Today we had a discussion about how very busy it was at the
dock. Last time we were here there were only a few boats and those who were
there pretty much stayed to themselves and were inside their boats or exploring
on their own. This time, we all felt we were in middle of a campground there
were so many boats and so many people out on the dock all the time. We lost the
feeling of solitude that we were looking forward to. We all agreed that it would be nice to go
over to MacDonald Island and try to get four of the mooring buoys to tie up to
for the next two nights. Bob and I ran over there in our dinghy and talked to
the people who were using the buoys. Two were empty and one family said they
would be leaving in a couple of hours. We decided that we could raft two
together and then the other two could each take a buoy. Two sailboaters told us
they might leave today but weren’t sure. We figured if they did, we could grab
the fourth one, too. We got back to the dock and discussed it with everyone. We
decided to leave right then so we could get there before the next bunch of
boats came in through the rapids and grabbed the buoys.
After lunch we took the kayaks and explored for awhile. It
was fun to sit quietly in the middle of the bay and watch the seals swim
around. It was obvious that they were very curious about us. We could see them
coming toward us from different directions, check us out, and then dive back
under the water before they got too close.
I am learning how to run the dinghy so that I can take it
out when I want and also so I can better help Bob when we have to anchor or tie
up to buoys. I did pretty well but am
still trying to get the knack of “getting up on plane”. We took a quick run back to the dock to see
how many boats had tied up or anchored down by Chatterbox Falls. We had seen
then pouring into the inlet during the last slack tide. There were 23 boats
anchored or stern tied plus the dock appeared to be full. We are so glad we
decided to move to the bay we are currently in. On our way back I got a nice
picture of Jack and Moon.
We have been eating very well the past couple weeks. The
boat was packed with food when we left Everett and then we have gotten
additional provisions when at a marina with a nearby grocery store. Tonight’s
menu was steak we purchased at Granville Island’s market which is much like
Seattle’s Pike Place Market.
We ended the evening with my homemade apple pie and ice
cream supplied by the others. We sat up on the flybridge and enjoyed the
beautiful view.
This evening we saw After Eight cruise by on their way to
the falls. As we looked back to our time in Vancouver when it was tied to our
dock, Al remembered hearing the crew members discussing who was the most
skilled to take the yacht into a certain place. Al did not hear where they were
talking about but after seeing them arrive tonight we realized they must have
been talking about the Malibu Rapids. We ran the dingy up to where they were
anchored to see how it compared to the setting as well as to the rest of the
boats. With walls to the fjord 4000’ high, After Eight did not look nearly as
big as it did at the dock in Vancouver. However, when you compared it to the
other boats in the area its size was evident.
