Tuesday’s trip took Braesail and her crew through showers, mist, low clouds, high wind, and “lumpy” seas to Kina Cove in Kasaan Bay about five miles from the village of Kasaan, the day’s original destination. On Monday night, the sparkling planet Jupiter had winked at a moon that was struggling to throw off its cottony cloud coverlets and take a sky-walk, encouraging it to peer into the aft cabin window on its way–a lovely thing to see!
When Walt raised the anchor not long after 8 am on Tuesday morning, he found a silvery sea-star clinging to it and had to use the boat hook to remove it and return it to the water. That reminded me that, a few days earlier, a large, pillowy white jelly had billowed over to the chain when we were setting the anchor, had wrapped itself around the chain as if investigating this intruder, had decided that it was neither food nor a threat, and then had pumped gently away. Sea creatures are such marvels!
During the first part of Tuesday’s journey, we motored into headwinds that blew as hard as nearly 30 kts. (35 mph), sending wave spray bursting over the bow, fore-decks, and front windscreens. Rain joined the action now and then, and I hung on as Braesail pitched and bucked over the white-capped seas.
After rounding the end of the Kasaan Peninsula into Kasaan Bay, the strong winds were blowing over Braesail’s stern, and the ride was much smoother with “following seas” giving our boat a boost. Shortly after making the turn into the bay we spied the splashing of several dolphins near the rocky shore. Sadly, they decided not to accompany us.
We considered mooring at the docks in the village of Kasaan, but the high winds, the condition and arrangement of the docks, and the shallowness of the water in the area led us to change our minds and head for shelter in forest-lined Kina Cove, which doesn’t offer spectacular mountain scenery but which IS secure and well-protected, and which we have all to ourselves. We’re a little tired after five hours of dealing with challenging weather, and will treat ourselves to a quiet evening and a relatively early off-to-bed.
Braesail - A grand yacht in the Salish Sea 