It’s amazing how time is just flying by.
As I write this it is raining hard, I just finished doing a few chores in the galley and Ken is in the engine room painting the bilge. Chores that are put off on sunny days.
Since the lasr blog we ventured out of Mackenie Sound to Drury Inlet. Drury Inlet leads 12 miles(nautical) west between low hills. Depth through most of the inlet and the connecting waters are less than 40m (131 ft) and there are many dangers. Caution is advised.
Drury Inlet covers a large, low cedar-forested area near the coast leading to remote Actaeon Sound.
We chose Sutherland Bay to anchor and head out by dinghy to explore the area. Stuart Narrows would first have to be accomplished. We plan to hit as close to slack as possible.
Once anchored, we headed out by dinghy to gunk hole Muirhead Islands. We arrived at a high tide and were able to get into places otherwise unobtainable. Very captivating.
The following afternoon we headed out by dinghy to Bond Lagoon. It was low tide and flooding. Entry to Actaeon Sound is via Actress Passage, a very narrow fairway which requires avoidance of numerous hazardous rocks and reefs. The hills were becoming mountains. There was a clearance with a nice sandy beach and I was ready to suggest to Ken we land the dinghy and walk around. The words did not get uttered before a black bear ventured on the very spot I wanted to land. The dinghy was a safe place to stay! We continued on to Bond Lagoon. It has a very narrow entrance with about 2 feet depth at zero tide. We lifted the motor and paddle into the lagoon. Once inside, it opened up to a vibrant sea environment. Colourful birds, starfish, seals and jumping fish. On the way back we spotted our black bear again.
The following day found us again on the path of capturing the elusive Halibut. Nothing! We headed to Alert Bay to take on water and reprovision.
A native man with his family arrived at the dock, his boat filled with halibut and a 6 foot shark tied to the side of the boat. Spenser the 9 year old son received a tooth from the shark and proudly informed me he was going to make a necklace with it. I asked if he ate a lot of fish. “Too much” his reply.
We headed out towards Blunder Harbour. The seas were flat but we were traveling by Braille. The radar helped with the boats but vigilant watch was needed for the floating logs. The fog lifted just as we approached the harbour.
It is imagination that brings history and placed to life. Blunden Harbour is a lovely, well protected bay and the ruins of an abandoned Indian Village. If you explore and look closely, you can find evidence of past lives. The beach is littered with relics. The ruins of a longhouse, shell middens, burial boxes in the trees. What must it have been like to have this bay to themselves? Imagine the campsite of the Indians as they harvested their foods.
We are reading, listening and imagining so the places in which we anchor won’t be just a mark on the chart but a connection to the past.