Heading North: Sailing from Vancouver to Desolation Sound

 Nearly everywhere around Vancouver is a playground for boaters, but Desolation Sound is the most storied destination. The moment you mention sailing near Vancouver, most people ask whether you’ve been up to “Deso”. About 120 nautical miles (220 km) north, requiring several days transit time both there and back in a sailboat, you really need a minimum of three weeks to even touch the surface of the area, so this was the first time John and I had had enough time to consider the trip. We spent many days preparing the boat, provisioning, and planning before setting off on our adventure on June 6.

We left the harbour, headed for Plumper’s Cover on Keats Island, a marine park we had visited many times before. Into the second hour of motoring, John was completing his extensive safety briefing for our land lubber friend Kathleen, who we had invited to join us on the trip. He and I were leaning leisurely back onto the lifeline on the port side of the boat while he was answering ‘what if’ questions…and the lifeline snapped. We both flailed our arms, and John grabbed onto the tiller as Kathleen stabilized it, keeping us on the boat. We almost left our new crew member alone on the boat on her first day!

We spent a lovely, but chilly, afternoon on Keats Island exploring the beach and forest. The entire moorage field and campground were abandoned, making it a bit of a surreal experience. Another test for our newest crew member was presented that night when the wind, tide and current converged at truly weird angles on our boat, rocking us forcefully from side to side as well as up and down and somehow, diagonally. We all survived, but felt a little wobbly leaving the next morning for Secret Cove.

As we passed Gibsons on the Sunshine Coast, we entered new territory on our floating home – this was the first time we had been this far north. The wind, current and waves collaborated to push us forward at lightning speed (…well, lightning speed for us – about 8 nautical miles an hour). John was in his glory as we sped past a huge tug and tow. Seriously. I was a little more nervous, as the following waves grew to five feet and higher. It was a bit of a relief to duck into Secret Cove – three hours ahead of schedule! We anchored right in front of the marina, surprised at how, well, populated the area was. Not so secret.

Walking Mojita, we discovered a dirt road bordered in huge bushes of Scotch Broom. Although quite invasive, it is a beautiful plant while in bloom with thousands of yellow flowers resembling snapdragons. Kathleen led us through a yoga practice in the middle of the field – definitely the most beautiful place I have ever done a downward dog! Refreshed, we headed out for a short sail to Pender Harbour.

Our club has an outstation at Pender Harbour, where we can stay and use the facilities for a small yearly fee. As we approached the outstation, John and I looked at each other doubtfully. It didn’t look like much coming in, it was far away from the services in the harbour, and many other sailors had told us they prefered to anchor further into the cove. We were prepared to spend a night and move on early the next day to a nice quiet anchorage.

After a questionable docking experience that had us cursing our small, offset, outboard motor for its inability to reverse efficiently, we realized we had found a hidden paradise! Pender Harbour Resort is by far the nicest marina/campground that I had ever seen. Acres of manicured lawns, flowerbeds, a sports field, firepit with stacks of dry, cut wood (and metal marshmellow sticks!), along with a pool, convinced us to stay another day. The owner, Jeff, and the managers, Tammy and Walter, convinced us to stay one more after that.

Not only was it a beautiful location, but the people were gracious and entertaining. Walter and Tammy have installed their own DJ equipment in the main hall, and they put it to use at every opportunity – Kathleen was thrilled with the endless dance party! Jeff took us on a couple of hikes: one near the resort, and another to the Skookumchuck Narrows. It was a beautiful opportunity to see more of the landscape populated by arbutus, giant cedar, and carpets of ferns. We all agreed we could have spent the rest of the summer around the area. But the life of a sailor means moving on (…or at least that’s what I think Jimmy Buffet would say…)

We had a long sail up to Powell River, the largest town on the Sunshine Coast, and what we believed to be our last place to provision fresh food. We docked outside of town in the rain, and took at taxi into the grocery store and back. On the dock, we met the owners of Warlord, a beautiful custom-made sailboat, who recommended several hidden gems in Desolation Sound.

As we were leaving the dock the next morning in the rain, Kathleen and I were simultaneously trying to clear the condensation off of the depth sounder and put our fingers through the covering. No big deal, we thought, at least now we can see the number! Turns out that the crappy plastic covering was actually keeping the water out of the instrument itself, and it promptly died. Going into anchorages and shallow passages for the first time without a depth sounder did not seem like a great idea, but John assured me that we would just approximate from the charts and GPS, and if all else failed we would make a plumb line. Good times.

After several hours sailing, we passed through the Copeland Islands and vowed to explore them the next time through. The arbutus were magnificant, and we were graced with three bald eagles. We reached Desolation Sound Marine Park and felt as though we had really started on our adventure – after many years sailing around the Southern Gulf Islands we had finally made it to Deso! We ducked into Galley Bay to anchor by ourselves for the night. Stunning.