A sunshiny chore day, and a few more animals

It’s been lovely to have a few sunny days in a row while docked in the marina and boating resource center at Shearwater, a very pretty and well maintained property now owned and operated by the Heiltsuk (Haíɫzaqv) First Nation. Facilities include a nice, well stocked general (grocery) store; a gifts/sundries/baked goods/ice cream shop; a marine hardware store; a boat repair and maintenance center; an excellent recycling and garbage disposal area; an enjoyable pub (where we dined on Monday evening), a “clean-yourself-and-your-clothes” building that includes a multiple-machine laundromat, showers, and restrooms; and a number of picnic tables on the lawn.

We spent Tuesday taking care of a number of tasks, including doing laundry for the first time in three weeks, buying and stowing groceries, calling and sending email to friends and family, making blog posts, and checking weather and cruising guides. Walt put a new pump into the toilet in the aft cabin and flushed de-scaling liquid through it (we had hoped that this would lead to diminished amounts of “burbling” following flushing, but the burbling and bubbling have continued unabated) and bought and installed a new hose for the forward toilet. He was able to download an update for the navigation software that we use on the binnacle (a built-in stand that houses a ship’s navigation equipment) in the cockpit to chart and follow a course.

Today (Wednesday, June 1) we motored to nearby New Bella Bella, a pleasant Haíɫzaqv town,

When we reached the fuel dock in New Bella Bella, however, we were told that the diesel pump wasn’t working, and we’d have to return to Shearwater. After completing our shopping, we did fuel up back in Shearwater and then motored off with another secluded island cove as our destination. At one point in our travels we noticed a good deal of splashing in the water near the shores to starboard, but the marine mammals (whatever they might have been) never surfaced sufficiently to allow identification. A little later, while passing numerous small islands and rock clusters over a choppy sea, I spotted another black bear foraging near the shore, but we needed to focus on navigation and I didn’t try to take a picture.

We’re now anchored in quiet, thoroughly sheltered Boat Cove for the night. Walt saw another black bear near a beach, rain is falling once more, and after dinner we’ll examine, as we always do, our weather and sea-state maps, paying most attention to the VERY useful one that shows us what we should expect as we travel to Haida Gwaii on Saturday.