James Island Counter-Circumnavigation

A bright, sunny and cloudless day at Island View Beach. With nary a breeze, we decided to set sail, er, paddle for the near side of James Island. From there, we would decide our next move.


It was the elite group of paddlers today: myself, Paula, Alison and Louise. Marni McBean and Silken Laumann wanted to join us, but frankly, they're just too slow. Below, Louise and Paula set the pace towards James Island...

... and Alison keeps up.


We reached the south-west corner and decided our next stop would be the south-east corner. The south shore of James Island is really strange, like someone came along with a giant saw and cut the end of it off. This is exactly the sort of thing that a glacier might have done in the last ice age...

...except that the cut runs roughly east to west, and one might expect glacial cuts to be running roughly north-south. This prompted some lively geological discussion.


At the next corner, we decided to cross to Sidney Island. From there, we crossed to the next island, then decided to cross to the next island and so on and so forth. And that's how we made it to Japan!
Okay, yes, I'm kidding. But the view was tremendous today. We really felt like we could just go from island to island. Paula was blown away by how far we could see. The Island right behind Paula's head in this picture is Galiano, about halfway to Vancouver...

... and if you look carefully, you can see Vancouver's North Shore mountains behind Galiano.


We actually decided to circumnavigate James Island again. And unlike last time, when the tide turned just as we rounded the far end of the island (so that we were always fighting the current), this time the tide turned just as we put in. So yes, the first part of the paddle down the far side would be a tough slog, but once we turned back, it would be pretty easy. That was the theory, anyway. And we went in the opposite direction compared to last time, just to keep it interesting.
So onward ho!




I tried to get a picture of a crab that Alison had spotted, but no luck. Still, the water was very clear.


We put in...

...for a stretch...

...and a rest.



Off again!


We turned at the north tip of the island and crossed back to the mainland. And with the tides and currents with us for a change, it was a welcome break from the hard work of the first leg of the trip.


As we paddled along, we suddenly heard a roar off our stern. "Holy DELETED EXPLETIVE!" I shouted. "There's a DELETED EXPLETIVE seaplane taking off beside us!"


Meanwhile, the herons ignored both the seaplane and my use of colourful metaphors and kept right on eating.


A four-hour paddle and we all survived. What a gorgeous day! And did I mention that Mt. Baker looked spectacular today?


My pictures are here.

Cooper's Cove

Totally flat water faced us as we prepared to face Cooper's Cove just east of Sooke, in the Sooke Basin. Unlike the last time we were here when we dealt with wind and waves, there was little wind and no wave action at all. We were advised by someone from the nearby kayak rental place that gale force winds were due in the afternoon, but the morning should be fine.

And it was. A large group headed out from the kayak place, and we met a couple from Sooke who were avid kayakers. They were heading out in a pair of 14' Neckys that Bernie would have died for. :)

First, we went past this wreck on the beach.

Clearly, its cargo of concrete blocks was too much for it.


There's also a nearby abandoned ship that looks to be an old Canadian naval vessel.

Be careful if you venture out to visit this vessel -- there's all sorts of metal and other stuff in the water here.


It was just the three of us today - Louise, Paula and myself.


We went east along the coast towards Roche Cove. We launched just at low tide, so there were lots of starfish on the rocks.


Another boat in trouble!


Louise dreams about winning the lottery.


Lots of green stuff on the rocks.


What a beautiful day. Flat water, sunny but not blazing, a little cloud, just perfect.


We rounded the point and headed to Roche Cove. That's when the fun began.


We headed for the bridge. There can be quite a current under the bridge and in not our brightest idea of the day, we decided to go under.

Paula got through okay, but Louise ran into trouble and got herself pinned by the current against the bridge. It was hair-raising for a moment, but Louise got herself out and through without going over. It was also a tough battle to get back out of the cove. So here's a warning: proceed into Roche Cove with caution!


After coming out of the cove, the wind had come up and the chop with it.
Here's a lesson: our little adventure in Roche Cove took only ten minutes, yet the weather conditions back in the basin were quite different when we returned.


Finally, a ship that's not abandoned!


We crossed to this small island.


Time to head back. We crossed the Sooke Basin. It got choppier and the wind was blowing against us.

We were eventually able to get our backs to the wind, and that made the last part of the crossing easier. Also, it seemed that the wind died off just as we finished. Figures.


And yes, there were geese.


No eagles in trees today, just a seagull on a post to end our trip.


My pictures are here.

Mary Tod Island Inferno Aftermath

Mary Tod Island went up in smoke after some errant fireworks from a display on July 2 to mark Oak Bay's 100th Anniversary landed on it.
Louise wanted to check it out as she lives nearby and had watched the fireworks show, and the resulting scrub fire on the island. So this was our goal: an investigation of the Great Mary Tod Island Fire!

Turns out that there wasn't much to it. Mary Tod Island is a small island only a couple of hundred meters off of Willows Beach (on the left in the picture above). We circled the island, and there really wasn't much to see. From the water, all we could really see were a couple of singed logs. You couldn't see any other damage. Mind you, we did not land and explore the island, so it might have been worse on shore.

We continued with the paddle. It started calm, but the wind came up and it got bumpy. Nothing too rough, though, and we were able to paddle about quite easily.


Self-portrait! (Bet you weren't expecting that!)


We saw this catamaran in the marina and thought it was worth checking out.



This was a pretty cool looking boat. I especially liked the lawn chair cushion lying in the netting. That's the way to travel!


However, this boat wasn't doing as well.


Not only was it almost under water, but it was on the rocks. The waves and current weren't moving it an inch.


Around the back side of Mary Tod Island, we found a heron. This guy was quite intent on eating, so he paid no attention as I drifted closer.



He didn't pay any attention to the seagull, either.


We moved off and drifted towards some seals.

This guy looks like he's in the water -- he's not. He's sitting on some rocks that are just below the surface of the water.


Then it was onto Goose Island! Or Goose Rock! Or Goose Lump of Rock That Sometimes Rises Out of the Water at Low Tide!


Hey! Is that our old friend the heron in the background?


And home we go!


My pictures are here.