It’s been a long winter break. We moved the boat from the marina in Ganges over to a new mooring in Long Harbour. It’s well sheltered there, easier for us to access, and it gives us faster access to more interesting cruising grounds.The first cruise of the season was out past Walker Hook and then to Wallace Island. Like too many of the well known landing spots here in the Gulf Islands, Princess Cove is a bit overrun and littered from too many visitors, or at least careless visitors. But right next door, we found Panther Cove, a short walk away. It was beautiful, with a gravel and shell beach and lots of big driftwood logs.
Yesterday in Ganges Harbour at the government docks I spotted the SeaSnaps boat. Maria is one of the few local marine photographers, and although I’ve never met her, I’ve seen her work often in Pacific Yachting Magazine and elsewhere. That boat sure is distinctive in pink… and ugly! It is plastered with logos and other decals, like a race car, and sports a couple of 115 HP outboards on the back of the custom built hull. Well, maybe next time I’ll get to meet her and talk shop.
A sunny afternoon, a few stolen hours, and we had a chance to explore James Bay on Prevost Island, where there is one of several areas waiting to become Gulf Islands National Park. With a low and rising tide, we pulled up on the gravel and shell beach at the head of the bay and explored the stream, forest and a bit of the walking trail there. Back in the boat we tooled around a bit in Selby Cove and Glenthorne Passage, before heading home. Still on our original allotment of fuel–about 11 hours on 30 liters!(boating, gulfislands)”James Bay” by cebsaltspring
An arbutus tree on Goat Island in Ganges Harbour, during a brief trip around the harbour right at dusk. There were lots of jellyfish off the NW end of Goat Island, and a harbour seal made a brief cameo. The marinas are still full of big yachts, and I realized as I drifted around the quiet water that there is so little yacht traffic, that they must all come and sit in their slips for the entire weekend, or week. What a shame that they spend most of their time in a floating RV park, missing out on the amazing experiences to be had just a stone’s throw away.(boating, gulfislands)”Arbutus at Dusk” by cebsaltspring
A beautiful Sunday morning trip! 18 NM more, and still on the first 24l tank of fuel. 16 kts maximum with 2 aboard. See the Flickr photos for seals at Atkins Reef and cormorants on the Ballingall Islets. Another spectacular summer day in the Gulf!
(boating, gulfislands)
Trip number “2 and half” was solo, to the Long Harbor beach, and back during sunset. Experimented with motor trim. There are three positions on the Honda BF20. First position maximum speed according to GPS: 16 knots; second position: 17 knots; third position: 18 knots, or about 20 mph. This is just what I calculated after first acquiring the hull. Seems to indicate a cruising speed at 80 percent power of about 15-16 knots, which was the goal.
Next up: “jacking” the motor installation, and fine tuning the Smart Tabs.
For our second time out I installed one of the removable passenger seats, so we could provide a friend with a bit of a cruise. (The “trunk” lid folds back and over, and the seat or seats easily bolt to it. This way we have flexible seating for 1 to 4 adults. Any of the three passenger seats may be removed or installed facing fore or aft.)
The maiden voyage! Mixed weather in Ganges Harbour, but a very rewarding, if somewhat damp, trip. About an hour and a half took us around the harbor, some of the islands, including Goat Island near the cove where we have often walked, around Musgrove Point, Scott Point, and a little ways into Long Harbour. Figured out later that the motor trim was off by quite a bit, so it made for a wet ride. Seeing a small group of swans near Madrona Bay made the trip.
Note that more pictures appear on Flickr now, and by following the links below you can see a few more images from this trip and others, as an optional slideshow, as well as some keyed to a map of the area. Leave a comment and let me know what you think of the new system!
She is in the water! The splash from the christening is actually visible in this photo, below the bow eye. The control cables are finally in, and adjusted… and even color coordinated. (Many thanks to the good folks at Harbour’s End Marine.) This is a spot in the Salt Spring Marina where she will stay for a month while we work out the kinks.
Time for a test drive!
The boat has been christened! As seen here, it’s waiting on blocks for the boat yard transport trailer. Fuel tanks are filled, in place, and strapped down; windshield has been cleaned (finally!); all the wiring and electronics are in place: she is ready and waiting for the water! What a difference from the corroded, holed, peeling hull that was plunked down in the dirt of the driveway a year and half ago.
The christening was eventful…