Volume XII: Silva Bay & Pirates Cove
This hitchhiking vamp at the end of the fuel dock sets Page's apart
from the other marinas in Silva Bay. Inside the little office and
bookstore are more whimsical sculptures and crafts from local artists.
A homey, friendly spot, where Ted & Phyllis will assist in finding the
perfect cruising guide or book of poetry for your reading pleasure.
They told us that the store down the way featured homemade sausages and
European cheeses, so we made fast tracks there under oar power. It's a
very small grocery but packed with a very wide selection of meats,
cheeses and those sausages, even salmon sausages! We brought our bootie
back to Rikki-tikki and tried some for dinner. The Stilton cheese with
apricot was very good as dessert.
As I slid into the settee next morning with my coffee, I heard
crunching noises outside under the window where Darzee was tied. Two
otters were in the dinghy, munching loudly on fish. I reached for my
camera. Otters are pure perpetual motiion... they leaped out of the
dinghy just as I raised the camera of course. We've had otters in the
dinghy before – twice at Rebecca Spit – but always night visits by
unseen, messy otters. The scraps from their snacks had already
attracted hordes of flies by morning. Those otters required cleaning up
after. The otter family of four at Silva Bay were thankfully fastidious
and left no evidence of their meals.
We asked about internet access at Page's and were directed to the
restaurant/pub above the Silva Bay Marina. No luck. The young man in
the marina office offered to let us plug into the office ethernet, so
we brought our iBook over next day and did email while he was on the
docks attending to visiting sailboats. An unusual number for this time
of year seemed to be arriving. We later learned that this was three-day
Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. Even with the rain and windy
conditions, it seemed to us that a group of Sceptre 41s had made the
trip across the Strait of Georgia from Vancouver for a rendezvous. This
is only our assumption based on the fact that they were one-design and
all tied up together.
It's funny... we'd never heard of the Sceptre 41 until we got to the
Octopus Islands. John and Lynda's boat was of this Canadian design,
although he bought it as a hull and deck, finishing the interior and
outfitting himself. What a beauty! Perfect in every detail, with fine
craftsmanship and thoughtful layout, their Sceptre 41 looked like it
had just come, brand new, from a boat show. We were astonished to learn
that they had cruised BC aboard for eight seasons! After seeing their
lovely boat, we realized that another boat we'd seen several times at
different anchorages was also a Sceptre 41. John told us there were
only fifty made, so it was surprising to see four others arrive in
Silva Bay. Of the fifty, we've already seen six.
As we returned to Rikki-tikki, we saw that all four otters were on the
stern deck, running up and down our convenient transom steps with their
slimy catch. We crossed our fingers that we'd secured the aft window,
which we usually leave vented and hanging open because it's rainproof.
We had chicken thawing on the counter... what a mess they would be
making inside! Their neatness in the dinghy wouldn't prevail inside
Rikki, if they got in. Before I could get good photos, they were off in
a streak of shiny brown wetness. Thankfully, the window was cinched
down and we vowed never to leave Rikki with it open in otter country.
We left after breakfast next day to reach Gabriola Passage at high
slack. As we approached the pass, we saw a large power boat sitting
sideways across the channel. He moved aside as we neared, but suddenly
throttled up to cross our bow. As he went by, we noticed a very small
dive flag and a diver in a drysuit standing aft. Looking around, we
spotted the bubbles of at least one diver submerged near shore. We were
surprised that the dive boat didn't stay between vessel traffic (us)
and its divers. He should have. We remembered seeing a brochure in the
marina office that offered dive tours in Gabriola Passage. Diving is
only possible at slack current, but we didn't immediately connect the
sideways boat with diving until we saw the diver on board. Their dive
flag was way too small to be seen from any distance.
Pirates Cove, a small BC Marine Park, on De Courcy Island, was a place
we'd visited back in August 1993, during a heatwave. Back then we were
aboard a 32-foot catamaran captained by Roy Mills, and accompanied by
our friends, Bob and Peggy. Bob is the crewperson who so skillfully
steered Rikki-tikki through the maelstrom of our first night out from
San Francisco, May 26th. This October 2005 visit, the weather was very
much cooler and wetter, but the small bay was certainly a whole lot
less crowded!
We walked all the park trails, rowed Darzee around the small bay, and
got to know Luis and Betty on their self-built steel Dutch-design
sailboat. A group of young kayakers was camping in tents on the point,
apparently unfazed by the rain.
As we sat in the cockpit drinking our afternoon coffee, a very nice,
large sailboat of about 55' approached the entrance range-marker.
Pirates Cove has a tricky channel with shoals either side. Cruising
guides give clear instructions, the charts show the proper channel, and
there are red and green markers. The sailboat was on course for
avoiding the long shoal extending out from the point, but instead of
turning sharply to port to enter the channel between the markers, the
skipper brought the boat close in to shore and proceeded to drive right
over the rocks! I stood up, my heart in my throat for them, and
expected to hear fiberglass crunching on rock any second. Luckily for
them, it was a very high tide and the boat didn't ground. I told Clark
we should dinghy over when they got anchored to advise them of their
mistake, so they wouldn't risk damaging their bottom on the way out.
We didn't get the chance! They made a quick U-turn around an anchored
boat from Australia and headed back out the way they came! "NO!" I
yelled. They looked toward us. "Keep the red buoy to port on your way
out!" I called, as loudly as I could to be heard over their engine. All
aboard smiled and waved, then continued over the rocks, even closer to
shore than before! Yikes! We were just about to turn on the VHF and
hail them before it was too late, when a little sport boat zoomed out
from the resident docks blowing their horn and yelling, "Keep the red
buoy to port!" They raced over to the sailboat, repeating the warning.
The sailboat continued to inch forward. What were they thinking? Surely
they were aware of their shallow depth sounder readings. Finally, the
little motor boat reached the side of the sailboat. The sailors finally
turned to pay attention to the repeated warning, asking "Keep the red
buoy to port?" The little boat turned around, waited for the big
sailboat to back away from the shoal, then showed them the proper way
out. We were left shaking our heads. If the tide hadn't been extremely
high... Even the float planes use the marked channel.
At least it wasn't raining when we left Pirates Cove and motored down
Trincomali Channel toward Montague Harbour on Galiano Island. A brisk
south wind was blowing on our nose, and the water was lumpy. We'd
arranged for Rikki-tikki to have dock space at Montague, November
through January. The harbormaster was waiting for us to sign documents
and pay the modest moorage fee. We anchored out in the bay, rowed to
the dock and left a voicemail from the pay phone. As we returned to
Rikki, the sun came out and a rainbow appeared over the marina and
harbor. Perhaps a good omen?
Turning away from the rainbow to face the setting sun, we saw that this
apparition of a shark had formed inside a cloud. Should we be worried?
Fortuitously, a comfortable place ashore has been made available on
Galiano. My aunt offered her lovely house for our use while Rikki is
tied to the dock. Its deck overlooks the BC Marine Park beach. It's a
bit of a hike up the road to the property, but we plan on having our
car brought up to BC. We'll be able to get some larger sewing projects
done indoors, while also doing some small home repair for auntie.
Having a carpenter in the house for a few months was one of the perks
for her. The biggest advantage is ours though, and we send our
heartfelt gratitude. We are looking forward to being on Galiano Island
and getting to know BC a bit better by car.
Another low was forecast to bring SE gales, so we took Rikki to Ganges
for groceries, doing email at the Saltspring public library. Then we
took refuge in the small inlet called Glenthorne Passage on Prevost
Island, just across the way. We'd be meeting up with Dave and Marcia on
Juniata in a few days.
Fair winds,
Clark & Nina
As I slid into the settee next morning with my coffee, I heard
crunching noises outside under the window where Darzee was tied. Two
otters were in the dinghy, munching loudly on fish. I reached for my
camera. Otters are pure perpetual motiion... they leaped out of the
dinghy just as I raised the camera of course. We've had otters in the
dinghy before – twice at Rebecca Spit – but always night visits by
unseen, messy otters. The scraps from their snacks had already
attracted hordes of flies by morning. Those otters required cleaning up
after. The otter family of four at Silva Bay were thankfully fastidious
and left no evidence of their meals.
We asked about internet access at Page's and were directed to the
restaurant/pub above the Silva Bay Marina. No luck. The young man in
the marina office offered to let us plug into the office ethernet, so
we brought our iBook over next day and did email while he was on the
docks attending to visiting sailboats. An unusual number for this time
of year seemed to be arriving. We later learned that this was three-day
Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. Even with the rain and windy
conditions, it seemed to us that a group of Sceptre 41s had made the
trip across the Strait of Georgia from Vancouver for a rendezvous. This
is only our assumption based on the fact that they were one-design and
all tied up together.
It's funny... we'd never heard of the Sceptre 41 until we got to the
Octopus Islands. John and Lynda's boat was of this Canadian design,
although he bought it as a hull and deck, finishing the interior and
outfitting himself. What a beauty! Perfect in every detail, with fine
craftsmanship and thoughtful layout, their Sceptre 41 looked like it
had just come, brand new, from a boat show. We were astonished to learn
that they had cruised BC aboard for eight seasons! After seeing their
lovely boat, we realized that another boat we'd seen several times at
different anchorages was also a Sceptre 41. John told us there were
only fifty made, so it was surprising to see four others arrive in
Silva Bay. Of the fifty, we've already seen six.
As we returned to Rikki-tikki, we saw that all four otters were on the
stern deck, running up and down our convenient transom steps with their
slimy catch. We crossed our fingers that we'd secured the aft window,
which we usually leave vented and hanging open because it's rainproof.
We had chicken thawing on the counter... what a mess they would be
making inside! Their neatness in the dinghy wouldn't prevail inside
Rikki, if they got in. Before I could get good photos, they were off in
a streak of shiny brown wetness. Thankfully, the window was cinched
down and we vowed never to leave Rikki with it open in otter country.
We left after breakfast next day to reach Gabriola Passage at high
slack. As we approached the pass, we saw a large power boat sitting
sideways across the channel. He moved aside as we neared, but suddenly
throttled up to cross our bow. As he went by, we noticed a very small
dive flag and a diver in a drysuit standing aft. Looking around, we
spotted the bubbles of at least one diver submerged near shore. We were
surprised that the dive boat didn't stay between vessel traffic (us)
and its divers. He should have. We remembered seeing a brochure in the
marina office that offered dive tours in Gabriola Passage. Diving is
only possible at slack current, but we didn't immediately connect the
sideways boat with diving until we saw the diver on board. Their dive
flag was way too small to be seen from any distance.
Pirates Cove, a small BC Marine Park, on De Courcy Island, was a place
we'd visited back in August 1993, during a heatwave. Back then we were
aboard a 32-foot catamaran captained by Roy Mills, and accompanied by
our friends, Bob and Peggy. Bob is the crewperson who so skillfully
steered Rikki-tikki through the maelstrom of our first night out from
San Francisco, May 26th. This October 2005 visit, the weather was very
much cooler and wetter, but the small bay was certainly a whole lot
less crowded!
We walked all the park trails, rowed Darzee around the small bay, and
got to know Luis and Betty on their self-built steel Dutch-design
sailboat. A group of young kayakers was camping in tents on the point,
apparently unfazed by the rain.
As we sat in the cockpit drinking our afternoon coffee, a very nice,
large sailboat of about 55' approached the entrance range-marker.
Pirates Cove has a tricky channel with shoals either side. Cruising
guides give clear instructions, the charts show the proper channel, and
there are red and green markers. The sailboat was on course for
avoiding the long shoal extending out from the point, but instead of
turning sharply to port to enter the channel between the markers, the
skipper brought the boat close in to shore and proceeded to drive right
over the rocks! I stood up, my heart in my throat for them, and
expected to hear fiberglass crunching on rock any second. Luckily for
them, it was a very high tide and the boat didn't ground. I told Clark
we should dinghy over when they got anchored to advise them of their
mistake, so they wouldn't risk damaging their bottom on the way out.
We didn't get the chance! They made a quick U-turn around an anchored
boat from Australia and headed back out the way they came! "NO!" I
yelled. They looked toward us. "Keep the red buoy to port on your way
out!" I called, as loudly as I could to be heard over their engine. All
aboard smiled and waved, then continued over the rocks, even closer to
shore than before! Yikes! We were just about to turn on the VHF and
hail them before it was too late, when a little sport boat zoomed out
from the resident docks blowing their horn and yelling, "Keep the red
buoy to port!" They raced over to the sailboat, repeating the warning.
The sailboat continued to inch forward. What were they thinking? Surely
they were aware of their shallow depth sounder readings. Finally, the
little motor boat reached the side of the sailboat. The sailors finally
turned to pay attention to the repeated warning, asking "Keep the red
buoy to port?" The little boat turned around, waited for the big
sailboat to back away from the shoal, then showed them the proper way
out. We were left shaking our heads. If the tide hadn't been extremely
high... Even the float planes use the marked channel.
At least it wasn't raining when we left Pirates Cove and motored down
Trincomali Channel toward Montague Harbour on Galiano Island. A brisk
south wind was blowing on our nose, and the water was lumpy. We'd
arranged for Rikki-tikki to have dock space at Montague, November
through January. The harbormaster was waiting for us to sign documents
and pay the modest moorage fee. We anchored out in the bay, rowed to
the dock and left a voicemail from the pay phone. As we returned to
Rikki, the sun came out and a rainbow appeared over the marina and
harbor. Perhaps a good omen?
Turning away from the rainbow to face the setting sun, we saw that this
apparition of a shark had formed inside a cloud. Should we be worried?
Fortuitously, a comfortable place ashore has been made available on
Galiano. My aunt offered her lovely house for our use while Rikki is
tied to the dock. Its deck overlooks the BC Marine Park beach. It's a
bit of a hike up the road to the property, but we plan on having our
car brought up to BC. We'll be able to get some larger sewing projects
done indoors, while also doing some small home repair for auntie.
Having a carpenter in the house for a few months was one of the perks
for her. The biggest advantage is ours though, and we send our
heartfelt gratitude. We are looking forward to being on Galiano Island
and getting to know BC a bit better by car.
Another low was forecast to bring SE gales, so we took Rikki to Ganges
for groceries, doing email at the Saltspring public library. Then we
took refuge in the small inlet called Glenthorne Passage on Prevost
Island, just across the way. We'd be meeting up with Dave and Marcia on
Juniata in a few days.
Fair winds,
Clark & Nina
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