Monday, July 11 Klewnuggit Inlet to Prince Rupert 5 hours 58 miles

We saw a BC ferry, one tub & tow (barge) and a couple of fishing boats (not fishing) as we traveled the rest of the way in Grenville Channel up to Chatham Channel.  We called Prince Rupert Rowing & Yacht Club (PRR&YC).  I think they have members but will rent slips to non-members when available.  The told us they weren’t sure yet if there would be any room so we planned on anchoring in Pilllsbury Cove to wait. We cruised by the city front and checked out the fuel dock. There is only one in town and pleasure boats are way outnumbered by pleasure craft.  We were not comfortable fighting our way in with the fishing boats so went off to anchor.  There is pretty good wind and chop in the cove.  After dinner I noticed that our anchor had slipped.  I always place on mark (ý) on the chart plotter where the boat is when first anchored.  The good new is that we were not near any rocks, however, the anchor needs to be re-set if we are to stay here.  Fred called the PRR&YC to see how it looked for a slip tonight.  Jeff at the marina called at 7 pm to say our slip was ready.  We had a side-tie on the inside of the floating dock.  A really good spot.  After securing the boat we went off for a walk.   Most everything was closed but the weather was sunny and the walk felt very good.  On our way back to the boat we stopped and got a scoop of ice cream at Cowpuccinos.  This area of Prince Rupert is called Cow Bay and the cow motif is everywhere.  It is really cute. 

Sunday, July 10 Khutze Inlet to Klewnuggut Inlet 6 ½ hours 71 miles

We had enough crab to have a crab omelet this morning and I froze two more cups for later.  We have a long trip today in hazy sunshine.  The water was flat the whole way.  We traveled to Fraser Reach ® MaKay Reach ® Wright Sound ® Grenville Channel.  Grenville channel is a long, straight channel that leads to Prince Rupert.  This channel is used by the ferries, cruise ships, tugs & barges and the rest of us.  We have continued to be surprised by the lack of marine traffic.  We stopped for the night in a large inlet named Klewnuggit.  We traveled about five miles back into a lovely cove.  This inlet is about the halfway mark in Grenville channel. 

Saturday, July 9 Khutze Inlet

Early this morning this valley was shrouded in fog.  It was spectacular as it lifted and the bright sun came out.  Fred went and pulled one of the crab pots. We had luck.  There were five keepers but we are only allowed four a day so one got a reprieve.  Fred killed & cleaned them and we cooked the crab in a pot on a propane burner in the cockpit (no smell inside the boat!).  We had a nice tour of the inlet on the dinghy and had a crab salad for dinner.  

 

Emerald Star at the base of the falls

Friday, July 8 Tom Bay to Khutze Inlet 5 ½ hours 55 miles

We are heading into one of our favorite places, Fiordland.   We are surrounded by snow capped mountains and there are many spectacular waterfalls.  We were looking for a “spirit bear” along Princess Royal Channel.   These are regular black bears that are not albinos but carry a recessive gene and are pure white.  Unfortunately we did see any kind of bear.  Khutze Inlet looks and feel like Yosemite Valley. The mountain peaks feel very close and it is so peaceful here.  As one enters the first thing you see are the snow capped mountains all around.  The inlet is 5 miles long.  Then as one nears the head of the inlet the Khutze River has created a wonderful green carpet in the shallows.  We anchored in our usual spot in front of a 1000’ waterfall.  The water is about 90’ deep here which discourages many boaters from coming in here.  The weather is rainy but we put the dinghy in the water and Fred goes and place two crab pots.  We have usually had good luck here. 

Thursday, July 7 Shearwater to Tom Bay 3 hours 26 ½ miles

The first thing we did this morning as we left the dock was to putt over to the boatyard and get Emerald Star hauled out of the water to check the thrusters.  This place is a rip-off.  It cost $650 just to haul the boat and put it back into the water.  Back in Washington it costs half that much.  I guess they can get away with the charge because they are the only game in town.  We were shocked to see that all of the bow thruster blades were broken off.  We put new ones on last month. Fred tried to reach someone at Cap Sante Marine to see if new blades could be shipped to us.  We weren’t able to make those arrangements.  Fred had them move the stern thruster props to the bow thruster.  The bow thruster is more important.  We were back in the water and on our way by 10:30 AM. This all happened after Fred had pulled the motor. Really not sure if he can get the damn thing back on. Fred made some guide pins out some bolts and literally slid the motor down his leg into the mounting. I must say this surprised me it worked so well.  We passed through a couple of beautiful, small, rocky channels (Reid Passage & Perceval Narrows) and Seaforth Channel which was open to the sea.  We encountered about 2 foot ocean swells through there. When we were in Mathieson Channel we noticed some surging of the engines. Fred checked them and found the fuel filters were almost completely blocked. We anchored early in nearby Tom Bay. Fred says we dodged a large bullet by finding this out. After things cooled down in the engine room Fred changed the Racor fuel filters on both engines.  They thanked him profusely …. 

Shearwater

Shearwater Marina

broken bow thruster blades

Emerald Star being hauled

stern thruster, moved the blades to the bow

Wednesday, July 6 Shearwater

Fred has worked very hard all day on the bow thruster.  He has done extensive internet searches and even called Cap Sante Marine in Anacortes to get advice.  The advice was not helpful. Was the problem with the thruster propellers or the connection between the thruster motor and the drive gear to the props???? Does one pull the motor (mucho heavy and awkward) or pull the boat to see what’s with the props ($$$$)???

Wednesday, June 29 Port McNeill to Allison Harbour 4 hours 36 miles Joan’s birthday…

We are unhappy because we missed a wonderful weather window to travel around Cape Caution.  The last three days here have been rainy but there was no wind.  Today as we travel across Queen Charlotte Straight the swells gradually increased to 4-5 feet.  We listened to the weather at West Sea Otter buoy and the report said the sea was 1.3 meters in height. We have learned the hard way if West Sea Otter is over one meter for get it. Emerald Star handled the rough water very well, however, Fred was at the helm and less than thrilled. Of course before we set out I secured anything loose, just in case.  Allison Harbour is very large with many good anchorage spots.  There was only one other boat in there when we arrived.  When we got settled Fred gave me my give of jewelry.  I love jewelry!  Ask my sisters or my daughter. They think I have a sickness.  We put the dinghy down with hopes of placing a crab pot and going sightseeing. Unfortunately the battery was dead so Fred hooked up the charger for while. The rain got more steady and heavy so plans of sightseeing today were put off.  After several hours of charging, the dink started and Fred took the crab trap out in the rain. 

Tuesday, July 5 Kwakume Inlet to Shearwater 3 ½ hours 35 miles

It is another rainy, foggy day, but no storm.  Shearwater is the only marina in miles & miles so we usually stop here on our way north & south. They also have a latte place, good grocery store and a nice restaurant. They also have a nice laundry facility but I use the machines on the boat (yippee!). As it turns out, they have a big boatyard. On our trip from Fittz Hugh Sound to Lama Passage we saw two humpback whales.  Just cruising, no fantastic breaching or anything.  As we approached the marina we saw that the north side of the dock was free.  The dock is a T shape and the north side is open to the wake, wind and chop.  As we were docking and Fred was in position to use the thrusters to push us in, unbeknownst to him, the bow line fell into the water and promptly  fouled the bow thruster.  !@#$  Fred got us on the dock beautifully, anyway. However, now the motor for the bow thruster works but there is no thrust.  This will be a problem for tomorrow.  There is a new Wharfinger here.  He is a pleasant fellow named Bernie.  The last two years we encountered a real sourpuss here.  The dock was about half full when we arrived.  We didn’t have a reservation so we were pleased to get on the dock.  As the afternoon progressed the dock filled up completely.  We noticed a flyer that said the “Fish on five” were performing at the pub.  When we asked what kind of music they played we were told classical so we reserved a great table near the front.  The dinner was so-so but the band was great.  They are a group of five members of the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra. The group consisted of 2 trumpets, one trombone one French horn and a small tuba thing (we really don’t know what it was).  They are on a fishing trip and are stopping at a few places along the way to perform.  Their repertoire consisted of John Philip Souza, Henry Mancini, the Beatles and various classical pieces including the William Tell Overture.   

Fish-on-Five

Monday, July 4 Allison Harbour to Kwakume Inlet 4 ½ hours 54 miles

We have been stuck in Allison Harbour since last Wednesday.  It has rained every day.  We checked the weather at least three times a day to see if we could get out and pass Cape Caution.  The wave report at West Sea Otter (the one we need to be safe for travel) has been 2-3 meters every time.  This morning the wave report was down to 1.4 meters so we headed out.  Not far out of the cove into Queen Charlotte Straight we encountered the ocean swells.  Sure enough they are over 3 feet, but not too bad.  They were not coming frequently and Emerald Star handled it very well.  The wind was not over 15 knots the whole way.  Traveling at 11-12 knots we were past Cape Caution in 3 hours.  As we turned into Fitzhugh Sound the water became almost calm.  The only traffic we saw all morning was two fishing boats and two barges.  We were going to stop at Fury Cove (lovely anchorage with a white sandy beach) but the weather was so good we headed up to Kwakume Inlet.  We entered at low tide, which means all the ugly little rocks were visible.  We anchored just inside in 58 feet of water.  We put a new Rocna anchor on the boat last winter.  We are very pleased how quickly and easily it sets up.  As soon as we anchored the heavens opened up again. Per our rain gauge we are getting approximately 1 inch of rain a day.  

Friday, July 1 Allison Harbour

The rain and waves at West Sea Otter are keeping us here another day. Fred suited up in his raingear and went out to pick up the crab pot.  We had one large male crab (females must be thrown back).  We decided to keep him and have some crab for dinner.  There is this marvelous set-up that was left on the boat when we bought it.  There is a large crab pot and a propane stove that can be used to cook crab outside instead of smelling up the inside of the boat.