Ocean Falls to Shearwater

Guest Blogger Brian Shellum Continues:


27 July - Ocean Falls
Another day to fish for Pink Salmon! After a leisurely morning of coffee, a breakfast of yogurt with fruit and granola, and posting photos on Facebook, Rolynn and I set out for the Martin River in the dinghy Steve and I had repaired the previous day. The dinghy ride was far faster and easier than the mile hike the day prior. We beached the dinghy at low tide near the mouth of the Martin River, and to our delight found that the Pinks were still there. I guess the salmon were waiting for the right tidal conditions to swim up the Martin River to spawn. I gave Rolynn a quick primer on the use to a spin-casting rod, and she eventually got the hang of it. She hooked a few but did not catch any.  I used my fly rod and caught five nice ones, and lost several others. Each provided a great fight lasting five to ten minutes, some jumping and others trying to run for the open ocean. I kept the final one for the following day's dinner. All were in the five to seven pound range, with beautiful spotted coloring on their sides and tails. Some of the males had humps on their backs and hooked lower jaws that they get when they are ready to spawn. They are sometimes referred to as "Humpies." After a round of celebratory gin and tonics, we walked to the Dark Shadows Lodge for a dinner of fish and chips. We had dinner together with Jack and Maureen Larsen, from Gig Harbor, Washington, who were at the marina with their boat "Loon a Sea".  We chatted a bit with the owners and operators of the lodge, since we were the only guests besides some tree cutters who were staying there.   

28 July - Ocean Falls to Troup Narrows
After breakfast Rolynn and I walked up to take one more look at the town before leaving Ocean Falls. We stopped at the lodge and chatted with the owners again and also talked to the owner of the marina, Burt, who we had met the day before. He took us on a tour of his large building that houses a marine ways, which could accommodate a fairly large ship pulled out of the water on a rail equipped ramp. Burt let us take a tour of Nearly Normal Norman's museum, housed in the building. Norman was busy working at the marina so he was not present. On the way out of Cousins Inlet after leaving Ocean Falls, we tried catching halibut in Wallace Cove with no luck. After catching salmon on a fly rod I'm not sure I can get excited about bottom fishing, but then I have not caught a halibut yet. We arrived at a wonderful spot in Troup Narrows and Rolynn won the anchorage bet as there were two boats there before us.  Prior to settling in for gin and tonics Rolynn and I put the crab pot out. Steve grilled a pork loin and the Pink Salmon I caught yesterday. Rolynn supplemented the meal with grilled vegetables and noodles. While cooking dinner, we witnessed something extraordinary. A Bald Eagle swooped in to grab a fish, but it must have been too heavy and he got stranded in the water. I watched through the binoculars as he laboriously swam to shore in a sort of bird breast stroke. It was a near thing but he reached shore before running out of strength in the cold water. After drying his feathers a bit on shore he flew to a branch about ten feet off the ground. Once dry enough to fly, the eagle took to the air and soared around the bay drying his feathers. Quite and unusual sight! After dinner Rolynn and I checked the crab pot and found we had nine Dungeness Crabs; six were keepers. I won the crab bet since I guessed five. Dinner for tomorrow!

29 July - Troup Narrows to Roscoe Inlet
After a leisurely coffee and breakfast, we weighed anchor and set out not the five hour cruise up Roscoe Inlet covering about 35 miles. Underway Steve and I cleaned the crabs caught the previous afternoon, the largest we have seen. Steve employs a unique method of grabbing a set of crab limbs in each hand and twisting, separating the edible portion of the legs and claws from the carapace; very neat and quick when done properly.

Crab Cleaning

I managed to clean my portion without losing a finger to these large beasts. We headed out of Troup Narrows through Return Channel for the long and winding trip up Roscoe, a steep sided inlet that makes a makes at least eight sharp turns and passes through three narrows. The head of Roscoe Inlet is surrounded by 4000 meter weathered granite peaks topped with snow fields that feed waterfalls trickling into the fjord. The freshwater floats on top of the saltwater and lingers at the end of the inlet because of the tides, making it possible to swim in the relatively warmer surface water. There were no other boats at anchor when we reached the end of Roscoe, so Steve won the anchorage bet, his first win of the trip. Steve dropped anchor in 75 feet of water in this difficult anchorage, and we settled in for the afternoon. The air temperature was 80 when we arrived, and the surface water temperature 75, the warmest temperatures seen so far during the cruise. After gin and tonics Rolynn and I cruised around the bay checking out the several creek entrances for depth and sign of fish. It was low tide and impossible to get up any of the creeks and we saw no signs of salmon. No luck fishing in Roscoe but I did have a nice swim! After a wonderful dinner of crab eaten on the aft deck, we settled in for a movie. One small boat joined us in anchorage for the night.

30 July - Roscoe Inlet to Codville Lagoon
We departed Roscoe about 0800 for the five hour trip south down Johnson and Fisher Channels to Codville Lagoon. The weather was sunny and warm for the trip, although Fisher was a bit windy and we sailed through a two foot chop the last hour or so. We had to maneuver through about a dozen commercial fishing boats in Fisher near the entrance to Codville that we gill netting or purse seining for Coho Salmon.

"Humpie" in Fitz Hugh

We also spotted a Humpback Whale swimming in the channel near the fishing boats. The water was calm in Codville Lagoon, an irregular shaped body of water that is well protected with an island in the middle. There were two boats at anchor when we arrived, so Rolynn won the anchorage bet. After anchoring in about forty feet of water, Rolynn and I launched the dinghy to explore the lagoon. We decided to land on the north side of the lagoon where there is a path that leads to Sager Lake. It was a steep and at times difficult climb up through the cedar forest,


bordered by huge trees, lush berry bogs, and beautiful ferns. The lake was picturesque with a long sandy beach stained red from the tannin in the cedar forest.

Brian at Codville Lake

The beach had a number of fresh bear tracks on the sandy shore so we kept our eyes open. I fished with my fly rod and had a number of strikes but only managed to catch one small Cutthroat Trout. We made it back to the dinghy without incident but in the process of getting ready to push out into the water I let the corner of my life preserver touch the water which set off the cartridge filling it with air. Steve found a spare CO2 cartridge in the preserver and we were able to fix it when we got back to Intrepid. After gin and tonics and a fine meal of crab cakes, hamburgers, and pea and cauliflower salad, we settled in for the night.

Brian's Cut Throat Trout

31 July - Codville Lagoon to Kayak Cove
We awoke to thick fog and departed at about 0900 when it began to thin. We picked up the shrimp pot dropped the night before on the way into Codville. After hand reeling in 400 feet of line, I was rewarded with the sight of 40 shrimp. I won the shrimp bet since I guessed 59 and both Rolynn and Steve guessed higher numbers. On the trip south down Fitzhugh Channel we spotted quite a number of Humpback Whales that were breaching, blowing, and wagging their tails. After one sighting, as I was waiting on the foredeck for a photo opportunity, a group of several

The Bears are Here

Humpbacks surfaced on the port side dangerously close to the boat. Steve had slowed the boat to prevent a problem, but they surfaced right next to Intrepid and nearly collided with us. A whale that size, 40 feet and weighing as much as 50 tons, could have sunk the boat. Upon entering the Hakai Recreation Area via Nalau Passage, we left the whales and most of the fog behind. After passing Nalau between Hunter and Stirling Islands, we crossed Kildidt Sound to the Breadner Group of islands. Many of the islands in this area are named after aircraft that participated in the Battle of Britain, such as the Hurricane, Spider, and Spitfire Islands. After cutting through the Brydon and Spider Channels, encountering some very dangerous narrows, we passed around the west side of Hunter Island and Superstition Point to our anchorage at Kayak Cove. The last twenty minutes involved crossing seas open all the way to Asia, but we encountered only very low westerly swells. One boat was already at anchor when we sailed into Kayak, though we had forgotten to make the anchorage bet. The owners of the boat, named the Ibis, gave us a nice-sized Ling Cod they had just caught. Shortly after arriving, and before Rolynn and I could explore the unusual, pristine sandy beach, a coven of kayaks arrived and infested the shoreline. The colorful kayaks and jumbled tents soon spoiled the view of that end of the anchorage. This cove is frequented by kayaks from a nearby eco-tourism lodge and thus the name. Rolynn and I took the dinghy out and trolled the shoreline near the cove, but caught only one small Rock Cod and none of the Coho Salmon that should have been there. After gin and tonics and an appetizer of the shrimp caught earlier, we feasted on lamb chops and roasted potatoes in celebration of Rolynn and Steve's forty-second anniversary. We were also visited by a hummingbird that was attracted by the American flag flying on the aft of the boat!

Kayak Cove to Wizard Cove - 1 August
The fog lifted by morning, and we departed at about 0900 for the three hour cruise up Cultus Sound (Cultus is a Chinook word for worthless), Sans Peur Passage, and Hunter Channel to our next anchorage at Wizard Cove. We were rewarded with the sight of a Sea Otter floating on his back just outside the cove as we departed. Sea Otters were nearly hunted to extinction during the 19th century and are scarce and very wary. We arrived at Wizard cove just before noon and were delighted that the anchorage was empty, since there is  only room for one boat. We anchored in 32 feet of water without incident and Rolynn and I set out to explore the extensive waterway. Every anchorage has a resident

Wizard Cove

seal, a pair of Bald Eagles, and a pair of Kingfishers, and we were not disappointed at Wizard. It is just a matter of waiting, watching, and listening. An eagle usually announces his primacy first, followed by the sharp territorial cry of the kingfisher. The seal is usually last to show himself, a solitary, silent, shiny head bobbing in the water. We entered Wizard Cove at the waning of high tide, so it was fascinating to watch as the water level dropped and exposed more rocks around us until there was only a single narrow escape if we had chosen to do so. But we just settled in for a bit of fishing, reading, and bird-watching. Rolynn baked the Ling Cod fillets with butter, sour cream, mayonnaise, onion, dill, Santa Maria mix, and a little paprika. The results were amazing. Best fish so far, and that is saying a lot!

Wizard Cove to Shearwater - 2 August
We weighed anchor about 0800 for the two hour cruise to Shearwater. We paused outside of Bella Bella and the way so Rolynn could download her e-mail traffic. Steve and I waited until Shearwater. Shearwater was loaded to the gills with boats but the marina had a space reserved for us. We caught up on e-mail while Steve had the marina electrician trouble-shoot the generator. Once that was fixed we trouped to shore to shop in the grocery store and purchase a few gifts. Tonight we will eat at the marina restaurant and celebrate my last day aboard. I will take the water taxi to the airport at 0900 tomorrow morning to catch my 1030 flight back to Vancouver and civilization.