S.V. CAMBRIA: The North Coast

Bishop Bay Hot Springs: Soaking It Up

Tuesday, February 09, 2016TheCambrians

Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

Ferris Bueller

Blame the sunshine. Blame the natural hot springs. Or blame the good company. But nobody was in a hurry to leave Bishop Bay. Nobody aboard Cambria, anyway. And we were more than happy to pick up on Friday where Thursday had left off with some kayaking, soaks in the hot springs and another cookout at the campsite. It was brilliant! And short-lived.

The barometer had been sitting steady at 1015 Mb for the last few days but a cold front moved into the area early Saturday and dropped the temperature . . . along with some more rain. John (SV Gypsy Woman) was eager to continue south and make his way home to Port Townsend to see his lady, so Impossible Dream and Gypsy Woman left the anchorage that morning at nine o’clock. By 11:00 am, they were back. David radioed to make sure everything was alright. It was. But the wind was blowing 25 knots from the south in the channel with a corresponding sea state, so they decided to wait until Sunday. Tom added that he heard someone trying to hail us on the radio – it was Jim and Laurie aboard SV JouJou!

They came into the bay and rafted up to us for the night and another great evening. The reunion was short and sweet, however. Jim and Laurie were eager to make some more southing as well and they left Sunday morning shortly after Impossible Dream and Gypsy Woman. As for us, we’re not ones to leave a hot spring in a rush and whenever we stop in Bishop Bay, we linger. Sometimes it’s to our detriment and sometimes it’s to our benefit. We won’t know until the next forecast period if there’s a price to pay for our idleness but today there was, in fact, a benefit.

There were only two boats left in Bishop Bay: us and a fishing vessel making their way south. Shortly before lunch, there was a knock on the hull – a young guy called Jesse came by to offer us a frozen sockeye before they left. We said no, but thank you. He was surprised by our refusal and couldn’t quite understand it, even when we told him we don’t really care for salmon and it would go to waste. In hindsight, I wish we would have taken it and then whapped him on the head with it. But we didn’t know then what we were about to find out.

It’s common for boats that visit Bishop Bay to leave something at the bath house with their name on it. In 2013, during our first visit, David made a sign out of a cedar plank and hung it in the changing area where it remained, untouched, for two years – even surviving a complete clean-out by the local yacht club in Kitimat.

I went to the pools after lunch for a long, hot bath and was getting changed when I noticed “BJ” on our sign. BJ? Who’s BJ? And what are they doing on our board? And then the penny dropped: The buggers aboard the fishing vessel (who had just so kindly offered us a salmon) took our sign down, turned it around, wrote their names on it in permanent black marker and hung it back up. I bet young Jesse had a real surprise when he came over to Cambria this morning only to find out we were the boat sign they’d poached . . . along with that sockeye.

Note: This blog was written on Tuesday, 25 August 2015.

Inside Passage The North Coast Wildlife

Going Aground and Tales of Whales

Saturday, February 06, 2016TheCambrians

They say there are two types of sailors: Those who’ve run aground, and those who will (although some refer to the second simply as “liars”). And I suppose being high and dry twice in 15 years isn’t bad percentage-wise, but it’s still incredibly embarrassing to admit (and yet I am). Embarrassing because it should have never happened. And increasingly embarrassing because I ignored every sign that clearly pointed me in that direction.

It was Wednesday afternoon and the tide was low. I went on deck to launch my kayak while David was below cleaning the spare raw water pump. We were anchored in the southeast corner of Nettle Basin in Lowe Inlet and I could see the shoals off our bow. At the time, I felt we were a little close given the current range of the tide. Normally I would’ve run down below and had David, who has much better depth perception than I do, come up for a look and a second opinion. But I didn’t. I thought about turning on the depth meter, but I quickly reminded myself that we were anchored in more than eight metres (over 26 feet) and went about my business. The tide came back in and all was forgotten.

That evening, the wind picked up out of the northwest quadrant (as it had the night before). But this time it built to 20 or 25 knots and there were whitecaps in the bay. I know this because I got up to use the head and looked outside when I did. Why the simple fact that we were lee-shored and floating over the shoals didn’t seem to concern either one of us is beyond me. And why the fact that the door to the head was a little snug didn’t set off alarm bells off in my mind, I can’t be entirely sure. What I do know is that by the time I sauntered back to our cabin, it was too late – we were aground.

Complacency. It’ll get you every time. I can’t speak for David but I feel confident that with Alaska behind us, I had let my guard down and was too relaxed now that we’re back in familiar territory. And because of that, I earned the distinct honour of having to drag my ass out into the wind and cold to help him try to kedge the boat off the shoal in the dark of night.

There was no getting free so David got into one of the kayaks and paddled to the eastern shore where he secured a line from the trees back to Cambria to help keep her from healing over any more (we were already sitting at a good 30° and the wind was still blowing). In the meantime, one of the other boats in the anchorage heard the commotion and shone a light on us . . . and then promptly went inside, shut off all their lights and went to bed. We didn’t need their help but were pretty surprised and disappointed by their reaction nonetheless. Finally around two in the morning, the tide had come in enough that we were floating again. We moved into deeper water (with less scope), used the line to shore as a stern-tie and went to bed, shaking our heads at our stupidity as we did.

The next morning got off to a somewhat inauspicious start: I overslept by an hour, putting us at odds with the current. And we had to cut ourselves free from a rope someone left behind when we were upping anchor, which delayed us even further. From then on, though, things improved quickly and all the ills from the previous night were soon forgotten.

Coming down Greenville Channel into Wright Sound we saw (at the very least) 30 humpback whales – some alone, some together and several mothers and calves. They weren’t bubble or lunge feeding, but it was still amazing to see so many whales in one place. And if the whales weren’t enough, we were a few miles south of Tomkinson Point (the entrance to Bishop Bay, our destination) when I saw two white conical shapes about 5 miles off to the north of us. I thought they were markers when I first put the binoculars on them. But as we got closer, I decided they might be sailboats, so I took another look. They were. And one was a ketch. I looked at David and, with a tone of disbelief, asked him to hail Impossible Dream on the VHF: My suspicions were confirmed. It was Tom, Gale and John (on Gypsy Woman). That makes ninth time we’ve ended up in the same anchorage this season and the second time we’ve arrived at the same place within minutes of each other after departing from different locations at different times.

Anchoring in Bishop Bay can be tricky thanks to poor holding, but Parks Canada had added a third mooring over the summer season and two were available when we arrived. We took one and Impossible Dream and Gypsy Woman took the other – no need to worry about going aground tonight!

There was still plenty of day left to enjoy, so we did just that. After securing the boats, we all got ready quickly and went to shore for a soak in the hot springs and a to catch-up. But the pièce de résistance came later when we met at the campsite where Tom had built a nice fire and cooked our dinner over hot coals while sharing beers and swapping stories – not a bad way to end the day!

Note: This blog was written on Thursday, 20 August 2015).

British Columbia Sum It Up Sunday The Central Coast

Sum It Up Sunday: Moving Right Along

Sunday, September 21, 2014TheCambrians

Salubrious and Cambria rafted together in Loretta Island Cove.

This “Sum It Up Sunday” brings us back to the week of July 27^th and to Loretta Island Cove along Devastation Channel. As far as anchorages go, it isn’t anything special but it’s a pretty spot with steep, moss-covered granite and evergreen trees lining the shore. But more importantly, the protection and holding are good making it the perfect place to rest up before making the next leg of our trip – a 28 nautical mile stretch down Verney Passage and Ursula Channel to Bishop Bay Hot Springs.

Ursula Channel.

When we arrived Monday afternoon, the anchorage was empty so we each took a mooring and David and I went straight to the hot spring for a bath. But Bishop Bay is a popular place and it wasn’t long before more boats arrived, filling the dock. It showered most of Tuesday and we did little more than soak in the springs and discuss our plans for the next day – deciding on nothing except that we were leaving. But, in a last-minute moment of reluctance, I pulled the plug and we stayed another day – I just wasn’t sure that I was ready to drop below 53° for the year. I couldn’t get anyone to agree with me (i.e. David), so Thursday morning we left Bishop Bay and started south after one final soak, ready or not.

David taking one final soak in the hot springs at Bishop Bay.

My back was bothering me so I took it easy on the trip down – walking around the boat, laying down for a nap, and generally doing everything except sitting in the cockpit which can be uncomfortable. When I woke up from my nap, we’d passed Khutze Inlet (our intended destination) and were making way for Hiekish Narrows to spend the night in Work Bay, a lovely little spot at the northern end of Finlayson Channel. The Douglass book says it’s often overlooked as an anchorage because it’s somewhat open to the south but is fine in settled weather. And he’s right. Despite the fact that we were seeing wind and chop from the inflow wind out in the channel, it was flat and calm inside . . . and beautifully quiet.

Looking out toward Finlayson Channel from the head of Work Bay.

The next day, Salubrious went down to Klemtu to fill up with diesel and take a tour of the Big House. Unfortunately, George was busy and couldn’t take them so they missed out . . . again! David and I stayed behind and did absolutely nothing, something we both enjoyed a little too much. When Saturday morning rolled around, it was foggy outside the anchorage in Finlayson Channel and our planned noon departure was set back until it lifted some time around 1:00 pm. From there, it was a short run up the channel and over to Sheep Passage to our anchorage for the night, Windy Bay.

All and all, it wasn’t what you’d call a very exciting week; we did little more than put miles under our keel. But the coming one promises to be more interesting now that we’ve set ourselves up to visit our next destination – Fiordland Recreational Area.

British Columbia Hot Springs The North Coast

Destination: Weewanie (Not So) Hot Springs

Sunday, September 14, 2014TheCambrians

The bath house in Weewanie with a view out to Devastation Channel.

Entrance: 53°41.810’ N, 128°47.631’ W

Mooring: 53°41.774’ N, 128°47.350’ W

I like lists. I like making them. I like thinking about them. But more than anything else, I like completing them. It doesn’t really matter what’s on the list or how long it is, just that it gets done. So, after our first visit to Bishop Bay Hot Springs last year, I hit the cruising guides and put together a list of accessible* hot springs in the area: Eucott Bay (check), Nascall Bay (check . . . sort of), Bishop Bay (check), Europa Bay (check), Weewanie. And I was really looking forward to ticking the last box.

When we were tied up in Ocean Falls for a few days last season before heading down the West Coast of Vancouver Island, we met Mark Bunzel, the editor of Waggoner Cruising Guide. He’d just been to Weewanie and told us that it was better than Bishop Bay. Much better. So, I could hardly wait.

Located just off Devastation Channel, Weewanie is difficult to spot. The bath house and small cove blend into the shoreline so well that if you blink, you could miss them. The bay itself very pretty in a “Pacific Northwest” kind of way: The shore is lined with evergreen trees and backed by steep, granite walls. But it’s exposed to some of the wind and chop along Devastation Channel (a name that doesn’t instill a lot of confidence) and would most likely be uncomfortable in anything other than settled weather.

Until last year, there were two mooring buoys in the bay but one of them floated away in a storm and isn’t going to be replaced. It’s possible to anchor southwest of the existing buoy in approximately 20 metres (66 feet) but the holding is reported to be poor in rock and you’d need to be careful to avoid the ground tackle for the former mooring, which hasn’t been removed.

Salubrious and Cambria sharing the mooring in Weewanie.

The bath house was originally built by the Kitmat Aquanauts Scuba Club but is now maintained by BC Parks and can be accessed two ways: directly from the shore by climbing the rocks below the hot spring or from the beach at the head of the bay that leads to a trail past a campsite and down to the bath house. If the tide is low, the latter option would be a lot easier.

There are two tubs inside, a smaller one for washing that (by looking at older pictures) appears to have had its own water source at one time so you could actually shower underneath. Unfortunately, new piping has been installed and now the water only flows into the main tub which spills over into the smaller one. So, if you want to wash, do it first because the water is COLD! The second tub is larger but can only comfortably seat four or five people. Both are pretty basic in appearance and are made entirely out of concrete. In fact, apart from the water, there’s nothing natural about Weewanie.

From the source, the water is a decent temperature. We didn’t bring a thermometer with us but guessed it was somewhere in the range of 32°C (90°F) – much lower than the reported 44°C at the source (112°F) and 38°C (101°F) in the tub. But it loses warmth quickly to the concrete. The outer tub was somewhere in the range of 27°C (80°F), low enough to cause you to shiver. All and all, a huge disappointment.

When we arrived in Kitimat the following day, I asked around the marina to see if anyone knew what the story was. Nobody really did but someone told me that the water went cold about 20 months ago when the big earthquake hit Haida Gwaii (they sit on the same fault line). It sounded reasonable but still didn’t explain Mark Bunzel’s reaction to Weewanie only 14 months ago and six months after the quake.

A few days later when we were moored in Bishop Bay two park rangers stopped by to say hello, so we asked them the same question: No. The earthquake didn’t affect the temperature or flow of the hot springs in Weewanie, but the temperature varies with the amount of rain (it had rained quite a bit the week before we were there). And the intake gets clogged with roots and debris, which affects the flow, so they’ll be adding a screen filter to help address the problem. They also told us that the second mooring buoy broke away some time last year. They recovered it and attempted to reinstall it but weren’t able to locate the anchor point. Because most people didn’t care to use that mooring (it left you too close to shore), they decided not to replace it and add a third one in Bishop Bay, which is more popular, instead.

So, even though our visit to Weewanie wasn’t the best that may have been a condition of our timing – a week earlier or later, and our opinion about the water might be different. And surely adding a screen to filter out debris will improve the situation. But nothing can change the aesthetics of the bath house which is cold and uninviting. If the “shower” was still flowing, then giving Weewanie a second chance might be in order but, considering it’s off the beaten path, I don’t see a return visit anytime soon in our future.

* There are actually more hot springs along the Central and North Coast but these are the ones that offer a secure anchorage.

Hot Springs Sum It Up Sunday the Inside Passage

Summing It Up With a Short and Sweet Week!

Monday, September 08, 2014TheCambrians

It’s been a while since our last weekly update and I realize that it’s Monday and not actually Sunday, but you have to take access to the internet when you can so here’s a “Sum It Up” from the 24^th of July through the 26^th – it may be a short one, but it really was sweet!

After spending an incredible week in Gardner Canal, we reluctantly upped anchor and left Owycumish Bay Thursday morning and got our first weather forecast in as many days – a cold front will be moving through the area. But we didn’t need Environment Canada to tell us that. It’s been much cooler lately and we’ve been wearing layers for a week now, so we were really looking forward to our next destination – Weewanie Hot Springs.

We were all ready for a hot bath to fend off the cold and Weewanie ranks high with Mark Bunzel at Waggoners who told me last year that they were the best springs in the area. So, we excitedly jumped in the dinghy after dinner and made our way over to the bath house only to be incredibly disappointed – the water wasn’t hot. You could call it warm (at a stretch). But hot? Not even close. Clearly something’s changed, but we have no idea what it is.

The uninspiring bath house in Weewanie can be difficult to spot along the shoreline.

There wasn’t any reluctance when it came to leaving Weewanie and we dropped our lines Friday morning to ride the current up to Kitimat where we hoped to re-provision. It’d been a while since our last good shop (Port McNeil) and I was beginning to crave fresh vegetables (David doesn’t suffer from such maladies, but he was ready for a nice bar of chocolate . . . or two).

We tied up at MK Bay Marina around noon and it was non-stop for the next 24 hours: David, Sylvia and I took the bus into town to shop while Bill and Skookum stayed behind to do their laundry; I tried to give him ours, but he declined. Go figure! So, that meant I had to get up early Saturday morning to empty our hamper while everyone else slept in (okay, so I’m always up early). But with the laundry out of the way, I was free to walk into the neighbouring First Nation village of Kitmaat with Bill, Sylvia and Skookum to visit with Chief Sammy Robinson, a master carver, while David stayed behind and took a look at our windlass, which has been giving us a few problems.

Chief Sammy's home in Kitamaat.

We were able to squeeze a lot in during a short period of time, but the best part of our stay had to be when Bill scored a halibut from a local fishing charter company. For some reason one of their clients didn’t want it and they passed it on, so Sylvia came up with a brilliant idea – fish and chips for dinner. What she hadn’t planned on was a little Facebook birdie alerting me to the fact that was her birthday.

With our fridges full again, we untied our lines mid-afternoon and bashed our way back up Douglas Channel, stopping by Jesse Falls for a quick look before anchoring in Loretta Island Cove off Devastation Channel. Little did Sylvia know that while we were under way, I was busy making preparations for her surprise party. When you have an older dog, sometimes you find it’s necessary to mark their lives with birthday hats and horns so we happened to have a few things aboard from Sally’s celebration last year in the hopes that there would be one for her this season. Knowing Sylvia wouldn’t mind a few hand-me-downs; I pulled them out, baked a batch of chocolate cupcakes and made her a personalized birthday card.

Making a quick stop at Jesse Falls in Douglas Channel.

It was close to six o’clock by the time we arrived, so we rafted up for the night to make things easier (and give David some more time to look at our windlass). When they came over for dinner, we had “Birthday” by the Beatles blasting over the stereo speakers in her honour and the table decorated in birthday regalia. It took a minute or two for it all to sink in and I think I had to point out the party hats and horns, but the surprise finally hit Sylvia . . . and her reaction was brilliant!

The evening was a huge success. It wasn’t a big production, but it was a lot of fun and we all really enjoyed ourselves. At the end of the night, David and I agreed that it couldn’t have possibly gone any better which is great because Sylvia truly is one of the nicest people we know: she’s kind, generous, patient, very good company and deserves only the best.

The fish and chips, by the way, were outstanding!

All and all, I’d have to say that it was the perfect end to the day . . . and the week!

Destinations the Inside Passage The North Coast

Destination: Owyacumish Bay (Gardner Canal)

Saturday, September 06, 2014TheCambrians

British Columbia Destinations the Inside Passage

Destination: Chief Mathews Bay (Gardner Canal)

Monday, September 01, 2014TheCambrians

Destinations Hot Springs the Inside Passage

Destination: Europa Bay (Gardner Canal)

Saturday, August 30, 2014TheCambrians

Entrance: 53°26.835’N, 128°33.613’W

Moorings: 53°26.970’N, 128°33.566’W (approximate)

53°26.977’N, 128°33.408’W (approximate)

Hot Springs: 53°26.996’N, 128°33.675’W (approximate)

Cabin: 53°26.962’N, 128°33.154’W (approximate)

Disclaimer: This blog article is not to be used for navigation. It is purely an account of our personal experience in Gardner Canal, a remote wilderness location, during calm weather conditions. There are no services or VHF reception and any boat that enters should be self-sufficient.

We fell in love with natural hot springs on our first visit to the Central Coast in 2012 and that love affair has only grown over the last two years. For us, there’s not much that can top the experience of taking a long, hot soak in the middle of nowhere, washing away the stress of the day and then going home, clean and refreshed. Not to a hotel room surrounded by other tourists, but home. Our home. It’s heaven on earth by any definition, especially ours. And it was our quest for hot springs that first brought our attention to Gardner Canal.

After spending six years in the Pacific Northwest (mostly in British Columbia), we’ve come to take the descriptions listed in local cruising guides (in this case, Douglass’ “Exploring the North Coast of British Columbia”) with a dose of skepticism – let’s face it, not every anchorage can be the most beautiful in the world. But we are equal opportunity cruisers, so when Douglass described the pools in Europa as “by far the most pleasant hot-spring experience on the North Coast” we were ready to put their words to the test. And we’ve got to say . . . they failed.

The hot springs in Europa Bay. The upper level of the structure has a picnic table and overlooks the bay,
making it a nice place for lunch (if they bugs aren't out).

First, in all fairness, I should tell you that we were there on a hot, sunny day and the deer flies were out in full-force so I’m not sure our visit is the best judge. Not only are these vicious biting machines pests, but David’s a complete lunatic when it comes to killing them. Listening to him rant and rave for hours while he runs around killing every single one that he can while claiming victory for future generations really wears on my nerves and can make even the best of circumstances (i.e. hanging on the hook in the middle of nowhere) a real drag. And secondly, we (stupidly) chose to visit the pools around 10 or 11 in the morning when the sun was blazing rather than going in the cooler hours of the evening like reasonable people.

The two hot spring pools in Europa Bay. As you can see, the whole area is a little cramped.

So, while we aren’t big fans of Europa the pools really are very nice. The rock work is beautiful, giving the tubs a more natural feel, and they overlook the bay with a nice view out to the canal. But that doesn’t change the fact that the water’s way too hot. A thermometer in the main tub says it’s 40°C (105°F), but we think it’s stuck because it feels much warmer than that and after 10 minutes we were both lightheaded and had to get out. The temperature in the smaller pool is a more practical 37°C (98°F), but it’s small (really small) and only a couple of feet deep – not what you’d call “soaking” depth.

Cambria tied to one of the moorings in Europa Bay.

The anchorage itself isn’t particularly beautiful or interesting: The surrounding hills are low in comparison and, in have been heavily logged in the past. The bay is open to inflow winds and sees a slight chop in the afternoons. The holding is reported to be poor in rock in depths of 33 metres (109 feet). But BC Parks has set up two mooring buoys in the bay for public use (despite being marked “Private”), making it a good option in settled weather.

And although Europa Bay doesn’t rank high on our list of hot springs at the moment, it’s easy to see that under the right conditions it could. I only hope we have the opportunity to improve on our experience in the future . . . the sooner, the better in my opinion.

Things to Do:

Soak in the hot springs.
Explore by kayak.
If you go to shore near the cabin or venture up stream, be bear aware.

Bishop Bay Hot Springs: Soaking It Up

Going Aground and Tales of Whales

Sum It Up Sunday: Moving Right Along

Destination: Weewanie (Not So) Hot Springs

Summing It Up With a Short and Sweet Week!

Destination: Owyacumish Bay (Gardner Canal)

Destination: Chief Mathews Bay (Gardner Canal)

Destination: Europa Bay (Gardner Canal)

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