Hurry up and wait!

We have covered 727.4 nautical miles from Seattle, Washington to Ucluelet, BC. We spent 7 weeks enjoying our circumnavigation of Vancouver Island, though at times it felt a bit rushed to get here by mid-August. Now we are waiting for a good weather window to cover ~750 nautical miles in less than 1 week. We expect to set out in a day or two.

We took a final leg of relaxation to the Broken Islands in the Pacific Rim National Park, southeast of Ucluelet in Barkley Sound, for a few days last week. We went diving and spotted a tri-color nudibranch which are endemic to Barkley Sound, along with lots of other great sea life. It’s really a treat to dive in waters where wildlife is protected. We explored small islands by dinghy and kayak, and took a hike through a beautiful forest on Effingham Island.

Back in Ucluelet we’ve been preparing for our offshore passage. While offshore we’ll be taking turns on watch so that one of us is awake at all times. We’re trying to get as much work done in advance so we can have an easier passage. Projects included: going up the mast to check the rigging; provisioning and meal preparation; laundry; rearranging storage areas to improve access to sails and storm equipment; making additional tethers and jacklines; checking all safety gear; re-greasing the rudder post; and a handful of other tasks. It’s been raining quite a bit in the past few days too, so it definitely feels like it’s time to head south.

We also celebrated Kris’ birthday by visiting the local aquarium. The Ucluelet Aquarium was the first in Canada to be a completely catch-and-release aquarium where all their species stay 8 or 9 months and then are returned to the ocean. Later in the day we enjoyed a nice dinner out and saw a pod of orcas swimming by from the balcony of the restaurant!