SE Alaska 2022 - Family of 5 in 22' C-Dory

ChrisMcBride

This summer we took our 22' C-Dory (Lil Teal) up the inside passage from Edmonds, WA to Juneau, AK, and plan to return in early August. Our trip isn't over yet, but has so far been incredible, better than we ever dreamed it could be.

Our trip wouldn't been possible without the wealth of knowledge, information, and trip reports we've gained from fellow c-brats. We thought we'd share a bit about our trip in hopes that we can give back a bit to this great community.

Some background context:

Crew

Background

Boat

The Plan

Route

https://share.garmin.com/share/ChristopherMcBride2

Wife and kids perspectives

https://mcbrideadventures.com/2022/05/28/day-1-edmonds-to-prevost-harbor/

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 2:26 am Post subject:

Before the big day:

There's nothing worse than "maintenance induced failures", so we were sure to do several check-out trips before the big day. While the engine is still practically new (1 year old, 128 hours), I went ahead and serviced the water pump and changed the spark plugs. The impeller and plugs came out looking exactly as expected (brand new). I felt silly replacing them so early, but it was worth it to buy us more time before it needed to be done again during our big trip. I didn't feel quite as bad as I changed the engine oil and filter, fuel filter, water separator, and lower unit oil since those were a lot closer to the schedule.

We did our final check-out trip the weekend before leaving with the boat completely loaded up and ready for the trip. Everything worked perfectly!

We've had the boat loaded pretty heavy in the past (lots of ice, fishing gear, pot puller, shrimp pots, the works) and I've debated trying to find a more suitable prop when weighed down. Since I knew that this was the heaviest we've ever had it, I went ahead and checked the RPM's at WOT. Long story short, I picked up a new prop a few days before leaving and put it on the boat. Figured if it didn't work, I'd just swap it back - doesn't hurt to have a 2nd spare prop. More on that later...

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 2:51 am Post subject:

5-28-22. Day 1: Edmonds to Prevost Harbor (82 miles today, 82 miles total)

I woke up early and drove the truck and trailer down to the port of Edmonds and had them launch the boat with their sling. We chose to start at the port of Edmonds since it was the closest to home so we could say we boated from our house Smile

. I noticed their sling had a scale - it was nice to learn the weight of the boat fully loaded, 4,300lbs

I parked the truck and trailer back home, loaded up the family, and had an extend family member drop us off back at the Marina.

Ellen, our youngest, got knocked over and fell in a puddle only a few feet from the car. We hadn't even made it to the boat yet and she'd already soaked one set of clothes and had a bout of tears, good thing the boat is roomy....

A quick family picture and change of clothes and we were off. Remember that new prop I put on? Just after leaving the marina I tested it out and it didn't perform right. We figured there was a good chance that would happen so we went back to the marina and swapped the props. I didn't drop anything in the water and it took no time at all.

It turns out the delay worked in our favor. Just as we left Edmonds we saw an Orca and spent a few minutes watching it make its way through a bunch of fishermen. Later that day we saw a minke whale in Admiralty Inlet and several pods of Orca's in Haro Strait.

We stopped in Roche Harbor before continuing on to anchor in Prevost Harbor.

Ellen had a really tough time falling asleep (she sleeps in a porta-crib in the aisle). I finally held her until she fell asleep and then put her down. The trip is going to get really tough if she has this much trouble falling asleep.

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 3:20 am Post subject:

May 29, 2022 Day 2: Prevost Harbor to Henry Bay: 126 miles. 208 miles total.

Woke up around 6am, had a quick breakfast of oatmeal, and cleared customs in Port of Sidney BC. To clear customs, we tied up to the customs dock and called their phone number to talk with a customs agent. The initial hold time was short (15min) but I got disconnected twice :yuck:. The 3rd time I was on hold for close to 30 minutes. The customs agent took our information on the phone, and then we waited about 45 minutes to talk to some agents in person for some final paperwork. In all it took a few hours, but went really smoothly. While waiting we watched a seagull pick on a starfish on the dock.

We did some shopping, grabbed lunch, and fueled up while waiting to time slack tide at Dodd Narrows. Our timing worked out well, and transited Dodd Narrows without issue. The scenery was really pretty and we saw a humpback whale.

Around Sisters Islets/Steven’s Passage BC, between Hornby Island and Olson Island, a few hours before Comox, we got into some rough waters. While the permatrim and trim tabs work wonders for making for a smoother ride, it was a pretty rough ride for about an hour and then perfectly flat the rest of the way. On the bright side, our earlier window sealing efforts were put to the test and we didn't have any leaks.

After we got out of the rough water we saw a big orca pod hunting. We were able to watch them for a while and it was just what we needed to calm us all down from the rough ride.

At 9:30 PM we dropped anchor at Henry Bay. I'm still getting used to most folks using 3:1 or 4:1 scope. Most of our past overnight trips have been relatively secluded, where we're able to put out more rode.

Ryan’s Thoughts: Customs for Canada. Food ice cream and Minecraft mending all armor grinding. Lots of whales.

Lillian’s Thoughts: I ate the best meal I’ve had in a long time (pasta with butter from Sea Glass Waterfront Grill.) Mom just made dinner: ham and cheese sandwiches. Oh we just saw Orcas!

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 3:43 am Post subject:

May 30, 2022 Day 3: Henry Bay to Port McNeill 144 miles. 353 total miles.

We haven't been getting as good of gas milage as we have in the past, I presume due to the boat being loaded down so heavy, so we stopped at Comox to get a bit more fuel before our next stop of Campbell River. The fuel here was the most expensive we've encountered the whole trip, but we were happy to pay it for the convenience.

In-between Comox and Campbell River the charts on our Garmin 1042xsv quit working. Actually, they worked, they just went blank from that area until just before Bella Bella. (Bella Bella is still many many miles and maybe even a few days ahead.) I wasn't very happy to lose charts in this section, particularly for the Queen Charlotte Sound crossing.

Luckily we had downloaded offline charts (navionics) to all of our electronic devices before the trip. It'll be less convenient, but between the ipad with navionics charts, and the still working radar and autopilot we shouldn't have too much trouble. I guess the old adage "two is one and one is none" is true! I still haven't figured out what's going on with that section of charts - let me know if you have any ideas!

We stopped at Campbell River for more gas, but didn't spend long as the timing was right to go through Seymour Narrows. We transited at slack, but unfortunately went against the tide through Johnstone Strait the rest of the way. We saw some more whales along the way.

After Johnstone Strait and before Port McNeill we were able to come into a pod of Pacific White Sided Dolphins. In the PNW we see a lot of harbor porpoise, but they are kind of boring. They notice us and they disappear. The Pacific White Sided Dolphins are not shy and are ready to play! They came and rode the bow for a while and just swam along our boat. The kids were able to go out and watch them. I loved seeing the dolphins, but honestly, seeing how excited and how happy the kids were was a highlight of the trip. I hope when I was a kid, I got this excited so my parents could experience the joy I felt in that moment. If not, I hope they know how much I appreciated all the fun things we did. Some times it can just be really fun to be a parent.

Not only were the dolphins a lot of fun, but the scenery was so stunning. The water glass, the lighting perfect, and the surrounding area was mountains. The reflection on the water was magic. We were even able to see so many otters. Everything about that moment was pure bliss. Definitely a moment we will all treasure.

We bought a 5 gallon jerry jug and filled up our tanks in Port McNeill and spent the night tied up to the docks.

Ryan’s Thoughts: We went through Johnstone Strait. I spotted whales and lost all my armor in Minecraft. Then some dolphins went with our boat!!! Then otters otters otters!

Lillian’s Thoughts: Today was an amazing day! First I had a nutella snack pack with breadstick things, then Ryan saw some whales. Then we saw dolphins go with our boat, I thought it would never happen! Then we ate at Subway, delicious! Then we saw an otter on the dock we were tied up to so now we have an otter friend!

colbysmith · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 9:05 am Post subject:

Great memories for the kids! And you guys too. Is it possible the charts are cutting out for the thick of Canadian waters? If they are US only on your chart plotter? Yet it sounds like just one small section of Canada. So glad to see a young couple with kids enjoying this kind of trip! Colby

JamesTXSD · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 9:34 am Post subject:

You are making memories of a lifetime for your family! Good on you! Thanks for sharing that here.

thataway · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 11:03 am Post subject:

Your children will remember (and thank you) the rest of their lives. Wonderful blog--and good on you for doing this!

robhwa · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 11:53 am Post subject:

Rob (me) and Marcia lived nearby in Cedar Park/Lake City for 32 years, now on Oro Bay at Anderson Island. We made multiple camping trips cross-country starting before our two kids were even born. They are adults and we are now a little dispersed, but when we do get together, there is a lot of “Remember when?” and always plans for future trips. What a great gift for all of you to take this trip. Though south sound isn’t Alaska, you have an invitation to come down here, tie to our float or mooring buoy, and have a dinner with us. We have guest rooms, so you can stay overnight if you want. I’ll be fishing out of Sitka soon, though likely south of Kruzoff island, not the area you visited. A couple of Oro Bay neighbors are headed up your way from here right now, but in a much larger trawler. My intentions are to do approximately the trip you have already taken in our CD22, and I’d love to hear your stories.

SnowTexan · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 2:44 pm Post subject:

Lil Teal!! Live big in small spaces. We love it and your crew is kicking butt out there. A big hillbilly WOOOOOOO! From the Miss Maria crew of 4+dog!

We might have to organize a cbrats with kids get together one of these days

Keep up the adventure.

croakz · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 2:58 pm Post subject:

As a parent of an 8 year old hoping to make our own boating memories, this is so awesome. Great job!

DayBreak

kaelc · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 10:58 pm Post subject:

Amazing. Hope we can follow in your wake soon. We have a 2 and 5 year old who love being on our C-Dory. In Victoria BC if you stop on your way south!

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2022 1:51 am Post subject:

ChrisMcBride · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2022 2:26 am Post subject:

May 31, 2022 Day 4: Port McNeill to Wigham Cove 180 miles. 533 total miles.

We got an early start (6:30am) for the big Queen Charlotte Strait crossing, with a nearly perfect weather forecast. The weather has been perfect, and today was no exception.

We found the SlowBoat.com blog to be very helpful in planning this trip, and I watched their Queen Charlotte Strait crossing youtube video one last time before heading out. We followed one of their past routes through shelter passage, hoping to enjoy the scenery and have a safe place to stop in case of trouble.

There was no wind, so the fog was out in full force. The gentle swell, thick fog, and rugged coast reminded us a lot of our time off Cape Flattery. The one exception is that this trip we finally had auto-pilot!

I nearly always run the boat with the radar on, even in good weather. I find it helps me build familiarity with the radar, better understand what it's telling me, etc. It's nice to have that familiarity when the fog moves in, charts quit working, the weather turns rough, etc.

The weather and crossing couldn't have gone better. We were very grateful for the perfect weather and tide conditions.

We had plenty of fuel to continue on, but decided to make a short detour to Dawson’s Landing, visit their small general store, and get gas. From there we stopped briefly at Hakai Institute and then continued on.

We were hoping to make it to Klemtu for gas, but sadly we ran out of daylight. We found a beautiful place to anchor called Wigham Cove. It was the first time we were completely alone on our trip.

Ryan’s Thoughts: I hate Minecraft but everything else was OK. Otters and squid.

Lillian’s Thoughts: Today was fine I guess. We started going at 6:40 and we saw an otter. We went to pretty places but over all today was just OK. I guess we also saw pretty sea anemones and a star fish! My first time seeing squid…bugs…lots of bugs…sad…itchy…angry.