Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Lifting our dingh at Fury

Tuesday, July 1. CANADA DAY. HURRAY! we are very much a minority up here for the Stars and Stripes rule the bay.   A lot of boaters come by to talk about are skiff. We reconnect with Phil off 'EVENTIDE and we chat about fish and man stuff that Penny knows more about than me.

We weigh anchor (BIG SHIP TALK) and plot a course to KWAKUME INLET (we have read about it in a boating magazine and it is recommended highly).

We come abreast of ADDENBROKE LIGHT. THIS is An IMPRESSIVE LIGHT STATION. It is crisp white building with red trim it has all types of antennas, widow walk porches and a large CANADIAN flying smartly in a stiff breeze. We toot are horn in appreciation of this fine spectacle and the keepers waves a salute from the porch. My chest swells with pride and on this CANADA DAY.

 

Addenbroke Station

Lighthouse Keeper giving us a wave

Some short time later he locates me on channel 72 VHF. I don’t want to I think it’s a BIG BROTHER thing again. He has from a distance conclu ded that we are a wooden boat and are name is OCEAN AIRE I and I know that the lettering is in stainless steel and not easy to read up close.  I conclude that he must have kids, as there is large blue vinyl pool next to the main house. WE chat about small stuff and he said if he knew us better he would have his DRONE CHOPPER SENT OUT TO GET A CLOSER LOOK AT US. I told him that I appreciated him not doing that as he would have scared the Bijous out of us. We move on and let the vessel “PASO” a yawl style motor yacht (0n VHF) that there are porpois and a hump back whale coming his way. The light keeper hails us again.  Part of his duty is watching whales and taking notes about their type numbers and direction. We give him scarce particulars and he again wishes us well and reminds us that light houses stand on 82 VHF.

 

WE have set our destination to KWAKUME INLET and work our way through the entrance following behind is the vessel “Freedom 48”, a tollycraft 48. We check out the bay but it feels to exposed to the south winds that are predicted. We leave but the Tolly stays and we now are looking for a safe  small harbour to spend the night. We are moving NORTH up FITZ HUGH SOUND and as we come abeam of HAKAI PASS the wind picks up to 30 knots on the beam and we start to rock and roll again.

Penny and I talk about NAMU, a now completely abandoned OLD CANNERY. We have tied there in previous trips and walked the trail to the lake with are old dog SCUPPER. There was a large wood and wire water pipe line that feed the CANNERY and housing of workers there (it was large enough to walk on ). The flowers along the way were spectacular. The building were the size of air craft hangers. The old company store was locked up .Old fire hydrants lined the streets, with other old stuff stacked in neat groupings like a display in an old museum.  This small city is built on wood piles with huge timber deck. In the evening we’d use to gather for appies and drinks.  At that time I mentioned that the gardens around were not fenced and that the deer would make short work of their cherry red tomatoes. There was a long pause while he composed himself and finally talked about the very large Wolf pack that moved through this region and devoured all things edible including his 2 very big dogs. The pack sent in a lady wolf out to lure his dogs into the bush and the wolfs had lunch at their (dogs) expense, (sound familiar). We did not go to Namu as for the concern for strong south winds that Weather Canada are predicting and not knowing the present condition of the docks as the care takers have moved on.  I find it sobering to view Mother Nature taking back her own. This wills probability go the way of BUTEDALE another CANNERY that is crumbled in the cold north waters.

We strike a course for SEA OTTER Inlet. The south arm (this is a new location adventure for us that ends up completing one of the items on my bucket list).  Looks to be too narrow to swing in, but we find it a perfect anchorage and join the accompany of a sailboat that we had shared space with in FURY COVE .

The only problem is that floating crab lines have fouled the inlet. Crab and prawn fishermen are very professional in making their lines to their pots safe and are willing to share the bays with all. There have been times in the northern waters that there are some who believe it is only their right to occupy this country and on purpose do such things as closing bays and fouling them. To those who do this it shows great immaturity and does not further your destiny but fouls its intent.

 

 

Now to the good stuff. We gunk the surrounding bays and venture around the outer Sound to come into Target Bay that has a small canoe pass that we paddle (almost brush the bottom) through back to OCEANAIRE 1.

 

 

 

 

Be patient, WAIT FOR MY GOOD STUFF! I still want a small salmon to prove myself a REAL fisherman and prepare myself with my I-phone music (no head phones as I still want to be one with nature).  A VERY LARGE net and my trusty gaff, a b--r and my stout antique rod with its antique PEETZ (1925) wood reel (nothing high Tec for me) and trek out to the bay entrance.

I am one with SANTANA (on I-phone) and Mother Nature (all around me). Little cod are too hard to clean for me and they have pretty brown eyes.  So back to the briny for you. I know there is a salmon for me even if it’s so small, I am not allowed to keep it. ALL OF A SUDDEN MY LINE HAS CAUGHT THE BOTTOM darn, double darn.  I reach and turn the music off and precede to unattach my line from the bottom. WAITE FOR IT, this is on my BUCKET LIST!  I have hooked a BARN door only this one is flying around in a hurricane..

The old wood reel is burning my finger brake off and I have to clamp my whole paw to slow the BRUTE. I know I have hooked a monster I have, after 40 minutes, decided that whatever it is  it is not coming into my tiny wood boat, even if it’s covered in KEVLAR.  I just have toooo seeeee what I have HOOKED. There is a large grey shadow looming beneath. I feel like ERNEST H. “Old Man and the Sea” ….I send Chevy to the bow as she is into the action and under my feet. I first reach for the giant net and whatever it is, it’s nooot goooing to fit. It looks me straight in the eyes and I now know him/her? Feels sorry for me if I invite it aboard. I Know MY old friend JIM would not accept me giving up so easily and now I am ashamed and a little frightened.  I do a silly thing, I reach for the gaff.  I look for an open gill to grab, but no opening for me ( it’s on to me) HE/ SHE is HUGE and I can’t get close enough to gaff. I now try for the mouth.  Now I've piss off this leviathan. One disgusted look from this creature and it gone………………………….I fall back into the bottom of HUGIN and MUNIN an dmuch to my surprise I am relieved that this beautiful thing is not being cut up into little insignificant pieces BUT more so I have filled one of my Bucket List without loss out of life, MINE and its?