Seal of Disapproval

There's no question that our kayaking mojo has been absent this year. We've just gone through the driest and most sunshiniest month ever recorded in these parts and we only kayaked twice. Part of the problem is we spent the earlier part of the year nursing minor aches and pains, and dealt with some energy-sapping family matters. But those are winding down now, and we're feeling relatively healthy, so we're trying to get back in to the paddling swing again. And although it was overcast when we arrived at Cadboro Bay beach, the weatherman promised that it would burnoff and the sun would out soon.
And the weatherman always keeps his promises, right?


Paula joined Louise and myself and we headed out hoping that the weatherman would indeed keep his promises. And it looked like he just might. As we paddled along the north side of the by, the thin cloud layer began to abate.


This heron was enjoying the morning almost as much as we were.


We reached Flower Island and paddled around the far side of the island where a pair of eagles were resting.

One flew off to sit in a tree....

...while one seemed quite content to sit in the sun.


While I drifted away checking out the eagles, Louise was having a close encounter of her own.

A seal had taken an interest in her and was following close behind her, diving and swimming under her boat.

Louise reported that it was swimming up to her, diving, turning upside down and looking up here. She spent a few minutes mesmerized as it swan and performed in the underwater sunlit rays.

From Flower, we crossed to Jemmy Jones Island with the intention of paddling around it, but as we closed in, we could hear seals barking and we could see young seals at both ends of the island. We decided to forgo paddling around and leave the young ones in peace.


Instead, we paddled towards the end of Ten Mile Point and played around in a cove that only exists at low tide. Normally, this would be a series of small to medium-sized channels, but not today. We spent a few minutes floating around checking out the sponges and seaweed.


After a while, a mother seal and her baby entered the channel.

They seemed calm at first, but clearly baby seal was interested in us and kept trying to get closer. Mother seal kept swimming in front of the baby and nudging it away from us.

Finally, she popped up right in front of me, and with an exasperated splash let us know that we were no longer welcome.

Even though we were in the cove first, we weren't going to argue the point and quickly moved away.
Afterwards, we discussed whether the seal was being overtly aggressive or not. We concluded that the seals must have been somewhat curious as they had clearly approached us -- made a straight line for me at one point -- but mom had obviously determined that we had overstayed in their area and gave a polite but firm warning.

So we took the hint and headed back, past Flower Island, where the eagle was still in the tree.


Trip length: 6.43 km
YTD: 35.46 km
More pictures are here.

Sunny Day

The weather this March has not been great. Rainy, windy, generally blah days. But today it's 13 degrees and sunny, a gorgeous spring day, and a good Friday by any definition.
The sluggish start to our paddling year continues as Louise is struggling with some small joint aches and pains. But smiles come easy on a gorgeous day like this even if you aren't feeling one hundred percent.


Today we rolled our kayaks down the hill and hit the Gorge for a little paddle. Almost immediately, the local swans swam by to check us out.


We noticed last year that the top of what we call "Cormorant Tree" had broken off. We called it that because local cormorants would sit in the tree and spread their wings to dry them. This year, we see that they've moved to another tree to dry off in.


We moved up The Gorge and paddled under the Craigflower Bridge into Portage Inlet. Take a good look, this might be one of the last pictures you'll see of the bridge as construction of the replacement begins soon. The electrical wires have already been moved and traffic detours begin next week.


We paddled by the local swans....

...who nest here every year. Maybe we'll see some baby swans in a couple of months.


Of course, we aren't the only ones hoping to see some fluffy swan babies in the future.

But today the eagle seemed content to just enjoy the sun as we paddled by.

With the tide ebbing, we didn't get too far into the other half of the inlet as the inlet shallowed out and we scraped the sandy bottom. So we turned around and let the current take us back.



Trip length: 6.82 km
YTD: 18.22 km
More pictures are here.

James Island

We always seem to forget about kayaking around James Island. Located off a decent launch site up the Saanich Peninsula at Island View Beach, James used to house a munitions plant a century ago. These days it makes an ideal outing for paddlers, not too far from the mainland of Vancouver Island, but far enough that with a little imagination you can get that "we're out in the wilderness" feeling.
However, be warned -- it is a private island. But it is for sale. Start saving.

And so we were off on this bright sunny Sunday. Louise is gaining more experience in her new kayak and she looked forward to the first long paddle in her new ride.


The crossing to the cliffs on James' south shore went reasonably well. We encountered a few patches of slightly confused water...befuddled water might be a good way to describe it. Once we reached the shore, the water calmed down as we paddled along the shore.


Here we saw a young eagle.

We also saw an otter scampering along the shore. Running away from the eagle? Who knows. He was in a big hurry -- this was the only shot of him I got.


As we headed up the east side of James, we started to remember what a slog paddling around the island can be. The current never seems to go where it's supposed to, and the wind can come up and down quickly, blowing in from odd directions. Adding to the slogginess of the paddle was the fact that neither of us was feeling very energized today. Louise was really feeling it as her new ergonomic paddle doesn't allow her to cheat, or in other words adjust her grip on the paddle to favour her bad shoulder. In the long run this will help strengthen her bad shoulder; in the short term, her shoulder sometimes becomes very achy when she kayaks.


We got a reminder of the slog as we turned around the sandbar at the north and an unexpected breeze from the south blew into our faces and against the ebbing tide. We decided to cross back here, a longer crossing but at least we'd be paddling along the mainland shore if the wind got worse. This resulted in a longer paddle, as we now had to go around the large sandbar on the mainland.

But it's still a gorgeous place to paddle.

Trip Length: 15.69
YTD: 124.68 km
More pictures are here.

Kayaking Quadra Island

Summer.
We've heard of this mythical season, seen the occasional glimpse, the teasing hint of it, but it remains elusive. For instance, as Louise and I drove up the east coast of Vancouver Island for a quick getaway last Tuesday to Quadra Island, we encountered cloud, rain and a little sunshine. Often all three at once.
Quadra Island is a short ferry ride from Campbell River. (And I do mean short, only about ten minutes. I've never taken a ferry ride this brief. It took longer to load the ferry than to make the crossing. But I digress.) On arrival in Campbell River...

...we could see band upon band of dark clouds passing by overhead, dumping their load of moisture as they passed. Soon the venerable Powell River Queen arrived and we departed, as a lone seal swam by the ferry to make sure all was ship-shape.

Arriving a few minutes later at Quathiaski Cove on Quadra Island, we headed east across the narrow lower portion of the island to the small village of Heriot Bay, where we did a bit of shopping at Works of H'Art, before heading to the southern tip at Cape Mudge, and our home for the next couple of days, The Tsa-Kwa-Luten Lodge.

Owned and operated by the We Wai Kai First Nation and situated on their ancestral land, the Lodge is located in a stunningly beautiful part on the world. We have a stunning view out over Discovery Passage, with the ocean at our feet, tall trees swaying, and snow-capped mountains in the distance. Well, I imagine we do -- it's still all socked in and raining and we can't see a darn thing.


The lobby of the Lodge is gorgeous and decorated with wonderful First Nations art.


And you've got to love a place that has deer wandering through the parking lot...


The next morning we returned to Heriot Bay and found the Quadra Island Kayaks shop, known locally as the Yak Shack, where we signed up for a six hour tour.

The rain from the day before had ended, and the clouds were slowly burning away with sunny skies expected in the afternoon.

We hoped down to the docks, met our guide Samara from New Zealand, and our fellow paddlers on our tour, George and Lindy from Toronto. With conditions looking to improve, we put away our paddling jackets and hoped for sun. We prepped our kayaks on the dock...

...while a nearby heron went about his business.


And we're off! Louise and I both ended up in Current Design Storms.

We launched in Drew Harbour and paddled to the point of nearby Rebecca Spit, a lovely slender finger of land sticking out into Sutil Channel. From there, a 2km crossing through calm conditions...

...brought us to the Breton Islands, where we found some seals lounging away the morning on a small islet.



From there, we crossed to No Name Island (so named because I can't find a name for it on any map). Although we'd seen a few earlier, here we started seeing a lot of eagles. There were at least a half dozen or so flying around, as well as a couple of turkey vultures. Most of them weren't too interested in posing, but this one sat down for a few moments.


Passing around No Name Island, we pulled into Moulds Bay for lunch. Samara brought out a yummy feast prepared back at the Yak Shack. It was so good that I was distracted and forgot to take a picture of it, but you can see a portion of it in this portrait of a satisfied customer.


Sadly, the sun was not winning its battle against the clouds, and by the time we were ready to shove off again, a breeze had come up and skies looked a little more threatening than when we left. The paddling jackets came out of hiding as we suited up.

We crossed the mouth of Open Bay and we were into some chop. The breeze came up a little more on the water, and Louise was a little leery, but she handled it perfectly, as did some of the others in the group who had very limited kayaking experience.


Another crossing, this time across Hyacinthe Bay, and we were out of the chop and cruising down the coast of Quadra again.


The eagle pointed the way home for us.


We had a great paddle with George and Lindy and Samara was a terrific guide. Everyone we met on Quadra Island seemed like friendly, down to earth, just plain good folk, and this certainly is true of the folks at Quadra Island Kayak. Definitely check them out if kayaking on Quadra Island is in your future.
Of course, after six hours on the water, food was in our future, so we drove the short distance to Rebecca Spit and wolfed down cheeseburgers at The Raving Raven. Yum!


We headed back to the Lodge, and finally the clouds parted, and the view finally appeared. No, it was not still raining and I was not holding up a brochure in front the camera. It really is this beautiful...

....and you never know what you're going to see out your window. Maybe something big...

...like the Silversea Silver Shadow, or something small...

...like a robin resting on your neighbour's balcony.

This morning, sadly our last here, we awoke to picture postcard perfection. Sunlight on the mountain snows...

...an eagle flying past our window...

...and a deer, just below our window.

Nature calls for them too, I guess.

Clearly, someone had a good time!


Trip Length: 13.29 km
YTD: 77.15 km
More pictures are here.