Mike and Beth's Adventures

When visiting new towns I always look for what defines the community's personality.  Chemainus's personality has a strong element of "The Arts".  The town is very proud of having over 60 individual art installations in town.  Some go back many years and have been refreshed and maintained.  Clearly, they work to buff and polish their reputation and perception as an art center.  Boys on a Snipe Hunt First Nation Sculpture Water Wheel Park We devised a bit of an unusual transportation scheme for our visit.  In a way, we "killed two birds with one stone".  We also wanted to visit Telegraph Harbor on Thetis Island.  We were unsure of where we could leave the boat in Chemainus, so we looked at public transportation options from nearby towns.  Buses and ferries were considered.  We checked schedules and found ferries operate more frequently than buses, especially from Thetis Island.  So we berthed the boat there and explored that island fo...

Snug Cove on Bowen Island offers good protection form blustery weather outside.  It is located in the mouth of  Howe Inlet, just north of Vancouver.  From False Creek it was a 12 mile run.  From our slip at Union Steamship Company Marina, we had a spectacular view  of the mountains rimming Howe sound.  I'm sure the scenic nature of this area contributed to it's selection as a filming location for the TV series "Virgin River". We docked on "A" dock near the marina office.  It was very convenient to the onshore attractions.  We particularly liked Tippy's Cookhouse and The Snug Cafe. Adjacent to the marina is a nice collection of restaurants, shops, pubs, a distillery, and a grocery store. We stayed at the Union Steamship Company Marina in Snug Cove Snug Cove offers good protection from the prevailing winds Our first day the clouds swirled around the mountain peaks that line Howe Inlet The ferry from Horseshoe Cove make an early evening arrival in Sn...

A sailor is obsessive about many things, one of the most important being the weather.  It is a constant topic of conversation and investigation.  Prior to leaving Mill Bay we had to select a destination.  This can not be accomplished without checking the weather, tides and currents.  Tides by the way vary between 12 and 14 feet in this portion of British Columbia.  The weather report indicated a low pressure area would pass just north of us with 25 knot winds from the southwest and gusts in excess of 40 knots.  Our next stop would need to provide very good protection from these conditions. A vista point overlooking Saanich Inlet We settled on Tod Inlet, just south of Butchart Gardens.  It is enter via a narrow channel and is surrounded on 4 sides by tall forested ridges.  We had a day of good weather to get there and settle in prior to the blow. We walked to the entrance of Butchart Gardens This inlet has a lot to offer.  The bottom is heavy ...

The Pacific Northwest showed it's snarly personality during our Salt Spring Island visit.  Three days of rain and high winds plagued our visit. On the fourth day, we awoke to glorious blue skies and calm seas.  Wasting no time, we cast off and pointed Amy Marie toward Mill Bay on Vancouver Island.  This was a short trip of barely over 20 miles. We traveled south at 6 knots so Beth could cook a good breakfast and we could let the calm envelop us. The Gulf Islands are many and spread over a large area.  Inter-island travel is by boat or seaplane.  Our departure from Ganges was marked by a continuous stream of sea planes arriving or departing on a strip of water marked expressly for that purpose.  Yes, a nautical landing strip!  Watercraft were to stay outside this zone.   I just love the head turning sound of a de Havilland Beaver round engine revving for takeoff.  The PNW has resonated with this sound for the last 75 years as the Beaver f...