Sunday 17 June 2001
A lovely sail from Tim's Cove into McGregor Bay
where we visited with the Cantwell family.
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A cloudy but pleasantly warm Sunday morning. Dick H. returns from his morning swim/wash in water that is surprisingly warm.
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The beautiful rocks are freshly scrubbed by some overnight rain which appears to be moving off to the east. Dick & Dick slept ashore in their tent where our previous evening's campfire did not keep away a medium concentration of mosquitoes and drove us into our tents by about 2300.
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Ed had a bit of trouble sleeping in the boat and the last straw was sitting on his prized stem ware as he extricated himself from a restless night's sleep on Sunday morning. Ed managed to avoid the boat floor for the rest of the nights of the cruise.
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Although he got some bug bites in the tent overnight, Dick T. looks happy with life as he waits for...
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... Dick H. to add the boiling water to his oatmeal.
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Aaah! That's better! Ed looks much happier now that he has sampled Uncle Al's main contribution to the cruise, coffee from his Bodum which Dick Tyrrell insisted should be called a cafetière. Note the long painters in the background which led to some disagreement when Dick H. insisted on re-tying the Blue Mist painters with some esoteric concoction he thought we should all learn.
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Breakfast al fresco: boats lit by a bit of sun from the east...
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... but the western sky promises something less idyllic!
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But we lucked in - no more rain.
Only half an hour later, as Ed and Al model the beautiful W gear given them by Dick T., the sky in the all-important western segment is blue!
 Starting out around 1000, we decided to stay outside of the Lansdown Channel in hopes that the westerly breeze would give us less of a beat that way. In fact, for the first part of the trip, it was long starboards angling slightly off shore plus a few ports angled almost directly at the shore.
A glorious morning as Ed steers W4105 - to be named The Rocket Ship after her performance this week -
away from Tim's Cove and Killarney Harbour.
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The hills of Badgeley Island and frequent hiking-strength puffs...
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... kept life interesting as we dug out the munchies and settled in to enjoy the cruising life.
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 About an hour later, we tacked around the west end of Partridge Island and entered the south end of Frazer Bay. As the day warmed up, the increasing breeze backed more and more towards its apparently typical lake-breeze direction of SW...
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... and by the time Ed steered us into McGregor Bay early in the afternoon, we were almost running in winds that were gusting over 15 knots.
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After only one minor navigational screw-up by Uncle Al, the Cantwell island appeared dead off our bow.
No sign of life when we got there but Rick had left "our" guest cabin unlocked so we knew we were welcome.
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After docking the Rocket Ship, we went around to the "front" of the island to scan the seas for Blue Mist whose crew was planning to make a GPS-assisted landfall. The water was still nice and warm, so Ed and I topped off a beer with a nice swim.
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June seems early in the season for the cottagers up in this area, so we knew the sail we spotted at last was Blue Mist.
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She made a lovely sight on the sun-sparkled waters...
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... reefed in the winds which were now frequently gusting well over 20 knots. Since Uncle Al is taking this picture from the Cantwell Island, and the Blue Mist bow should be aimed at the camera, the GPS does not seem to be doing a perfect job.
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The final approach
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 a nice, easy gybe...
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... and Dick & Dick glide up to a nicely sheltered but obviously winter-ravaged dock.
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A couple of runs with the wheel barrows and soon our gear is in the guest cottage and we can relax and enjoy the view.
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While Ed is cooking up a delicious dinner, Dick Tyrrell programmes the GPS for further adventures...
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... and Uncle Al captures the island to the south of us in the setting sun.
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As the evening wears on, the winds die down and - glory halleluia! Rick and his family arrive. Uncle Al was so busy socializing that he never did get any photos of this year's Cantwells. My apologies.
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Saturday 16 June: Killarney to "Tim's" cove
Monday 18 June: McGregor Bay - Little Current - Sturgeon Cove
Tuesday 19 June: Sturgeon Cove - 1
Tuesday 19 June: Sturgeon Cove - 2
Wednesday 20 June: Sturgeon Cove to the Benjamin Islands
Wednesday 20 June: in the Benjamin Islands
Thursday 21 June: breakfast in the Benjamins
Thursday 21 June: dinner in Little Current
Friday 22 June: Little Current to Killarney
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