August 15, 2010 – Leg 6, Day 14 – Squirrel Cove to Secret Cove

We awoke to an already warm morning and were soon underway across Desolation Sound, which did not resemble Captain Vancouver’s description of it one bit. If he had seen it on a day like today, it would definitely have had a different name! The smoke haze had dissipated somewhat, but unfortunately obscured our views of the mountains on Vancouver Island. We passed out of Desolation Sound and cruised along the “Sunshine Coast” down Malaspina Strait, with Texada Island to our west. We passed by the town of Lund, which is where the road up the mainland coast ends. In addition, there were lots of houses along the shore and as we cruised into more populated areas, we noticed that we were seeing less wildlife. We did enjoy the antics of quite a few harbor seals, on and off floating logs, however!

The warm weather has certainly brought out the boaters; as we passed by Buccaneer Bay on Thornby Island, we noticed it was packed with boats. After our wilderness cruising up north, the anchorages now seem very crowded. Our destination was Secret Cove, a lovely but popular spot (it is easy driving distance from Vancouver), and even though we arrived there fairly early, finding room for our boats was a challenge. We ended up rafting 3 boats together and stern-tying Navigator, while Inside Passage found a good spot off on their own. There was plenty of time for dinghy trips around the little harbor, kayak explorations, and even some swimming as the weather remained hot. Mystic Eagle hosted dinner for the three rafted boats, and a lovely evening was enjoyed by all as we watched the lights come on in the houses around us.