And Willie Said: At Peace in Kwatsi Bay -- 7/29/2014

We are a bit reluctant to leave Lagoon Cove, but know we have many places to cruise and explore. Chris and I visit the Emporium, where we find our special monogrammed shirts and Herb finds a map of The Broughtons and more. We make our own sales slip to deposit at the desk for 10:30 A check out time.

JR surprises us with a Ziploc of salmon he smoked all day yesterday and returns the sunglasses we left on the bow of his boat at the moonlight visit last night.

RJ with Smoked Salmon

Waving goodbye to all, we cast off in view of rippled seas with hardly a cloud in the cerulean blue sky. OdySea will fish in Watson Cove on the way to our next destination.

Oops! Herb gets a message from a customer and stops to make a phone call. We take care of a little business before resuming our cruise.

Dear Customer

I am so in awe of the steep, almost vertical cliffs we see as we glide toward Knight Inlet. We see so much interesting terrain with the logging areas and understand why they log only the flattest areas -- but what are the grid like areas?

Criss Cross

Now bearing to port into Clapp Passage, we leave Shewell Island to starboard. Then more to port for Tribune Channel. A bare vertical space catches my eye and I wonder if it had been a logging trail or a glacier slide or an avalanche.

Slide?

We arrive at the entrance to inside Kumlah Island where OdySea will go inside and Willie's Tug will go outside; we will compare views later.

Find the Inside Entrance around Kumlah Island

Going on the Outside

I love to see the snow shining on the tops of mountains, but wonder about the brush growing in the slide areas. What happened here?

Now OdySea appears from the inside passage of Kumlah Island. Tribune Channel takes a sharp turn to port around Traffort Point and as we go east of Gilford Island we pick up a little wind and chop. More chop at Irving Point, where we turn west.

I go below for a nap, but the sound of the waves slapping the hull and the popping of the burgee prevent the snoozing. I close the windows and helm door because of salt spray!

Where is all that flat calm?

When we turn around Kwatsi Point the seas calm and skipper slows from 17 knots, down to ten, then nine, then eight. We inquire at Kwatsi Bay Marina for moorage for the night, but they are full.

OK, not a problem, as there is a great anchorage in Kwatsi Bay. We choose the east side in an area named, "Glory Be Basin." I can imagine the person who named it cruised in and was amazed at the beauty of the area.

Kwatsi Marina

We are greeted by two sea gulls warning us of the logs in the basin. After Mike hooks the ground, he rows ashore to loop it around a tree and Chris attends the stern tie reel.

"Herb, I hope you don't need my help just now, as I am pretty sure I see an eagle soaring ever higher, then circling down for a photo op. Such a majestic bird!"

Herb rows to shore with his stern tie, after which he takes Dr. Jake for a ride. He also transports a long limb found floating near the boats and deposits it on the bank, never to cause a problem for the next boaters here.

Without much exchange of water here, leaves and pieces of kelp slowly churn like musical chairs as the tide rolls in.

What a day! Great weather, great friends, great refreshments. Mike and Chris' dog, Charlie, finds a nice soft welcome mat for his nap.

The sound you hear is salmon popping in the water, causing the splash you see. Every minute or so one jumps up to torment the fisherman Mike! He casts a few times and has success!