Covid plan B for Canada staying closed

[NaClyDog]

Originally Posted by fxykty

The Inside Passage is closed for discretionary travel and is legally considered as internal waters, so the UNCLOS treaty’s right of innocent passage (which Canada ratified in 2003) does not apply for boat transits between Washington and Alaska. And this is a moot point for now, while the Covid-19 restrictions apply. https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/services...diens-eng.html

But I do need to point out that it isn’t hard for a pleasure boat to make a non-stop passage (except for tides and weather). And the usual border rules do allow for a transit entry through Canadian waters that prohibits stops. https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-v...tions-eng.html

If you are doing a non-stop transit and you do need to stop (anchor) for tides and/or weather then contact the CBSA right away. It’s not illegal to stop, but illegal to not report. https://www.canada.ca/en/border-serv...s-1116939.html

Before entering Canadian waters call the CBSA to let them know that you’re going to make a non-stop transit to Alaska via the Inside Passage. Tell them (if they ask) how you’ve prepared to do the passage non-stop. Keep your AIS on at all times. Store your dinghy away if possible and remove all fenders and mooring lines from your decks.

Fuel: you probably know or can calculate how far (or long) your boat motors on (a) full tank(s). Double the distance you expect the passage between endpoints to take and count on 2/3 of motoring speed to allow for tidal gate waits. If your internal tank(s) is(are) not big enough, then add the required number of jerry cans.

Provisioning for a week or two is easy - even a fridge or just the bilge will take care of fresh food for a couple of weeks. Double it for emergencies and anything larger than a kayak should be easily manage that.

Sorry mate, different inside passage. This is the one where you can get to Alaska from Vancouver. West coast Canada instead of north coast Canada.

[Montanan]

Transiting boaters
https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/services...diens-eng.html


You may still navigate through international or Canadian waters while in transit directly from one place outside Canada to another place outside Canada, if the transit is:

direct
continuous/uninterrupted
by the most reasonable route
Transiting travellers may only make non-discretionary (essential) stops along the way, including to use facilities, refuel or for essential supplies.

You must follow social distancing practices and wear a non-medical mass or face covering during these stops.

Anchoring
You may stop and anchor out of ordinary navigation, particularly if it becomes dangerous to navigate at night or if the crew must rest before safely continuing your trip.

If you anchor to spend the night, you must quarantine on your boat. If this is not possible, you may quarantine at a hotel until you are ready to resume your trip.

Consult Quarantine requirement for more information.

Reporting requirements
If at any point a transiting vessel lands on Canadian soil, anchors, moors or comes alongside another vessel in Canadian waters, or if anyone onboard disembarks in Canada, the operator must report to the CBSA. All entry restrictions apply.

The CBSA and its law enforcement partners are actively monitoring Canadian waterways. If you fail to report to the CBSA, regardless if your purpose is non-discretionary (essential) such as to refuel, you may face severe penalties. Failure to report may also affect your immigration admissibility and ability to re-enter Canada in the future.

[01kiwijohn]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

Are there any cruising areas of the world that are like BC and WA but are not in Canada?

Reason I ask: We've been waiting for 6 months to enter Canada (we missed the border closure by only 2 weeks) - and are about ready to throw in the towel and come up with a plan B for 2021. We're full-time cruisers and BC is the only place we want to cruise (currently in WA). [*]lots of trees and mountains[*]at least 500 miles of coastline[*]hundreds to thousands of anchorages[*]not too hot (40F to 70F most of the time)[*]short distances between anchorages (20-40nm) in most places[/LIST]
AK meets that but I'm not sure how feasible chartering there is given the shorter season. I hear Maine is popular but I don't think it meets the size requirement - it's only 100-150mi, tiny compared to BC's 600 to 2000+ miles coastline.

As full time cruiser's, I assume you have your own boat. Also, assuming the border remains closed, why not consider taking the last of the SW winds, in late spring, and sail directly from Neah Bay to Ketchikan, or Sitka? We've left our boat in Petersburg ( and are considering selling her) and have cruised the SE for past 3 years. It's more adventurous than BC, and you'll need to be more self sufficient, which we cruised for 10+ years. You will love it. If we can help you in any way, please don't hesitate to ask.

[Tessellate]

Originally Posted by 01kiwijohn

why not consider taking the last of the SW winds, in late spring, and sail directly from Neah Bay to Ketchikan, or Sitka? ...

If that's actually possible, that sounds wonderful. I've spent some time in the area from Neah Bay to Haida Gwaii (3 months, but anchoring each night; about 60 days in transit) and as far as I can tell, the wind doesn't blow from the SW for any significant length of time. Vancouver Island routes it either SE, W (rare), or NW. Unless you go out perhaps 100 miles but then that's 1-2 days out / back to only maybe get to a better wind direction. If you have an account of otherwise I'd love to hear it.

In the spring you can definitely ride the SE wind but doing so non-stop would require a lot of luck - it's very rarely SE 10-25 for 5-6 days. I've studied pilot charts, GRIBs and wind stations as well, and wind from the south consistently, 24 hours a day, over a 5 day period is very very rare.

Over SE 25 the sea state can get very messy near the coastal headlands, and typically the wind drops below 10 at night so if you're trying to avoid motoring it's pretty miserable rolling in that sloppy sea state.

[01kiwijohn]

You're right, I should've typed SE, not SW.
You can get permission to transit inside. We got permission to come south, as long as we cleared in at a TRSM site (Yeah, we couldn't figure that out either. It means a place where you can clear in by phone, such as Tsehum, Prince Rupert etc.)
The restrictions were that we could stop for fuel, provisions, water or emergency medical purposes. We could anchor up for purposes of safe navigation such as, adverse tidal currents or weather, crew rest, poor visibility, but must take the most direct practical route.
Once cleared in, we were advised that there were no additional reporting requirements as they understood there are many areas without cell coverage.
Before you go, consider enrolling in CPB Roam so you can avoid the necessity to anchor only in Foggy Bay, on your way from Prince Rupert to Ketchikan. That works like a charm.
Whichever way you go, have a good trip. See you up there in 2021

[Tessellate]

Seems most of the responses for BC-like alternatives are "Alaska." That's ok, just confirms what I already suspected. Chile sounds intriguing, but quite an endeavor and rather challenging to get there.

The problem with getting to Alaska on our own boat is an additional constraint we've imposed upon ourselves (yes, our own darn fault). We don't enjoy motoring and are cruising "as long as it's fun." Motoring more than 2 hours isn't fun, so if Covid means we have to do that in order to cruise, we might rather stop cruising. There are some good plan B alternatives like campervan / RVing which many cruisers are turning to now.

I know that's different than most people. Sailing is non-negotiable to us though. We have a formula down, after several years of painstaking trial+error, for sailing 70-90% of miles covered on the Inside Passage. It relies on slow cruising, patience and timing weather systems. That's not compatible with go fast, deliveries, or schedules.

So if we go on the inside we'd be on a schedule, and if we go on the outside we'd be on a go-fast schedule / limited in ability to wait for weather. One Plan B is we could always fly over Canada to Alaska and do RVing, a pretty great alternative to exploring by water.

The irony is pandemic restrictions are more restrictive of travel by boat than by plane - so if we have to stop cruising we'll increase our contagion risk (even if we don't fly). I've been surprised how many buyers think boating is a great pandemic activity. I guess it's great if boating is a vacation, a bit more complicated if it's your life.

If Canada stays closed until covid is gone (2025 or later), we'll need to make some big changes. It took us 5 years to downsize our life to full-time cruising and customize our boat into the perfect vessel for sailing BC. So it would take some time to undo that - hence the reason the uncertainty is leaving us in a pickle.

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

The problem with getting to Alaska on our own boat is an additional constraint we've imposed upon ourselves (yes, our own darn fault). We don't enjoy motoring and are cruising "as long as it's fun." Motoring more than 2 hours isn't fun, so if Covid means we have to do that in order to cruise, we might rather stop cruising. There are some good plan B alternatives like campervan / RVing which many cruisers are turning to now.

You started out saying you originally wished to explore the BC coastline but can't due to our Covid-19 regulations. Now you are saying you insist on sailing 70 - 90% of the time and never want to motor more than two hours at a stretch.

In BC (and I suspect in Alaskan inside waters as well) this is EXTREMELY difficult. You will be sitting becalmed much of the time and, when there is wind, it will be bouncing off the mountains on both sides of the channel and you will be grinding to exhaustion - and a lot of that will be beating in narrow channels. And even without considering the rapids, the ordinary currents in many channels will reduce your net progress to zero or below.

Good luck with this one. You are asking to have your cake and eat it too. This is NOT the Caribbean or the South Pacific!

[NaClyDog]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

Seems most of the responses for BC-like alternatives are "Alaska." That's ok, just confirms what I already suspected. Chile sounds intriguing, but quite an endeavor and rather challenging to get there.

The problem with getting to Alaska on our own boat is an additional constraint we've imposed upon ourselves (yes, our own darn fault). We don't enjoy motoring and are cruising "as long as it's fun." Motoring more than 2 hours isn't fun, so if Covid means we have to do that in order to cruise, we might rather stop cruising. There are some good plan B alternatives like campervan / RVing which many cruisers are turning to now.

I know that's different than most people. Sailing is non-negotiable to us though. We have a formula down, after several years of painstaking trial+error, for sailing 70-90% of miles covered on the Inside Passage. It relies on slow cruising, patience and timing weather systems. That's not compatible with go fast, deliveries, or schedules.

So if we go on the inside we'd be on a schedule, and if we go on the outside we'd be on a go-fast schedule / limited in ability to wait for weather. One Plan B is we could always fly over Canada to Alaska and do RVing, a pretty great alternative to exploring by water.

The irony is pandemic restrictions are more restrictive of travel by boat than by plane - so if we have to stop cruising we'll increase our contagion risk (even if we don't fly). I've been surprised how many buyers think boating is a great pandemic activity. I guess it's great if boating is a vacation, a bit more complicated if it's your life.

If Canada stays closed until covid is gone (2025 or later), we'll need to make some big changes. It took us 5 years to downsize our life to full-time cruising and customize our boat into the perfect vessel for sailing BC. So it would take some time to undo that - hence the reason the uncertainty is leaving us in a pickle.

Seems like an awful lot of work just so you can cruise in BC for 6 months a year.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Scorpius

You started out saying you originally wished to explore the BC coastline but can't due to our Covid-19 regulations. Now you are saying you insist on sailing 70 - 90% of the time and never want to motor more than two hours at a stretch.

In BC (and I suspect in Alaskan inside waters as well) this is EXTREMELY difficult. You will be sitting becalmed much of the time and, when there is wind, it will be bouncing off the mountains on both sides of the channel and you will be grinding to exhaustion - and a lot of that will be beating in narrow channels. And even without considering the rapids, the ordinary currents in many channels will reduce your net progress to zero or below.

Good luck with this one. You are asking to have your cake and eat it too. This is NOT the Caribbean or the South Pacific!

So are you saying that the tropical trade winds don't daily waft through the channels of the Inside Passage?

[Tessellate]

Originally Posted by Scorpius

You started out saying you originally wished to explore the BC coastline but can't due to our Covid-19 regulations. Now you are saying you insist on sailing 70 - 90% of the time and never want to motor more than two hours at a stretch.

In BC (and I suspect in Alaskan inside waters as well) this is EXTREMELY difficult. You will be sitting becalmed much of the time and, when there is wind, it will be bouncing off the mountains on both sides of the channel and you will be grinding to exhaustion - and a lot of that will be beating in narrow channels. And even without considering the rapids, the ordinary currents in many channels will reduce your net progress to zero or below.

Good luck with this one. You are asking to have your cake and eat it too. This is NOT the Caribbean or the South Pacific!

If you reread my post you'll see that's not what I said. I said we do (and have) sailed 70-90% of the time/distance there. Yes it's not easy, but it's honestly a ton of fun. Over the course of 12 months in 2 years (2018--2019). I understand it's not the norm, but our experience is contrary to most others. There's fantastic sailing in BC and the inside passage is one of the best places in the world for sailing, as long as you have a purpose built boat (not a heavy one, and set up for light wind sailing).

We've sailed through Seymour narrows and many of the other rapids, but yes you can't always do that - that's where the 10-30% motoring comes from. My experience is the wind usually doesn't bounce off the mountains from both sides of the channel, it usually aligns with the channel. Sometimes we have to do 20-30 tacks but that's not really a big deal. If you have time and patience, we usually sail downwind the length of Johnstone Strait both northbound and southbound.

[Tessellate]

Originally Posted by NaClyDog

Seems like an awful lot of work just so you can cruise in BC for 6 months a year.

Indeed the cruising life is a lot of work! The greatest rewards come from working awfully hard at something. I'm not sure which part you're saying is an awful lot of work though. For me, fixing broken boat gear / systems is the least fun part (although still pretty rewarding).

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

For various reasons we opted not to use the "Alaska Loophole." The main reason was my impression they want you to transit as quickly as possible, making minimal stops for food/fuel/water. Becoming a motorboat wasn't something we were willing to consider. It takes us 3+ months to sail the length of BC (covering over 2000 nm, with some detours up inlets).

Sure you could go 2000nm if you do a lot of side trips but suck it up for a few 24 hour runs (crank up the motor to make miles if needed) and it's only around 500-600miles to Alaska.

You'll probably burn more fuel and go thru far more hassle flying to a new destination and buying/shipping a boat.

Otherwise:
- Northern New England
- Scandinavia
- Chile

Not a traditional cruising area but northern Japan and Pacific Russia might be options.

[NaClyDog]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

Indeed the cruising life is a lot of work! The greatest rewards come from working awfully hard at something. I'm not sure which part you're saying is an awful lot of work though. For me, fixing broken boat gear / systems is the least fun part (although still pretty rewarding).

The part where you downsized everything just to cruise in BC for 6 months a year.

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by Paul L

So are you saying that the tropical trade winds don't daily waft through the channels of the Inside Passage?

I am!

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by Tessellate

If you reread my post you'll see that's not what I said. I said we do (and have) sailed 70-90% of the time/distance there. Yes it's not easy, but it's honestly a ton of fun. Over the course of 12 months in 2 years (2018--2019). I understand it's not the norm, but our experience is contrary to most others. There's fantastic sailing in BC and the inside passage is one of the best places in the world for sailing, as long as you have a purpose built boat (not a heavy one, and set up for light wind sailing).

We've sailed through Seymour narrows and many of the other rapids, but yes you can't always do that - that's where the 10-30% motoring comes from. My experience is the wind usually doesn't bounce off the mountains from both sides of the channel, it usually aligns with the channel. Sometimes we have to do 20-30 tacks but that's not really a big deal. If you have time and patience, we usually sail downwind the length of Johnstone Strait both northbound and southbound.

I bow to your superior knowledge.