~DAY four~

Although the winds were blowing 25 knots when we went to bed, the night was quiet and in the morning the wind had dropped to almost nothing.
We motored out past Port Neville, then Milly Island and turned west on Johnstone Strait towards Port McNeill.  We had intended to sail, but the Strait was dead calm and we motored directly to Port McNeill.

We've finally officially arrived at The Broughtons, even though we are actually passing them to the south and spending the rest of the day and night at Port McNeill, just south of our target area. The plan is to fuel up, provision, and rest up tonight; then travel the 30+ sea miles to Turnbull Cove on the mainland north of the Broughton Islands tomorrow.  From then on, we'll just do short daily trips from one bay or marina to the next and enjoy the area. 

We all arrived at Port McNeill mid-afternoon and tied up at North Island Marina and went ashore.  At 1700, we had a skippers meeting and the plans changed.  The forecast is for winds up to 35 knots tomorrow, so that is a good reason to stay put and enjoy Port McNeill. 

The decision now is to stay in Port McNeill a second day to wait out the gale, then cross to Claydon Bay which is  a bit closer and better sheltered from the expected winds than Turbull Cove.

 

Follow us in real time on the Spotwalla or Spot website.

the famed & favourite authors ANNE & LAURENCE YEADON-JONES will be personally guiding our COOPER BOATING flotilla to the most beautiful area of our coast – DESOLATION SOUND

 

ANNE & LAURENCE are experienced sailors who, over the last 25 years, have logged thousands of cruising hours charting, recording & photographing their travels along the rugged and beautiful coastline & islands of the PACIFIC NORTHWEST

 

check out the entire DREAMSPEAKER CRUISING GUIDE series HERE

we will be boarding our boats in POWELL RIVER in the late afternoon of SEPTEMBER 11^th, departing the next morning (12^th) & then returning to the base and homeward bound the morning of SEPTEMBER 19^th

 

SEVEN days of exploring the delights of DESOLATION SOUND with its spectacular mountain views well-maintained marinas & tranquil, protected anchorages

 

at this time of the year the water will be the warmest for swimming - the tidal patterns allow us to have the warmest water north of MEXICO! 

 

the whales should be heading south & we hope to cross paths 

 

NOW you can experience all of this from the authors’ perspective & under their personal guidance ~ FLOTILLA ITINERARY HERE  

 

EXCLUSIVE - ANNE & LAURENCE will be skippering and managing a beautiful sailing vessel from the COOPER BOATING charter fleet

 

there are three, two-person cabins available for you to join them on this adventure

 

NEW SAILORS may get a thorough introduction to being crew;  EXPERIENCED SAILORS may join in & practice navigation, helming, sail trim …. participate as much as you wish & HAVE FUN! 

 

price per person:  $1,999  plus GST

 

includes food onboard, bedding, fuel, moorage & the boat coach skippers’ guidance for this special excursion ~ dining out is not included and galley duties are shared across the crew

contact our shore crew today to join this crew!