Day 18 overall, Day 11 afloat, Staying put at Port McNeil (Tuesday)

Blog Reader come in this is vessel Domino. Weather at West Sea Otter still reporting high wind and high water. In fact it appears to be so rough that the weather advisory is only getting a reading about every 4-6 hours. Yikes!

We stay put in Port McNeil and do boat projects, catch up with blogging and walk the docks and visit with other boaters. Amazingly the other Wagner trip that left earlier in May is now headed back to Port McNeal and it appears that Mark the owner is crossing Cape Caution today and I am betting that he is having quite an exciting ride! I am pretty sure that there will be time for a nice nap today as well. Won’t kitty be happy about having her people join her in a nice cozy nap. Life at the pace of a cat, we should all be so lucky and loved!

6:00 Cocktail hour on the dock. We are learning that these marinas that are located in these fabulous BC cruising areas are so darn accommodating to all vessels. The dock master are so helpful and most of the time greet you at the slip and offer to help you get situated and comfortable. The docks become a social gathering at happy hour and everyone brings something tasty from their boat to add to the happy hour feast. I always think of the social aspects of boating as being so limited to the people that you can carry on the boat but the docks are a party just waiting to happen. Other folks on the dock want to know where you are from, they want to see your boat and talk about how capable she is. So as a serious boater you should always be willing to discuss her engine, fuel efficiency, how much fuel she carries, accommodations, size of the generator and all the instruments aboard. After all if you can’t talk about them then you probably can’t operate them and you wouldn’t really be safe to be around would you. Some marinas are little more than a rickety pier and a credit card machine and others have hardware and marine supply stores, grocery stores, restaurants, repair shops, laundry as well as other services. You plan your dock time based on the services offered. All of these marinas have their own charm. Many of the dock masters have pets that come out to greet you and welcome you to your slip. Imagine the life of dog that get a treat and a pat on the head from every boat that lands at his dock. The dock masters are a very interesting sorts who have to withstand the lonely winter months but still be social hosts in the busy summer.

Mark’s boat arrived in his Tolly Craft arrived at about 6:30 and boy did he look tired. I imagine the ride around Cape Caution in the current conditions made for a very long day.

Well early to bed as we planning to take on Cape Caution tomorrow as the weather prediction are improving. The winds are estimated to still be blowing but not as strong and tomorrow seems to be the only real window for the week so if we don’t go tomorrow we may have to wait 4 more days. I am little worried and hope that we are ready for this challenge. We think we are but man is kitty going to hate us tomorrow if the ride is rough!

Domino…….hoping we sleep tonight and nervously planning for a bumpy day tomorrow…Over and standing by on VHF channel 68.

  • Left Dock/Weighed anchor: Stayed at dock
  • Cruise Log: 0 Nautical Miles
  • Weather Conditions: Windy, intermittent clouds and slight chance of rain
  • Navigational Obsticals: Not tripping over any of the other dock lines or electrical cords from all the boats at the dock. (Most boaters are taught early on, sometimes by other boaters, to be neat about your ropes and lines on the dock. No one wants to be responsible for someone tripping and falling into the water or hurting themselves on the dock.
  • Wildlife Sighting: Busy boaters!
  • Arrived Dock/Dropped anchor: All Day
  • Slip for the night: $60 slip with power
  • Time today Helm for TEA: 0 hrs
  • Time today Helm for ACA: 4.5 hrs
  • Lessons learned: Never let your ego get the best of you. Even experienced boaters look for weather windows but do be certain that you have discussed the tolerance level of each crew member so that crew is not unhappy taking on challenges that they are not prepared to face. Sitting at the marina and waiting out bad weather is a sensible thing to do and besides the dock parties are mighty fine!
  • Fun Meals underway:

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