Leaving Morris Cove and Heading to Khutze Inlet
May 30, 2023, to May 31, 2023
Waking up in Morris Cove to the sound of rain on the deck of Soulstice. It was not a hard rain but a constant steady drizzle. It is nice to get a freshwater bath on the boat. Soulstice is not caked with salt like usual. We do find the seawater up here more brackish and definitely less salty than HI or the Sea of Cortez. It is because of all the freshwater runoff that enters these waters.
I wake up at 0400 now without an alarm. It would be such a chore at home when working to wake up at this time to get my butt to the gym to workout before a day shift at the hospital but now it is natural. I even get up before Stephen which is the exact opposite when we are in NV. I move on out of the salon quietly after putting all my layers back on - ha. It seems to be consistently 51 degrees in the cabin. 51.6 F this am to be exact and 68% humidity. I feel like I am getting used to it though. It is less shocking every morning.
I am currently reading a book called The Cruelest Miles and it takes place in Alaska and so reading about the Eskimos and the Athabaskan Indians makes me feel like this bit of chill is nothing. They deal with 50 below. When I wake up I put on a few layers and I am toasty and writing the blog drinking my coffee and eating my miniature coconut crisp cookies like an old lady:)
Today, we are thinking to plan a shorter day and pick an anchorage a bit closer. We have been using the Douglas Guides and one of their itineraries. They have 3 in the back of their SouthEast AK book listed and they are based on the time you have given yourself to complete the trip. They have the UltraMarathon ( rapid out and back from Anacortes to Sitka 28 days with a daily mileage of 75nm at least daily), The Highlights ( 42 days minimum Anacortes to Glacier Bay, avg 53 miles daily) The Classic - THIS IS THE ONE WE LOOKED AT ( most scenic with at least 8 weeks recommended, Anacortes to Glacier Bay out and back), and the Dream itinerary ( 3 months or more, total distance 3006 miles, which includes even west coast of Vancouver island). Our plan was to hurry up North but then do more sightseeing on the way per recommendations again from friends regarding the weather. It will get tweaked regardless due to weather, our comfort with anchoring in some of the places, our energy levels for the day, and our desires for what we want to see and do.
When we left the anchorage I had some large ribbon seaweed and a starfish I rescued from an anchor chain link. We also noted a slight sheen in the water behind Soulstice and a faint-tinged blue smoke. We did notice our oil was slightly low. We are good on an oil change but the Nigel Caulder book came out and we decided we should check our pistons and valves when in Port Rupert. We also had our buddy Dave give us the name of a guy in Juneau to look at the engine when we arrive. It is not an emergency but something that is requesting attention sooner than later. We had the valves adjusted 3 years ago in Puerto Escondido Mexico and we are overdue. We also did text a friend, Brad, the diesel mechanic, who also suggested the valves and pistons need a look see.
I will fast forward as we had a magical day in the Finlayson Channel and then make a turn left to head up into the Prince Royal Channel. We had several intermittent showers including a divided sky I mentioned on the tracker post. On the port side of the boat, it was big white cumulus clouds and light blue sky and on the starboard side, it was thick low hanging clouds with scattered virga noted. The rest of the day was a bit like Gorillas in the Mist without the gorillas but instead whales and spinner dolphins. We had the channels to ourselves and it was quite enchanting.
We arrive at Khutze Inlet arrival around 1700. Jack and Carol on SV Aurora were here. It was difficult anchoring with a steep slope on the northern end of the spit where the book recommended and we chose to anchor just east of the spit instead. We anchored in 70 ft of water but on the fish finder, it was the best ground for being most flat. When we come into an unfamiliar anchorage we usually cruise around and sound the area. Before we just had the depth sounder but now with the fish finder it gives a visual of the bottom and is incredibly helpful to see if the bottom is flat, has kelp, and rocks, and how steep the slope is when the depth changes. We knew the bottom had some small stones and gravel and the echoing noises of the chain overnight confirmed this. Luckily the current was not terrible and kept us set well actually without swinging, ( once 1/2 way only). It did rain several times but that is always a white noise to sleep.
There was some scuttlebutt on the VHF radio with a prawning boat and another sailboat. The sailboat thought the other boat was crabbing but they were prawning. They told the prawning boat they would notify Coast Guard when the prawning boat told them to “FU” and invited them to call Coast Guard. It escalated and Coast Guard intervened on the radio twice. The rest of the night was calm and uneventful except for the anchor chain noises which were sporadic.
May 31
I go up early like my usual around 4am but told myself to lay in bed a bit longer. 0530 rolled around and I was like, I should get up. We had a slow start as these days are long. Again, we are trying to hurry up to Glacier Bay and then take our time coming back.
We were not sure about our destination today… would we enter the Grenville Channel. The Douglass guides give quite a bit of caution and we appreciate that but it can cause some hesitation. We decided to move forward with intent and then re-evaluate as the time got closer to making a decision about entering the channel.
We did make a stop at Butedale and did get a great video of the impressive waterfall there. This was a potential overnight place as they have a dock and request only a $20 dollar donation. The dock looked like it could accommodate a few boats. This was just a good reconnaissance for our return trip as well.
We had planned an Anchorage for tonight at the entrance of the channel to the stage if needed but if entering looked good we would proceed on. We have AIS which is an identification system for other boats. Not all boats have this but many do. The AIS was lighting up!!! Multiple boats were entering the channel, there was lots of VHF traffic and it was clear the Grenville Channel was busy today.
It was nice as we had the ability to talk to some other boats who did not report any channel concerns. We could see a tide station at our intended anchorage but there was not station reporting currents. We did find a chat on Navionics discussing the weird hydrology of the channel. The ebb and flood currents actually meet in the middle of the channel and so it is not a full current flow completely. We decided to enter the channel and if we did not like what we saw we could turn around and go back.
It ended up being uneventful. We saw lots of waterfalls and lots of motorboats -ha. CiCi and Gunther on their new Nordic Tug even caught up to say hi abeam of us and we got pictures of their boat. Hopefully, we connect again to send them their photos. All day it was raining intermittently with periods of dry blue sky.
When we did get to the anchorage, the 5 Grand Banks boats were all rafted up close to shore. I thought that was very cool and thoughtful for space to accommodate other boats anchoring here. Kizmet, a large power boat, chatted with us again once we anchored. We chatted via VHF several times now to include initially when round Cape Caution. They got in their large tender once we anchored and offered to take us over to Vernal Falls, here in the anchorage.
We considered blowing up the paddle boards but we were very happy to take their offer. They have 2 small dogs on board and have been enjoying the PNW every summer for several months, from May to September. They live in Florida but have summer up here. This is though the first year they have been this far. They said the 1883 series, from Yellowstone, inspired them because they were thinking this could be the last frontier. I can agree! Certainly, this area is not inhabited and seems still quite wild which is so refreshing considering what you see for development everywhere else. It does give you a sense of hope that we will not put up high-rises and commercialism for more consumerism and continue the vicious cycle.
Who knows…. There are folks with Starlink out here and I have mixed feelings. We would like more accurate weather but I do like being off-grid. We met a kayaker, Griffin, in a group of kayakers. He is a 15ft Necky, fiberglass, it was his parents, and he is originally from Victoria. He paddled from Bella Bella and is on a time frame to get to Prince Rupert tomorrow so he can make a wedding back in Victoria on Saturday. What a great story… But he cannot find a ride and may pay for a water taxi $700 to $1000 dollars to get back. He is NOT even the groom… I. Hope they have some f**N fantastic champagne and cake at this wedding.
Ok, I am pooped, made eggplant parm for dinner.
Adios, ciao, bye
Sailing along Princess Royal Channel
Flotilla of Grand Banks all kindly rafted up
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