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Lasqueti Island – Life Off the Grid

Lasqueti Island – Our fascination with this island had just begun – It was just a short 12-mile hop from our anchorage in Tribune Bay on Hornby Island to False Bay, located at the north end of Lasqueti Island. The roughly 42-sq-mile island is situated less than ten miles from Vancouver Island. We really didn’t know what to expect once we got to the island, but we had a feeling that we were in for a special treat. We had heard a little about the alternative lifestyle on Lasqueti Island during our last visit to the Pacific Northwest. We were intrigued but, due…

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Newcastle Island Marine Park Anchorage Across from Nanaimo, BC

Newcastle Island Marine Park is Within Easy Access to Nanaimo, BC – Our route from Pirates Cove to Nanaimo took us through Dodd Narrows and eventually to Newcastle Island. This passage through a narrow channel needs to be well-timed to transit at slack tide. If not at slack the currents run up to 9 knots in a very turbulent swirling narrow channel between rocky cliffs. We were up at 6 a.m. to hit Dodd Narrows at the 7:03 a.m. slack. Our end destination was Newcastle Island Marine Park located across from Nanaimo BC, the second largest city on Vancouver Island.…

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Pirates Cove, De Courcy Island – Gulf Islands

Pirates Cove on De Courcy Island – A Provincial Marine Park – We slated a two-day stay anchored in the well-protected Pirates Cove. The park has two dinghy docks, one on the little peninsula and one on the far, inner side. There are many eye hooks and chains around the cove, making it easier to stern tie an anchored boat to shore. De Courcy Island is 300 acres of beautiful rocky shores, strewn with driftwood and mossy thick woods. There are about 40 private residences on the island and the owners have their own boat dock, Russell Landing, located in the cove across from the entrance. Feeling a Part…

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Hike to Conover Cove – Wallace Island, BC

Conover Cove - The Dream of David and Jeanne Conover – The next morning we rowed to the dinghy dock located at mid-point in Princess Cove. We wanted to hike the path at the perimeter of Wallace Island, which leads to Conover Cove. Once there, we stumbled upon a surprising find, the structural remains of Conover Settlement. One of the buildings, in particular, knocked our socks off because of all the, mostly driftwood, carved, painted, and decorated mementos left by boaters to mark their visit to the island over the years. It truly is a work of art in the making. Royal Cedar Cottages Were…

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Princess Cove Anchorage – Wallace Island

Poking Our Way Along the Gulf Islands to Princess Cove – Short cruising days are my kind of days on the water. When I planned the Gulf Island part of our summer cruising, I decided to explore most places we had not been to on previous trips. Most travel days now are around 20 miles long or so. Leaving Cowachin, we had only 14 miles to cruise northeast to our planned anchorage at Princess Cove on Wallace Island. Wallace Island is located in the beautiful Trincomali Channel between the northern ends of Saltspring Island and Galiano Island. The island is in…

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Ganges Salt Spring Island, British Columbia

One Night in Ganges Salt Spring Island –  After we pulled up anchor in Madrona Bay, we headed the short way into Ganges Salt Spring, to stay for one night before we head over to Wallace Island to anchor in Princess Cove. We love Ganges, it's a quaint waterfront town with lots of character. The only other time we were here was during our trip to the Pacific Northwest for the Ranger Tugs Desolation Sound Cruise. The town is just big enough that everything is within walking distance of the marina and docks on the waterfront. The marina was not very…

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Madrona Bay Anchorage – Salt Spring Island, British Columbia

A Quiet Night on the Hook in Madrona Bay – We left Poets Cove and South Pender Island for a three-hour cruise to Madrona Bay, near Ganges on Salt Spring Island. There are two routes to get to our day's destination. We could have transited Boundary Pass, a more exposed route, but we chose Pender Canal due to the high winds we had experienced the last few days. After three days of social activity at Poets Cove, we were looking forward to a night on the hook in a quiet cove. This is just what we found at Madrona Bay. [huge_it_maps id="28"]…

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Poets Cove – Ranger Tugs/Cutwater Cruise

Our Trip North Started at Poets Cove on South Pender Island –  Poets Cove Resort and Marina, on South Pender Island in British Columbia’s Gulf Islands, is where we started the Canadian portion of our summer cruising season. The start of our trip north was conveniently scheduled to match up with a 60-boat Ranger Tug/Cutwater get-together at Poets Cove. After a quick check-in with Canadian Customs, right next to the marina at Poets Cove, we started to feel the excitement for the start of the three-day event. One of the best things about attending a factory-sponsored cruise like this is…

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Jim with Charts

2016 Summer Cruising Season in British Columbia, Canada

Our Summer Cruising Season Will Take Us to the Broughton Islands –  Have you ever been somewhere before that you’ve loved so much you cannot wait to return? Have you ever wondered why it took you so long to discover it? In our early summer cruising adventures, we never dreamed territory such as the Pacific Northwest, San Juan, and Gulf Islands, Princess Louisa Inlet, Chatterbox Falls, and Desolation Sound existed. We’ve returned this year to cruise some of our favorite summer cruising stops from 2013, then we’ll continue further north to explore the Broughton Islands, a territory rich with wildlife and natural wonders. Our trip…

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At Anchor in Departure Bay for One Night

Out Into the Strait of Georgia Again, Heading for Departure Bay! We left Jedediah Island refreshed and confident in heading out again. We continued our crossing of the Strait of Georgia the day after being literally blown off the water. As you can see Lisa's taking photos again. While this day looked much better it was still a little stormy when we started out. However with some blue sky showing up on the horizon. The water conditions were still a little lumpy, but comparing it to the day before, it was a walk in the park, so to speak. By…

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Into the Light… Jedediah Island

Thankful for the Shelter and Beauty of Jedediah Island! The closer we got to Jedediah Island the calmer the waters and our nerves became. As we sliced through the channel, with the powerful push of following seas behind us, we traveled between Jedediah and Bull Islands (both islands are protected by two larger islands, Texada and Lasqueti), making our way to the leeward side of all the turbulence in the straits. Almost magically the wave activity became a non-issue. We immediately found a pint-sized, well-protected, cove suitable to drop anchor, a boat was just leaving so we hovered out a…

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Ranger Tugs Captain's Meeting, Comox B.C.

Fresh Shrimp Tonight in Comox, British Columbia

Leaving Nanaimo, we decided not to cruise with the pod on our way to Comox. It was an easy run with calm seas and sunny skies. Once settled in at the dock, there were more Ranger Tug owners to meet and hot showers to take. Happy hour consisted of another Captain's briefing on the outer dock. Jeff reviewed the events of the day and covered what would happen the next day. Cruising runs like we've done the last two days takes a lot out of you. Not much lingering on the dock in Comox after happy hour tonight. After reviewing…

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Forty-Five Ranger Tugs Gather at Ganges, British Columbia

Ganges Harbor, on Saltspring Island, is a short 10-mile run from Montague Harbor and the gathering point for the boaters participating in the Ranger Tugs 2013 Desolation Sound Cruise. We left early for Ganges, with yet another blue-skied day with just a light breeze and fairly calm waters. We looked forward to meeting up with about 45 Ranger Tugs and their owners for five days of socializing, pot lucks, and finally taking three days to cruise together up to Desolation Sound, and this was just the Ranger Tug boats, we would meet up with a group of Cutwater's (about another…

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Swinging and Singing in Montague Harbour, Canada

Montague Harbour, on Galliano Island, is part of the Gulf Islands. When we left Sidney, we had one more day to explore before we met up with the Ranger Tug group (sixty-some Ranger Tugs and Cutwater boats) to begin our cruise to Desolation Sound. So we left Sidney for Montague Harbour on Galliano Island part of the Gulf Islands. There is a Provincial Park in Montague Harbour which offers campsites, a dinghy dock, hiking trails, a bakery on the shore, and mooring balls – we picked up one of the thirty-odd mooring balls available in the harbor. We'd heard from a…

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Checking In with Customs at Poet’s Cove Marina – Bedwell Harbour, BC

Bedwell Harbour – Physical check-in with Canadian Customs at Poet's Cove Marina When entering Canada by water, boaters have to check into Canadian Customs at the first available Customs Station. After anchoring in Prevost Harbor off Stuart Island in the San Juan Islands, we headed into Canadian waters early the next morning. The San Juan Islands are located off mainland Washington (at the northwestern furthest point in the 48 contiguous United States). Our destination was only six miles or so north, across the Canadian border to South Pender Island where we docked for a physical check-in with Canadian Customs at…

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Kismet's Captain Jim Chart Review

Preparing, Packing and Planning for Our Trip West

Planning for the trip west! After spending this past winter holed up at home in northern Michigan remodeling our kitchen, we feel we're more than ready for some new cruising adventure. We are preparing, planning, and packing to head west soon to begin another fun boating season. First, we'll visit the Flaming Gorge  Reservoir on the Green River in Northeast Utah/Southern Wyoming. Then we'll continue on to Puget Sound in Washington State, there we'll put in at Anacortes and cruise north into Canada's Gulf Islands, Desolation Sound, and more. Check back often, the fun is soon to start.

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