Friday, 24 May 2013

Bishop Bay, Lowe Inlet, Baker Inlet, Prince Rupert May 21 - May 24th, 2013


May 21 – May24, 2013    Bishop Bay to Lowe Inlet – Lowe Inlet to Baker Inlet –Baker to Prince Rupert

     We left Bishop Bay today in beautiful sunny skies for our travels to Lowe Inlet.  We got satellite phone service so we were able to check in with everyone and also find out how Pete and Linda are doing on Rendevous.  They made it to Ketchikan yesterday so they are hoping to start boat repairs on Friday.  The winds have been picking up so we will probably not cross until Saturday or Sunday.  Pete and Linda decided to make some really long days of it to get to Ketchikan which is great as they hope to join up with us as soon as possible after the repairs.  We have been watching the forecast and are just taking our time.  We had another beautiful sunny day today and even put on shorts and t shirts for the cruise.

     We crossed from Tolmie Channel into Fraser Reach across Wright Sound into Grenville Channel for our trip up to Lowe Inlet.  We stayed in the Nettle Basin which has a beautiful waterfall named Verney Falls at the head of the Inlet.  The Kumowdah River flows into Lowe Lake which is about a ½ mile hike along the river- the lake drains over Verney Falls – Glen and Nat took the ½ mile hike to the Lake and said it was very hard – they came back soaking wet from sweat and looking like they had fallen in the water.  This was definitely a popular site- we ended up with 4 additional boats in the bay with the 5 of our RHYC Armada.  We saw a black bear feeding in the river in the evening and the highlight was when he went back to the trees for a big back scratch – just like Baloo from the jungle book! He was too far away for pictures but great viewing thru the binoculars.

    May 23 – Hazy skies for our trip to Baker and very windy.  Baker is only about a 17 mile trip up Grenville Channel and is supposed to be one of the most protected anchorages in the channel and one of the last fairly secluded ones as we are getting close to Prince Rupert where we will cross to Ketchikan.  The entrance to Baker Inlet is a narrow channel – maybe 20 yards called Watts Narrows – very beautiful  but can definitely be a challenge when the water is running.  We arrived in a strong current flowing in and it pushed us thru the channel into a beautiful bay – it looked like a Swiss alps lake surrounded  by huge 3000 foot peaks but the bay was calm and we had sunny skies to explore in the dinghy.   Josh and Tyler you will be happy to know we caught shrimp in the new pot! 

   May 24 – We woke up today to the weather I have been expecting – pouring with rain and heavy overcast.  We decided to get thru Watts Narrows before we would have to wait until afternoon to get out of Baker Inlet.  Even leaving shortly after low tide it had switched and was running at 4 knots against us but a little extra power and we are on our way to Prince Rupert. This will be our last stop in BC before heading to Ketchikan either tomorrow or Sunday.  The winds will determine which day we go!  I will post pictures in Prince Rupert if the internet is fast enough – otherwise pictures will follow in Ketchikan.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend to everyone!

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