August 15, 2013 ~ Bootleg Cove to Port Harvey

This morning the water was mirror smooth and calm here in Bootleg Cove.  We were tempted to stay another day and enjoy the location, but we also wanted to get into a closer position for our run down Johnstone Strait and the rapids.  The transit time calculator on our navigation software indicated the best departure time for our route going through Chatham Channel to Port Harvey was 8:30 in the morning, but 9:30 wasn’t all that bad either and more palatable for us.  The transit time can vary quite a bit depending on which way the current is flowing as we pass through various inlets and passages.  Even though our software is now 10 years old, it’s been right on with the tide calculations – I guess as long as the moon stays in its same orbit that will go on indefinitely.  But, Knight Inlet apparently had not consulted with our charts, as the 1.7 knot push we were supposed to be getting didn’t materialize – in fact it seemed to be flowing against us.  We were expecting to arrive at Chatham Channel with the current still flowing at 2 or 3 knots in our favor, but instead it was at about slack by the time we arrived.  But we have no complaints – the weather was very cooperative, with quite a bit of blue sky and sunshine interrupted occasionally by a few clouds.

Based partly on a forecast from a couple of days ago predicting light winds on Johnstone Strait on Friday, as well as an opportunity to check out some place new, we decided to bypass Lagoon Cove and head for Port Harvey today, which is very convenient to the Broken Islands, where we enter Johnstone Strait. We passed along the north side of Minstrel Island instead of our usual route from Lagoon Cove through the Blow Hole.  We still went by the Minstrel Island Marina, which has been closed for many years.  The docks are apparently still in good enough condition to tie to, as there were a couple boats there.

Minstrel Island Marina

All the cruising guides report that bears are often seen along Chatham Channel – even grizzlies – but our record of never seeing a bear along Chatham Channel remains intact.  We did see some seals pop their heads up, and even a couple of dolphins surfaced briefly, but no bears.  We continued on past Burial Cove and into Havannah Channel to Harvey Point.  As we made the turn to enter Port Harvey we could see the Broken Island group and Johnstone Strait, which looked pretty calm at the time.  The marina here is at the head of the bay, about a 2 mile trip up.  There is a lagoon at the head of Port Harvey that connects with the lagoon of Lagoon Cove, and it could probably be navigated at high tide by a canoe or kayak, a distance of about 2 and a half miles.  For the rest of us it’s about 12 and a half miles around via Chatham Channel.

We got here around 2 o’clock, and found that the docks were new, and the store was very well stocked – more variety than either Echo Bay or Sullivan Bay.  As we tied up we were given the wifi access code and a menu for the restaurant, which is on top of the store.  There were 4 or 5 choices for dinner, and we filled out our selections and turned it in ahead of time.  The store, when open, works on the honor system – if no one’s there, just mark down the merchandise and price on the sheet with your boat name.  The restaurant tab works the same way – it’s just added to our moorage bill, to be paid upon departure.  That’s not an uncommon practice up here in the Broughtons – it certainly keeps the number of transactions down to a minimum. We went for a short walk ashore, even though we were warned that the mosquitoes were pretty thick in places.  They were right, and we didn’t go far before encountering them and returning to the comfort of the dock with its sea breeze.

Dining out sounded like a pretty good idea, so we took advantage of the restaurant this evening.  We both had fish and chips, and the pieces of fish were big and tasty.  We took half of it back with us.  Other choices were ribs, hamburger, salmon burger and pizza.  It all looked good from what we saw being delivered to the other patrons.

We had one rain shower this evening that lasted for maybe 10 or 15 minutes – other than that it’s been pretty nice – it’s still staying warm into the evening.

Port Harvey Marina