Laura Cove – Rocky, Scenic and Popular

Laura Cove, Like Most of the Prideaux Haven Area, is Strewn with Large Boulders and High, Rocky Tree Lined Shores.

We departed Refuge Cove for a short eight-mile run-up Homfray Channel to the Prideaux Haven area of Desolation Sound Marine Park. Laura Cove, next to Melanie Cove, was in our sights as our preferred anchorage. We anchored here during our trip three years ago, and it was one of our favorite spots. On our way in we cruised through the adjoining Melanie Cove to see how many boats were already anchored. We arrived a couple of days before Canada Day (July 1st) a long Holiday weekend for Canadians, hoping to get settled before the rush which never really came.

For a National Holiday, we didn’t feel there were many boats in Laura Cove, seven at anchor on our first night and only 13 on our last. This was good for us as we gained more personal space for a relaxing long weekend. Because it was the first major holiday of the summer in Canada, we were surprised by the fact that more boats were not scrambling to find available space to anchor. We’re beginning to think we are still ahead of the crowded boating season in Desolation Sound.

It Was a Five Eagle Day!

While en route that day we saw five eagles. As our trip is progressing, we made note of how many eagles we see each day, I think this is the most we’ve seen in any one day… so far.

Laura Cove, like most of the Prideaux Haven area, is strewn with large boulders and high, rocky tree-lined shores. In addition to the natural beauty surrounding the cove, there are eye-popping views all around with snow-capped mountain peaks viewable from the rocky islands with even more visible out in Homfray Channel. This is the perfect place for us to call home for a few days – four to be exact.

One of the challenges of anchoring out in a place like Desolation Sound is conserving water. If we are very careful we can last a week. Taking showers is a real water-hogging activity, so we try to swim if the water is warm enough and just rinse off with a bit of fresh water. Or if the water is too cold to swim, we’ll fill our bucket (above-right) with lake water (or salt water, whatever we are cruising in at the time) and add some hot water to it, pouring it over our heads and bodies and again quickly rinsing off with fresh water.  While at Refuge Cove a few days ago, we dug out our pail and filled it up with fresh water before we left for Laura Cove. We figure we can squeeze two baths out of that water and can stay on the hook one or two more nights.

We took long dinghy rides to the nearby rocky islands to stretch our legs and explore. We ventured to the head of the cove to try to find the remains of Old Phil’s cabin site. We read about Old Phil, the Frenchman, in the renowned book, A Curve of Time by M. Wylie Blanchet.