We left Princess Cove on a delightful Wednesday morning after struggling a little with untying the stern line and raising the anchor, and while Walt was on the helm and going over with me what we might have done to make our departure easier and more efficient, we weren’t watching our chart carefully. We were very suddenly and frighteningly startled (I didn’t QUITE panic!) by loud banging, bumping, and tilting of the boat as we scraped its 11,000-lb., newly painted solid metal keel over rocks that we had failed to note when we looked at the chart! As we realized what was happening, we hit MORE rocks with more screeching and scraping. Walt steered us away as quickly as he could, and we all caught our breaths and determined to keep a closer eye on the charts for rocks NOT marked with visible warnings! No serious damage seemed to have been done (no water welling up into the bilge!), and were we ever thankful!!
On we motored, after swinging through large and busy Montague Harbor on Galiano Island, to Dodd Narrows (pictured above), where a swift and powerful current runs between Nanaimo and Mudge Island near Gabriola Island (refer to your atlas) and boats assemble to make the passage when the current is slack. People come out of their waterside homes to sit on the shores of the Narrows and watch the parade of boats go by, and it IS great to observe the variety of sailboats and power boats as they navigate the Narrows.
We arrived at the Nanaimo Yacht Club’s marina at about noon (our Bellingham Yacht Club membership provides reciprocal docking and facilities use privileges at various marinas operated by other clubs), received some assistance from a somewhat-overly-helpful couple as we docked, and soon welcomed Martin aboard. He and Walt spent the afternoon working on various projects and repairs while Joy and I visited with Jacquie after HER arrival. She joined us for a fantastic salmon dinner prepared by Walt in the ship’s galley, after which she left for her Qualicum Beach home and the rest of us enjoyed the yacht club’s showers before crawling into our beds.
Braesail - A grand yacht in the Salish Sea 