Day 97, 8/4: We got fuel and traveled 60 miles from Shearwater to a place called Secure Anchorage at Penrose Island. So clever I could have named it. It is right next to Fury Cove where we anchored on the way up. Later we found out that Fury Cove was closed due to COVID and hasn’t been reopened. There were three boats that we saw anchored in Fury when we got there. The water was calm and the weather was warm and clear. We saw several whales but only got glimpses, they would go down and stay down.

Day 98, 8/5: Up early to check forecasts and actuals. The fog is thick but all indicators for going around Cape Caution look good. The entrance to the anchorage was a bit windy so we slowly made our way out with 20’ visibility. The entire day we had thick fog and visibility varied from the tip of your nose to a quarter mile. We used the instruments to guide our way and the radar to ensure there were no objects in front of us. The AIS was good for showing larger vessels and listening to vessel traffic on the radio. So, then it was all about watching for logs and debris. We got into the anchorage and the fog lifted, a pleasant surprise for picking a spot to anchor.

Day 99, 8/6: Thick fog in the anchorage although, it lifted as we were leaving. Back out in Queen Charlotte Strait the fog is again heavy, back to driving with instruments and radar. The for lifted after about three hours as we moved inland. We changed our destination due to high wind forecasts and decided to get a little farther inland for Monday and Tuesday. Along with the wind there is a lot of rain forecast for the area in the next week. We were able to get a spot at Echo Bay for tonight and Monday night which was surprising since Monday is a national holiday in Canada. The guy at Echo Bay told us it had been very slow this year, the speculation was that it was fuel costs.

Day 100, 8/7: Staying at Echo Bay today, there is no wind here so far. I don’t know if the forecast was bogus, we are well protected or it hasn’t shown up yet. A few minor chores and walk around the marina a few times are the agenda for today.

Shy Whales

Penrose Island

Fog

Blunden Harbour after 50 miles of fog

Kids jumping off the Rocks at Echo Bay

                                        

 Day 95, 8/2: We had an early start to catch Percival Narrows close to slack but not exactly. It started out overcast with patchy fog. Once through the narrows there is a narrow shallow path for several miles that keeps us out of the direct influence of the ocean. We hit it a low tide so we could see all the dangers to the sides and it was 15’ at its shallowest. In Seaforth Channel we came across a pod of Orcas, maybe 5 groups of 4-5 whales each. We had to go into neutral and they crossed just in front, behind and to the side of us. This was our first big pod of Orcas; other sightings have been 1-3 in a single group. Carolyn reports they are much more difficult to photograph than Humpbacks due to their speed. We proceeded to Shearwater as did other boats we have been anchoring with and tied up for 2 nights.

Day 96, 8/3: Still at Shearwater getting chores done and planning the next several days. We met people on a sailboat that are from St Helens, just on the other side of the marina, it's a small world. We will likely have dinner at the restaurant tonight. We will try to have everything ready to move over to the fuel dock when it opens at 7 AM so we can make a 60-mile run to be ready to go around Cape Caution on Saturday. Really looking forward to $8/gallon fuel but don’t need 220 gallons like last time.