Circumnavigating Vancouver Island

I also saw Chromer on Checkpoint II a couple of days ago. He was out fishing when I cruised by...it sounded like the fishing has been slow..hopefully you've had a good trip to Barkley Sound nonetheless!
 
Holy Mackeral! If you haven't done it yet, go read Sam's latest blog entry. All I can say is I'm glad he's meeting mom tomorrow. By the way, that Chromer is everywhere! Looked for you on the lake yesterday, but it looks like you had other fish to fry.
 
Sam,

Jolee continues to improve & each days improvement makes another Alaska Cruise next year more likely.

We too have found our encounters with grey & humpback whales in some settings, perhaps best said, unsettling, but very close, especially right under the boat in thick fog, all alone like you it would be especially so. In the C-Dory we have had more very close encounters with the humpbacks then greys, though with the greys in our experiences being maybe more spooky due to their being in the waters on the outside of Chichagof Island & very close off shore as we were entering & exiting remote harbors & passages, sometimes in fog or rougher water than preferred.

As for motors off or on in conditions where that choice can be made, we left them on at idle, hoping it would give the whales another reference point of just where we were in relation to them. It's certainly a heart rever when you look down under a small boat & see only the dark surface of a whale underneath.

Our all time whale experience was during a Alaska & Canada trip exploring remote areas in a 12.5 foot RIB. While approximately half way between Skagway & Haines, Alaska we had a humpback whale raise up with us positioned in the water between its back & tail & could almost look directly into the blow hole as the tail entered the water on the other side & slipped underneath us.

Jay
 
Hey Sam. Glad you connected with John & Bev. They do have one of the great spots on our little planet. I have seen that moon many times on the West Coast but the pic from from the Pinkerton's is amazing and now sits as our background. Keep em coming.
T
 
Hi Sam, do you know of any way to view an archive of your SPOT track points. On the main page it seems to only go back about 6 days... I missed two weeks while I was in Peru and would love to review your track in more detail. heading up to the Tofino area next week in Natural C-lection to fish.
When are you swinging by Victoria (if you are going to be on this side of the strait)?
 
We saw whales there in 08 while fishing. looked out the window and All I could see was a giant tell blocking out the sky. We had downriggers down and had to quickly get them up and out. Never saw the whale again. Just that quick look and it was gone.
 
In Bamfield, just updated the blog. Weather permitting I'll head into Port Renfrew tomorrow, then Sooke the next day. Barkley Sound has been wonderful.

Mike, "Bear Cove" is opposite Fortune Channel from Heelboom Bay. We saw bears there twice at low tide. I told someone else about the spot, though, and they got skunked. Have an awesome time in Clayoquot Sound!

Unfortunately I think SPOT clears out all the old tracks quickly and I don't know of any way to save them.

If I come through Victoria it will probably be this Friday, though I'm not sure if I'll stop in or if I'll go directly from Sooke over to the San Juans. It'll be a game time decision. I'm hoping to make it back up that way for the Sidney gathering, but it follows right on the heels of a trip to Europe and a bunch of friends being in Seattle, so I'll have to see if I can get away...
 
I ended up stopping briefly in Port Renfrew yesterday before continuing to Sooke. The weather was perfect; no wind, calm seas ("rippled" as described by the light keepers), and decent visibility. The clouds hung low but visibility never got less than about a mile.

This morning I headed from Sooke to Friday Harbor. It had been windy much of the night, but conditions weren't too bad on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Most seas 1-3 feet, a few larger, but all from behind. No fog, which made crossing the traffic lanes much easier!

The troublesome autopilot has resumed normal function.

I'll be bouncing around the San Juans through the weekend, then back to Anacortes on Monday probably.

This has been a great trip and it has gone incredibly smoothly. The west coast of Vancouver Island certainly has a reputation for fierce weather, but it doesn't need to be feared. Respected, certainly, but with a flexible schedule and a good weather eye, the risks are pretty easily managed.
 
Congrats on your circumnavigation Sam. Thank you for sharing your adventure with us. Hope you do make the Sidney gathering.

Martin.
 
:cry: Hey You. Was watching you on spot this morning and thought I would greet you at the dock in Victoria with a coffee in hand but you zipped past and no such luck. A great trip for you and back in home territory. Next time around. Cheers to you Sam :beer
T
 
We had a great trip to Clayoquot Sound. Will try to post details on my blog soon. I went to Ahousat on your recommendation , and it was pretty neat! Had great Halibut burgers at the little restaurant (we were the only ones there), and the gas was cheaper than Tofino. The Ahousat/Marktosis community/inlet is a neat little spot. Off to Kyuquot Sound next week and then to the Broughtons the week after! I will be reviewing yo0ur blog posts for both those areas!
OK, the bay across from Heelboom makes sense now that I look at the chart. Looks like there is a fish farm in there too. I have not been back into Fortune Channel for many years.
 
Sam, I just saw on the main SPOT device management page that one can view the last 30 days of tracking and other messages. It also looks like you can download them as a GPX or KML file. If you want, I would be happy to convert your last 30 days into a GPSVisualizer map like the ones I use on my blog...
 
Port Renfrew has a public dock and small private marina. I think there is another marina up the river, accessible by small boats at high(er) tides. The docks are all geared towards small fishing boats (C-Dory sized) and it seems most people don't stay onboard. Gas (not diesel) is available.

Mike, glad you enjoyed Clayquot Sound. The fish farm on the chart no longer exists at the anchorage in Fortune Channel. Have a great time in both Kyuquot and the Broughtons. The Kyuquot Inn is funky and friendly; they may have a restaurant and coffee bar open. The store in Walters Cove is pretty well stocked, too, and the dock was free when I visited.

How do I access 30 days of tracking? I couldn't figure it out.

I'll get the last leg of the trip put on the blog soon...
 
I just got this message back from SPOT:

(It looks like you can only get the last 30 days of Data...)


Dear Michael,

Thank you for contacting SPOT, the world's first GPS satellite messenger.

The MY GPS LOCATIONS tab of your online SPOT account will maintain data for up to 30 days, to view addditional data click the orange SET FILTER button and select the option to filter for 30 days.

We also provide through the DOWNLOAD AS button on the MY GPS LOCATIONS tab the ability to select GPX and download your data to a GPS device, or select CSV and download to and Excel Spreadsheet or KML to download to Google Earth.

The final option is to create a SPOT Adventures page by clicking the icon in the lower right corner of the page and the data will be saved as long as your account is active.

Please let us know if we can further assist you.

Thank you for choosing SPOT.
 
Sam, we are all really looking forward to your talk and slideshow about the Great Circumnavigation at the brewery! This year there WILL be some kind of amplified sound so we can all hear everything!
 
Mike, I just downloaded the data and pulled it up in Google Earth. I wish I'd known about this for the whole trip! Thanks for the tip.

I just put the last blog entries online. Compared to Alaska my average speed was a bit faster and my fuel economy was higher. The boat must have been lighter.

This was a GREAT trip and could be completed pretty quickly (~three weeks) in a C-Dory. Highly recommended. I'll try and write another blog entry comparing this trip to Alaska. The short version is they are both great, but Alaska wins for wildlife and scenery. WCVI wins for weather and beaches. Can't go wrong either way!
 
I'd love to see the plot of your last 30 days. I have asked them if there is a way to get data more than 30 days old. (I am sure they have it!)...

PS, you are getting much better mileage than I have been getting. I seem to have been averaging about 75% of yours with my twin 50s...

Sorry to hear Sooke was not up to snuff. I am guessing it is pretty busy with salmon fishers right now...
 
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