Secret Cove to Nanaimo

July 4 – Secret Cove to Nanaimo

Secret Cove to Nanaimo, 21.95 nautical miles

Total this trip to date: 545.31 NM

It was calm when we got up and the Georgia Strait forecast looked good, so we hoisted the anchor and left Secret Cove at 0600. It was sunny this morning, which certainly helped. The sea conditions were fairly calm for the first half of our trip across the strait, but then a 15-knot NW wind filled in. Soon the seas built to a combination of 1-2 foot chop and westerly swell, and some of the waves were breaking. So we rolled for a while and then things settled in, and we arrived at the Port of Nanaimo docks at 0930.

There are a few more boats here than when we were here a month ago, as the cruising season is well underway. The warmer weather certainly helps. We heard a sad story from a couple on a sailboat that just came in from Schooner Cove. Yesterday, a man fell off the swim step of his 42-foot powerboat and died, with his wife at the helm of the boat. Apparently, the man went out to adjust the towing line of his dinghy, and when he didn’t return to the cabin, his wife put out a mayday. The mayday resulted in help coming to bring the boat back to Schooner Cove, where it is normally moored, and much police activity on the docks to handle the situation. Certainly a sobering story, making us mindful of how dangerous the sea can be and how important it is to boat carefully.

We walked a bit this afternoon and did some shopping. Got some things at the excellent Harbour Chandlery, and hit the Thrifty Foods to resupply our food lockers. We certainly enjoyed the sunny and warm day! We ended the day with dinner at Penny’s Palapa, a long-standing floating Mexican restaurant here at the Port of Nanaimo.

Georgia Strait was quite calm when we started across
(Nanaimo ahead in the distance)

Shops adjacent to Port of Nanaimo
(including a great place for ice cream cones)

Phoenix tied at the end of H dock at Port of Nanaimo

BC ferry from Gabriola Island entering Nanaimo