7/23 Maple Bay to Sidney

Last night the wind picked up and gusted quite a bit into the wee hours.  Fortunately it seemed to have blown itself out by morning, as it was nice and calm.  We made plans to leave around 10:30, catching the ebb current through Sansum Narrows.

 

I filled our water tank and removed both propane tanks for refilling.  As I was carrying the tanks up the ramp, one of the marina employees was driving by in his electric cart.  I asked him if he was also the propane guy – he was, and I put both tanks in the back of his cart.  That was sure a lot easier than carrying them to the far side of the parking lot where the refill station was.  He came back a few minutes later to tell me he couldn't fill one of the tanks.  I knew which one right away.  We have an old tank that predates the OPD valve regulations instituted in the USA several years ago.  I have been able to refill it only in Canada since then.  The valve wasn't the problem, but its manufacture date was.  It was made in 1992, and has to be inspected or retired after 10 years.  Many of the small marinas up north apparently ignore that, as I've been getting it refilled regularly in Canada for many years.  Anyway, it's still half full, and the empty one, which we added new for the Alaska trip, was refilled with no problem, so we're good for longer than we'll be out anyway.

 

We left the dock first, which provided Trav with some extra maneuvering room.  We were against the main dock all the way into the fairway with a port side tie.  I needed to swing the stern around and back out, so I tried a new technique I'd read about a few years ago.  Instead of port reverse and starboard forward to rotate the stern out while holding the bow against the dock, I started out by doing the opposite along with hard left rudder.  Port forward provided some thrust away from the dock, while starboard reverse kept the boat from going forward and rotating from the port thrust.  The net effect is for the boat to crab sideways.  Not sure it looked pretty, but I did manage to get the bow far enough away from the dock that we were able to swing the stern around without fending off the bow.

 

We backed out the fairway and waited out in the harbor for Trav and Barb to appear, which they did a few minutes later.  We cruised out of Maple Bay and south towards Sansum Narrows, the passageway between Vancouver Island to the west and Saltspring Island to the east.  We then proceeded down Satellite Channel following the Saltspring Island shoreline.  At one point we spotted some dolphins swimming nearby, but they weren't in the playful mood that ends up with them frolicking in our bow wake.  They ignored that opportunity and continued on with their own business.

 

Rather than enter Saanich Inlet we turned to the east and headed for Colburne Passage at the top of the Saanich Peninsula.  We proceeded east past Swartz Bay, where a B.C. Ferry was at the dock loading.  Beyond that is Goudge Island, which has a passage on either side.  We chose John Passage on the east side, a more straightforward route.  We zig zagged past the markers and reefs and headed for Sidney.

 

We radioed Port Sidney requesting moorage for our two boats as we entered through the breakwater.  At least one thing they don't have down pat here is an efficient system for knowing which slips are available.  We listened to them chat among themselves and with other boats as they tried to ascertain which slips were open.  The area where we could wait is fairly small, and other boats were entering the harbor behind us.  One boater, who had reserved a spot for temporary moorage, gave up, canceled his request and left the harbor.  Neither of us ended up in the slips initially assigned to us, but we eventually both got settled in.  The Port Sidney Harbour is a large marina enclosed by a rock breakwater.  It has moorage for 400 boats of all sizes, with nice concrete docks and all the amenities.  On every piling hangs two flowering baskets, each with a small hose for an automated watering system, coiled to accommodate the rising and falling of the tides.  We're between F and G docks on the main dock, and Trav and Barb have a slip on D dock, a little closer to town but still a substantial walk to the head of the dock.  We've done some investigating, and it looks like Trav will have the option of taking their dinghy to the head of the dock to save on "knee time" going ashore.  We're here for at least two nights – we read that they have a Thursday Market tomorrow evening that we're going to stay and see.

 

We arrived here before 1 o'clock, but it seemed like it was nearly 6 o'clock before we knew it and all we'd done is lounge around – which is an entirely acceptable vacation activity.  We dined one some sausage "bangers" and sweet potatoes, then headed over to the Bar-T-Na for an evening of fun conversation and more dominos.  As we returned to our boat late in the evening, the stars were out, and a blood red three quarter moon was rising to the west.  What a beautiful evening.