Category: Boat

Roche Harbor To La Conner Marina

September 13th To 18 th

Trip Length 35 nm

This is our last voyage for our 2018 PNW trip. We are laying water Dog up on the hard in La Conner at La Conner Maritime Services until May of 2019. Having the yard go over generator’s and clean raw water systems on mains. Like to get the raw water inter-coolers for main’s, genny’s, stabilizers and bow thruster cleaned and checked out every three years or so. I usually do this work myself but since we are not going to be near the boat until next year going to have the yard perform the work.

It was yet another easy cruise of 35 nm where we averaged 9 knots and arrived at La Conner Marina around 2 pm. We got a side tie on the inside of the dock to prevent getting hit by other boats fighting the current as happened at our last stop here.

We spent four day’s at the marina getting the boat ready to haul. Fresh water flushed out board engines, tied down covers, stowed fenders, changed oil in (2)mains and (2)genny’s etc over the four day’s. On the 18 th we moved the 100 ft or so over to the travel lift at La Conner Maritime Services and hauled Water Dog out.

  • Water Dog In Travel Lift
  • Water Dog Being Moved to Cleaning Station
  • water dog At Cleaning Station

The Micron-66 bottom paint on the hull looks pretty good after being applied at Bay Marine in San Francisco Bay in the summer of 2017 to Sep 2018.

  • Water Dog Micron-66 Bottom

There was quite a bit of growth on the metal raw water intakes which where also painted with Micron-66. Not sure why more growth than the hulls but suspect the metal screens provide a better structure for growth.

  • Growth On Raw Water Intakes

Surprisingly did not see a temp increase on the engines with this amount of growth.

  • Main Engine Raw Water Intake

Bow thruster also had quite a bit of growth. It would seem that you get more growth in the San Juan area than San Francisco Bay.

  • Bow Thruster Barnacles

Had prop speed applied on last haul out but was not happy with it’s performance which shown below is just 5 months. Last time had primer and bottom paint applied in Florida which worked much better. After to talking to yard will try the cheap zinc spray coating this time.

  • Growth On Props With Prop-Speed

The zinc’s on Water Dog where new when we left San Francisco Bay in May and where almost gone when we pulled her out in Sep, only 5 months. Zinc’s have easily lasted 2 years before so not sure why so much more worn for this trip. We did do around 1200 nm so zincs on rudders may just be water wear from props but does not explain hull zincs. Will need to checl galvanic isolators on shore ground when we get back next year. We have isolation transformers on AC hot/neutral so dont suspect them.

  • Rudder Zincs almost All Gone

Union Steamship To Roche Harbour (Via Poets Cove)

September 10th To 13 th

Trip Lengths:

      52 nm Union Steam Ship To Poets Cove Resort 

       10 nm Poets Cove To Roche Harbor US Customs

Got up early for a fairly long leg to head back to the US customs at Roche Harbor.  Stopped at Poets Cove in BC on the way so we could get in early in the morning at the customs dock in Roche Harbor.  We had overcast weather for our three day stay in Roche.  Pretty much had sunshine for the rest of the trip so this late in the season the weather may be starting to turn.

  • Union Steamship To Roche Via Poets Cove 

We ended up pulling in to a open spot at the US customs dock located on the outside of the marina at 10 am.  Got boarded and did get boat searched by officer but only took about 20 mins.  We then headed out and anchored out a few hundred yards in front of the marina. 

  • Water Dog Anchored At Roche Harbor Marina

We then went in to the dinghy dock on west side of the marina on the inside next to the general store and shops.

  • Patty And Holly at Roche Harbor General Store

You will find the old generator plant and coke ovens right above the marina that are worth a look.


  • Old Generator Plant 
  • Old Generator Plant Diesel Engine
  • Old Original Coke Ovens
  • Roche Lady Of Good Voyage Chapel

We then headed west of the marina down Reuben Memorial Drive to visit the Sculpture Park and Micmillin Mausoleum. The mausoleum is to the left of the Sculpture Park down Afterglow Drive where you can follow a number of small trails up to the right on Afterglow.

  • Sculpture Park Entrance
  • Roche Sculpture Park
  • Patty Working Sculpture Park Art

  • Sculpture Park Art

Beginning of trails on Afterglow Drive.

  • Micmillin Family Mausoleum Hike.

  • Mausoleum Gate

The mausoleum itself is cool with a missing collum designed in with Mcmillin  family ashes contained in the base of the concrete chairs circling the table in the middle.

  • Holly At Mausoleum 
  • Roche Harbor Cottages

The next day we hiked over to English Camp and then took the San Juan Bus shuttle back to the marina to cut the hike distance down.  We walked down the nice trail along Roche Harbor Road to Westcott Drive which runs along the bottom of Westcott Bay.  At the end of Westcott Drive you end up at Westcott Bay shellfish Company with the trail head in to English Camp on the left. 

  • Roche Trail Map To English Camp
  • English Camp Trail Map
  • Roche English Camp Hike Start In Roche
  • Roche Black Berry’s, Yum
  • Trail Head At ShellFish Company
  • Bell Point Trail
  • Bell Point Trail Old Stump Natural Art Work
  • Entering English Camp From Bell Point Trail
  • English Camp Sign
  • English Camp Garden

Above English Camp across West Valley Road there are some more nice trails along with a small cemetery containing a few graves of some of the original english soldiers.


  • Royal Marine Cemetery at English Camp

That night we finally got to see the famous changing of the guard at the grassy point in the middle of the marina.  The marina dock guy’s put the show on and do a great job of playing tap’s and lowering the flag.

  • Roche Harbor Changing Of The Guard

Smugglers Cove To Union Steamship Marina (Krogen Rendevous)

Trip Length 31 nm

September 5 th To 11 th

Our PNW 2018 trip is coming to a close as we arrive at the Union Steamship Marina for the 2018 Kadey Krogen PNW Rendevous.  The rendevous is from the 7 th to 9th and we are due in Laconner WA to put Water Dog on the hard on the 18 th.

  • Smugglers Cove To Union Steamship Marina

Union is a very nice family run marina and we will be stopping by again when we get a chance.

  • Union Steamship Marina

On Patty’s birthday we got to go out to dinner at the marina restaurant with Wayne and Linda whom where there for the rendevous also on Tribute a Krogen 36.

  • Wayne, Linda, Patty and Alex at Union Steamship
  • Patty Getting Kiss  From Alex For Her Birthday

The next day we walked above the marina cutting through Bowen uptown on  Prometheus Pl.   Where Prometheus intersects Grafton Rd we found a cut through to Carter Rd where the trail starts.

  • Grafton Lake Trail Map
  • Passing Uptown 
  • Trail To Grafton Lake
  • Grafton Lake
  • Trail Back At Grafton Lake

The next day we took a walk with a bunch of the Krogen guy’s to Kellarney Lake.  The trail start system for this hike starts right across from the marina on Union road right past the Bowen Island Visitor center.

  • Krogen Group Lake Kellarney Hike
  • Patty and Dogs Lake Kellarney

All the Krogen 42’s, around a dozen of them, stern tied on the inside of A dock.  There also where a Krogen 55, 52, a few 48’s along with Wayne and Linda’s 36 docked scattered through out the rest of the marina.

  • Krogen 42’s at Rendevous

    Jedediah Island To Smugglers Cove

    September 2 nd to 4 th 2018

    Trip Length 9 nm

    Very short trip from Jedediah to Smugglers Cove anchorage we arrived around 11 am.  

    Smugglers Cove is a small all-weather anchorage on the south side of Sechelt Peninsula. Their is access to it by land where you can hike in 4 km from a parking lot off Hwy 101.  

    • Jedediah To Smugglers Cove

    The entrance is narrow and we ended up stern tying on the north shore at the first location along the bank that had a stern tie chain bolted to the rocks.  Stern tie chains are located in the first cove we anchored in along all side of the small cove.  Further in past south of France Inlet are even more anchoring spots available.  The walls are steep so you can stern tie up very close to the shore.  We did have a good south west wind pick up that came in over Capri Isle over night so did go ahead and run a second shoreline to back up the 3/8″ poly line.  We are now upgrading to 600′ of 5/8″ poly for next year to sleep better in high winds.  
    The park has some nice hiking trails with views accessed at the sound end of the inner cove via dinghy.

    • Smugglers cove Anchorage Map
    • Smugglers Cove Entrance

    Water Dog stern tied to shore just inside entrance on north shore.  The stern tie rings go from out location in along the entire edge of the main cove.  Also more rings on the inside coves.

    • Water Dog Anchored In Smugglers Cove
    • Smugglers Cove Inner Harbour

    The first day we went to the dinghy landing on the south side of the inner cove and walked the trail to the right which takes you to the entrance to the cove on the south side.

    • Holly On Hiking Trail To Cove Entrance
    • Alex and Terra smugglers Cove Entrance

    The next day we went to the left at the dinghy landing and walked over the board walk out to the road access point for the park.  The trail utilizes a board to walk over a large marshy area which contained multiple beaver dams.

    • Terra, Holly and Patty  Board Walk Hike
    • smuggler Cove Board Walk
    • Patty and Terra Smuggler Cove Board Walk

    The beaver dams are hard to spot but each one seems to have a drainage pipe installed by the park to let some water by the dam to provide water further down?  Beaver dam below with irrigation cage/pipe in front of it.

    • Smuggler Cove Beaver Dam

    Tribune Bay To Jedediah Island Provincial Park

    Trip Length 17 nm

    Yet another short un-stressfull trip in the PNW to Jedediah Porvincial Park. 

    Very cool spot which was purchased from Al and Mary Palmer, owners of the island since 1949. Their house is still there along with the field and orchard on the inland side of the house.  The estate of the late Daniel Culver committed $1.1 million to Jedediah’s preservation which the Palmers sold under market price.  The Island also has some to old-growth stands of Douglas fir and arbutus along the trails which is way cool.

    • Tribune Bay To Jedediah Island
    • Jedediah Island Deep Bay

    We went in and checked out Deep Bay Anchorage which looked to small for us and then the small cove directly underneath it so the south.  The small cove, yellow orange dot below, had a couple boats in so we needed to find another spot to anchor.  We then went back around  north of the Island to Cod Fish Cove.   Turned out to be a great choice.

    • Jedediah Island Anchorages

    Once we got to Cod Fish Cove we at first stern anchored up to the shore behind us but the wind from the North was kicking up making us worried the stern line might part so we decided to take it in.  Learned a lesson on long stern lines in that if there is a single wrap in the line when you start that it may wrap itself around itself many many times as try to pull the loop back in to the boat.  Had to go in to shore and unravel 300′ of line that had wrapped 40-50 turns upon itself, no fun.  

    • Cod Fish Bay Anchorage

    At the north end of Cod Fish Cove is a very nice fairly steep rocky bank dinghy beach.  No mud no fuss.

    • Dinghy Landing Head Of Cod Fish Bay

    The island has some nice hiking trails to explore.  As shown below the first day we took the trail from Cod Fish Bay, on the lower right, to the cross hatched area where the fields and orchard are.  Al and Mary Palmers old house is down on the south east corner of the orchard and field to the right once you enter the field area.

    • Jedediah Map

    On the path over from Cod Fish Cove you pass a drift wood beach.

    • Drift Wood Beach
      • Patty/Dogs CodFish Bay Trail To Field and Orchard.
      • Field And Orchard

      Pretty cool these guy’s lived here for many years in a very pretty but isolated place.  I can understand why you would want to do it!


      •  Al and Mary Palmers House
      • Holly Pointing The Way Back To Water Dog (On Right)

      At the dinghy landing in Cod Fish Cove you will notice a small trail going off to the left which will lead you to a steep but very nice trail up to Gibraltar Peak.

      • Gibraltar Peak Hike
      • Patty On Mount Gibraltar Hike
      • View From Top Mount Gibraltar Hill

      The next day we took the hike across the field to take a look at Long and Deep Bay’s toward the north side of the island.

      • Hike Past Field And Orchard
      • Hike On Way To Deep Bay
      • Jedediah Deep Bay
      • Back AT Water Dog Cod Fish Bay

      Comox Harbour To Tribune Bay (Hornby Island)

      August 30th To September 1 st

      Trip Length 20 nm

      Another short rip and nice weather for the trip from Comox Harbour To Tribune Bay anchorage on Hornby Island.  Hornby Island has a plethora of hiking trails about a mile away to the west of the anchorage we did not get too.  We ended up doing the hike to the east of the anchorage in Helliwell Provincial Park that was one of our all time favorites.  We also did mot make it too the  Hornby Island Co-Op Ring Side Market but heard that it is well worth a visit. 

      • Comox Harbour To Tribune Bay

      The anchorage is huge, we ended anchoring out a ways from the crowd at the head along the cliffs along the east side ringed with hidden houses along the High Salal Public Trail.  This trail is very cool along the water and the early part runs between houses on private land that the owners have given permission for public access.  Very cool attitude for these land owners, wish more places where like this!

      • Tribune Bay Anchorage Beach At Head Of Anchorage
      • Water Dog In Tribune Bay 
        High Salal Public Trail In Background
      • Helliwell Provencial Park On Way Out

      We started the hike by beaching the dinghy at the head of the anchorage on the beach.  We ended tying up to some rocks on the right side of beach since the beach has a very gradual slope so at low tide there is 40-50′ of beach your dinghy can get stranded on.  We walked through the small Outdoor Education Center to the right of the beach to a trail going along Saint Johns Point Road and too a right on High Salal Drive. 

      • Helliwell Provincial Park Hike Map
      • Tribune Bay Dinghy Beach
      • High Salal Drive

      About a half mile down High Salal Drive on the right is the first entrance to 
      High Salal Public Trail which runs behind the houses on the cliff.  A little further down is another entrance where the trail moves to in front of the houses directly above the bay.

      • High Salal Public Trail
      • High Salal Public Trail

      • High Salal Public Trail

      The view along the trail is spectacular.  The trail  merges with Helliwell Park Trail marked by some park signs when returning back from Helliwell.

      • Helliwell Park Trail End, High Salal Public Trail Start

      • Helliwell Park Trail 

      Once you get out towards Saint Johns Point it flattens out a bit with nice rocky beaches.


      • Helliwell Park
      • Leaving Tribune Bay

        Campbell River To Comox Harbour

        August 28th To 30 th

        Trip length 33 nm

        We decided to head about 33 nm south from Campbell River to Comox Harbour.  Comox has a marina but we decided to anchor out in the harbour.  Up in the north side of comox Harbrour is the town of Courtney which you can visit by dinghy.

        • Campbell River To Comox Harbour

        On the way we encountered some whales with one of them laying on it’s back with both flippers held in the air.  The whale did this for 15-20 minutes and was still going when we left.  We call this our clapping whale.

        • Clapping Whale Sighting

        We first anchored out up inside Goose Spit but it was crowded by local moored boats and the only open space was the channel down the middle of the boats in front of the HMCS Quadra military station.  It seemed no boats where anchored in this channel so we moved over to in front of and just North of the marina as shown below.  Nice holding in 30′ or so of water and the only wakes we had was from the boats going in and out of the marina.

        • Comox Harbour

        Comox has a fairly large transient dock space when you enter from the southern most end of the marina.  Fishermans wharf is known for fishing boats selling catch off the boats but no one was selling when where there. 

        Nice anchorage with view of mountains and Comox (also called Queneesh) glacier. Its shrinking fast and some think if current weather patterns hold it will be gone in 5 years.  https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-happens-town-cultural-identity-namesake-glacier-melts-180958140/

        Link to article about shrinking glaciers in BC and photos of Comox glacier 2013-2015

        Story of the glacier

        Most people in the Comox Valley know the Queneesh narrative

        In the version that Everson tells, an old chief is forewarned by the Creator to prepare four canoes for a coming flood. The floodwaters ultimately cover the land completely, leaving the people in the canoes adrift until they’re able to fasten ropes to a giant white whale: Queneesh. At last, as the waters begin to recede, the whale beaches itself on the mountains, and is transformed into a glacier.

        • Comox Marina Fishermans Wharf

        The first day we walked up through the park at the marina and up the hill to the small town of Comox to check out downtown.  The park is nice with a food truck or two and a lot of families enjoying the water park and surrounding area.  Downtown is a couple blocks up the street and has grocery, liqour and HW stores for supplies.

        • Comox Marina Water Park
        • Downtown Comox
        • Downtown Comox

        The next day we took the dinghy up to the north end of Comox Harbour to the Courtney River to the town of Courtney.  We docked next to the boat ramp at the Courtney Marina to walk to the museum there.   The marina is on the port side up the river about a mile and a half up from the when the river start from the bay.

        Going in with a rising tide will help with the shallow depths and outgoing current on this trip.  The water is very shallow, even for a dinghy, on the way up Comox harbour and the markers are not much help.  There was also a pretty good current, and combined with shallow water, can make it tough to make the last part of the trip in too the Courtney Marina.

        • Courtney Marina
        • Dinghy Docked at Courtney Marina

        Once we where at the marina we walked a ways back south on the Courtney Riverway Trail along the water and found a bunch of blackberries to feast on.  We then headed back north on the trail about a mile or so to the Courtney Museum.

        • Courtney Riverway Trail

        The museum has a great assortment of fossils and is well worth the visit.

        • Courtney Museum

        Once we got back to the dinghy Holly helped us pilot through the shallow water going back to the marina.

        • Holly Guiding Crew Back from Courtney

        Gorge Harbour To Campbell River

        August 26 th To 29 th

        Trip Length 17 nm

        We got out of Gorge Marina around 10 am for our short rip to Campbell River Coast Marina.  DestinationCambpell river. A largish town (35k, the biggest we have been to in weeks) and the “salmon capital of the world”.  When leaving Gorge Harbour you have to take a hard turn to starboard to get around the spit extending southward from Marina Island.  The channel around the spit at the end of Marina Island is pretty narrow but well marked.  There is a nice anchorage along the east side of the spit we passed on our way by that was very crowded with anchored boats.  We rounded the light house at the south end of Quadra Island ending up fighting a 2-3 knot current for the last mile in to the Campbell River Coast Marina.  This is a smaller family owned marina run by a father and son, highly recommended.  They even provided a free ride over to Elk Falls where we hiked back to the boat. 

        • Anchorage South East End Marina Island Spit
        • Light House South End Quadra Island

        • Campbell River Coast Marina

        The first day we walked north of our marina to Robert V. Ostler Park and then checked out Fishermans Wharf Marina Pier Farmers market and had some lunch at the baba ganoush foodtruck. Some artists had booths and some veges/bread baked goods. We bought some strawberries. Walked back along pier street and found a thrift shop where we picked up some paniers and a plumbers wrench.


        • Robert V. Ostler Park 

        • Robert V. Ostler Park 
        • Fishermans Wharf 

        Once we checked out the boats at Fishermans Wharf we turned around and went north past Discovery Harbour Marina past an indian grave yard.  The town has put interpretive signs a long the way. There is a cemetery/burial ground on the way out to the spit and many totem poles honored graves as well as grave stones. Some Indian named Henderson carved mosteverything in town (I think he is gone but children carry on).  Hoping to go to Elk Falls provincial parktomorrow with the doggies.



        • Fishermans Wharf Marina
        • Campbell River Indian Grave Yard

        A little further north we passed the Tyee Club which is in front of Tyee pool famous for it’s salmon.  The members fish in skiff’s where you must row to catch a Tayee salmon to join the club.

        • Campbell River Tyee Club

        Past the club is dick Murphy Park which dead ends at Campbell river.

        • Campbell River Dick Murphy Park
        • Terra Approving Dick Murphy Park
        • North End Dick Murphy Park

        The next day the owner of the marina was nice enough to drive us over to Elk Falls Trail Head where we started our hike back to the marina along the banks of the Cambell River on the millennium and canyon view trails.

        • Elk Falls Hike Map

        The trail head is close to the Elk Falls suspension Bridge you walk over the wooden plank generator plant “penstock” pipes and suspension bridge to get to Elk Falls.  The wooden plank water pipes are 20′ or so in diameter and built like wood water tanks with planks bound with metal rings.  They where built 60 years ago and still in use.  Shows you how well this construction works, kind of like wood boats surviving for so many years.

        • Elk Falls Trail Head
        • Generator Plant Wood water Feed Pipes
        • Elk Falls Suspension Bridge
        • Elk Falls
        • Elk Falls

        We then walked down river from the Falls along the river side trail to the 
        John Hart Generation Station.


        • John Hart Generation Station
        • Bridge Crossing Above Station

        You cross the river from the south side to the north at the bridge above the generation plant.  We followed the trail down the north side until we got to the logging road where you cross back over to the south side again on Detweiler Rd and back to the marina.

        • Detweiler Rd and Hwy 28

        Squirrel Cove To Gorge Harbour Marina

        August 23 rd To 26 th

        Trip distance 16 nm

        Since the smoke was still with us we decided to head to Gorge Harbour Marina, on the other side of Cortes Island, to be able to plug in and run AC’s to filter the air.  This is a short two hour hop from Squirrel Cove.  Nice marina with general store and close by hiking at Whale Town Commons.  On the way in the harbour high up on the port side are some red petroglyphs shown below.

        • Squirrel Cove To Gorge Harbour

        • Gorge Harbour Entrance Petroglyphs

        Gorge Harbour turned out to be a great stop where we ended up staying three nights at the marina.  The marina has a long dock out front that can handle large boats, even up too 100′ or so, and room inside for smaller ones.  The grounds are very nicely kept with a well stocked general store with LP gas available.  The grounds also include a nice RV park that seems very popular with folks taking the ferry over to Cortes island.

        • Gorge Harbour Sign

        • Gorge Harbour Marina Restaurant

        • Gorge Harbour Marina
        • Gorge Harbour General Store
        • George Harbour RV Park
        • Gorge Harbour Marina Grounds

        If you walk out the entrance road to the marina and take a left on Whale Town road past the fire House sign you will find Whale Town Commons Trail head on the right.  This is a real nice hike with a few old growth trees still standing.

        • Walking down Road To Whale Town Commons Hike
        • Fire House Sign Before Whale Town Commons Hike
        • Whale Town Commons Trail Head
        • Whale Town Commons Map
        • Whale Town Commons Hike
        • Commons Old Growth Tree

        The commons hike has many examples of nurser tree stumps where new trees use old logged tree stumps as a base to grow on.

        • Commons Nurser Trees
        • Commons Hike

          The next day we walked back to the commons and walked through it to the back of the park and took a left on Jocelyn road.    On Jocelyn road we passed some cool artsy kind of houses until the road petered out and we found a small path to the left out too Carrington Bay road.  Carrington Bay takes you back too Whale Town road where a small art galley is located before you get to Whale Town proper.  Whale Town has a small dock/marina and the smallest post office I have ever seen.  There is also a small pottery there at the house next too the docks where we talked to the owner about Whale Town and bought two coffee cups.

          • Whale Town Art Gallery
          • Whale Town Church
          • Whale Town Dock
          • Whale Town Post Office

          Teakerne Arm To Squirrel Cove Anchorage

          August 22 nd To 23 rd

          Trip Length 7 nm

          Very short trip over to Squirrel Cove Anchorage on Cortes Island where we are hoping that the smoke from BC forest fires may not be as bad.  There are some nice trails in the Von Donop Provincial Park from the Anchorage.

          • Teakerne Arm To Squirrel Cove

          On the way in you pass by the small town Squirrel Cove on your left as you approach the anchorage at the head of the harbour.  Once we entered the anchorage we decided to anchor out in the first main harbour since it was a bit crowded further in.  Note the Trail Start below for the Von Donop Trail, it was a bit hard to find from the water.


          • Squirrel Cove Anchorage

          • Squirrel Cove Anchorage
          • Squirrel Cove Public Dock

            Once we anchored we took the dinghy in to Squirrel Cove public dock. The small town has a restaurant and well stocked general store.  Down stairs is a HW Store/chandlery that had a surprising variety of stuff available.  We sat outside at the restaurant and had fish tacos before heading back to the boat.

            • Squirrel Cove Restaurant 
            • Squirrel Cove Store
            • Patty And Dogs Squirrel Cove 

            The next day it took a bit of searching in the dinghy but we finally found the trail head for the Von Donop Trail which is marked with a white bucket filled with rocks.

            • Von Donop Trail Head

            • Von Donop Trail Start

            The trail has been well marked by previous visitors with various items you find on the trees as you proceed.


            • Von Donop Trail

            • Von Donop Trail

            If you proceed to the head of the trail at the road you will find the small Salmon Facility.  At this point you can walk in to town if you like.


            • Von Donop Trail, sign in to town
            • Squirrel Cove Von Donop Salmom Facility

            On the way we passed by the Van Donop Anchorage which is accessed through the Ha’thayim (Von Donop) Marine Provincial Park on the north side of Cortez Island.  Was much less crowded there with only two boats present that seemed to be there long term.

            • Squirrel Cove Trail Von Donop Anchorage