Seattle Trip Day 10

Monday August 24 

We were in no real hurry to leave this morning, since we had essentially covered 2 days in 1 yesterday.  So I showered at the marina facilities and Lisa took a taxi to a grocery store for some provisions.

We fueled up here and pulled out in beautiful conditions at about 11:30 AM.

Here was the intended route for the day:

Our transit down Queen Charlotte Strait, then Broughton Strait, and finally Johnstone Strait was terrific.  The weather was good, the boat was performing well, we were rested and well fed.  All was good on Faraway.

We came across what I assume was a whale watching boat.  At first I could not imagine why so many people were on board but were not fishing.

Eventually I saw what they were so excited about, some Killer Whales in the vicinity.

 

Our goal for the day today was to reach a place called the Port Harvey Marina.  The guide books described it as “rustic,” and I have to say that is accurate.

The owner obviously works very hard to provide a good service and a good experience for the boaters that go there.

He has a small restaurant above the marina store and office called the Red Shoe Restaurant.  If you bring a red shoe, you get a free dessert.  We pulled in too late for dinner unfortunately.

I also found out from the other boaters tied there that they typically call ahead and place their dinner orders so that he has them ready when they pull in.

It was a nice calm and protected area, and a nice dock, however …

One of the main reasons that I had been using marinas more frequently than anchoring out is that my battery system was failing and getting through the night on the anchor was becoming difficult.  I do not have a “house bank” like most other cruising boats, and so I needed the shore power that is provided at these marinas.

About 7:30 PM the owner came by and said he was having trouble with his generator and had to shut down the shore power at 8 PM.  And so we had to run the generator through the evening, bothering the other boats at the dock.

The other problem with this marina was the mosquitoes.  There was a very nice walk way into an area for dog walking, but as soon as we got there the mosquitoes just erupted from the grass in great swarms.  Usually bugs don’t bother me much, but these were just overwhelming.  Both Lisa and I got bitten numerous times, which bothered us for many days.  Her bites stayed with her far longer than mine.

 Lisa shows off her bites.  Believe me, they were worse than they appear in this photo.

The owner takes orders in the evening for cinnamon rolls for the morning.  I ordered 2, then increased that to 4.  If I had known how big they were, and the cost ($4 per roll) I probably would have stuck with 2.   But they were indeed delicious.

Here are some shots of the marina and the dock:

It's just one T shaped float with the marina store and office on the bottom floor of the building and the restaurant above that.  The owner and his family live in a big house way back in the woods behind the resort.

This man had a 10 year old dog with severe arthritis.

He had a carry sling set up so he could lift her out of the boat and put her in this little wagon.

Then he would wheel her up the dock and over to the grass. 

477 miles to this point.