Comox and Other

We left Schooner Cove on Sunday for a slog in rough seas and 10kts of winds on our stern. The wind helped keep the jib full except it was right on the stern so we flopped around now and then. The seas were the biggest problem with rolling swell and breakers as big as 6 ft. We slopped and rolled and rocked all the way to Deep Bay which is just inside Baynes Sound. That was a relief as it was behind an island and calmed immediately. We thought we were going to Deep Bay, but we got an answer to a call that told us there was no room at the Harbor Authority and no room at the Yacht Club, so we opted to go on to Comox. We gratefully cruised in around 4:30 and got tied up next to lots of big fishing boats. Our group is all together, and we got to go out to dinner. We are doing laundry and buying supplies. We don't need much, but we will be going to Desolation Sound in the next few days, we hope, weather permitting. It's not looking good because of the weather. We're going to see what the weather report is for tomorrow before we cross the Strait of Georgia. Today might be the day actually.

The cruising so far has been OK. Things are wet, and we have found a few things about the boat that make it interesting. The bilge is all along flat under the floor boards, so whenever we lean over or bounce, we have water all over the floor. When we were bouncing about yesterday, we had water everywhere, and everything was falling on the floor and getting wet. That was a disappointment. We need to work on that. We also fought with the depth sounder that went off every 30 seconds. We tried everything to get it to stop. When Jim was on the Round Whidbey Race, they had the problem, too. I am determined before we leave here we will have that stupid thing fixed. If anything else, we will work on that while we are here. We have also discovered the lack of our big cover on the cockpit makes it less comfortable. We know we were spoiled last year. We miss the dry cover and warmth. Every day so far we have sailed in foulies, and I have been cold. Jim could use a better pair of boots, too. Another problem Jim solved early on was a missing handle for the windlass. He forgot and left it home, so while we were at Prevost, he grabbed a piece of wood, a stick, and cut/carved a handle. It was drift wood and works just great!

We haven't made the decision about whether we leave today or not. We'll post about that tomorrow if we get a chance. We'll let you know. Peace, Jim and Virginia