July 21st

July 21st

Next morning we are off to Klemtu.  “Free Spirit” has up anchored and is heading north.  The natives are very receptive and I take on gas for “Raven”, while Penny checks out the Band Store.  It is well stocked and the prices are reasonable.  Chevy has a good run with one of the local dogs. 

Klemtu Fuel Dock & Fishboat with Teeth

 

Back to OA and we are heading south, destination the channel between Swindle and Price Island called Higgins Pass.  There is a slight roll from the big Pacific, but didn’t really notice until we started heading west.  All the beaches are covered in logs and we see lots of bits of stuff high on the beach line.  Stuff like large plastic barrels, ropes and even a large metal barge perhaps from Japan now sunken on beach over here.

Lots of Hidden Reefs

On the charts quite a few of the inlets in Higgins are not shown, but we find our way through the shallow areas to a very nice anchorage.  It’s off in “Ravens” to check out the passage (in some places less than 10ft deep) all the way out to Laredo Channel and the big rolling seas with surf breaking on reefs and the shore line.

 

Could be a Dolphin Skeleton

Along the way we stop to visit two yachts that have anchored on west side of Higgins and will navigate the shallows to our side at high water. We look for a pee beach for Chevy and find a steep rock shore that the rat dog can leap to.

This area of the coast is very remote. Things do not get shifted about till the next raging winter storm comes through. There is something white on the rock point. Can’t make it out, it looks like chevrons on the breast of a Napoleonic war uniform.  As we come near we recognize it as the bleached backbones of a dolphin. Penny wants to save it for the Grand ladies to see.

Now the two yachts have made their way through the shallows to our anchorage. We are delighted as we have met both these yachts before.  They are the “Lily D” with Jim & Allison just coming south from Kitimat and Jane & Anne on “Aguila” on their way home from Alaska. 

When they are anchored we putt over and catch up on all their news and exchange salty tales. The ladies come over from the “Aguila” and show us there beach find, it is a small green glass Japanese fishing ball A PRIZE FOR SURE! I hold up the back spine of the dolphin for their viewing. I THINK I WOULD RATHER HAVE THEIR GLASS BALL. The girls talk about the wolf that came down to the beach to meet their dog on their trip down from ALASKA. Now that we’ve all settle in, it’s a nice quiet night.