Let's talk cruising in British Columbia

[Cheechako]

Well, it's an amazing locale to cruise. It's never that warm cruising though, even summer. Most up here don't feel the need for an "offshore" sturdy boat to cruise. Many fin keel racers cruise. A good strong engine is a + because of currents up to and exceeding hull speed at times. There are endless places to discover. Crabbing, shellfish etc are fairly plentiful, although BC gets hit with a lot of toxins in oysters/clams during summer.
Winter, if you want full year cruising could be a challenge. High winds are common. Today we have 40 mph in WA. It can be very cold with the wind chill.
Dark long winters.
Yes the wind dies in the sunny months. To make it worse it seems to prevail from the direction you are heading... North or South!
Basically from I see, when the VHF weather says 5-15 wind.. you motor, because it's rarely 15.
When the VHF prediction is 10-20 it's sailing time.

Very fun cruising though in May-Sept/Oct.
Instead of one bigger boat get two smaller; Winter in the Bahamas, Summer in the PNW. :>)

[NedX]

Originally Posted by Lodesman

I prefer to go with the flow, too. Of course in Canada we have rule 9(k).

For those of you in PNW but not in BC:

in the Canadian waters of a narrow channel or fairway where there is a current or tidal stream and two power-driven vessels are meeting each other from opposite directions so as to involve risk of collision,
(i) the vessel proceeding with the current or tidal stream shall be the stand-on vessel and shall propose the place of passage and shall indicate the side on which she intends to pass by sounding the appropriate signal prescribed in Rule 34(a) or (g),

(ii) the vessel proceeding against the current or tidal stream shall keep out of the way of the vessel proceeding with the current or tidal stream and shall hold as necessary to permit safe passing,

(iii) the vessel proceeding against the current or tidal stream shall promptly reply to the signal referred to in subparagraph (i) with the same signal, if she is in agreement, and with the sound signal prescribed in Rule 34(d), if she is in doubt.



Compare with rule 9, pg. 20 here

https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/pdf/navrules/navrules.pdf

I learn something new every day.

[NedX]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Well, it's an amazing locale to cruise. It's never that warm cruising though, even summer. Most up here don't feel the need for an "offshore" sturdy boat to cruise. Many fin keel racers cruise. A good strong engine is a + because of currents up to and exceeding hull speed at times. There are endless places to discover. Crabbing, shellfish etc are fairly plentiful, although BC gets hit with a lot of toxins in oysters/clams during summer.
Winter, if you want full year cruising could be a challenge. High winds are common. Today we have 40 mph in WA. It can be very cold with the wind chill.
Dark long winters.
Yes the wind dies in the sunny months. To make it worse it seems to prevail from the direction you are heading... North or South!
Basically from I see, when the VHF weather says 5-15 wind.. you motor, because it's rarely 15.
When the VHF prediction is 10-20 it's sailing time.

Very fun cruising though in May-Sept/Oct.
Instead of one bigger boat get two smaller; Winter in the Bahamas, Summer in the PNW. :>)

Thanks! It does sound fantastic.

(Regarding the weather, I'm in Maine right now, so the dark long windy cold winter started a month ago. I am setting my expectations for a bit of meandering and motoring in warm months.).

I like your idea for the second boat so much I'm already working on it. Just with a slightly different winter location in mind.

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

"Some of the best crab on earth."

Unfortunately, way overfished (in BC) and becoming hard to catch. We had very poor luck in 2020.


PS To OP: Cornet Bay and Deception Pass are not in British Columbia (they are in Washington state). Maybe more crab there as apparently the crab fishery is better managed in Washington.

After the salmon virtually disappeared (at least in commercial volumes) and the commercial salmon fishery was severely limited by the government, many fishermen switched to crab and have pretty well wiped them out too. Now they are going after shrimp and prawns big time. Once they're gone I have no idea what is next. Dogfish again?

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by NedX

Hang on.

Am I seeing this right? This guy comes streaming in with the current, passes the whirlpool, and gets caught in a current going the opposite direction. Now he's pinned up against that far shoreline, but he can't head back (upstream in either direction). It looks to me like anchoring is the only option. Or landing. Or buying a motorboat, as his admiral is telling him while they wallow.

It looks like the navigational version of a grim existentialist novel.

How do you get out of that?!? Why did he go in?

He came in on the backeddy - but those NEVER go all the way through. There's always a point that you have to fight around (right in front of the camera in this case) and go out into the main channel - which he did - and got swept backwards. At that point the smart thing to do is give up: go out into the middle and get swept back out of the pass. Except right at the north end at least Dodd's is wide enough to turn around in - unlike places like Malibu or Beazley Pass. Then wait two or three hours and go through on the slack.

Also don't be afraid to use a lot of power in reverse to pull yourself away from the shore if you find yourself pointing that way - except he's towing two dinghies and would risk getting a line in the wheel. Then he'd be in REAL trouble.

These situations are fun if you know what you are doing and have a reliable engine - but otherwise they can be VERY dangerous. You probably won't get sucked down or capsized - but you have to be very careful not to be swept onto the rocks. It take quite a bit of practice to know where your boat is going when it's not going anywhere near where it is pointing and is moving sideways at 10 knots!

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

You don't even need to buy the tables. They are on HolyMotherNet.

And as for "straits", that's the correct spelling. Auto-correct as supplied by Wazzername, insofar as it is "correct" is correct American orthography. I've never bothered to look for an English/Canadian version. When you get here, you'll be in dire straits if you can't get used to all the extra "u"s we use. But we should be able to straighten you out :-)

Coming back to the tables: Entering, say, Porlier Pass from the straits you needn't worry about the state of the tide as long as you stay mid-stream. "Stream" is right. You'll soon know the velocity of the current. I recall one passage when I passed the range light on Dionisio Point 6 times in an hour, four times going forwards and three times going backwards. That was on a low rise of tide.

A few miles away is Dodd Narrows. That's a little more exciting. It's only a short, if narrow, channel, but it has a bend in the middle so you can't see, as you enter, what is coming at you from the other end. In my early days here, before we had VHF, when I was often told off to do a crooz'n'learn in a 65 foot ketch, I liked to enter on a fair tide. The flow would be six or seven knots at the full. I'd turn the boat around and slow to four or five knots and let the current take me through, backwards, at a speed of a coupla knots over the ground. Then if someone was coming the other way, I could gun her and stay ahead of that someone. Passing in the narrows is not recommended.

Here is a clip of Dodd's. Fellow is flying a Maple Leaf for a courtesy flag. Wonder where he's from :-)? But to be fair - Deception Pass in WA is almost a good.

Dodd's is, however, really small potatoes. Now, Sechelt Rapids (Skookumchuck Narrows, meaning "strong water" Narrows) across the straits and up the coast a piece (you get in via Agamemnon Channel), THAT takes some finesse :-):

TP

That's not even technically a tug going through Skookumchuk. It's a work boat at best. He was VERY lucky that barge didn't slew enough to dump the fuel truck off and cause some MAJOR pollution. The wild sea life in that area, because of the currents bringing so much nutrition through, is phenomenal. Had he dumped that thing he would have been in big, big trouble and facing a HUGE fine.

There's a huge sand and gravel operation just at the south end of Skookumchuk (just to the right of this scene - and across the channel). Big tugs with loaded gravel barges go through there all the time - but much nearer slack water. No self-repecting tug skipper would ever go through like this guy did. They are the best mariners on the coast (and the source of most of the marine pilots around here).

[redhead]

And to add to what Scorpius said:

We went through Whirlpool Rapids about 45 mins after slack. We'd been told it wasn't bad the first hour before or after slack. They were wrong or had a hell of a lot more horsepower than we did.

We were taken by the whirlpool and after fighting it mightily we almost lost. We were flung (yes, flung) at the boulder covered shore only to find a "cushion" (I don't have any other words for it) of water extending out from shore about 15-20' that was not part of the whirlpool and allowed us to skirt the center of the rapids and exit with our tail between our legs.

We've since confirmed this calm water on the edges of narrows with some of the commercial fishermen on our dock. Still scary and won't do it again.

The feeling of being entirely out of control is the worst. And mind you we have a 125hp engine and weigh somewhere around 50 tons. I had always felt safe from the elements on this boat until that day. The waters around here have my utmost respect and attention!!!

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by redhead

And to add to what Scorpius said:

We went through Whirlpool Rapids about 45 mins after slack. We'd been told it wasn't bad the first hour before or after slack. They were wrong or had a hell of a lot more horsepower than we did.

We were taken by the whirlpool and after fighting it mightily we almost lost. We were flung (yes, flung) at the boulder covered shore only to find a "cushion" (I don't have any other words for it) of water extending out from shore about 15-20' that was not part of the whirlpool and allowed us to skirt the center of the rapids and exit with our tail between our legs.

We've since confirmed this calm water on the edges of narrows with some of the commercial fishermen on our dock. Still scary and won't do it again.

The feeling of being entirely out of control is the worst. And mind you we have a 125hp engine and weigh somewhere around 50 tons. I had always felt safe from the elements on this boat until that day. The waters around here have my utmost respect and attention!!!

Interesting. I'll go through Whirlpool at almost any stage of the tide as long as I am going WITH the current. It's exciting - but at least it's a straight shot. You were probably going against the current and trying to skirt it along the shore.

You need to be more careful at Greene Point Rapids which, unfortunately are about two hours away (at six knots) with no good anchorages in between - so I time it to go through Greene Point near slack (high water for northbound, low water for southbound) then just run with the current at Whirlpool. It helps to do it around neap tides rather than springs.

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by Scorpius

Seattle IS in the PNW of the U.S. Vancouver, and particularly Victoria, are in the PSW (never heard it before. Just invented it) of Canada. Prince Rupert is located in the PNW of Canada (again, never heard the term used that way).

Ironically the weather fax for the area is Northeast Pacific Weather Briefing Package.

https://www.weather.gov/marine/nepacificbrief

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

You don't even need to buy the tables. They are on HolyMotherNet............................
..........................................

Here's my cheat sheet for finding them:


Canada Current Atlas Cheat Sheet Source

https://www.starpath.com/catalog/books/1806.htm

September 22, 2016

March 14, 2017

How To find TIDE Tables

Go here: Volume 5

http://www.tides.gc.ca/eng/data/predictions/2017#vol5


Friday, February 16, 2018

Choose year and Tides, then Maple Bay

Ditto, currents

See Lunar 2018 for links to lunar calendar

Easier: https://www.calendar-12.com/printable_calendar/2019

Copy&paste into new doc file

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

Here's my cheat sheet for finding them:


Canada Current Atlas Cheat Sheet Source

https://www.starpath.com/catalog/books/1806.htm

September 22, 2016

March 14, 2017

How To find TIDE Tables

Go here: Volume 5

http://www.tides.gc.ca/eng/data/predictions/2017#vol5


Friday, February 16, 2018

Choose year and Tides, then Maple Bay

Ditto, currents

See Lunar 2018 for links to lunar calendar

Easier: https://www.calendar-12.com/printable_calendar/2019

Copy&paste into new doc file

Your link goes to the 2017 tables.

I provided the new links for the 2021 website for the CHS West Coast tide and current tables here.

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3293369

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by jackdale

Your link goes to the 2017 tables.

I provided the new links for the 2021 website for the CHS West Coast tide and current tables here.

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3293369

Thanks.


I "assumed" that our fearless skippers would be wise enough to at least click on the correct year!

[redhead]

Originally Posted by Scorpius

Interesting. I'll go through Whirlpool at almost any stage of the tide as long as I am going WITH the current. It's exciting - but at least it's a straight shot. You were probably going against the current and trying to skirt it along the shore.

You need to be more careful at Greene Point Rapids which, unfortunately are about two hours away (at six knots) with no good anchorages in between - so I time it to go through Greene Point near slack (high water for northbound, low water for southbound) then just run with the current at Whirlpool. It helps to do it around neap tides rather than springs.

By the time we got to Greene Point Rapids we humbly made figure 8s until slack and transited saying "Oh gee, this isn't so bad..."

Experience, the Great Teacher

[Uricanejack]

Originally Posted by sv_pelagia

I wouldn't go near the Devil's Hole (Dent Rapids) on a full flood. [emoji27]

In general, I do not mind a little opposing current going through Porlier. But when I do, I can't help wondering what happens if my engine quits on me. There's not THAT much room between Virago Rock, Virago Point and Race Point/Boscowitz Rock. Managed to sail through once, just to say I did (even then, I kept engine running in neutral [emoji215]).

Perhap Uricanejack is in a powerboat? On a sailboat, for most passes going at slack is safest and least nervewracking; much beyond that it's tough to motor against.

Haven’t been through Devils hole.

Power boat or sailboat, both, I will have the engine started or ready to start.
Often need it even when you have had a steady wind, it will often die or you get headed as you come through the pass,
The wreck of the Point Gray is a nice dive, Which shows it can go wrong,

My powerboat is just a run about, with down riggers, The Green Can N of Poiler one of my favourite local spots, Usually use a cut plug, on the flood. I don’t use the down riggers there.
So I used to mooch through there with the flood quite regularly, in the Spring until it closes. Got a few nice springs there. Back in the 90’s pretty much always came home with something. Then I didn’t so I quite going.
Still go down to Collinson for pinks in late summer.

My wife complains about my boats in the drive way, I did sell the bigger one, because I wasn’t using it after I got the sail boat. But I keep the Double Eagle. Even though I don’t go out very often.

I’ve tried to explain, if I didn’t have a boat I couldn’t go fishing, If I have a boat I could go fishing.
She doesn’t understand, The therapeutic value of being able to go fishing.

[Scorpius]

Originally Posted by jackdale

Ironically the weather fax for the area is Northeast Pacific Weather Briefing Package.

https://www.weather.gov/marine/nepacificbrief

Yes, well ocean-centric we ARE in the north east Pacific. It's a different story (as we have discussed ad nauseum) when being land-centric.