Lady Karla Exploring Desolation Sound

The distance from Seattle Washington to Desolation Sound British Columbia prevents us from being able to travel there as often as we would like. We made our first trip there in 1991 on a 36’ Chris-Craft we spent a month on the boat exploring this enchanted area for the first time. We were able to go again in 1999 on our 46’ Alaskan and connected with three other families on their own boats and we cruised together for three weeks. We explored new areas and re-visited our favorites from our previous trip. For this trip I had been planning and preparing for two years to have the boat and the systems ready. Our boat named “Lady Karla” was built in 1971 by American Marine, the builders of the popular Grand Banks trawlers. We have owned the Lady Karla for 11 years and have maintained and upgraded her as we have had the opportunity to over the years. The Alaskan is a pilothouse vessel with twin 120 hp Ford Layman engines and a 7.5 kW Onan Generator. This vessel is very comfortable for our family of four. We have a Master Suite forward with a private head and our two daughters Elizabeth (17) and Emily (13) share the other stateroom and the amidships head. The Salon and galley are where we do our living and the Pilothouse gives us an excellent divided space to carry on the work of piloting the vessel.

The Crew

On this trip North our good friends from West Seattle the Nelsons will be joining us, Alan, Joke, Peter (17) and Laura (15). The Nelsons boat the “Noordwjick” a Southbay 38’ it is a Sportfisher model built on the East Coast. We had cruised together on several other shorter trips and found that we really enjoyed each other’s company and our children had a great time together. Our plan was to cruise together through the San Juan ’s and the Canadian Gulf Islands and then on North to the Desolation Sound area. On July 28^th we depart from our Lake Union boathouse and transit the Harem Chittieton Locks from the Lake level down to the level of Puget Sound . The weather was calm and clear and we were underway heading North to the Islands of northern Puget Sound . As we travel I get to test for the first time in open water the new Autopilot and Radar that I had recently installed. The crew all settle in to nap or read and I check the engine room and set up our waypoints on the Nobeltec charting software I running on the laptop computer in the Pilothouse. We were making good time traveling North with the ebb tide and passed the South end of Whidbey Island doing 10 knots. We planned to travel up the East side of Whidbey Island past the towns of Langley and Oak Harbor both cruising destinations when we are not traveling to distant harbors. After we passed the North end of Camino Island we turned East in to the Swinomish Slew. This well marked natural channel passes between the mainland and Fidalgo Island and leads to one of our favorite stops at LaConner. This artsy little town has two large marinas that have considerable visitor moorage. We found a slip at the South Marina near town and got tied down and plugged in to shorepower for the night.

In the morning we said goodbye to LaConner and headed north to Saddle Bag Island a small St

ate Park just north of the exit of the Swinomish Slew and East of Anacortes the small town on the north end of Fidalgo Island that calls itself the gateway to the San Juan’s. We anchored in 30’ of water and took the 17’ Whaler out to set a crab pot. This area is popular for crabbing do to the extensive areas of shallow water from the Skagit River delta. We had lunch and took a walk on Saddle Bag Island with our boating Beagle Glorie before we pulled up our empty crab pot. We pulled the anchor and headed East through Guimes Channel and across Rossiero Strait to Friday Harbor .

When we got to Friday Harbor we anchored in the South end of the bay to stay away from the ferry wakes and the boat traffic to the large Marina . After we settled in we took the Whaler to the marina and took a walk through town. A fire early in the summer destroyed the store and several small shops. As you would expect this small Island town pulled together and found space for all of the displaced business within the hart of this busy little town. A walk through this town leaves you with the feeling that you can find almost anything you need or want if you spend some time looking and talking to the towns people and shop owners. When we got back to the boat the wind had come up to about 15 knots, we were moving around a bit as the wind changed direction but the anchor was holding fine. When we cruise on the Lady Karla we anchor most of the time I like the privacy it affords us and I have a great deal of confidence in our ground tackle. We use a 60 pound Bruce anchor with 5/16” BBB chain, I have over 400’ of chain and try to use as much as is appropriate for the anchorage we are in. In that we often cruise with other families most nights we have at least one or two other boats tied along side.

A Morning To Remember

As the sun went down so did the wind and we had a very comfortable night on the anchor. In the morning Karla and I got up early and gathered up the crab pot with two very nice Dungeness crab inside and got the boat ready to depart. As we pulled the anchor and headed out into the channel between San Juan and Lopez Islands it was one of those mornings you never forget. It was calm as glass and birds and seals were visible in all directions, the morning light was very easy on the eyes. As we traveled North we passed Spiden and Stuart Islands we saw several small pilot whales or Black Fish feeding in the channel. When we were about a half hour out of Bedwell harbor I woke up the kids so that they could help us with the 17’ Whaler we were towing and help handle the dock lines as we went to the pier to clear Canadian Customs. The Customs facility at Bedwell has about 200’ of dock for boats with the end of one dock designated for seaplanes

The Customs Officers have always been friendly and professional with the process of clearing us and our vessel into British Columbia . The upland facilities at Bedwell have recently gone through a change of ownership and the new owners are in the process of constructing a new and much improved Hotel and pool facility. We look forward to coming back in a few years to visit this new and much improved Bedwell Harbor . After leaving Bedwell we again traveled North up the West side of South Pender Island toward Ganges on Saltspring Island . As you head up the East side of Saltspring it is important to keep your eyes open for the many crab buoys in this channel. Getting one of these buoys wrapped up in your propeller can cause considerable damage to your running gear. We pulled into Ganges Harbor and anchored among the many other boats in the harbor. It was still early in the afternoon so we gathered up our postcards and shopping lists and headed into town. The Thriftway store and Moaut shopping center are right on the waterfront providing easy access to the boaters. The city has provided a dock for tenders and a water taxi service to pick you up and return you to your boat. All of the town’s shops and services are within easy walking distance of the dock and marina. After getting groceries and some gifts we returned to the Lady Karla and put together some appetizers to share with our friends the Nelsons on the dock. After dinner the kids all headed out to set the crab pots and try their luck at fishing on some of the reefs at the entrance of the harbor. After another calm night on the anchor I got the kids up at 5:00 am and we went out in the Whaler to see if we could catch a salmon. We trolled South along Saltspring Island and then headed over toward Active Pass and tried trolling along some of the rip tides that were forming. The wind was starting to come up so we decided to head back to Ganges and get some breakfast. The kids were a bit disappointed that we had not caught any fish so we decided to stop and pull up the crab pot. As they started to pull the pot it was heavy so they were excited that we had caught some crab. Once in the boat we could count four large crabs and several small female crabs. The kids sorted the keepers into a bucket and dumped the small crab back before putting the pot back down. They were all smiles as we got back to the boats with our bucket of Dungeness Crab.

After a big breakfast and some more shopping in town we pulled up the anchor and moved to Maracaibo in Long Harbor . This harbor is less then a mile East of Ganges and runs North and South just like the harbor at Ganges . Maracaibo is a private marina with a beautiful upland swimming lake, showers, laundry, and a park setting that is as pretty a setting as any in the Gulf Islands .

Lady Karla Rolls With The Punches...

We spent two nights at the dock at Maracaibo as the guest’s of our new friend Bob Taylor. The kids swam in the lake, pulled each other behind the Whaler and sailed in the bay in the Laser sailboats provided by the resort. On the morning of our departure we got up at 4:00 am and got underway. We wanted to get through Poulier Pass at slack water and across the Straits of Georgia before the wind had a chance to make the crossing uncomfortable. As it turned out it took a little longer then we thought it would to get to Poulier Pass so we were bucking a good 3 knots of current through the pass. Heading North East across the Straits of Georgia we were for the first time on this trip out in open water that can expose our boats to some serious wind and wave conditions. The sun was coming up and with it the wind was picking up. As we moved clear of the coastal islands and were out to where we could feel the Northwest wind and swell I wished that we had got up earlier. We settled into our coarse for Welcome Pass 24 miles ahead, the wind was 15 to 20 knots out of the NW the swells were 4 ft with whitecaps. The ride on the Lady Karla was not uncomfortable but it was very active, the kids were still in bed and Karla was asleep in the pilothouse berth. The Noordwjick was following in our wake and was taking quite a beating in the present sea conditions. We kept up our speed and course and were making good headway, after about two hours we started to get into the lee of Lesquiti and Texiada Islands . The swells started to moderate and within another half-hour the wind was letting down. We pulled into a small cove on the South end of Texada Island and anchored in about 30 feet of water. As we turned off the engines and felt the calm of the small bay it great to once again be still and quite! Karla fixed a big breakfast and we all enjoyed having the crossing of the Straits of Georgia behind us. After our short break we again pulled the anchor and headed North up the East side of Texada Island our goal was to go another 55 miles to the Copeland Islands just north of Lund. Karla and the kids each took a one-hour watch piloting the boat up the coast, this really helped me by giving me time to nap and eat as we traveled on North. When we entered into the Copeland Island Marine Park and anchored it was 6:00 p.m. 14 hours since we had departed Maracaibo in Long Harbor .

A Good Friend Is A Cold Refrigerator...

Having this huge day of travel behind us was a great relief, we now felt like we were a long way North. We decided to spend two nights on anchor here in the Copelands. We all slept hard and got up late and had a lazy morning, I gathered oysters and placed them in a large mesh bag that I hung off the back of the boat. The Nelsons generator needed a new seawater impeller installed so we took the pump off and took it to Lund where we found an impeller and a mechanic willing to install it. I got the pump re-installed on the generator and we started it up for a test run. It ran for about 15 minutes with very little water flow out of the exhaust and then it shut itself down. We determined that the heat exchanger was plugged up with debris and would not pass enough water to cool the engine. Since we had no access to parts or gaskets for the heat exchanger we decided to move what frozen food we could to our freezer and we plugged the Nordwjikes shore power cord into the Lady Karla to keep their refrigeration and the battery chargers going. Our second evening at the Copeland Islands ended with an extraordinary sunset of red and blue. We were awaken about 3:00 am to wind and thunder; I got up and moved to the pilothouse to make sure that our anchor was holding. Over the next hour the entire family joined me in the pilothouse and we were witnesses to the most amazing thunder & lightning storm we had ever seen. As the lightning ended the rain came in, by daylight the skies were gray and it was raining hard. After breakfast the rain had let up so Karla and I took the Whaler over to Savory Island to dig some steamer clams. We wadded ashore and started to look around for some sign of clams. We dug several holes and walked a good deal of the beach with out finding any steamers clams. We were about to leave but I wanted to try one more spot right up by the gravel beach. On the first scoop with the shovel I had 8 to 10 clams, within another 10 minutes we had a full bucket of steamer clam’s to take back to the boat. By now it was raining again and we were soaked to the skin as we climbed back into the Whaler and headed back to the Copeland Islands . After lunch we headed North around Sara Point into the Desolation Sound Marine Park Area. The rain was poring down as we turned South down Pina Inlet toward our next anchorage. We had decided to go to Grace Harbor . We had been here years before and had enjoyed the peaceful setting and the hikes ashore on the old logging roads. We again anchored in about 30’ of water and ran a stern line into the beach where we tied to a large tree. The Nelsons came along side the Lady Karla and we tied up them up and plugged their shorepower cord in to our power. As the rains continued we spent the rest of the day reading talking and watching movies. In the morning the sky was getting lighter and the showers had stopped. We took a nice walk through the woods and explored the small waterfall and the abandon logging equipment in the woods.

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