There's Fishing and There's Catching

When it is just the two of us on the boat, our fishing resembles a Chinese fire drill. Jan runs the helm and finds the fish, Doug tends the down riggers. We wait for those great words - FISH ON! Doug sets the hook and begins to reel. Jan's work begins. She reduces the engines to 600 rmp, disengages the trolling motors, puts the main engines in neutral and races down from the bridge. If it is her turn to bring in the fish Doug hands her the catching pole and tends to the chores. If it is Doug's turn to bring in the fish, she reels in the second pole, brings both down rigger balls up and in the boat and prepares to net the fish. Bonking is always Doug's job. It's always more fun when we have guests and can spread the jobs around.

We were delighted to have Jim and Denise a part of our fishing adventures. In 2008 they met us on the West Coast of Vancouver Island which is known to be one of the finest salmon fisheries in the world. Unfortunately, that year was the worst catching in recent history. Nary a salmon was caught during their time with us.

But their trip this year was a different story.

They were the fisherpersons of the week catching 7 salmon and the limit of 12 ling cod. Just too much fun.

Soon after they departed we found good halibut fishing wsith Doug being the King of Halibut - 20 lbs and 40 lbs. Jan landed a 30 pounder.

Fjiords, Baby Seals and Totems

Fjiordland is a marine park north of Bella Bella framed by high granite cliffs sculpted by glaciers and touched by history. Waterfalls are everywhere. We cruised up Kynoch Inlet and transited a small tidal rapid and spent the night as the sole human inhabitants. The next morning we traveled north through Mussel Inlet where Captain Vancouver had dispatched his men up Mussel Inlet on the endless search for a way through from the West Coast to the East Coast. The crew gathered mussels for dinner not knowing they were contaminated with paralytic shellfish poisoning (red tide). Many men were ill and one died. As a result the cove at the end of Mussel Inlet is named Poison Cove.


Early the next morning at Windy Bay anchorage Doug captured an amazing picture. We were anchored close shore. The seals that had played the night before hauled out on the rocks. First the big male, next the female who quickly rolled on her side. Their baby quickly followed and began his breakfast. Simply amazing.












Looking out toward the Pacific Ocean from the Seaforth Channel three watchers once stood. Their origins remain a mystery. Perhaps they stood watch for a Haida war party coming from the north. One still stands, one is no more and one watcher sleeps.

The Allisons Fish and the Eagles Eat

Nicky is an avid fisherman who has caught such exotics as barracuda off of their boat in Guatemala. But even two guided days on the Kenai Peninsula had left her without a salmon. Finally the curse has been broken! Nicky caught her two Chinook salmon. And John was quick to follow suit with his limit of two. Both bigger fish weighed in at 24 1/2 lbs but there is an ongoing discussion about who holds the size record. What is your vote? The Allisons did not stop there - they caught some really nice yellow eye, several big rock fish and a small halibut! Great fishermen!.

When the eagles hear the dink heading for the big boat they know treats are coming. They perch in hierarchical order in the trees and watch our every move. We lay out the fish scraps the show begins.

Eagles can only carry about 4 lbs and carrying off a big salmon head is a chore. They swoop in, sometimes drop their prize and threaten one another with loud squawks. Occasionally an aerial dogfight will take place and feathers have flown. But since eagles have 7000 feathers they can lose a few without harm.

Interesting eagle facts: Eagles weigh between 10 and 14 lbs with females being slightly larger than males.

Their wing span is 72 to 90 inches and they can fly as fast as 35 mph in level flight and they can soar as high as 10,000 feet.

Juvenile eagles are speckled and each year they become more distinct as they develop the adult coloring.

A Magical Day

Sometimes in life there are times with touches of magic and we have been so blessed. After a fairly smooth crossing of Queen Charlotte Sound we entered Fitzhugh Channel and were greeted by three or four whales which we believe to be humpbacks. Shortly after they left us we were surrounded by a pod of at least 1000 white sided dolphins. They played in the wake and leaped out of the water.

Jan always gets excited when they big fish symbol shows on the fish finder even when Doug is the catcher. A nice yellow eye which looks like a snapper but is actually a big rockfish. This one weighed in at about 8 lbs.

But the real excitement came when the Orca whales arrived. A transient pod of three - a mama, a daddy and a baby. That would indicate that they are transient whales. We just put the boat in neutral and they passed close by.

The sunset was spectacular and the magic went into the next day when Jan caught a 28 lb salmon.

From Cul de Sacs to Coves

Turning our city girl, Heidi into a mariner was a delight. Getting from Phoenix, AZ to Port McNeill, BC is no small feat taking more than 13 hours. Jan drove to the airport while Doug fine tuned issues evolving from our vigorous shake-down cruise north. Driving from the airport Heidi got a glimpse of what was to come as we watched two huge black bear nonchalantly munching on sedge grass at the road's edge. Reality set in with a thump and Heidi realized that she was not in Phoenix any more.

As we entered our first anchorage, Lady Boot Cove, Heidi asked what a cove was - a reasonable question for a desert girl. Jan took out the chart and pointed out Lady Boot. "Cool", Heidi responded, "tonight we are going to park the boat in a cul de sac." "Never heard it put quite that way", Doug commented. A journey had begun.

We headed to Napier Harbour in a blinding rain that Heidi brought with her. After lending Heidi her trusty Costco raingear, Jan donned her newly-purchased, overboard-safe neon orange pants and coat. Heidi looked up somewhat laughinly said, "You look just like a crossing guard." Jan is firm that her cruel remarks are the result of fashion envy. The day was squandered digging cockles and gathering crab.

Determined to make Heidi a full fledged mariner, we headed for the Nakwakto Rapids which are reported to be the fasted flowing navigable tidal rapids in the world. Seldom visited by any save the intrepid, it is a wild and wonderful place. Last time we visited we surveyed a niche deep behind small islets and dubbed it SnowHawke Cove North. No more cul de sacs for Heidi she was gaining mariner status. She caught fish on her first ever fishing trip, pulled crab pots and helped Doug clean crab. She went out on prawn pot pulls and never batted an eyelash when the dingy engine faltered and Doug had to tie the boat to the prawn buoy and make emergency repairs.

The continued and it seemed that the Ark might float past Charlotte Bay at any moment. Rough weather forecasts headed us back to civilization (or a facsimile thereof). We headed toward Mamalilaculla the site of the last great potlatch. A potlatch is a northcoast cultural tradition where to demonstrate wealth a great feast is held and the chief gives away possessions. In the 1880's the tradition was banned because it was believed that the Indians would not "progress" if they remained mired in their old ways. Potlatches were then held in secret often in the winter when intrepid weather kept the Indian agents home. On Christmas of 1920 a great potlatch was raided and the participants jailed. Masks and dancing regalia were seized and shipped to East. It was a very sad day for many and it took until 1970 to have the items returned to the band in Alert Bay where they are housed in a museum. We put the boat on a lunch anchor and went ashore. Fresh bear scat that looked to be grizzly brought out our bear whistles and slowed our pace. The island is badly overgrown. We saw the school, the hospital and the mission houses but were unable to plow through the wild roses to the remains of the longhouse.

An early morning trip to the airport and opening sunny skies as Heidi flew South. Jan and Doug head out for new and unexplored territory around Bella Bella.

Why We Do What We Do....

For some it is puzzling and perplexing that Doug and I live as we do. It is not possible to explain why we would buy a boat, sell our condo and become drifters who land periodically in Deb and Ralph’s basement. But each day at sea is an adventure filled with surprises.
Have you ever seen an oyster that weighs 5 lbs and is 12 inches long? Jan found one on the beach.
Did you know that a stern tie could sing? We thought that its maker, brother Dale, had endowed it with special talents which did not include pitch nor tone. We found that when a tight rope is tied to a large rock, the rock can vibrate creating a high pitch tone.
Have you ever seen a Harlequin Duck in full mating season dress? The males are very showy. These small and uncommon ducks flirted and courted around us for several days.
And, last but never least, there is the fine dining. Can you eat your own weight up in crabmeat? That is surely Doug’s goal.
Tomorrow will bring new surprises for certain.

Heading North into Canada

Since we plan to edge further north this year our start needed to be earlier. Fortunately, we got a lot of difficulty out of the way during our preparation – if it could be difficult it was! At some point we just looked at one another and laughed. In the end we left on time and Doug readily survived the redecorating of the boat. The project turned out very well and we are happy that we did it and also happy that it is done.

Our friends, Gene and Sandy, joined us for the first leg of the journey. We spent our last day together on San Juan Island exploring Roche Harbor and English Camp. Tensions were high between the British and Americans over who had most valid claim to the San Juan Islands. The crisis came to a head with the “Pig War” which brought the two countries to the brink of war. Mediation settled the dispute and Sand Juan Island is, of course, American but the Union Jack still flies over English Camp.

After dropping Gene and Sandy we headed north toward Evan’s Bay which is one of our favored haunts. We were weathered in Comox for an extra day with the Straits of Georgia kicking up mightily. A nice bridge game with the locals made the stop memorable.