules that say they only take 12 guests at a time, the watchmen were very gracious and took all 16 of us at once. To keep our impact to a minimum, Jordan from Deception ferried us all to shore in their dinghy.

The watchmen were Sean and Helen, and they were both super hosts. Both were very knowledgeable and eager to share. It was a long walk through the wooded areas on a path lined with seashells. The shells let everyone know where to walk so we did not intrude on the sites themselves. We saw the remains of the Haida village with the roof beams on the longhouses about the only recognizable structure. We enjoyed seeing the remaining poles in the village. Everything is covered in moss and Mother Nature reclaims that which the Haida built. It is part of the Haida culture to allow all this to decay and return to the earth. 

We learned that the Haida were fierce fighters and explorers as remains of their canoes have been found as far south as California. A healthy diet with plenty of protein, from both land and sea, led to big men who were often 6 feet tall. Apparently they towered over their adversaries. They did raid other tribes for women and children to expand the gene pool beyond the two Haida clans: the Eagle and the Raven. It is so sad that the European explorers brought disease, smallpox and measles that almost eradicated the Haida nation.

Mother Nature reclaims all

Looking our to the protected bay in front of the village

Watchman Sean shares his passion for the history of the Haida

The Watchman's cabin

The tour was great and we also got to see the watchman’s cabin and some of the old pictures they have of the settlement in its heyday in the late 1800s. It was sunny and the anchorage was very calm.

We then set out for Windy Bay and as we neared we could see how the Bay earned it name: it was very windy and the seas were churned up. To our surprise, Capt. Rich decided to raft all the boats together again. As we approached, we could see the bottom paint of the other boats below the boot stripes.

Sea starting to build

Every fender was put into play between us and Change of Latitude. I spent an extra 15 minutes trying to find the optimum placement of the fenders so they would provide the most protection for both boats.  Again, Jordan ferried all the crews to the shore and he and Capt. Rich remained on the raft to tend to the fenders and keep anchor watch.

The watchman couple, Frank & Denise, greeted us. This site is very different, with less to see. There is a “modern” longhouse; the Blinking Eye meetinghouse that was that was built in the mid-80s for meetings of those who protested logging on island. Now it is a nice shelter for kayakers. Frank told us they got far fewer visitors than Tanu; 300 so far this year versus Tanu’s 1000 visitors. That is due to the site itself being less easy to access and the fact, in my opinion, that there is less history to see. 

Blinking Eye Longhouse

Trekking through the woods and streams

However, we took a marvelous 45 minute walk through the forest and saw the largest spruce tree in North America. It is over 900 years old. We emerged at the Creek and Frank was there to ferry us over to the other sides so we did not have to backtrack along the path.

Karen and Kathy stand below the largest Spruce tree

Jordan, our hero

Meanwhile, back at the boat raft, things were turning into a bit of a disaster and Capt. Rich wanted us all back on the boats ASAP. Jordan ferried us out to Alaskan Dream. Earlier, he untied her from the raft and re-anchored her away from the raft, as the raft was moving up, down and sideways in the wind and swell. Moving her prevented damage. The interior was tossed about but nothing was misplaced other than a lot of our spices! We raised the anchor from the inside helm because it was too dangerous to be on the bow. In a couple of minutes we were underway

Our destination was Beresford Inlet that has a mile-long drying bar to navigate. We throttled back to time our arrival near high tide. Being first off, we led the way, with Change of Latitude on our stern. After we set the anchor we invited Dream Catcher alongside for drinks and appetizers aboard Alaska Dream. Jordan joined us for a while to relax and enjoy a drink after a crazy day.

Unlike Windy Bay, Beresford Inlet was calm and quiet.

Gordon Cove to Crescent Inlet

We got under way before eight, headed for Crescent Inlet. Since we choose to go slower than the rest of the fleet to conserve fuel, our early start put us in the lead with Dream Catcher on our stern. Abeam Olive Inlet, we caught a glimpse of a few seals but there was not much more wildlife to see.

As we approached Louise Narrows, we slowed down so Deception could take the lead through the shallow and narrow waterway. Louise Narrows is a dredged channel and serves as a useful shortcut. As we arrived on a rising tide, we got a good look at the dredged earth on either side of the channel. Alaskan Dream took up position at the end of the fleet so we got some good pictures during the transit. The depths were shallow and the current was running, so the helm was busy keeping Alaskan Dream in the center (deepest part) of the channel.

No doubt where you need to put the boat

The channel has a few turns along the way

Clear water makes it easy to see the things to avoid

The water was very clear so we had a good look at the obstructions on either side of the channel and saw a depth as low as 5 feet under her keel. All in all it was a very interesting passage and a nice break from the open water cruising.

The Mother Goose "train"

Back into open water

Looking back into Louise Narrows

Exiting the channel, we made our way to Crescent Inlet. This Anchorage is one of those where it seems to take forever to get to the head of the inlet. Our watermaker wasn't working so we came alongside Deception to take on some fresh water. She was anchored quite far from the head, so we could not see any bears on the shore. Later we got a report from the other boats that they too did not see any bears so we didn't miss anything!

It was a peaceful night. Dinner was delicious King Salmon with hoisin glaze and baked curried sweet potatoes. “Mega-YUM!”, says Karen.

Part of the fleet anchored in Crescent Inlet

Patos goes our to explore in her dinghy

Queen Charlotte City to Gordon Cove

Never could figure out what the author of this sign intended

They say you should never start a blog with the weather. But, since weather plays such an important role in our cruising, let’s start with the weather. The ceiling this morning is only 150ft, but the visibility underneath is good. So unless the ceiling descends into fog, it should not be a factor in our travels.

I got up early, took a shower then walked the docks looking for subjects to photograph. Soon we were casting off and I turned the helm over to Karen to make breakfast.

We led the fleet for a while. It is a long way back out to Sandspit, where we made a right turn and followed the coastline after crossing the bar near the green buoy. It felt like we would never make enough headway to get past Sandspit! It was a lovely and calm day, but there was not much to see in the way of wildlife.  After a long while, we entered Cumshewa Inlet, where we saw a Moresby Explorer dinghy loaded with people (who waved) and then saw their facility in the distance. We kept going til we reached Gordon Cove, where we anchored then dropped the dinghy to go explore with part of the Mother Goose motley crew.

The fleet all lined up

We began our explorations with a walk through the dense forest. There was a great logging road and subsequent trail that made the exploration easy.

"If those guys made it, I guess it's OK"

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The lush forest always fascinates me

I always ponder the idea of how the native people managed to navigate though these forests

Even the pros foul their props

We also explored the area up the inlet under the bridge near Moresby Camp. Jordan was one step ahead of us in his dinghy as we followed in his “footsteps” under the old bridge and back to an old cabin. You never know what you’ll find, and that’s the fun of it all.

Jordan says" Check out the camp past this bridge" 

Home sweet home to someone

"Red sky at night....". Let's hope that old saying is true.

Queen Charlotte City

Sausage, tomato and Asiago cheese omelette with a balsamic drizzle

Today is a lay day in Queen Charlotte City. Well almost. We all have to go to the Gwaii Haanas orientation. Every visitor to the park must do this, get his or her pass and fill out some paperwork.

NW Explorations arranged for a bus to take us to the orientation center 8 kilometers down the road.

Climbing the hill from the docks to get on the bus

Great orientation by the Park Ranger

All assembled at 9:30 in the orientation room and the park ranger went though a 90-minute PowerPoint presentation of what we could expect and what was expected from us. The Ranger, Kae (who grew up here), was great and the presentation very thorough.

The orientation is held at the Kaay Centre in Skidegate. This impressive set of buildings also houses the Haida Gwaii museum and the Parks Canada Headquarters. Well worth the visit, beyond the orientation. In addition to our briefing and passes, each person is given a 100 page bound booklet about everything you want to know about the Gwai Haanas. It covers various historic sites, weather, tides, wildlife and even rats. We were also given many specialized informational brochures about more timely issues such as the preservation of the Abalone, a threatened species in these waters.

Kaay Centre in Skidegate

Lots to see in the museum

After two hours, the bus came to take us back to Queen Charlotte. Alaskan Dream and Dream Catcher asked the bus driver to take us two more kilometers to the actual town of Skidegate so we could look around and do some shopping for native art.

Kathy and Lance from Dream Catcher joined us as we walked the very small village. There is a gift shop, and some artists’ studios to visit. The walk to the very famous Haida artist Ben Davidson is about  one kilometer out of town. His work is impressive and very expensive. For just a picture of one of his famous works, you pay what you would hope you could buy the original carving. To our good fortune, he was in his studio working on a commission and was most gracious to explain his art and craft to us. I’m glad we walked the extra mile.

The native culture remains a source of pride here

You find that native pride in the most unexpected places

We hailed a taxi back to Queen Charlotte to have lunch at Queen B’s.  All enjoyed their lunch and we would recommend it if you find yourself here. They also serve breakfast.

After lunch we did some provisioning, starting with the closest store and working our way out. Our first stop was the convenience store where I paid  $4.79 for a Haagen Dags bar. Next we stopped at the organic and natural foods store ending up at the supermarket about a half mile west on Oceanview Drive.

The best little lure house in the Charlottes, so says the sign

We picked up a few things we were running short of, such as half and half, coffee, oranges and potatoes.

The docks at Queen Charlotte

Working harbor log tug

All business, no frills in the tug command center

Dream Catcher was still anchored out and in need of water, so we invited them to raft to us, so they could fill their tanks before we departed for the Gwaii Haanas tomorrow. Lance took Jordan up on his offer to drive the boat given small confines of the harbor.

Jordan and Lance bring Dream Catcher along side

I (Bob) made a mojito or two on the boat, and then we walked up to Howler's Bistro for dinner, sitting out on the balcony overlooking the harbor. Nachos and wings were our food of choice, along with beer and a piece of caramel chocolate turtle cheesecake.

As we walked back to the boat, we went into the liquor store under the bistro and picked up a 12 pack of Okanagan Springs pale ale. $30! Ouch. But needed!

Queen Charlotte City has good power and good water on the docks and provisioning close by. However, it is first come first served with rafting needed in busy times. The other option is Sandspit. It has a beautiful new  marina, but it is a long walk and ferry ride back across to Queen Charlotte City.

Queen Charlotte is home to working boats, but friendly to us cruisers