InsidePassageNews.com

Very limited guest moorage, in fact, it is just about non-existent. The few slips were all occupied by what appeared to be locals. We tied to the Government Dock for $.50/ft.

The store staff says they monitor VHF 68. I think he was confused and they in fact did not monitor the VHF at all. We found the store closed a little after 4 PM when the sign on the door said they are open to 5:30. We had to go to Princess Louisa without any chips.

The water here had a boil order sign posted.

Waterfalls were not turned on yet. Actually, it just hadn’t been warm enough in the mountains to get them going full stream. They were there and still pretty but not what we had seen before.

The ranger was not in residence yet either. And the water on the float was not on.

There was an announcement on VHF 16 about the inlet being a “no wash zone” which was played a few times around slack at the rapids. I think it’s a good reminder to mind your manners and not race to the last spot on the float.

There is much new construction at the club.

Seafood was in abundance.

We departed on the last of an ebb and encountered a sailboat inbound just after passing the narrowest part. We passed OK and they happily waved to us. They did not make a securité broadcast or reply to ours. I guess they just didn’t have the VHF on. Be alert!

Recommend arriving boats check the Sechelt Rapids currents prior to arrival at the floats. It will give a pretty good idea of direction and force of the current to expect at the Egmont floats.

They did not monitor VHF but the dockmaster saw us coming and was there to help.

The water on the dock is very good. They said they have their own well source. (The water at Bathgate had a boil order sign posted.)

Egmont Marina Resort: Power is limited but they have plans to add more.

We had another Skookum Burger and two of us almost ate it all.

There is new construction around the bay since 2000. Also a tacky looking float home is in the southern part with some industrial grade buoys and boom logs. There was plenty of room to anchor but it just isn’t as pretty as before.

The trail is well maintained and not at all difficult. It’s a very pretty walk in the woods. At the end is a choice of North Point or Roland Point. We think Roland Point is the best view on a flood and North Point to watch the ebb.

Sechelt Rapids Current Predictions:

Electronic media (Tides and Currents 3.0) provides two choices that are not in agreement. The CHS version agrees with the Canadian Tide and Current Tables. The NOAA version, based on First Narrows, was about 30 minutes off on 5/14. The current arrows on the computer screen pointed opposite directions. Locals use the paper tables and we found them to be right on. Ports and Passes book also agrees with the CHS figures.

Irvine’s Landing is out of business.

Sunshine Coast Resort has a strong back eddy at the outer float on an ebb. It pinned us to the float. There is not much current on a flood though. The resort has one of the few laundries but we found only one pair of machines. The laundry was a long hike from the floats up near the highway. The owner, Ralph, was kind and gave us a ride up the hill in a service cart. It’s a neat and pretty facility.

Ballet Bay is dramatically different, depending on the tide. At high tide it appears to be large and inviting. At low tide it looks like a boat-eating rock pile. Fortunately the rocks are well charted. We found the rock-free area to be pretty consistent at 30’-40’ with good holding in sandy mud. The depths at the west entrance were much deeper than charted. There is a small bay on the south side large enough for 2 or 3 boats, although there is a sign warning of cables. Anchored boats didn’t seem to have any problems though.

There are several private homes (cabins)—most along the south shore. We were not able to find any indication of a trail to Hidden Basin. There were just “Private Property” and “No Trespassing” signs and private homes and docks.

We anchored behind Surrey Islets. It was a nice cozy spot for one or possibly two boats. There was a pretty rock face on the east and we had several seals watching our every move from the rock at the entrance. We experienced an occasional wake from boats running into the many private homes but it was not a problem.

We entered Shoal Channel from the Strait of Georgia with a SE wind of approximately 20 kts and 3-5’ seas with no trouble at all. It just got smooth as we crossed the shoal.

We found an open buoy very near the park floats and shore. Another boater pointed out that it was not a real park buoy and was of unknown security. We moved into the bay to anchor as all the other “real” park buoys were taken. The depths in much of the bay were 60’ or more so a reasonable scope made it uncomfortable with so many other boats. A steady breeze would have helped, but the wind was variable with boats swinging every which way. We finally felt better, but not completely comfortable, in the third spot near the shore and some private docks on the south shore and very near a derelict sailboat. We never had a bump in the night but were concerned. Wakes were also a problem until after about 10PM.

We didn’t anchor but took a look. It would have been much more comfortable than Plumper Cove the previous night.

There are a few homes on the shore but most are upscale and easy on the eye. A low pass at the head probably allows a strong outflow wind at times. A local Bowen Island boater a few days later told us he had to spend a night at anchor watch due to outflow winds in Port Graves.

Waggoner says to anchor near the docks to avoid logging cable. We think the opposite and would avoid the shore and anchor in mid-bay. There is lots of room in easy anchoring depths. We noted several old concrete structures along the east shoreline that are probably associated with activity that could have left all kinds of anchor grabbing junk on the bottom.

We stayed a night there but it wasn’t very comfortable. Each ferry wake hit us twice, first from the north and then the west around the south side of the small island offshore. The outflow winds also kicked up the bay to rock us. The natives were friendly, though, and we enjoyed a nice visit in the evening.

Visitor moorage is large, new and secure. We found well-placed 30/50 Amp power and water facilities along the float. An easy walk from the marina is a real town. And, the rates were VERY good.

Arrived on a Wednesday and there was no harbormaster. There are two and both are off on Wednesday and Thursday. We were able to find a spot OK but the obvious spots filled quickly and several boats went elsewhere or anchored. The Waggoner reference to “We’ll try to fit you in” wasn’t working.

There is a pump out barge there but it is seldom used. It is a bit tricky for a larger boat to approach and looks neglected. If the harbormaster had it hosed off once in awhile it could get more use. As it is, you would want to done hazardous materials suits before stetting foot on it. That is the situation at some other barges we have seen. We once used the one at Blake Island and tracked otter and bird poop all over our boat in the process.

See Waggoner and the 2nd Edition of Exploring the Pacific Coast: San Diego to Seattle to be published by FineEdge.com

It was our first visit to this new marina. Everything was the best! Facility, staff and location couldn’t be better. Tacoma continues to improve as a boating destination.

The pump out there was the extreme opposite of the one at Langley. The suction pipes are built into the floats. All we had to do was call the boys and point to the fitting on our boat. They rolled up a section of hose and did the job with no gloves required for a mere $5.

The buoys on the west side were occupied so we anchored in mid bay in 50’ – 60’. The anchor set quickly and held fine in winds to @ 15 kts. It came up clean so no idea of the bottom. The marina and store there are real rustic but the staff is quite friendly.

The park has some very nice trails to explore.

The pump out at the park dock was signed as “out of service”.

We tied to the yacht club reciprocal dock and enjoyed the great farmers market and a guided tour of the state capitol. We also enjoyed seeing the Pet Parade. It’s an annual event and big deal in Olympia.

We started into the inlet a little after low slack and the tide was going positive. Our electronic charts were right on and made it easy to stay out of trouble. We also had a map provided by a Shelton YC visitor to Anacortes that was helpful.

On our way we called the number for the yacht club, which runs the marina, to see if there was space for us. We had to leave a message on the number for moorage. We had a reply after we were leaving. Space at the visitor float was pretty tight but we were able to get on OK. We walked to town and found the Chamber of Commerce/ Visitor Center located in a caboose was closed on Monday. We explored a little more and found the recommended restaurant was also closed on Monday. We cast off after about three hours there. There were some nice blackberries along the road.

The town was a bit of disappointment but the inlet was fun to see. We have some friends taking a South American cruise around Cape Horn. We took pictures of ourselves going around Cape Horn too.

This Hope Island is near Olympia, not Deception Pass. There are buoys on the west and south side but they are exposed to wakes and wind waves. We anchored on the east side and found good holding even as the wind and currents shifted a few times.

The trails on Hope Island are some of the best we have seen. There are a couple of short bridges in good shape and even steps in some of the steep parts. There are also several interpretive signs describing the vegetation and history. Well done!

There is a huge area to anchor in the outer bay but it is exposed to the south. The inner bay can hold several boats at anchor. Also the Oro Bay Yacht Club has some reciprocal moorage space. Two other yacht clubs have outstations there.

We stayed at the yacht club reciprocal space. It is at the south end of the marina on a channel to a boat ramp used by the yacht club and they launch some rather large boats. The fine print says you are limited to a beam of 14 feet for good reason. After leaving the float there is another locked gate to the yacht club so you need to call the caretaker by phone to be allowed in to register and get a key back to your boat.

We found the nearest Laundromat was about a mile walk and next door to a QFC grocery. We took a cab back to the marina for about $5.

We stayed on the reciprocal dock at $6 for two nights. There are two nice restaurants close to the marina. A trail leads to a small community center with a gas station convenience mart as well as some other shops and a farmers market. There are several other trails beyond that and we enjoyed the one up Ludlow Creek to the falls. It was very pretty and well signed too.

Point Hudson Marina is right in town but space was not certain and rafting was, so we tried the Port Townsend Boat Haven. We found the space at the reciprocal dock was open and stayed there for the one night limit. We found the location to not be a problem as there is a nice shuttle around town every 20 minutes. For us old folks (60+) the fare was only $.75 for an all day pass. Another option would be to just anchor in front of town. There is a vast area of depths less than 50 feet and a nice city float for dinghies. It is somewhat exposed but we found about 14 boats anchored while we were there.

It was very calm in the marina at Port Townsend and the wind for Point Wilson was reported at NW 9kts. Smith Island was reporting only 5kts or so. There was also a strong ebb running. That is the standard setup for a rough ride and that is what we found. There was some discussion about alternative routes and destinations. Conditions improved as soon as we were about 5 miles beyond Point Wilson. That didn’t take very long because of the strong ebb. By the time we passed Smith Island it was glassy water with just the occasional wake.

By sunset there were about a dozen boats anchored and room for still more. And it was a grand sunset. We did experience a few wakes from passing ferries but it wasn’t a big deal and we will go back.