S.V. CAMBRIA: Pender Harbour

Pender Harbour, BC

Wednesday, October 05, 2011TheCambrians

Music Festival Pender Harbour the Sunshine Coast

Pender Harbour Garlic Festival

Tuesday, August 23, 2011TheCambrians

The newlyweds

We left the Copeland Islands Friday morning and motored south to Westview to fill up with fuel and water. They're still in the process of adding new docks for temporary moorage and the new fairway is extremely narrow – limited to one boat at one point because of a shallow extending out from the seawall – but because of its convenience, worth the extra aggravation. Thirty minutes and CA$454 later, we were on our way to Pender Harbour.

It was a long day. But a good one. I love travelling along this stretch of water. We're both fairly relaxed and have some of our best conversations while sitting in the cockpit enjoying the view as it passes us by at a leisurely seven knots. That's not to say it isn't a mean piece of water. It can be. But we pick our days and most of them have been like this – flat calm without a breath of wind. The only problem being that the weather has really started to heat up and Sally's stressed. While the rest of us are shedding clothes, she's stuck wearing a fur coat which is still too thick for these temperatures.

We arrived in Pender Harbour in the afternoon and I took Sally to shore in search of information on the 2nd Annual Garlic Fest which was to be held on Saturday and Sunday. I thought it was taking place in Madeira Park – a short walk from the marina. But, come to find out, it was being held in Lions' Park – some 10 kilometres away. As luck would have it, I asked a gal at the grocery store if she knew of a shuttle and she ended up offering David and I a ride. We took her up on the offer and met up with our friends, Gary and Tani, at the park sitting with Gary's family for the night.

All and all, it was a great festival with amazing food (garlic, garlic and more garlic!) and entertainment. The music started off with Valdy, a Canadian folk musician who began his solo career in the early 70s. He was very popular in Canada, second only to Gordon Lightfoot, and received several awards along the way. Not only was he good, but he was entertaining and had the crowd laughing and clapping along with him. Next up was Larry Cook whom we had heard play at the Garden Bay Pub last year and really enjoyed – both times. And ending the night was Dr. Fun and the Painkillers, Gary's band, who had the remaining crowd on their feet and dancing the rest of the night – it was great!

Because we weren't planning to go to the wedding on Sunday, we hadn't made arrangements for a rental car –something that would have come in handy for the entire weekend. But Gary insisted that we come and worked it all out. A friend of his, Andy, would pick us up at the marina and we'd use their car to drive home so they could drink. The only problem: allergies! I've been struggling with them since we left Shoal Bay and Sunday was my day to be down and out – literally – so David ended up going by himself and had a wonderful time while I stayed home and filled myself with just about every drug I could find.

Shortly after he got home, some time after 2:00 am, the wind started to pick up and blew for days. Garden Bay is famous for being a mediocre anchorage when the wind blows and it's common for people to drag. With me knocked out by allergy medicine, d's second anchor watch of the season was born (the first being Frances Bay). But he wasn't alone: lights were on throughout the anchorage and people were up checking their positions.

With the forecast for strong winds in Malaspina Strait, the same stretch of water which was as smooth as glass a couple of days ago, we waited until today to leave and were greeted with 20+ knots of wind from the south and white caps. But, for once, we were going the right direction, north, and were able to sail. It wasn't a great sail. With the sea state, we were only able to make 5 to 6 knots, but we did sail and that's all that matters – chalking up number four for the season! But we left our departure too late in the day, so we tucked into Ballet Bay for the night and will continue on to Desolation Sound Marine Park in the morning.

Music Festival Pender Harbour the Sunshine Coast

Pender Harbour Blues Festival

Monday, June 06, 2011TheCambrians

Dr. Fun and the Painkillers

Saturday afternoon we went to Madeira Park to listen to several bands, one of which was Dr. Fun and the Painkillers featuring Gary Gilbert –a friend of ours. This was the first time we'd seen Gary (lead vocals, harmonica and guitar) and his band play and were in for a real treat especially when he dropped down on one knee and proposed to Tani, his partner of ten years.

We stayed to listen to three bands and had a great time. As much as we enjoy the Jazz Festival in September, the Blues Festival is more our speed and we hope to watch it grow in popularity over the years –people don't know what they're missing.

After one more set, another harp player, we took Gary and Tani to Cambria for a celebratory drink and to show them around. They invited us to join them at the Painted Boat for dinner and to hear Diane Lines,the pianist for Michael Bubblé, play but we declined thinking they should have a romantic evening alone and that the Painted Boat Restaurant was just the place for it. Come to find out, Gary ended up sitting in for a while and having a great time, so we were sorry we missed it after all.

Peter Van Huesen, the head of the blues society and Gary's pianist, gave David a couple of tickets to the Gospel Show up at the School of Music featuring Diane Lines Sunday at noon. It's not a genre of music we listen to, but it was FANTASTIC! Between the deep vocal stylings of Dawn, a gospel singer out of Vancouver, belting out soulful tunes and the amazing piano playing of Diane, who studied with the legendary Cleo Laine, people walked away with goosebumps and were talking about the performance all day. That's one of the great things about music festivals – you're exposed to things that you may not ordinarily listen to.

After the concert, we stopped by the boat for a quick drink before dinghing over to the Garden Bay Pub for the 2 o'clock All-Star Jam featuring locals Tim Hearsey and Arsen Shomakov. Gary Comeau showed up with his mandolin, accordion, and fiddle. And Willie McCalder (one of the founding members of the band, Powder Blues, which went platnuim in Canada and now lives in Vancouver) stopped by to play the piano. We're always amazed by the amount of talent in the area.

Gary and Tani were also at the pub and we sat with them until the had to leave before the third, and final set. We should have left too, but we stayed for Diane Lines and didn't get home until after midnight –roughly 12 hours of music and, sadly, 10 hours of beer. Needless to say, there was a price to be paid for so much fun – both financially AND physically.

Music Festival Pender Harbour the Sunshine Coast

Pender Harbour

Monday, October 04, 2010TheCambrians

Standing waves at Skookumchuk Narrows.

We spent the past six days anchored in Garden Bay enjoying Pender Harbour and its nearby offerings. It seems the more time we spend here, the less we want to leave. The villages are quiet, yet active, and the people are friendly, often going out of their way to make you feel at home.

Like us, Bill and Sylvia are taken with Pender Harbour and decided to stay through the weekend, so we had dinner together at the pub Thursday night where they paid David an exceptional complement. They thanked him for his help navigating the entrance to the harbour and said they wouldn't have followed anyone else in. I suppose for people who aren't boaters, on the surface, that may not sound like such a big deal but, trust me, it is.

The weather was beautiful most of the week so, on Saturday, we took the community bus to Egmont and walked the 2.5 mile trail through a forest of moss-covered cedars to Roland Point to see Skookumchuk Narrows, one of the fastest saltwater rapids in North America which runs sixteen knots during a maximum flood tide. It just so happened that the bus schedule worked perfectly with an extra-large maximum flood and we were able to sit on the rocks for hours watching the maelstrom take place merely a few feet away. It was an amazing and powerful sight – well worth the trip.

It had been a long day, so we had dinner at the pub where, funnily enough, it was karaoke night. There were only eleven people there, including the staff, and it was absolutely AWFUL. Come to find out, David has a propensity for karaoke and went up to sing four or five songs. Now, this is where I usually write something about how surprised I am to have discovered yet another one of his numerous talents after so many years together. But not this time. It was AWFUL. Full stop. Sorry, honey.

Sunday morning we said our good-byes to Salubrious and David ran into Gary, the bus driver from Sechelt. He's a canny guy and, like so many other Canadians that we've met along the way, shares a similar world-view. They exchanged contact information and Gary gave him a signed copy of his CD, Gary Gilbert and the Unsung Heroes: January Man. It's really good and a nice change from the formula music that seems to make it to the airwaves nowadays. We plan to keep in touch over the off-season and hope to take him and his family out for a day when we come back next year for the blues festival in June.

In the afternoon, we went back over to the Garden Bay Pub. Every Sunday, they have live music and we wanted to hear the Larrie Cook Blues Band. Come to find out, Larrie's a sailor himself and has made two circumnavigations and sailed with Bernard Moitessier, a renowned French yachtsman and author. The band was actually really good and a lot of fun to listen to...just another example of the many reasons we've come to love it here.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and our time in Pender Harbour is over. It's getting late in the year and it's time to cross the Strait of Georgia and start making our way south.

Music Festival Pender Harbour

Pender Harbour Jazz Festival

Monday, September 20, 2010TheCambrians

A Pender Harbour sunset looking out to Texada Island.

Last Tuesday was another gift of a day that we gladly accepted as we upped anchor and motored south to Pender Harbour for the 14th Annual Jazz Festival – days ahead of the event but just before the forecasted rain moved into the area on Wednesday and Thursday.

By Friday, the weather had cleared and our friends, Jeff and Karry Bice, arrived from Washington to join us. We celebrated their first night aboard at the Garden Bay Pub where Doc Fingers had everyone singing and dancing with his mix of blues and rock until the early hours of the morning.

It rained overnight, so Saturday's music was moved indoors to the community centre where first up was Wil Campo Y Su Gran Union playing Cuban Sonero – a sort of salsa, Caribbean mix. The band was amazing with a full horn section and the place, packed full of people, was jumping. Next up was Swing Patrol, an excellent 1940s band out of Vancouver – well practised and tight – that had the terrible misfortune of following the lively Wil Campo and was never quite able to get the crowd moving again.

Sunday, Jeff had organized a hotel room for him and Karry and a marina berth for us at the Sunshine Coast Resort so, after breakfast, we moved over to the docks and plugged in to shore power for the second time since leaving Poulsbo in June. That night we went up to the Grasshopper Pub for their BBQ chicken dinner and The Astrid Sars Quintet – one of the few returning acts from last year. We were joined by Bill and Sylvia Emmens, friends of ours aboard the sailboat Salubrious, and, after dinner, Terri and Doug, two Shoal Bay regulars, helped fill the table. The food was good but the band, playing a sultry blend of bossa-nova and jazz, didn't live up to last year's performance making the decision to say an early good-night an easy one. Unfortunately, we also had to say our good-byes to Jeff and Karry who would be leaving in the morning tocatch the ferry from Langdale. We really enjoyed having them aboard and we wished they weren't going so soon – a true sign of excellent guests.

Much like last year, by Monday afternoon Pender Harbour was deserted –a sure sign that the cruising season is quickly coming to an end. However, the rain had cleared leaving us with a sunny sky and warm weather to enjoy but, unfortunately, that'll change soon. There's a large storm headed our way – the first red one of the season – so we'll be leaving tomorrow for Princess Louisa Inlet where we can tie up to the dock and find protection from the incoming weather.

Pender Harbour

Saying Good-Bye

Wednesday, September 30, 2009TheCambrians

Music Festival Pender Harbour

All That Jazz . . .

Monday, September 21, 2009TheCambrians

Music Festival Pender Harbour

Pender Harbour or Bust!

Thursday, September 17, 2009TheCambrians

Bill and Sylvia upped anchor about 10:30 this morning on their way to Nanaimo. As we left the bay’s entrance a half hour later, we could see them adrift in the water ahead of us with two of their sails up and thought they were making ready for the trip across the Strait of Georgia. As we came closer, we could see Bill in the dinghy and it looked as if Salubrious was aground where there was no ground to be on. As it turned out, the bolt securing the drive-line coupler to the shaft had failed and spun out from the transmission leaving them without the ability to drive the prop and Bill was trying to row them into open water away from the islets and rocks that line the bay’s entrance.

We attached a line to Salubrious and slowly towed her into open water where they planned to sail to Pender Harbour to affect a repair. We would shadow them on the way down reattaching the line once we arrived and guide them safely into the harbour. But you know what they say about best laid plans….

At the time, we had a good sailing breeze and relatively calm conditions but Salubrious is a gaff-rigged ketch and was only able to sail 60 degrees off the wind which put them in a direct line from where we started and they weren’t able to make any southern progress. By the time we decided to pack it in and give them a tow, three hours had passed and the conditions had worsened. We were seeing 15 to 20 knots of wind on the nose and chopped up seas.

During this time, David and Bill were communicating via VHF radio and the Canadian Coast Guard became involved. As we stood off and waited for them to lower their sails, a launch who had overheard the conversations radioed in to see if they could help. We were ecstatic! We were prepared to tow ourselves but, like most sailboats, we have a small engine compared to motor vessels and weren’t sure if we could actually complete the job in the current conditions. We continued to stand off along with Cetus, the launch, when a call from Teal came in. Carl and Kit own a 78 foot motor vessel and are friends of Bill and Sylvia’s who just happened to be passing by on their way down from Alaska and would take the tow. We continued to standby wanting to make sure they all got back to port safely but eventually had to make the decision to go at our own pace because of the conditions and lateness of the day. – by that time, we were bashing into the chop and taking water over the bow up to the dodger.

After loosing their line twice and having to re-attach, Teal and Salubrious made it safely to Pender Harbour an hour or so after us and rafted their boats together for the night in Maidera Bay. We dropped our hook in Garden Bay next to Mike and Lisa on Blue Aweigh and readied ourselves for a weekend of jazz.

Pender Harbour, BC

Pender Harbour Garlic Festival

Pender Harbour Blues Festival

Pender Harbour

Pender Harbour Jazz Festival

Saying Good-Bye

All That Jazz . . .

Pender Harbour or Bust!

Welcome Aboard

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