Davis Bay to Muirhead Islands

A bright light awoke us. What was that? OMG, it was the sun! The morning was crystal clear and calm. We had spent a peaceful night; no wind, no waves, no current to speak of. Davis Bay is a great spot, ample of room, good holding and beautiful views in all directions.

Davis Bay Anchorage Panorama

Karen continues to insist that the drying beach to the northeast is a perfect “bear beach”. It would be except there appears to be no bear here. That did not deter Karen from posting a lookout on the stern and enjoying a quiet morning reading what must be her 19th book of this trip.

Karen Splits Her Time Between Reading and Watching the "Bear Beach"

We took it easy this morning as we attempted to chill down from our mechanical adventures and transition to vacation mood. Therefore, it was not until one o’clock when we lifted the anchor for a short cruise to the other end of Drury Inlet and the Muirhead Islands.

The last time we visited the Muirhead Islands we stern tied on the south side. This time, we planned to anchor in the one-boat anchorage in the bay on the north side. We had explored this anchorage last time in the dinghy and liked it because we could anchor without a stern tie and have the place to ourselves.

A Beautiful Cruise Over to the Muirhead Islands

Shortly after we anchored, a Nauticat sailboat anchored in the south bay where we had been last year, so we were happy we chose the northern spot. After dropping anchor and enjoying the vistas on all sides, we launched the dinghy and explored the western end of Drury. The logging operation at the Western end appears to be shutting down with most of the equipment gone expect for the M/V Sir James Douglass, an old Coast Guard boat that was used as a base of operations. We later learned that a new logging camp was starting up in adjacent Actaeon Sound.

Karen Takes the Bow Watch for the Dinghy Expedition

As we were heading back from checking out the logging "leftovers", we ran into Tom from the Nauticat. He was out in his dinghy trying to find a spot where his cell phone would work. He and his wife Sharon, who remained on the Nauticat, have an invalid mother at home and he was trying to check in to confirm that all was OK. I offered to lend him our satellite phone so he could make contact. He was very grateful and said he would row over later to Arctic Star to take advantage of our offer. 

We continued our explorations by checking out the lower end of Actress Passage, the entrance to Actaeon Sound. We wanted to preview because tomorrow our plan is to transit Actress Passage and enter the sound for "off the grid" exploring and secure an overnight anchorage. It all looked straightforward, though we didn't go as far north as Snake Pass in the dinghy. We were confident the next day would be fun and well within our skill set.

Not long after we had the dinghy stowed, Tom appeared on our stern in his dinghy. We invited him aboard and gave him the satellite phone and a short briefing on its operation. Good news: all was well at home. We offered Tom a beer and settled into some boat talk (I have been a fan of the Nauticat ever since I saw one at the Annapolis Boat Show twenty years ago) and exchanged information about good anchorages. He lives in Qualicum and also sails in Mexico, so he had wonderful stories to tell.

Bob's special meatloaf and roasted potatoes with fresh rosemary were on the menu. We had another lovely clear night and a good night's sleep.

Many folks pass by anchoring in the Muirheads and continue on to large Sutherland Bay. We love the Muirheads, it's a kayaker's dream (and great for exploring by dinghy, too) and has very remote feeling. Give it a try if you haven't done so yet!

Arctic Star Enjoys a Peaceful Anchorage in the Muirhead Islands

Port McNeill to Davis Bay

We were up early -- and more sun!! We had time to kill before the Lugger parts would arrive in Port Hardy, so we explored Beaver Harbour and Storey Beach by car. The anchorage, written up by Dreamspeaker and Hamilton & Hamilton, definitely looked good and a nice alternative to Port Hardy. We also visited Hardy Buoys, a provider of smoked fish. We bought candy smoked Salmon bellies, which we later found were the most amazingly delicious smoked salmon ever.  We also did a little more provisioning at our favorite grocery store in the area, Overwaitea.

Somehow this Paint Scheme Does Not Add to the Nautical Flair of This Boat

An Interesting Solution to Securing a Line to the Dock

The parts were in on time and we called Graham, arranging to meet at the boat as soon as possible. The new breaker from Lugger also didn't quite fit, but Graham made it work and left us the one that arrived by bus as a spare.

Port McNeill

We cast off of the docks at Port McNeil at 3:47pm. According to Karen the EXACT time we cast off last year! “Déjà vu all over again”, to quote the renowned New York Yankee’s philosopher, Yogi Bera.

Our crossing of Queen Charlotte Strait was the antithesis of our experience a few days ago heading back to Port McNeill. Light winds, calm seas, and one of the clearest skies we have ever seen in the Pacific Northwest.

Under Way at Last!

Beautiful Day on the Strait

Deciding to bag any shot at the Nakwakto, we headed for another favorite, Drury Inlet. We used our Nobeltec navigation system to time our arrival at Welde Rock and the Stuart Narrows. Based on our predicted arrival at the narrows, I fine tuned our speed across the ground (SOG) in order to arrive at slack, in this case high slack.

Once inside Drury Inlet, the biggest problem we faced was the sun. We were traveling due west into a setting sun. This made the watch for logs (of which there were many) a challenge. I would adjust our course so that I would keep the sun and the reflection of the sun on the water hidden behind one of the vertical posts of the forward windows.

The good news is that as we turned east to go into Davis Bay, the sun was at our back, making it easy to navigate the somewhat narrow entrance. We favored the North side of the channel, as all who have written about this anchorage advise. Once inside, the bay opens up and you can drop in anchor in the middle of the bay with lots of room to swing.

We were totally alone, and loved this anchorage just as much as we did last year. It's lovely and peaceful. The night was as calm as the day and the skies crystal clear. About an hour after sunset we turned off all our lights, waited for our eyes to acclimate and then moved to the bow to be awestruck by the night sky.

The Milky Way extended from horizon to horizon and starry constellations were too numerous to identify them all. The stars lit up our spirits in a way no other natural wonder can. A sigh of happiness - we were back on vacation!

Murray Labyrinth back to Port McNeill

We pulled the anchor (yes, we had enough "power" in the battery banks to get this done without manual winching!) and were under way at 8:00am. We had a date with a mechanic back at Port McNeill and I wanted to traverse the channel out of the Labyrinth with a couple of more feet of water under the keel. This would also make for a slightly wider channel. Given that the winds were 15-20 knots with gusts to 25, I wanted a little more wiggle room as we negotiated the serpentine path through the rocks.

We made it out of the Labyrinth with no issues, and we really encourage like-minded boaters seeking solitude to try it. Once out, it was indeed blowing, the canvas on the flybridge roared and rumbled in protest. We hugged the mainland coast, making our way past Blunden Harbour before turning to establish a direct course to Port McNeill. If the Strait was too churned up, our plan was to tuck into Blunden and wait out the winds as they were forecast to subside during the day.

The weather was about as forecast and we headed into quartering three foot swells topped by one foot waves. With the stabilizers on, the ride was tolerable, so we continued on to our rendezvous with the mechanic.

The Straight Kicks Up

Steve “Batman” Jackman (General Manager of Port McNeill Fuel and Harbour. When you see Steve you'll have to ask him how he earned the Batman moniker) made arrangements to have Graham McDonald meet us on the docks upon our arrival.

Graham comes highly recommended by Steve and that’s about as strong a recommendation as you’ll find. Graham, in his sixties, seems to be able to tackle almost any electrical or mechanical problem you can throw at him. He possesses a quiet confidence built, I think, over his success in fixing almost anything that can break. We came to know this because during our three days together he regaled us with a range of stories about his exploits and his insights into the nature of us all.

Graham to the Rescue

Graham set to work and shoehorned himself into the aft most reaches of the engine room where the afflicted parts of the generator reside. After a hour of dismantling the generator enclosure and the electronic control module that lives on top of the generator, Graham emerged with what was left of the circuit breaker that protected the generator's components.

The Remains of the Circuit Breaker

I don't think even the circuit breaker's mother would have recognized this pile of debris as its own. The breaker had burst open and spewed its guts during its final death throes. The picture says it all. And about 4pm, the search for a replacement part began.

Graham called his supplier to order up a replacement which would arrive the next day on the 3:30pm bus from Qualicum. While in today’s world that would seem an eternity, remember where we are and how far we are from any major population center. At the same time Brian, from Northwest Explorations, was on the hunt to secure the same part along with anything else Graham might need to repair the afflicted power generator.

It’s important to remember that getting a new circuit breaker in place was just the beginning of the troubleshooting process. Once the breaker was in, there still existed the possibility that other components had failed and would need to be replaced.

Brian had the advantage of being in Bellingham, Washington with easy access to all the parts and dealers along the U.S. West Coast. Ultimately he had Lugger, the Northern Lights generator manufacturer, put together a “care package” of parts. The disadvantage of being in the U.S. is that there are Customs challenges when sending parts into Canada that can delay arrival. Combine this with the fact that there are few options for transportation of the parts once secured. Scheduled air service is limited and charter flights are very expensive. To Northwest Explorations' credit, they explored every possible option and all were “in the mix”. The final decision would come down to what would get the parts to us the fastest.

We were happy to plug into shore power and get our refrigeration and freezer back, as everything was stuffed to the gills with enough food for 3+ weeks. However, when we plugged in, the refrigeration/freezer units did not respond. We trouble shot some more and found that when the "genny" circuit breaker fried, the fuse went on the Grunert refrigeration control unit. Luckily, Steve Jackman's auto parts store at the head of the dock had the 10amp fuse we needed.

Karen Takes the Garbage "Out" on Her Way to Buy a New Fuse

Back in the town of Port McNeill, we went back to our favorite place to dine, the Northern Lights restaurant. The salmon in puff pastry was great and the Keith Alexander Amber Ale helped us shrug off the changes in our plans to some degree. The day was also made better by meeting up again with Captain Dave from the lovely 80+ foot custom yacht we had seen on the docks earlier, who offered us a tour and raised Karen's spirits by letting her live vicariously for a while. She especially admired the heated bathroom floors, under lit bathroom sinks, and killer galley with a cold room for storage. Bob? He was into the forward looking sonar.

Our Big Beautiful Neighbor at the Docks

Murray Labyrinth

The morning started as usual. Listen to the weather report, make breakfast and then plan the day. With breakfast complete, showers behind us and looking forward to a great day exploring Murray Labyrinth, I was standing at the helm when I looked down at the AC panel to see how the charging of the batteries was progressing.  At that moment, the voltage meter and the amp meter started to fluctuate wildly.

I immediately shut down the generator. OMG, what is going on? My first thought was that since the inverter and the refrigeration system were the only two AC power systems that were running, one of them must be having a problem.

Given the dramatic nature of the power fluctuations, I placed a call to our charter company's (Northwest Explorations) president, Brian Pemberton, to report the problem and get some considered advice before I started troubleshooting.

It's these circumstatnces when a satellite phone becomes a vital piece of safety equipment in this part of the world. There is no cell coverage, so your only choice is to rely on satellite communication. If we did not have this option, I would troubleshoot the problem on my own. However, my hope is that someone on the other end of the phone has seen this before, and that knowledge will expedite the process of resolving the problem.

Brian was a great help, but after two restarts of the generator produced the same or worse results, the volt meter and amp meter both went to zero. The generator continued to run but produced no AC power.

By the afternoon and after exhausting all possible work-a-rounds, our plan then became to arrange for a mechanic to meet us back in Port McNeill. Given the tides, the gale warnings on the Strait, and the distance back to port, we would have to wait till tomorrow morning before departing for Port McNeill. Karen was really disappointed, as she had planned the entire trip around the Nakwakto Rapids and the lovely inlets behind these rapids. Instead, it's back to Port McNeill for maintenance.

Brian was a great help in crafting a plan for the next 24 hours without the use of the generator. Our NO-GEN plan was to use ice from the DC powered icemaker to keep the refrigerators and freezer cold enough; we would cook with either the microwave or the propane grill; the DC powered diesel heater would keep us warm; and we would use the alternator on the starboard engine to keep the batteries topped off.

The rest of the day was spent monitoring the voltages of the various battery banks, running the starboard engine as needed and reducing our power requirements to a minimum.

Murray Labyrinth Anchorage Panorama (use the controls or your cursor to see 360 degrees)

At 8:44pm with all the battery banks “in the green” we went to bed, planning on a early departure tomorrow morning. The weather forecast was not great, but well within the parameters of the boat and our experience.

Beautiful Sunset in Murry Labyrinth

Miles Inlet to Murray Labyrinth

I awoke just before the alarm at 7:00am. We seldom use an alarm when on vacation, but we had a date with the tide. There is little information to be found on Murray Labyrinth. but Karen has been fascinated by the sound of any place whose name contains the word "Labyrinth". Those few mariners who have made the journey through the Labyrinth rave that if you master the challenges of the zig zag, somewhat "blind" entrance, you will be rewarded by a delightful protected anchorage with endless areas to explore via dinghy and/or kayak.

So off we went for the short 5 mile run. Along the way a humpback whale appeared on our port beam and paralleled our course until it sounded for food. It's always exciting to see a whale, and this encounter was most unexpected.

The route into Murray Labyrinth earns it name. It is narrow with many twists and turns. A zig-zag narrow channel between the rocks is intimidating. That is why we choose to make the run at low tide (it was a 3ft low tide) when more potential obstructions are visible. The trade off of running at low tide is the channel is narrower and demands the helm be diligent in choosing the course.

We supplemented our Nobeltec navigation display with a bow watch. It is a good practice, but seldom has the bow watch contributed in other narrow passages. Either the sun was in the wrong position so that its reflection on the water obscured anything below the surface or we never got close enough to the rocks or the bottom for the bow watch to issue a warning. This time was different. Twice the bow watch sounded an alarm just before the helm noticed the depth was dramatically lessening. Hats off to the bow watch, Karen!

Once inside the narrow entrance, the water opens up to a beautiful bay. The only obstruction is a rock that sits near the middle. Where else would a rock sit?

The holding is good in a mud bottom and we anchored in 21 feet about equal distance from three shores and that aforementioned rock. It’s important to note that the rock is only visible at low water and quickly covers, so be aware.

The anchorage is well protected and calm. The winds would blow from time to time but seldom exceeded 8 knots. Out on the Strait, it was blowing 20-30.

Given that our fair weather of the previous day had turned to rain, combined with the fact that we were both bone tired, made the day one of small projects around the boat, napping, reading, working on this blog and taking pictures between the raindrops. Karen Napping

How Many Books Can Karen Read On a Rainy Day?

Although the forecast for tomorrow calls for a lot of rain, we still hope to get out and explore. Some of our most memorable trips in the kayaks and the dinghy have been in the rain, so we are seldom deterred by precipitation. Of course, a warm shower afterwards makes the memories even fonder. 

Right around 6PM the sun tried to make an appearance. Given the gloomy forecast for tomorrow, this is simply Mother Nature trying to tease us into optimism. For the rest of the evening it oscillated between rain, rain showers and more peeks of sun. Such is the weather in the Pacific Northwest.

A Rainy Window Showing All our Satellite Gear: SPOT, Bluetooth GPS and XM Weather Receiver

The rain held off long enough for me to grill some sockeye salmon with an orange glaze accompanied by curried sweet potatoes.