Off the Beaten Path



Europa Hot Springs



Europa Bay Hot Springs



We continued up Ursula Channel and took a side trip into Gardner Canal with three and a half hours of cruising to Europa Bay and tied up to a buoy.  Since we had not seen another boat all day, it was not surprising that this buoy was available.  Europa Bay has a remote feeling with a lovely setting -- hot springs on one end of the bay and a Dept. of Fisheries cabin on the other end of the bay.  The natural hot springs are covered by a structure with a second story, housing a picnic table and hooks for clothes.  We went ashore and enjoyed the cozy hot springs and then paddled to the other end of the bay to see the cabin.  It’s such a peaceful place, only the sounds of a babbling brook, the rustle of trees, and the call of birds.  “All is right with the world.”




 







View from Hot Springs





View from Cabin



Temperature Rising!





Soaking up the Sun



Temperature Rising!



Spent a sunny second day in Bishop Bay with temperatures ranging from 75 to 80 degrees, summer has arrived in northern British Columbia.  We got out the lounge chairs and enjoyed sitting on the boat deck with drinks and snacks soaking up the sun.  Spent some time reading the newspapers that John had brought us earlier, fulfilling the need to connect with the “outside world.”  Also had fun learning how to use the sextant, a gift from John – measuring the angle of the sun above the horizon for latitude position and finding the time of the sun’s highest point to calculate longitude.  Tomorrow we continue our journey north, and our friends from Vancouver, WA head for the Queen Charlotte Islands for a last voyage before putting their boat on the market.  Larry and his wife, whom we met in Ocean Falls, are also on their last voyage together due to a serious health issue; a sober reminder that one should seize the moment and live life to the fullest.






Measuring Angle of the Sun



Mountains near Bishop Bay



Big Distances, Big Wilderness



Graham Reach



Graham Reach



We departed Khutze bay anchorage at 8:20 to continue north along Graham Reach which becomes Fraser Reach at Butedale.  Motored past historic Butedale with its once famous fish packing plant, some of the buildings still remain while others have collapsed.  There is a 500 foot guest dock for boaters to spend the night and visit the area.  Looked like a great place to explore; we made a note to stop here on our return trip.  Places to anchor along this long body of water are few and far between due to the deep depths.  We continued to Bishop Bay in Ursula Channel in hopes that space would be available on the small dock near the hot springs or find a place to shore-tie.  We discovered two park buoys and tied up to one of them.  Unbelievably, our sailboat friends from Vancouver, WA were moored to the other buoy.  “If we keep seeing this same couple, no one is going to believe us when we tell them the distances are huge and the territory is enormous!” I told Leonard.  Indeed, it is hard to fathom this vast mountain wilderness and its complex waterways.  We saw many more beautiful mountains, endless valleys, and lovely waterfalls along the way.  Like the castles and cathedrals of Europe, the mountains and waterfalls all start looking the same but still impressive!  We arrived at 13:00 in Bishop Bay and visited the hot springs via dinghy.  A nice boardwalk follows the shore to the hot springs; Leonard took a quick dip while Java and I explored the remaining boardwalk that led to several tent sites.



Bishop Bay Hot Springs



Boardwalk to Hot Springs



Look Behind You



Pilings and Smokestack in Swanson Bay



Our Friendly Ferry



Whale Sighting

Departed Kynoch Inlet at 10:40 and cruised through Sheep Passage transiting Hiekish Narrows into Graham Reach.  We motored into Swanson Bay to take a peek at the tall red brick smokestack on shore and the old pilings left from a wharf that once occupied this bay.  Swanson Bay was the site of an old sawmill and later a pulp mill, a lovely spot and another reminder of a time now past.  While cruising up Graham Reach we were delighted by the sighting of a gray whale, the first on our trip to-date and I managed to get one photo.  We listen to VHF Channel 16 while underway as do all boaters for emergency purposes and boat alert information.  Continuing north, we heard a friendly voice over the radio channel say, “look behind you.”  I said to Leonard, “I bet he’s talking to us.”  Sure enough, a B.C. Ferry was off our port stern.  Yes, we knew he was behind us but he had caught up sooner than anticipated.  Plenty of room for all, we exchanged friendly arm waves and a courtesy thank you came over the radio for giving him a wider berth.  Strong winds were reported for the evening so we tucked into Khutze Inlet at 17:40 to anchor in the bay for the night.  This beautiful bay had a snow field just above the tree line with a perfect slope for skiing; too bad we didn’t have our snow skis along, we fancied ourselves undertaking a “Warren Miller” ski run expedition.



Luxurious B.C. Ferry



Khutze Inlet Anchorage



Fiordland



Falls Mussel Inlet



Kynoch Inlet



Falls Kynoch Inlet



Departed Klemtu late morning and headed for the “Fjordland Recreation Area.”  We cruised north along Finlayson Channel then east through Sheep Passage into Mussel Inlet and Kynoch Inlet, both included in the Fiordland region.  Like the name implies, this area is a feast of beauty with snow peaked mountains, green valleys, granite cliffs, and waterfalls that are too numerous to count.  Words and pictures fall short of capturing the full spectacle.  Many of the waterfalls drop into the sea where you can bring the boat right up next to them which we did on two occasions.  We reached the head of Kynoch Inlet in the early evening and anchored for the night.  Before dinner we took the dinghy into Culpepper Lagoon and explored a creek with grassy meadows and purple “Indian Paintbrush” in full bloom along its banks.  No need to travel across an ocean to Norway, British Columbia offers a grand Fiordland of its own!  The morning brought blue sky and warm weather for our trip back out the Fiordland region to once again continue our journey northward.  Before leaving, we cooked up a batch of jumbo prawns gathered from the trap we set out the night before.



Kynoch Inlet



Kynoch Inlet



Mussel Inlet



Ancorage Kynoch Inlet

Klemtu



The "Big House"



Remaining Portion of Boardwalk



We departed Emily Bay in the morning and cruised through Seaforth Channel and Milbanke Sound, then entered Finlayson Channel after 5-6 hours of motoring and anchored near Klemtu in Clothes Bay.  The next morning we docked at the Native Village of Klemtu and enjoyed a walk around the village.  We visited the beautiful “Big House” (Longhouse) and the Village School.  Children were arriving for classes and expressed pride for their school and asked where I was from.  We also stopped by the Band Grocery Store located next to the busy fish processing plant.  The plant occupies the site of a cannery begun in 1927 which eventually closed in 1966.  The current processing plant was built by the Band Council in 1987 and provides local employment, serving Vancouver and U.S. fish markets.  As we strolled along a portion of the original boardwalk, I imagined what it must have been like in an earlier time.  The boardwalk was known as the world’s longest boardwalk and once encircled the entire bay; sadly, only a portion of the boardwalk remains today.  We had lunch back at the boat and soon it was time for John to catch his Pacific Coastal floatplane from Klemtu back to Bella Bella, then onward for home in eastern Washington.  We walked to the floatplane dock and bid him farewell; a loneliness swept over us as his plane lifted above the water and then out of sight.



Native School



Ice Cream at the Band Store



Goodbye to John



Walls of Granite



Roscoe Inlet



The morning brought an overcast sky for our cruise up Roscoe Inlet.  Clouds and mist blanketed the tops of sheer granite cliffs, casting an eerie spell throughout our journey.  As we cruised further into the Inlet, granite walls rose straight out of the sea and towered overhead like cathedrals.  Numerous waterfalls cascade down smooth black granite faces spilling through the forest below – impressive to behold!  After returning from Roscoe Inlet, we motored to Emily Bay in Briggs Inlet for overnight anchorage.  Took the kayaks ashore and hiked a primitive trail to a mountain lake.  The trail began behind a cabin and followed a creek bed to the lake.  Due to the abundant, friendly insects, we didn’t linger long, another of nature’s finest creations?



Falls in Roscoe Inlet



Hike at Emily Bay