2018 Inside Passage South

colbysmith

colbysmith

Active member
I'm planning to cruise north of the San Juan Islands, into what I believe is the south end of the Inside Passage, right after the Friday Harbor gathering this May. Actual plans for now are to stay in the Seattle area the immediate weekend following the FH gathering, to visit with my brother and then get my wife off on a flight back home, then cruising for about 3 weeks beginning May 27-28. Plan to be pulling the boat out and trailering back home around June 23-24. I've never been in this area before, other than on land in Vancouver and on a big Alaskan Cruise ship. So would be nice to find a few others interested in doing this adventure. Particularly others than are familiar with the area. I do not have any set itinerary yet, but have marked numerous recommendations on my charts. In the mean time, I'm looking for recommendations or suggested routings, so started this thread. Colby
 
Colby, How far north are you planning, or looking at? North past Port Hardy (N end of Vanc Island), or are you planning on going around the corner Northward at Cape Caution?

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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Hey Harvey, will definitely not past Prince Rupert. :) But looking at the charts I'm thinking more than likely not any farther north than Port Hardy. Seems to be a lot of areas between the San Juans and that north end of Vancouver Island. Right now I've been plotting some places looking at a list that Richard Cook had uploaded on one of the threads some time ago. Places like Annetter Inlet, Gabriola Narrows, Silva Bay, Dodd Narrows, Desolation Sound area, Chatham Channel, Lagoon Cove, Broughtons, Port McNeill, Port Hardy. The list keeps going towards the north as it's one he had put together for the entire Inside Passage I believe. I've just briefly read about those places as I found the coordinates to plot. Using the "Exploring the South Coast of British Columbia... book. I've also got those books for the Central and North Coasts of B.C., and SE Alaska. Seem like pretty good reference material. Soon I'll probably read a little closer on each place and see if I can come up with some kind of itinerary unless someone has one to offer. Colby
 
Sounds like an amazing trip, keep us posted. I'm no expert at the Gulf Islands but not that we have a comfortable boat we are learning fast. There is a lot to do on the Southern Gulf Islands and I have been fishing around Victoria for the last couple years so if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. If you can stretch your trip Canada Day is July 1st and this is a great party http://www.saturnalambbarbeque.ca

We spent the last couple weekends on the Gulf Islands; Poets Cove, Pender Island and Minors Bay, Mayne Island and Fulford Harbour, Saltspring Island. Poets Cove is a great little resort with moorage, hot tub/heated pool included for about $40 CAD depending on the season. Minors Bay is a great place to visit on a Saturday morning when things are opening and happening but a little slow the rest of the week.

Looking forward to your explorations north, I was born in Courtenay (near comox) but haven't spent a lot of time on water up there in the last 20 years but that is changing this summer!
 
Depending on your time allowance, a trip to Princess Louisa Inlet and Chatterbox Falls is a beautiful area. From there, back down the inlet and north to Desolation Sound would give you a spectacular 3-week trip.

Good luck with the plans. If you decide to do any whale watching along the way, it is now 100 meters minimum distance in Canada (half of what it used to be, and more in line with US regs). Desolation Sound abounds with great anchorages, beautiful scenery, interesting hikes.
 
JamesTXSD":1xi4am0n said:
Depending on your time allowance, a trip to Princess Louisa Inlet and Chatterbox Falls is a beautiful area. From there, back down the inlet and north to Desolation Sound would give you a spectacular 3-week trip.

Good luck with the plans. If you decide to do any whale watching along the way, it is now 100 meters minimum distance in Canada (half of what it used to be, and more in line with US regs). Desolation Sound abounds with great anchorages, beautiful scenery, interesting hikes.
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Plenty to do there and maybe not get up past Campbell River.... but then.... there is more.....Always more.

As to the whale watching, From Nanaimo on north, the WW's are on VHF 7 and welcome you to listen in. Great bunch up there.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon
 
OOPS! I should have said 200 meters in Canada, which is twice what it used to be, and in line with the 200 yards in US waters. Pardon my dumbass attack. We are in AZ, and I have been working with adolescents... I feel the gray matter shutting down. :wink:
 
ssobol":u92rlc4d said:
Whale watch guidelines for PNW:

https://wdfw.wa.gov/viewing/bww_poster2006.pdf

https://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/orca/
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That first link was from 2006 and is outdated. A couple years ago, I wrote the whale watching guidelines sidebar that was in Waggoners Cruising Guide. Having worked in the whale watch industry, I am familiar with the federal US, WA, and Canadian guidelines. Canadian officials recently set new guidelines to more align with US legal distance to be maintained from the Orcas... sorry for any confusion my first post may have made.

Since this thread is about Colby getting in some PNW cruising time, I just wanted to let folks know about changes so not to run afoul of the law. The current status of the Southern Resident Killer Whales is pretty dire due to their lack of food source, so it appears that NOAA, WDFW, and their Canadian counterparts will be enforcing those viewing distance regulations more vigorously.

The cruising to be had in the San Juans, Gulf Islands, and north from there is spectacular! The wildlife viewing is very special. Great scenery and anchorages to be had, and his three week cruise should be a delight.

Enjoy!
 
I'm looking forward to cruising the area. I'm hoping there might be a few others at the FH gathering that are looking to do the same! But either way, I'll be heading north for a few weeks. Looking to enjoy the scenery and the serenity. And get a little more "ocean time" under the belt before heading up to Alaska the following summer! Colby
 
As it’s getting closer I’m firming up my plans a bit more. My wife will be able to stay with me until May 29th and we decided to forego pulling back in to visit with my brother after the Friday Harbor gathering, so my wife can see more of the islands and I can get a little farther north. We are looking at her flying out of Victoria early on the 29th and then I’ll continue up the east side of Vancouver Island. Any suggestions on the best marina to use for easy transportation access to Victoria’s International Airport? Also does Canada have a Crab Season and will it be open during May and June?
 
Colby if you want to get further up the Island than Sydney, I would look at the Bus service showing the stops. This runs at least several times a day, more from the major stops. This would allow you to be almost at any point on the East coast of the Island up to Campbell River. There may be other buses. We have had folks who took planes or ferry to Victoria use this, and then take a local taxi to the marina.

Another option we used with out kids, and for Marie, although a bit more expensive, is to fly directly from or to the boat via Kenmore Air or Harbor Air Seaplanes. Their float planes will land, you dinghy to the plane, and off the guest goes. But I don't believe that either has any true amphibians, so they could not land at the Victoria terminal--could be nearby, and then taxi or Uber to the airport.

You could also rent a car for 24 hours, drive down, stay overnight in a motel near the airport etc...This is another mode we often use.
 
colbysmith":174ajc3w said:
A Also does Canada have a Crab Season and will it be open during May and June?
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Yes, definitely open. We have been getting a few keeper Dungenous and lots of rock crab. I would use at least two traps as it is slower than in past years. Keep in mind 6.5 inches for Dungenous, which is larger than needed in WA.
 
I've stayed at the Port of Sidney marina, and at Van Isle in Tsehum harbour. Both convenient to the Victoria airport. Van Isle is more protected if there's a lot of S or SE wind.

If I read the regs correctly, Dungies are open all year.
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Thanks for that info, and the link. And thanks to Kaelc for confirming the crabbing. Looks like I'll be taking my new crab ring with me! :D (And may I ask what you are using for bait with the crabs?)

Going thru this thread again, along with one I started earlier when I planned on doing Alaska this year, to pick out places I want to see.

And Dr.Bob thanks for your comments too. Don't think I want to spring for floatplane service, but I'll look into the buses. I still have an Amtrack refund pass if they are associated with Amtrak. Naniamo looks like the next big community up the island. I haven't booked her flight yet, and perhaps I should look at what else is available, but I suspect as far as larger international airports go, Victoria is the only one on the island.

Lastly, Pat mentioned Blain as a port to use, and I just looked at the map and see it is fairly north even of Bellingham yet. Any other advice or thoughts on this one? Seems a bit farther from the San Juans, but might make more sense for when I'm coming back from cruising. Cost might be cheaper to for parking the rig for a month.

Colby[/url]
 
My favorite bait is Salmon. To catch crab you'll want a saltwater fishing license and I think it is a few dollars more for a Pacific Salmon Stamp(goes to salmon enhancement efforts)

If you bring a rod you can jig for salmon off the powder warf (dock) on the east side of James Island (check out the satellite view on Google maps). I would use a smaller 2-3 inch buzz bomb or similar lure. Almost nothing beats a salmon head and spines for crab bait.

Chicken backs are the next best thing if you don't catch a salmon for the bbq.

North Saanich Marina is another choice, a little further from the airport but not too far.
 
Thanks. Guess I need to look more into that BC Licensing for Crab and Salmon, and take my bigger rods with me also. Use to use Halibut heads in Alaska when I was up there in the Coast Guard.
 
colbysmith":2jpg8s89 said:
Thanks. Guess I need to look more into that BC Licensing for Crab and Salmon, and take my bigger rods with me also. Use to use Halibut heads in Alaska when I was up there in the Coast Guard.
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Halibut heads are the best, couldn't imagine using them in Alaska! You must have pulled some amazing traps full of carb. There are some spots to get halibut near Zero rock in Haro straight (south of Sidney) but I've never tried fishing there!
 
It is a problem. Prices, when we checked last year, were often in the $200/mo or higher range. I checked every port I could find with a ramp from Prince Rupert (even a few in AK) to Olympia that didn't require ferry service. I threw out some because they had a serious open water approach, like Point Roberts or Blaine, and most others because they were just expensive.

We were planning to be out for 3 to 4 months, so storage fees for us were more of a factor that for those who are making a shorter trip.

We settled on Bellingham (too bad, storage was free the year before) and a remote storage lot (~$100/mo) that was about a 10 min Uber ride from the marina. I wouldn't want to make that approach in nasty or windy weather either, but it is relatively protected most of the way. It is also a nice marina with a couple of restaurants within walking distance - good for decompressing after the long drive.

There is a lot to do around Bellingham.

John
The Mighty Wench
 
Thanks John. The gal at Cap Sante Marina I spoke with also suggested I could look at Mini-Storage places around Anacortes. I emailed with one but they said their units are full at this time and to check back closer to when we plan to arrive. Cap Sante continues to make the most sense to me, and I'm somewhat familiar with the route out and back to there. Not to mention the ease of using the sling launch and keeping the trailer out of the salt. I suspect long term parking is an issue everywhere when it comes to safety and cost. Colby
 
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