A Winter to Remember


Finally on December 9th, conditions calmed, the truck was fixed and put in storage. We headed out the windless harbour bound for Montague Harbour under iron sail.

However, on our way past Wallace Island we noticed that there was no one else in Conover Cove. We just couldn’t pass this special spot so we turned hard to port, entered the narrow channel and tied up on the north side of the dock. More gales and storm force winds were in the forecast but this cove offers great protection in most winds, except northwesters which rarely happen during winter months (a little foreshadowing in case you didn’t notice).

Johnnie working on the generator.


Johnnie working on the head.

Over the next few days we did all the trails on Wallace, some twice, some thrice. What a great place to have to ones self. Sunday evening we were joined by a couple from Sidney onboard SV Outnumbered but they left early Monday morning. Our island was all ours again.

One of the many beautiful points on Wallace Island.

Wednesday afternoon we returned from a three hour hike to find we had company at the dock. There were two very rough looking dudes onboard an old beat up ketch docked next to Bateau. They were neither friendly or personable. Once we were back onboard Bateau we locked all lockers and stowed everything worth anything from in the cockpit lockers, something we rarely do.

A picture of the rough looking sailboat.

Southeast storm force winds were in the forecast for this evening but we would be ok in Conover. About an hour or more after sunset a large boat approached the narrow opening to the cove with spot lights shining in every direction. We sprang on deck to see what was happening. It was the Coast Guard Kuper rescue ship from Ganges. They had been searching for the two dudes onboard the old ketch for over 24 hours. The two had failed to report in as scheduled. Dumb asses, making the coast guard endure hell just because they didn’t have the courtesy to report in. They were gone early the next morning which suited us just fine.

During one of the storms in Conover Cove, we noticed a battered, half sunken skiff had made its way into the cove. It checked out the north end of the cove to see if it might make a suitable final resting place. The reddish aluminium skiff made sure not to get too close to the shore so as not to get stuck. About an hour later we looked again and the little boat was gone. Several days later, sure enough the little skiff was back. It had been who-knows-where and through two storms and had found it’s way back into the same cove. It must have checked out a few more coves and decided this was the best. It slowly made it's way to shore picking the exact spot and timing to catch the change of tide. And there it stayed, and probably will remain for a long, long time. We just thought this was quite amazing.

The little boat looking for a resting place.

Gale and storm and hurricane force winds had begun to change direction. They were forecast to come in from the northwest, very rare for this time of year (as mentioned) till this year. We moved Bateau to the other side of the dock for a little more protection and comfort from the storm.

That night we got rocked and shaken from the winds but nothing like what happened in Victoria and Vancouver. Record winds hit Race Rocks (just southwest of Victoria) at speeds gusting to eighty-five knots p/h, that’s over one hundred and fifty km p/h. And everyone has heard of all the destruction in Stanley Park, five thousand  trees knocked down.

NEWS STORY
Major windstorm wreaks havoc in BC
 
Vancouver Province

Friday, December 15, 2006

VANCOUVER - Coastal BC was walloped with a major windstorm early Friday that knocked out power to more than 208,000 homes, snapped trees, and shut down major transportation routes both in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island.

This was the third major wind storm to hit the region in a week.

Winds whipped through the Victoria area, with Environment Canada recording gusts of 158 kilometres per hour off Race Rocks, about 10 km from the legislature building, a record reading.

The sea wall in Victoria.

Meanwhile, on the mainland, BC Hydro crews saw record demand as the fierce storm started blasting the coast shortly after 2 a.m.

Power lines were dropped all over the Lower Mainland, giving the illusion of lightning as the sky lit up with flashes from blowing transformers.

In a statement, BC Hydro said: “Hydro crews ... are continuing to deal with the aftermath of a major wind storm event.

“BC Hydro will work quickly and safely to restore power.”

Skytrain service was scuttled in several areas, including Surrey and New Westminster, throwing the morning commute into chaos.

Downed trees littered streets, and Vancouver’s SeaBus service was slowed due to damage to the terminal caused when a barge hit the facility overnight Friday.


Our food supply was running short. By Saturday the weather had calmed enough so we made a break for it. Ganges was only a couple of hours away. We tied up at the usual spot in front of Moby’s Pub. It’s always an interesting little place to visit and we ended up staying for several days.

On the afternoon of the 23rd a beautiful sailboat named Storm Bird joined us at dock. We chatted with Don & Eileen briefly and found out that they are neighbours of Tom & Connie. Their boats are also moored at the same marina in Brentwood Bay. They asked us over for appys and a glass. We readily accepted.

Gale to storm force southeasters were predicted tonight, the worst direction for Ganges. Seems to be the order of the day, gales, storms and at times, hurricane force winds too. Not the wisest spot to be but we’re getting tired of running from storms. And sure enough, the wind blew through that night making life onboard interesting once again.

Don & Eileen stopped by the next morning to let us know they’d rented a room at the Harbour Hotel for the night. They hadn’t got much sleep last night and since the tonight’s forecast was a repeat of last night’s they figured this was the only way they would get some rest. They got a room with a queen sized bed, fireplace and a view of the harbour and marina, sounded very tempting but we remained onboard le Bateau.

The weather that afternoon was calm, even a little sunshine so we rented a car and took a tour of the island. That night the docks held together in the storm so we were ok.

Christmas dinner.

Tuesday the 26th we cast off from Salt Spring Marina, sailing almost right off the dock, south out of harbour into Satellite Channel, west to the Saanich Inlet and south to Anglers Anchorage Marina. Map Don & Eileen had offered us the use of their slip there while they were gone. We arrived just after dark but we had been there before at Tom & Connie’s slip once, two years ago.

The next morning we boarded a bus for downtown Victoria. First stop, Kim Bow Restaurant in China Town for some woo won ton soup, the best we’ve found on the island. We tried to visit Al & Stella at the Wharf Street Docks but the gate combo had changed so we couldn’t get through.

We needed to find a few things for Bateau so off we went. Later that afternoon we were walking down Fort Street in downtown Victoria when we came face to face with Al. He invited us back to Storm Passage for tea with he and Stella. Was great seeing them both again and getting updated on sailing stories.

Don & Eileen returned back to their slip a couple of days early but let us raft up to Storm Bird. That night Connie & Tom invited us up to their condo for wine and appys. It was great chatting with them again and catching up on more cruising tales.

Peg & John said they were coming out to Impostor for New Years celebrations but the weather had turned them off. Then Eileen & Don thought they might join us in Maple Bay, as did Tom & Connie. But they too backed out due to the inclement conditions. A lot of other sailors must have felt the same. We arrived in Maple Bay in plenty of time for New Years Eve. Both the docks and the pub were much quieter than in the past two years we’ve partaken in these festivities.

January 1st at 12 noon was the Annual Polar Bear Swim. And we were there once again to watch these crazy people both young and old take the plunge into the frigid ocean water. And once again, we caught it all on tape for all of you to see.


The polar bear swim in Maple Bay. Movie.

The number of Polar Bear Swimmers was down from years past but their enthusiasm made up for it.

The morning of the second we sailed out of Maple Bay and north to Ladysmith. We needed to provision and wanted to check out the status of Impostor’s battery charger, all was good. That evening we had wine with Heather & Marv (& Tess too) and caught up on the latest gossip around the marina.

A log transport is unloading just outside of Ladysmith.

We left Ladysmith around nine the next morning. Thought we'd see what conditions looked like in the Georgia Strait. We caught slack current at Porlier Pass at 10:33 am. Looked things over closely with the binoculars. The forecast called for gale force winds, same old, same old. It appeared a little choppy but not bad for the Georgia Strait. So we proceeded through.

Once on the other side we raised sail on a board reach. The sun was shining and the GPS said we'd be in False Creek between four-thirty and five in the afternoon. About half an hour later though, westerlies really began to build, and build, and ....... In no time the seas were becoming a challenge. But by now it was too late to turn back. Next slack at Porlier wouldn't be for several hours and currents would already be running at six to eight knots. We couldn't wait nor could we traverse the pass in the dark. We checked the new forecast and which was now upgraded to storm force …… great!

Just before the storm. Map.

The force of the wind and water was too much for the auto-helm and we were loosing ground. So it was manual helm from here on in. Bateau charged through the heavy seas that appeared to be growing exponentially. We calculated their height at three to four metres... possibly twenty feet at times. Bullfrog was airborne much of the time, shooting off the surf like a fish. And Bateau did lots of dancing out of the water herself. Green water came charging over the port beam and blasting the headsail (and us too)... man, what a sight!

There were several times when we were in a trough looking up at a giant sized swell before it hit us on the beam… a very humbling feeling. Minutes past by like hours. The camera was sitting under the dodger when we started out but one of the first big waves sent a torrent of water shooting under the dodger and through the cockpit like a river. So the camera went below to dry off, hopefully it will work again.

When we finally made Point Grey and headed eastward, west and northwesterly seas were a big challenge. Bateau had to ride through most of the steep swells but occasionally turned about for the larger ones to avoid getting swamped.

When we finally reached English Bay our headsail area was reduced to only a postage stamp sized sail. With the following seas (man what a ride) we were still doing seven and a half to eight knots through the water (knot meter speed) and up to ten knots according to the GPS. Bateau’s a real trooper and performs so well in tough conditions, and she loves to surf. It was a hell of a ride. Oh ya... we were soaked from head to toe, taking on green water over the beam.

Anchoring in False Creek was a bit of a challenge in the following seas but our trusty anchor stuck like glue. When thing finally settled down to a dull roar we saw about three inches of snow on shore... yuk! What is wrong with the weather in this country? This kind of crap belongs in Montreal and Edmonton.

Our ancourage in False Creek.

Storm after storm kept on hitting Vancouver while we were there. One of the strongest ones flattened more trees in Stanley Park. Many areas of the park now look like it has been clear cut. Many of the centuries old trees stand no more. They lay twisted on the ground like mammoth sized exploded toothpicks.

Some of the fallen trees in Stanley Park


Ten lows in the Pacific headed for the west coast.

During the worst of the storms some other boats near to Bateau broke anchor and some were unable to adequately reset their anchor until conditions calmed. A large ketch was left motoring up and down the length of False Creek continually for over twenty-four hours. Then the following day the same thing happened to the same boat. Another boat had it’s boom twisted to bits, and another had it’s headsail ripped to shreds.

Two days after we arrived in False Creek a large section of the roof at BC Place was also torn to shreds. Hope they get it fixed in time for the Boat Show.

Storm winds caused this boat to lose its headsail. Movie.

One afternoon while picking up dinner at Granville Market when we ran across a couple of old friends that moved here from Calgary two years ago. A couple of nights later we invited Cress & Rob onboard. But it was all they could do to keep their dinner down due to the stormy conditions. It seemed like a calm night to us.

One of the butcher shops on Granville Island.

After a week in False Creek we took advantage of a clear day to cross back over to the islands, this time anchouring in Silva Bay. Crossing the Georgia Strait this time was relatively smooth but bitterly cold. We draped the bimini cloth over the end of the dodger and left the companion way open, sitting with our leg down into the heated cabin and our heads looking over the deck. As we were motoring anyway, we only needed to go into the cockpit once in awhile to make course corrections and changes on the autopilot.

Leaving Vancouver.

Early the next morning we caught slack through Gab Pass and under calm, overcast skies we made it to Sidney Spit, then the following day to snowy docks in Victoria. Yes snow in Victoria, how weird is that? Map.

All the crappy weather has cut into our adventure time, we hope to make it up in the upcoming months. We’ll have another chapter ready soon.