9/8/11
Walker Island Group, Queen Charlotte Strait, B.C.
Miles Travelled: 52 miles
Well, today was safe but VERY far from comfortable. When we listened to the weather before leaving the anchorage this morning, the West Sea Otter Buoy (ocean buoy that is automated and broadcasts wind and wave heights) reported wind from the SE of 6 kts and wave height of 1.9 meters. One of the guidebooks for the area suggests going around the Cape when West Sea Otter has a wave height of 1.0 meters or less. We had the plan in place to duck in and anchor north of Cape Caution if conditions called for it, and we could scarcely argue with the wind conditions even though the swell height was higher than we would have liked.
We motored out of Green Island Anchorage in fog that never really lifted all day. Thank goodness for radar, electronic charts on the laptop, and an AIS receiver (big ships are required to transmit their speed and heading on AIS). It’s certainly relying on lots of electronic gadgets, but we didn’t feel totally blind.
Once we left the shelter of Calvert Island, we were in the ocean swell. It was windless and foggy. The swell wasn’t terrible and the water was glassy…but about two minutes after we started feeling the swell, Odin was sick. He got really fussy until he nursed and then fell asleep. Lars was obviously uncomfortable, and since he isn’t nursing anymore (he went on a nursing strike in Ketchikan), he eventually fell asleep when I rubbed his back. Since they were both asleep and we just wanted to get it over with and not subject the boys to it again tomorrow, we just decided to go for it and get around the Cape.
Yuck. The boys slept for about an hour and the rest of the day I spent in vomit covered clothes. It didn’t feel so hot myself and the day just seemed interminable. Tor luckily didn’t get sick and felt pretty good (thanks to meclizine and lots of recent time on the boat). He was a champ and just motored and motored us around the Cape.
Once we got into Queen Charlotte Strait, the swell died down a bit and the boys perked up. I finally gave them lunch around 2pm and they gobbled up the food (the snack I’d tried earlier ended up all over me even though Odin really did like eating the crackers and cheese…in our bed no less!). They really needed to go down for a nap, but I couldn’t find the energy to make that happen. I was feeling really unwell myself. I got a splitting headache. It was either my way of getting sea sick, or I was responding to not eating much. I laid down in the berth and the boys played around me.
We got to our anchorage after 52 LONG miles in the Walker Group. It’s a gorgeous spot that in the fog feels very mysterious. Thank goodness for pasta and jarred sauce. A hot dinner was had. Now…bed!
Two seasick boys :(
Beautiful Walker Island Group Anchorage
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