Hello SBYC members, summer is officially over and our cruising year is slowly winding down.

It has been a busy summer with cruises to the Cowichan Bay Boat Festival, Newcastle Island, Port Browning, The Celebration of Light in Vancouver, The Mystery Cruise to Ganges and the Two week cruise to the Discovery Islands which dovetailed with a cruise by 6 SBYC boats to the Broughtons.

The Discovery Island Cruise was co-directed by Doug & Deb Cunnian and Paddy & myself. The cruise was attended by Shadowfax, Ms Betty, Delfin and Shavasan and with a clockwork like precision met up with Kelly’s Pride, Rosa Colletti, and Hagar III as we exited Hole in the Wall on Sept. 3.

The cruise was not without its challenges with the weather being our main concern. Departure day on Aug. 28 was postponed to Aug. 29 due to NW winds gusting to over 25 knots. To  make up for lost time we headed straight to     Pender Harbour and  stretched our next day to Lund. Arrival at Lund was hastened by strong SE winds which kept us in Lund for an extra day. It gave us plenty of time to recover from Ted’s birthday celebration.

Our next stop was Von Donop Inlet. It was a great cruising day around the top end of Cortez Island and into Von Donop Inlet. We all heard the radio call when Ted & Wendy were first to drop anchor in the inlet. Loud and clear, “the eagle has landed” came from Ted. We spent three days and two nights in Von Donop where we also had a pot luck pancake breakfast.

Next port was Octopus Islands by way of the Hole in The Wall. We anchored in Florence Cove for a couple of hours while waiting for slack and transited Hole in the Wall with ease. Exiting Hole in the Wall brought us into Okisollo Channel where the first boat we saw was Kelly’s Pride followed by Rosa Colletti. We were scheduled to meet up that day, but our actual timing was flawless.

Two days and three nights saw us catching and eating all the crab we could wish for. During our stay our anchor lines were tested by constant NW winds gusting to 25 knots.

Our stay there also saw David Kellenberger, AKA “Tele Tubby” rescue a large American boat from the perils of having it’s crab trap line wrapped around the rudder. Tele Tubby did a great job in his “wet” suit and he even demonstrated how much a wet suit can stretch as he pulled it on!!

Surge Narrows was transited with ease (good planning on Doug & Deb’s part”) but exiting Surge Narrows brought us into very heavy seas in Sutil Channel. Making our turn into Drew Harbour tested each of us and our boats. It was comforting to be finally secured at the Taku Marina docks, near Heriot Bay. Three days in Taku saw us with the SBYC traditional “Champagne Breakfast”. We were heavy on the orange juice and the grub! The breakfast was made even more pleasant by the use of the “Stone House” cabin at Taku Resort. We were warm and cozy indoors while it was damp on the outside.

Next stop, Gorge Harbour. Another great place with great facilities. We had our final group dinner here as Ms Betty was already heading south and Hagar III would leave us the next day. The final day was presentation day. Jill won the award for the biggest catch with a dinner plate size flounder. Maralyn won the best story award with a recurring line about “I could kiss your !@#$%^ feet”. I then had to present other awards only because they were merited.  The “Hero” award went to David for “rescuing” the American boat and giving us all a big laugh. Ted & Wendy were awarded the “Greatest Improved Boaters” award and they could also have been awarded something for being the most enthusiastic  boaters. Rick and the guys won the award for being three guys on one boat for two weeks and still departing as friends. Doug and Deb  received a well deserved award for all the help they gave me in  planning the cruise and in presiding over the first few Skippers’ meetings.  Paddy and I were awarded a very nice dinner at Schooner Cove as a thank you from all the skippers and crews. Paddy and I say thank you to each skipper and crew member for a great two weeks on the water.

The first stop on the way home was Comox. A great day on the water and more lessons learned as we crossed the Comox bar. On to Deep Bay with a severe storm warning for the next day. We bypassed Deep Bay and pushed on to French Creek while the winds were light. The storm warning was for late morning next day. We had an early start, and arrived at Schooner Cove by 1000 hours. By 1030 hours the winds were building and we spent most of the day relaxed and cozy in our boats even though we were bouncing around at the docks. Sunday saw dropping winds and we did our last leg to Silva Bay in light winds and drizzle.

We have three cruises left this year. Oct. 16-17 is the Dinner/theatre cruise to Chemainus. The show is Wingfield’s Progress. At present, three boats, Serenity, Alegria and Shavasan are booked in. I do need two more boats to get us a group price at the theatre. Please let me know if you plan to attend.

Our Fall cruise on Nov. 6-8 is to Ladysmith. More information on that cruise when we get closer to the date.

The final cruise will be the Lighted Boat Parade on Dec. 11. Again, more details to come as we get closer to that date.

I hope you have enjoyed the cruises to date and hope to see many of you on our last three cruises.

Safe boating,
Ian Waymark
Fleet Captain
Silva Bay Yacht Club

Our next cruise is the Chemainus Dinner/Theatre Cruise on Oct 16 where we will see "Wingfield's Progress". Check out this website for a review of the production,<http://www.chemainustheatrefestival.ca/season_wing.html>.
This is a Gabriola Power Squadron Cruise to which we have invited the SBYC members.
The good news is I quoted you the incorrect price in my message three weeks ago. It is not $65.17 per person, it is only $61.22. The lower price is the price prior to HST and is our price because I was able to make reservations prior to May 1. The $61.22 includes all taxes and a $2 gratuity.
The bad news is I must confirm numbers by Oct. 1.
If you wish to attend please let me know ASAP. I have reservations for 20 members and moorage for 10 boats.
Payment will be made to me and I will then pay the group total with one cheque.
Don't forget, there will be a draw and one of you will receive a free dinner and show.
I look forward to hearing from you,
Sincerely,
Ian Waymark
Cruisemaster
Gabriola Power & Sail Squadron.

Also we will be having our annual Power Squadron Christmas Party at the Golf Club on Saturday December 4th.   More on this as we get closer to the date.  Mark it on your calendar...

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