Time with friends

Wednesday, May 22, 2024

With moorage fees paid, general rubbish tossed into the onshore dumpster, cabins cleaned up and made ready for departure, food stored, all doors latched, Ken’s and Lisa’s belongs packed, starter battery engaged, radio and navigation instruments on, water bottles filled and in the cockpit, crew decked out in their personal flotation devices (inflatable life vests), and the dock lines ready to release, Braesail was ready to leave Nanaimo by mid-morning on the beautiful, sun-drenched day that the night’s storm had left behind.

We motored into the wind for about two hours and docked in the early afternoon in the Fairwinds Marina in Parksville. Jacquie, a long-time friend of the Knowles family whom we hadn’t seen for a number of years, met us at the excellent Nanoose Bay Cafe on the shore above the docks, and we shared some tasty afternoon snacks and conversation. After our visit, Eleanor, a friend from the Christ Church Cathedral Choir in Vancouver, who now lives in Parksville, stopped by and helped us cram all of Ken’s and Lisa’s food and gear into a shore cart so that Ken could load it into Jacquie’s car for the trip to her home in Qualicum Beach.

We gave Eleanor a tour of Braesail and shared an excellent visit before she had to return to work at about 5:30 pm. We both felt rather tired after all the busy-ness of the previous few days, and took refreshing naps before catching up on computer tasks late in the evening. Gentle swells began to rock the boat as we prepared for bed, and sent us off to sleep relatively quickly.