MV Kozad: Willard 30 Voyager

The Quest Begins; or is that continues!

2012-01-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

It has been almost a year since we said good bye to our pristine little trawler "MV Kozad".

Since then, we have taken time to evaluate what is important in our lives and in how we wish to spend our retirement. We love the boating life and truly miss not being on the water...... therefore the quest continues to find the right boat, within the right budget, to fit our goals.

Our initial goal was to wait two years to find the right boat; really that was the agreement??? So if that was the case, then how come the last 12 months has seen Craig doing a lot of research and evaluating our full time live aboard cruising dreams. Well, really did you really think he could wait two years.....

So, not even 12 months since we handed over MV Kozad to Richard and Mary Anne; "we" once again are searching for the right boat! Not really a big surprise is it.....

The boat we are hoping to find will be a Full Displacement Hull, Long Range Cruising Trawler; one which can be safely operated by a couple while living full time and traveling to distant shores.

We are wanting to find the right boat within our budget and we would like to find "The Best Boat For The Best Price!" Dreaming, well maybe just a little bit, although we hope not and that in the next 12 to 18 months we can find the right boat!!!!

We have though learned that the saying "all boats are a compromise" is to be the case! But regardless, we do have a list of wants and needs, including a few compromises in respect to what we are looking for in our next boat:

Raised Pilot House
Full Displacement Hull (FDH)
Stabilization: Paravanes or Active Fins
Single Engine
Efficient Long Range Cruising Capabilities
Covered Aft Deck
Flybridge
Auxiliary Power or Sail Assist (a want but not a deal breaker)
Safety & Reliability Are Priorities
Size: 40 to 48 Feet OAL
A Well Maintained Vessel: Mechanical, Structural, Systems & Cosmetic!
Within Budget.... darn!

There are basically three boats which we have think would fit our cruising needs but not necessarily our budget!

Diesel Duck 462

Steel FDH Trawler

Price Range: $450 to $550K USD
Too much over budget!

Kadey Krogen 42

Fiberglass FDH Trawler

Price Range: $175 to $375K USD
The older KK42 are within our budget!

Nordhavn 46

Fiberglass FDH Trawler

Price Range: $350K to $650K USD
An older well maintained N46 may be an option,
only if the price is within budget!

The Krogen 42 is the most affordable of these three boats, the Krogen has a loyal following with 203 hulls built between 1977 and 1998. There is a reasonable selection of KK42 on the market within our price range. These are excellent boats but they are getting older!

The Diesel Duck is a very nice LRC built of steel; these boats do not come on the market very often. Although we very much like the features of this boat the price range is of concern.

The Nordhavn 46 is the boat we are drawn to; having first stepped on one in 2003 when we first starting looking at boats! Love at first sight can best describe how we felt and still feel about the the Nordhavn 46!

These are a great boat with 82 hulls being built between 1988 to 2003. There is a flybridge option which we like; also what is nice is the Portuguese Bridge which protects the Pilot House from the seas! As in most cases year depicts the price! Nordhavns maintain a high resale value..

Budget will definitely dictate what we choose for our next boat :)

In the first week of February we are taking a drive to Anacortes, Washington area where we are going to view a Nordhavn 46 and a Krogen 42 so we can get a current feel for what we are wanting. The research continues!

More to come....

Our Final Cruise!

2011-04-05T06:18:00.000-07:00

How Much Does This Hurt!

You may have heard that old saying; "the two happiest days in a boaters life is when he buys his boat and sells his boat!"

Well, we will tell you this is not the case, at least for us!

Selling Kozad was a difficult decision and the final steps in the selling process have been at times painful and emotional. Kozad has been a great little ship for us; safe, seaworthy, comfortable and most importantly provided us with a platform to learn cruising and how to handle a boat!

Our Last Cruise on Kozad:
April 2nd, 2011 was our final cruise on Kozad; moving our boat from Anacortes to her (Anne's) new home in Friday Harbour!

We met the new owners, Richard and Mary Anne, at the Anacortes Ferry Dock. They came over as foot passengers on the Friday Harbour ferry at 1210hrs! The weather was foul in the morning, with winds, rain and the occasional squall which threatened to postpone our departure.

Richard & Mary Anne
Happy New Owners

Amazingly at 1230hrs the winds calmed, skies cleared and sun came out allowing us to depart Anchor Cove Marina at 1240 for the three hour cruise to Friday Harbour.

Craig's last trip on Kozad

At the Helm one last time!
Jan loves boating and especially piloting the ship.

Richard & Mary Anne
Enjoying their first cruise on Anne!

Our good friends Richard and Gwen on Northstar (Willard 40) asked if they could join in on Kozad's last cruise! They graciously offered to escort us to Friday Harbour and would provide us with a return ride home to Anacortes!

Northstar Entering Port of Friday Harbour

Richard and Gwen on Northstar
It was nice sharing this moment and company helped ease the pain!

Our last cruise on Kozad also provided the opportunity to familiarize Richard and Mary Anne with their new boat; and as always Kozad/Anne performed flawlessly!

Calm Seas, Light Winds and Sunshine
A Great Last Day on Kozad!

Great day for a cruise through the San Juan Islands!
Kozad enroute to Friday Harbour

New Home: Port of Friday Harbour

We arrived in Friday Harbour at 1550hrs and berthed Anne on E Dock, next to Richard & Mary Anne's other Willard MV Pearl. Pearl was awaiting shipping to her new owner who lives in Windsor, Ontario and is to be trucked across the USA after being loaded onto a low bed trailer at Skyline Marina, Anacortes, Wa. sometime this month.

Kozad/Anne next to Pearl

Kozad/Anne's new home at the Port of Friday Harbour
Friday Harbour is one of our favorite destinations in the San Juans

Notice how dirty Kozad's bum is!!!!

Once Kozad/Anne and Northstar were both securely docked , the six of us (Richard & Mary Anne, Richard & Gwen, Craig & Jan) met on Anne to celebrate the change of ownership, giving up our great little boat to the new owners!

One very happy couple!
Congratulations Richard & Mary Anne
MV ANNE

Celebration Time.... how about some bubbly?

New owner Richard under great pressure, but with tremendous skill, uncorked two bottles of Champagne for the celebration. We sat on board and enjoyed the moment, then we all went out to dinner at one of Friday Harbour's newer restaurants for a great meal!

Richard with the Special Bottle of Bubbly!

Getting ready for the toast.... uncorked with great skill!

Party Time!

Cheers to "Motor Vessel Anne"

A few small tokens for Richard & Mary Anne!

Our Last Night On Board!

Richard and Mary Anne were very kind and allowed us the use of Anne while we were in Friday Harbour. On Saturday night we slept one last time on board Kozad/Anne; our last evening spent on a boat we love dearly!

The Last Cleaning!

As usual, Craig was up early (0630) on Sunday, having to clean and polish the boat one last time! This man is totally obsessed with keeping our boat immaculate! Craig will miss his ritual of maintaining, cleaning, waxing and polishing our boat!

Craig washing Kozad's Bum!
Have to get all that exhaust off the stern!

Cleaning once again!
Does it ever stop....

It is a wonder he has never fallen in!
Hey, where is your life jacket!!!!

The Trip Home on Northstar!

Well it is finally over! On Sunday at noon, we handed off the last set of keys to Richard and Mary Anne and said good bye before returning to Anacortes on Northstar!

The trip home on Northstar was also an opportunity for us to receive a few pointers on how to operate a Willard 40; Richard (W40) demonstrated the skill in handling such a big boat off and onto the docks! It is amazing how much bigger a W40 is compared to a W30!

Jan and Richard
Preparing for the return trip home!

The two Captains on the flybridge!
Our next boat needs one of these, a flybridge not another Captain!

Returning to Anchor Cove Marina!
Northstar is way bigger than Kozad.
Richard docked Northstar perfectly without a hitch!

Saying Good Bye!

Kozad has served us well over 4 cruising seasons. Our little ship provided us with a stable and safe platform to learn our coastal boating skills!

The Willard 30, and in particular the Voyager plan is a great couples boat; one which safely took us on many adventures and gave us such great memories. Kozad attracted a lot of attention on the dock as well as on the water. This resulted in us meeting a lot of people who were curious and attracted to our boat! Kozad amazed them all!

Salish Sea
Newly named for the Pacific North West Waters
from South Sound to Desolation Sound inclusive

We have cruised the waters of the Salish Sea; north of Campbell River to the far reaches of South Sound in Washington State!

Kozad provided us the opportunity to ply the waters of Puget Sound, the Straits of Juan de Fuca and Georgia while exploring the San Juan and Gulf Islands, the East Coast of Vancouver Island and the West Coast of British Columbia.

We have cruised solitary inlets and bays while chartering our course to Princess Louisa Inlet, have anchored, moored and docked in so many wonderful locations; and Craig especially enjoyed "Urban Cruising" while docking downtown Tacoma and Seattle!

Boating has been a passion of Craig's since he was 14, so many years ago! Boating has become a part of our lives and we have been especially blessed in meeting so many wonderful people while on board Kozad!

Our last image of Kozad as we departed for Anacortes!

No one is home!
Slip B-55 at Anchor Cove Marina

Where did Kozad go?

A New Chapter Begins!

We are pleased to have sold our boat so quickly and to such nice people;
we have no regrets about selling Kozad but maybe a little sadness!
Although, both of us are unsure how we feel about not having a boat,
nor about giving up our time on the water!

Our goal is now to charter various boats in different locals,
so that we may better determine what our next boat will be!

The plan is to wait two years before we find our next boat.

.......but you never know!

Motor Vessel Kozad
2007 to 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On Another Note

Not A Good Day!

On our last morning in Anacortes we saw this unfortunate sight.
The Cap Sante Boat Haven fuel docks have a shallow area to the SE.
We were told not to leave the dock in this direction when we fueled up here!
We wonder if this Skipper was given this advice?

Tug On The Rocks
Nordic Tug 42 on the rocks!
The small boat at the dock is Vessel Assist for the tow,
but he will have to wait for the tide to come in first!

Ouch, that has to hurt!
Not sure if the skipper is feeling worse than his boat!

I was once told there are three types of boaters:Those who have gone a ground,
Those who will go a ground,
and those who lie about not having gone a ground!

Decision Made!

2011-03-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

Step one at least......

The decision to change our boating requirements has been made, we have decided to sell Koazad. We had two brokers look at our boat and give us a price on what a fair market value would be for Kozad.

The plan was, we were to make all the arrangements to place Kozad on the market in the spring of 2011. We know selling a boat can be a long process! This was fine with us as we would use this time to cruise Kozad in the spring and summer.

Fast forward, step two to finished real quick like!!!!

Kozad will have new owners as of 2nd April, 2011. This is when we will move Kozad to Friday Harbour and the "deal finalized"!

Owners: Richard and Mary Anne from Friday Harbor, Washington

Home Port: Port of Friday Harbour, San Juan Island, Washington

New Name: "Anne"

Background: We met Richard and Mary Anne aboard MV Pearl, their Willard 30 Nomad, on September 21st, 2007 at the PNW Willard Rendezvous held at the Point Hudson Marina in Port Townsend, Washington.

MV Pearl
1974 Willard 30 Nomad
Richard & Mary Anne's Boat before Anne/Kozad

Since that time, we have become good friends and see one another every year while boating!

We unknowingly met at the Discovery Marina in Campbell River, where gale force winds had us both stuck on the docks for three days in June, 2009.

Richard and Mary Anne hosted us at their home in 2009 serving us Rich's secret crab cake recipe, and gave us a tour of San Juan Island.

Richard, Mary Anne & Jan

New Owners of Kozad or should we say Anne!

Richard and Mary Anne have always liked the layout of our W30 Voyager Kozad! This layout is totally different than their Nomad. Our Voyager is called a wide body, a design which provides additional living space and significant room for 30 foot boat.

As a matter of fact, enough room so that Rich may have a nice chair to sit and read a book while sipping a glass of Famous Grouse Scotch!

Richard has always admired the level to which Kozad has been refitted and how upgraded, and outfitted the boat. He has made comment. on numerous occasions, as to "I really like your boat" and on one or more occasions may have noted, "if you ever want to sell Kozad, you just let us know"!

And that is precisely what happened!

Richard and Craig were talking after our 2010 cruising and once Richard heard we were considering moving up to a bigger boat, that was it! One thing led to another, an offer made and accepted; and we were left with our heads spinning!

Over the next couple of months we spent a lot of time going over the details, arrangements, time lines, and Kozad's specs (view http://willard30voyager.blogspot.com/p/mv-kozad-specifications.html).

Richard had to now sell his boat "Pearl", a process which he began and was quickly successful in finding a buyer from Windsor, Ontario, Canada! The new owner has to ship Pearl by truck to Ontario and the timing of this sale was planned to coincide with the closing of Kozad's sale.

In January Richard and Mary Anne met us at the marina so they could spend some time looking over Kozad. It was at this time that we made the final arrangements for the survey which we scheduled in February.

Survey Time or Not!!!!

The survey was to take place on February 23rd for the in water and hull surveys. Unfortunately this was scheduled when the severe snow storms hit Anacortes! We were able to have the in water survey completed after some delay; then re-scheduled the hull survey haul-out to take place when we returned from our Florida holiday.

The survey was hampered by 9" of snow in 24 hours!

Haul Out Completed!

It was St. Patrick's Day, 17th March, 2011 when we cruised Kozad over to Cape Sante Boat Yard for the haul-out and survey. It was cold and windy but the sun was shining; it was nice to get back on the water even if it was only for only an hour's cruise.

The survey found no issues nor deficiencies and Kozad was found to be in excellent condition.

Survey Time!
Kozad awaiting haul-out at Cape Sante Boat Yard

Up, up and away!
Kozad being lifted for bottom inspection

Kozad in the slings!

MV Kozad
Hauled & Hung for inspection!

Richard on Kozad
Returning to Anchor Cove Marina from the haul-out

Kozad passed the survey with flying colors;
no items requiring repair, replacing nor concern were found!

Decisions, Decisions.......

2011-03-24T13:44:00.000-07:00

Oh, what to do?

Our 2010 cruising season took us up to Northern Vancouver Island, to South Sound and back!

Kozad has been a wonderful small ship, one which has provided us with a means to gain confidence and experience on the water. The past four boating seasons has seen our cruising distances increase and our time spent on the water go from weeks to months!

Our 2010 cruising season saw us on board Kozad for 75 days. We now find ourselves in a position where we are talking more and more about our evolving boating needs, requirements and wants.

Both of us love being on the water and if we are to continue boating we want to expand our cruising experiences; being on board for 6 months or longer, cruising greater distances, experiencing new and unknown destinations! This desire is one which is hard to explain, but one which is very real!

Kozad is very capable of cruising to far off destinations and many owners live full time aboard their Willard 30; traveling North to Alaska and South to Mexico. The Willard is a very safe and comfortable boat! We though, have outgrown Kozad's size and amenities; and are wanting a larger, more comfortable vessel and faster trawler.

If we wish to continue boating; we must make some decisions as to what our cruising style will be and what type of boat we will need to fulfill those needs.

Maybe one of these would do.

Cherubini Independence Trawler

Beautiful USA built 45' Raised Pilot House Trawler

Great Layout! We were on one of these at the Anacortes Boat Show Loved It!!!!

Or one of these Great Harbour N37 which are still being built in USA.
Jan prefers a 37 foot boat over a 45 footer!

Great Harbour 37 Trawler
We like the flybridge model

Twin Engine, Wide Beam of 15'10"
Lots of living space.

Nice Layout

Huge Engine Room

And of course if you wish to travel to far off ports of call!
A Diesel Duck Will Get You There!

Diesel Duck 44 Steel Trawler

Built in Turkey
Beautiful Trawler

Great Ocean Cruising Layout

Bigger toys for bigger boys!

Maybe Craig should just loose weight, then he will not need to go to a bigger boat!

Our son Jim says I should put a parental block on Craig's computer,
so he cannot look at any more boats!

Winter 2010/2011

2011-03-24T12:11:00.000-07:00

Baby It Is Cold Outside!

Who would have expected such a cold miserable winter! We were very fortunate that Kozad was under cover in Anacortes at the Anchor Cove Marina!

When we left Kozad in October after completing our 2010 cruising season we were confident that having moved our boat under cover was the right thing to do! Winters are hard on all boats and especially on those that are 37 years old! Being under cover would give us some piece of mind.

Our close friends Richard and Gwen, who have their Willard 40 MV Northstar at the same marina, were kind enough to check on Kozad on a regular basis. But, just to make sure all was well we made regular monthly trips to Anacortes to ensure that there were no problems and that all was well.

During these trips we slept on Kozad, with the exception of February when the weather was so cold that Richard & Gwen took pity on us and offered up the warmth and comfort of Northstar.

That trip in February was something; on the 23rd the morning after we arrive, we had a winter storm in Anacortes that would just not stop.

We awoke to find 4 inches of snow!
It kept coming down until we had 9" in 24 hours!

Craig forgot the snow scraper/brush at home.... Oops!

Kozad protected under cover!
What a relief.

It just kept snowing and snowing!
McDonald's Drive Thru.

Northstar comfort; more like a small apartment than a boat!
The Kabola Hydronic diesel furnace provided lots of heat.

Kozad came through the winter months unscathed by the harsh months of heavy rain, wind and snow!

The only cleaning we had to do to the outside of Kozad was sweep off the dust and dirt which was blown in off of the boat shed roof! A far cry from other years when the outside was covered in black dirt and green growth!

Jan receives full credit and marks for convincing me to move Kozad to Anacortes!

Great work Jan!

Fall Cruise 2010: Going Home!

2010-10-04T14:05:00.000-07:00

3rd of October: 2010 Cruising Season Ends

Our time on Kozad has gone extremely fast this 2010 cruising season.

April saw us on Kozad preparing for our spring cruise.

May and June gave us time to cruise the Coastal Waters of British Columbia which included the Gulf Islands, the inside waters of Vancouver Island and the mainland up to Campbell River, and a four day cruise to Chatterbox Falls and Princess Louisa Inlet.

June ended with us moving Kozad to a new covered slip at the Anchor Cove Marina in Anacortes, Washington.

September introduced us to Urban Cruising; where we explored the downtown areas of Tacoma and Seattle by docking along the waterfront within the heart of these cities.

One day in September also introduced us to the does and don'ts of Fog!

This year we spent a total of 75 days on Kozad! The majority of these days were cold and damp! The weather not only restricted our cruising but also changed our plans on an almost daily basis!

Craig & Jan on MV Kozad
Just south of the Port Townsend Channel
One of our favorite photos taken by cruising friends from their Nordhavn 43

Marine forecasts kept us in one port or another, as cruising was limited by gale force winds, small craft and severe wind warnings. The rains were heavy and came often and we did encounter a little bit of fog; although when the sun did shine we easily forgot about the bad days.

Now that we have put Kozad to bed for the winter; our plan is to visit Kozad once a month until we return in the spring for our 2011 cruising season.

Kozad tucked away under cover for the winter!

This will give us an opportunity to ensure Kozad is doing well, visit our new friends in Anacortes and a chance to visit our good friends Richard and Gwen. They will also be checking on our boat every couple of weeks when they visit their Willard 40, Northstar which is also at the Anchor Cove Marina!

Once again it was very difficult to leave our boat! We have enjoyed the life style of living on board and hesitate leaving for our home in Coldstream, B.C. One benefit of keeping Kozad in Anacortes is that we can drive there in 5 hours; so the plan is to visit our boat often over the winter months.

Kozad, bow in, for the winter!

Our plan for next year is to cruise for extended periods, venturing further north and south, and visiting new anchorages and marinas! We are hoping that 2011 brings warmer weather; and will be planning our cruising routes over the coming winter months!

In our planning will be the Broughtons, Desolations Sound, Vancouver and Victoria Inner Harbour, Sunshine Coast and exploring more of Washington's South Sound and San Juan Islands.

We look forward to 2011 and cruising on Kozad. But who knows, maybe even on a bigger boat...... Craig still hopes! Let the whining begin!

Fall Cruise 2010: More Boat Chores!

2010-10-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

A week of cleaning & preparing!

This last week saw the completion of more boat projects: two coats of Cetol on all outside wood work, scrubbing of all lockers, drawers, lazarette, engine room and bilge, more waxing, cleaning the dinghy, changing the oil, as well as packing up to go home. The week flew by and we do not know where the time went.

Frank power washing the roof of the marina sheds! This takes off approx. 2" of moss & growth We had to wash our boat again after he cleaned above us!

Craig cleaning our Walker Bay Genesis RIB
Nice outfit, Sailor!

Craig's Boat Hair

Worse from this side!
Funny how one can get away with wearing the same clothes
for many days and not worrying about hair when boating!

Leslie & Jim leaving on their old wooden Monk Cruiser!

One of the things we do when putting Kozad to bed for the winter is to top up the fuel tanks, to eliminate the chance of condensation and introducing water into the diesel tanks.

We took a couple of hours on Friday to take Kozad out for a short cruise and for filling up at the Shell Docks at Cap Sante Marina. We took on 35 gallons of fuel which was all we used in our September cruising of South Sound.

Anacortes is a real Marine Town!
This ship yard was working on a large oil tender,
as well as redoing a Washington State Ferry!

Cruising out of Cap Sante Marina on a beautiful day
Notice Mount Baker in the back ground.

Mount Baker on a sunny day!

Happy seals on the docks!

The weather was very nice and we finished up the chores in time to do more dock walking, attended the Anacortes Boat Show, went to the Fidalgo Yacht Club and for supper with friends Joan and Charles who have the Pacific Trawler 40 MV Sea Eagle!

Moving Kozad to Anacortes has been a great decision; we love it here and have met so many nice boaters!

Fall Cruise 2010: Bigger Boat?

2010-09-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

Oh What Do We do?

Oh, the dreaded curse of boating..... two footitis! Or in our case, ten footitis!
The thought of a bigger boat has been on our minds for some time now! This is a difficult decision, as moving up would mean giving up Kozad.

We do though have a wish list for what we would like to have in that next boat!

Trawler Style
Raised Pilot House
Single Engine
Covered Large Cockpit
Flybridge
Stand a Lone Shower
Hydronic Heating System
Generator
Increased Living Space
Queen Walk a Round Bed
7 to 8 Knot Cruise

A few of the boats we like:

Krogen 42 for sale in Sidney
Terri & Ki and Steve & Rolynn; both from Anacortes have KK42s

Pacific Trawler 40 for sale in Sidney
Joni and Charlie have a 2000 PT40 without a flybridge

Nordhavn 35 Coastal Pilot for sale in Anacortes
Rick & Jan have a N35 called MV Her's

We have looked at a lot of boats over the past few years; it is very hard to find something in as nice of condition and living space as we have on Kozad. We started looking at 34, 36 & 38 foot boats, but a lot of them did not even have the living space (salon) room that our boat' has. Kozad is very well laid out and for a 30 foot boat has a lot of space!
The only problem is that we would like to cruise for 5 to 6 months and with that amount of time spent on the boat we believe there is a need to go bigger! Either that or Craig might find his way over board.....
Kozad has been the perfect boat for us over the past 4 cruising seasons, and has allowed us both to learn what we want in boating and in a boat! As well Kozad has afforded us the opportunity to gain valuable experience on a boat which is fun to cruise; as well as being easy to dock, maintain and handle!
If a mistake happens while getting on or off the dock, Kozad is easy to correct , fend off and you can even hand walk our boat around the dock! The 30 foot size is also a benefit as we are always found a space at a marina, or can cruise into small bays for anchoring. A big plus is the fuel economy, we only burning 1 gallon of diesel an hour.
The best part of owning Kozad is the uniqueness of her design! Kozad draws many a passer by to inquiry and admire our trawler! Kozad has allowed us to meet many new people at every port! Craig is reminded on a regular basis that this attraction will end if we give up Kozad.

Wait a minute; sounds like we should just be keeping our Kozad!

Jan and Craig on a N35!
One of Jan's Favorite; well next to the N46!
But way too much money as there is an additional 9% duty on this boat!

Of course the major problem about going bigger, is bigger money at each juncture of the boating process: ie. purchase, maintenance, insurance, operating, etc, etc, etc!

We would also be restricted in where we can buy a boat, and for that matter sell our boat; as we must ensure all US and Canada Customs restrictions and regulations are followed. There are guidelines related to selling Canadian Registered Vessels within US Waters and Canadian Tax implications in respect to purchasing a boat which is not under the NAFTA regulations.

As you can see, before we make any decisions, there will be a lot of home work, research and consultation required!

But the big benefit of going bigger is having a bigger boat! And you know how boys like their toys big!

So, for now window shopping is a nice option and one which does not cost anything!

Time will tell..... stay tuned for Craig's winter whining!

Fall Cruise 2010: Our Last Days In Anacortes

2010-09-26T19:09:00.000-07:00

26th September to 28th September:

After a sunny day on Saturday (25th) the rains arrived once more on Sunday and continued until Tuesday (28th). The clouds finally cleared and the sun came out; one draw back of having covered moorage is that we are facing East! So we have shade most of the day and do not the benefit of direct sunshine.

We did a Costco run!
Jan was hungry and ordered up an ice cream bar!
She was surprised with a giant hand dipped chocolate and almond bar.
This one is already half gone.

We have spent this week cleaning Kozad and getting organized; emptying/organizing the lazarette and washing out the storage areas, inventorying the inside of the boat and taking off a lot of items that we have not used for a couple of years.

Jan did the laundry and is happy with the marina laundry machines which are only a dollar per load. Jan has the responsibility of packing, loading and finalizing our provisions and gear! Not an easy task.

Jan organizing the car so our boat stuff will fit!
She fits those jeans nicely!!!!

When we went to Sidney on the 22nd Sept. one of our tasks was to drive to "The Harbour Chandler" in Nanaimo to pick up a search light bulb! Craig had not been successful in finding one to fit our Vintage Ray Line search light; we were surprised that this Chandlery had two in stock. We took both as Craig still has not been able to find another one anywhere else!

Kozad's vintage Ray Line Search Light

The allusive search light bulb!

Replacing the search light bulb was one of the easier tasks we completed this week!

Craig was able to get a few extra coats of Cetol stain on the outside wood surfaces of Kozad. The humid and cool weather was frustrating and made applying the masking tape a frustrating job! Even with the sun shining, outside of our dock, it still took 24 hours for the Cetol to dry enough for a second coat!

Craig applying the first coat of Cetol on Kozad's caprails

We were recently contacted by Three Sheets Northwest. This is an on-line boating publication which provides a resource and services boaters in the Pacific Northwest. The site which started nearly two years ago and has about 15,000 readers a month. The site has a daily featured story in addition to shorter news stories; as well excerpts of posts from local boating blogs are provided under a section called: "The Guest Dock" .

We were asked if Kozad's Blog could join the other Bloggers on the Guest Dock! Of course we said yes....

We are very, very pleased with our move to Anchor Cove Marina; Richard is the best Marina Manager around; he is knowledgeable, friendly and helpful! Frank, who also works at the Marina, is also very helpful and has extensive marine experience.

We have met great people here; there is of course are great friends Richard and Gwen on MV Northstar, Jim and Leslie who are two slips from us have an older wood Monk Cruiser; as well as a 42' sailboat in the Panama! Steve and Rolynn have a 42' Krogen and are also on our dock; then there is Charles and Joan who have a 40' Pacific Trawler, MV Sea Eagel, on the outside uncovered dock. They are great people who have invited us for dinner on our first night in Anacortes.

These are just a few of the boaters who are at Anchor Cove Marina; and then of course moving here has also introduced us to Bill and Darith, who have MV Quest a Willard 40PH at the Anacortes Marina.

In our short time of boating and owning MV Kozad, we have met some truly amazing and wonderful people! Boaters are a friendly crew.....

Fall Cruise 2010: Off to Sidney!

2010-09-26T09:43:00.000-07:00

22nd to 26th September: Family Commitments!

We took the ferry from Anacortes to Sidney on the 22nd as we went to celebrate Garry's Birthday and take the opportunity to see our son Jim.

This was a fast trip; originally we were going to take Kozad to Victoria but the bad weather kept us on the dock in Anacortes. The trip was also timely as Jim's best friend, Ian (son of our close friends Glenn & Janice) was demonstrating his Engineering Project at Camosun College in Victoria.

Peter, Luke, Jim & Ian

Ian's big project!

On our way back to Anacortes there was a lot of Harley Davidson motor cycles in the ferry line up. They were heading for the annual Anacotes Oyster Run, which has thousands of bikers attending!

Oyster Run Bikes waiting for the ferry.

Killer Whale Pod spotted off of Spieden Island
This is the Victoria Clipper with passengers on deck for a look!

This tug was near the ferry terminal.
The dinghy was doing a kick start!
Pulling the tug which turns the prop to start the engine?

We arrived back to the marina and the sun was shining; warm hot weather! Richard and Gwen met us at the marina; we had a great dinner on MV Northstar, prepared by Gwen! Gwen is definitely one of the better chef's we know!

We joked that now we were back on Kozad the weather would once again turn to our typical wet and cold boating weather!

Sure enough at 1130pm the rain woke us as it cascaded off the boat shed roofs! Thank God for being under cover! I bet the bikers attending the Oyster Run are disappointed; when we attended the run last year it was a beautiful sunny and warm day!

Our black FX sitting in the gloom at Anchor Cove Marina

Anchor Cove Marina
Fog, Rain & Cold!

Jan coming back from her shower in the rain

This trip we put Kozad in bow first!
It seems to be more private than stern first.

Fall Cruise 2010: Wet We Are!

2010-09-26T08:56:00.000-07:00

19th to 22nd September: Getting Organized

After arriving back at Anchor Cove and settling into our slip; we took the next couple of days to clean Kozad, do laundry and exploring Anacortes!

Old Waterfront Building next to our Marina

Craig scrubbing the decks!

Takes a while to do a 30' boat with a bronze toothbrush!
Only way to get all the small lichen growth off of the nonskid decks.

We met our friends from the Comox Yacht Club at Anacortes
Four couples with five dogs!
One of our non-rainy partial days

Glenn & Don from MV Whiteshell
LaConner, Washington

The weather has continued to be challenging, having our boat under cover has made a significant difference for us. At least while we are on the dock!

Although wet weather, cool temperatures (averaging 10 degrees below normal) and living on the boat has created more challenges. One of them was dealing with very high levels of humidity: the outside RH has been sitting around 90%.

Kozad's New Dehumidifier!

We purchased a humidifier for Kozad; this has made a significant difference and we were able to decrease the RH inside our boat from 88% to 60%. Things are not so damp and cool feeling now!

We will be leaving Kozad for a few days to go to Sidney to celebrate a significant birthday and the timing is right for us to see our son Jim and the boys from his University House!

Fall Cruise 2010: Plans Change

2010-09-19T11:07:00.000-07:00

19th to 19th September: One Long Day!

It was an interesting day, our trip from Seattle to Port Townsend! The morning was nice when we departed early at 0630 to take advantage of the tides & currents, timing our arrival at Port Townsend Canal for slack! The sky cast a nice blue hue on Seattle as we left the Bell Harbour Marina.

Seattle Space Needle
Early morning departure on Kozad

Cruise ships abound!

Craig with boaters hair!
Nice shoes.... again

Yikes.....
Jan's boating hair!

Jan enjoying some rare sunshine!
We had a beautiful cruise to Port Townsend with calm seas.

Our friends Dave, Carol and trusty dog Jasper, on their Nordhavn 43 MV Navigator, called us on the VHF radio. We arranged to meet them on the south end of the Port Townsend Canal.

Port Townsend Cut

MV Navigator
Dave & Carol's Nordhavn 43

Captain Dave
At home on his N43 as well as his 120' Tug Boat

Carol & Jasper

Navigator had left Blind Bay on Shaw Island also at 0630. They travelled to Port Townsend in thick fog; but reported the fog was clearing at Port Townsend. Dave cautioned us about how bad the fog had been and suggested we poke our nose out at Wilson Point to take a peek! The fog does tend to lift between 1 and 3 and we may get lucky.... or so we thought.

We drifted along side one another catching up and then waved good bye as we headed to Port Townsend and they onto Kingston!

Fog clearing as we approach Port Townsend

Fog at Port Townsend

First rule of boating - No Schedules! This is where we made an error in judgment; we thought we had a schedule to keep and were factoring this into our thinking!

As fog usually burns off come noon time, or by 2 or 3pm; and as fog was being forecast-ed for the next day we thought if we waited one more day we would be in the same situation, at the same place and same time, the next day. We made the decision to push on.

Fog Bank, Admiralty Inlet

So, we decided to poke our nose out there and thinking that the fog was lifting (as it had at Port Townsend) we made the decision to continue to Friday Harbour!

We would be there waiting for our friends who were arriving on their boat... schedule kept!

Makes sense right! Wrong.....

Big mistake!!!!

We left Port Wilson and entered a thinning fog, thinking this is not so bad, only a small bank, soon to clear! Instead of getting thinner it just kept getting thicker. We consulted with Seattle Traffic Control on Ch. 5a, who advised we had no conflicting traffic as we were proceeding to cross the shipping lanes.

This was good visibility; at times we could not even see the water around the boat.

Well, at a speed of 3 to 4 kts and 3 hours later, we finally popped out of the fog half way up and 1/4 mile off the outside of Whidbey Island.

Fog Again, off of Whidbey Island

Big Sigh of Relief! This was only temporary though, as 15 minutes later we entered another very thick fog bank which seemed to last forever. Two hours later and still beating against the current, we popped out of the fog just south of Guemes Channel at 6:00pm.

As Guemes Channel leads to Anacortes and to where we have moored Kozad, we decided it would be best if we headed for our home slip at Anchor Bay Marina instead of Friday Harbour which was an extra 3 hours.

We arrived home, some 13 hours & 68 miles later, after departing Seattle. The decision to push past Port Townsend was wrong and luckily we arrived safely in Anacortes! We learned a few lessons on this trip; needless to say one of them was not to take fog lightly!

There is a saying; "God takes care of babies and fools" We are too old to be babies, but obviously, not too old to be fools! Lessons learnt....

Fall Cruise 2010: Seattle

2010-09-19T08:08:00.000-07:00

16th to 19th September: Tacoma to Seattle

Our visit to Tacoma ended with us departing under low cloud, rain and fog!

Seattle was to be our last stop with our friends Richard & Gwen on MV Northstar. We departed Tacoma an hour earlier than Richard and Gwen. As we cruise at 6.5 kts and the 40' Northstar travels at 7.5 to 8.0 kts the staggered start allows us to both arrive in Seattle at the same time.

Fog with limited visibility!
Two Naval ships at the entrance to Tacoma
These were the boats with the red boat crew escape systems on the stern

Kozad leaving Commencement Bay
Fog covered Brown's Point
Tacoma, Washington

MV Northstar a Willard 40 FBS
Towing their Portland Pudgy
Just off of Brace Point, Washington

Puget Sound Fog
Washington State Ferry from Vashon Island to Fountleroy Cove
South of Seattle

Kozad following Northstar into Elliot Bay
Seattle Space Needle and Skyline

Bell Harbour Marina, Downtown Seattle

We moored below Pike Street Market; downtown Seattle at the Bell Harbour Marina. This is a great location and we were within walking distance to the downtown area.

Kozad at Bell Harbour
Downtown Seattle Sky Line

We had the benefit of being with our tour guides Gwen and Richard, they had lived in Seattle for a number of years and know the city well! They gave us a great tour; took us to see a lot of interesting shops and a superb dinner at Anthony's Restaurant as their guests!

Seattle Waterfront

Pulled Pork & French Fry Truck!

Famous Seattle Public Market at Pike Street

Pike Place Market

Jan and Gwen taking in the market!
Fresh vegetables, meats, fish, flowers.... great shopping!

Hanging Peppers!

Stall after stall of flowers are offered at reasonable prices.
$10.00 for a large bouquet!

Great Seafood!

Shrimp, Halibut Cheeks, Caribeaan Lobster & Scallops
All giant sized; the lobster tails were 12" long!

Fish Market Humour

While we at the market the Canadian Navy and a Cruise Ship docked!

Kozad docked next to HMCS Calgary
Canadian Navy Frigate

The rain started again; it absolutely poured for hours on end! We had taken out chicken from the freezer and were hosting Gwen & Richard for supper; so Craig had to BBQ in the rain. So for our last evening in Seattle we had a great last supper together before we parted paths; we were heading for Port Townsend and Friday Harbour while MV Northstar had a short cruise across Puget Sound to Bainbridge Island.

BBQ time on Kozad!
Craig needs a bigger boat or at least a covered cockpit.
Notice the attractive shoes and apron

Kozad in Seattle

We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Seattle; this fall cruise introduced us to Urban Cruising. Exploring large cities from a boat docked at the waterfront is something we had not experienced before; but one which we will look forward to again!

Victoria, Vancouver, Olympia awaits......

Fall Cruise 2010: South Sound

2010-09-14T16:59:00.000-07:00

13th to 16th September, Poulsbo to Tacoma, Washington:

Warning! This blog entry is long with lots of photos! Tacoma offered us so much that we wanted to include here..... sorry!

We spent another enjoyable week cruising with Gwen & Richard (MV Northstar W40); this next leg took us to the City of Tacoma. As relatively novice boaters, having only owned Kozad for four seasons, this was our first time boating into a big city!

We departed Poulbso at 0815 on Monday the 14^th September; working our way 33 miles south to Tacoma! Our day started cool, overcast and dull and changed in the early afternoon providing us with clear skies and a lot of sunshine

We came across a Washington State Ferry escorted by two USCG Enforcement RIBs (Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats). The ferry from Dolphin Point on Vashon Island, was headed to Southworth just south of Blake Island and appeared to be empty except for a White Van and a couple of SUVs! Was this a high risk prisoner transport or an exercise? We were told that there is a jail/penitentiary at McNeil Island.

Washington State Ferry with two USCG RIBs

Machine Gun at the ready?

We encountered heavy pleasure boat traffic traveling north up Colvos Passage! At least 20 power and sail boats; there were more boats in this one passage than we saw our entire time cruising the South Sound last year.

We rounded the south end of Vashon Island, passing Quartermaster Harbour and had our first sight of Tacoma.

Tacoma, Washington

The entrance to Tacoma is very industrial in appearance; we passed two interesting freighter style boats which looked like US Military. The interesting thing was the evacuation systems they had on the stern of the ships.

The red boats on the stern are for crew escape in case of emergency!

Tacoma has but an abundance of marinas which await you along the Thea Foss Waterway. This “inlet” lead us under the 11^th street bridge and takes you into old downtown, revealing the flavors offered by this city!

Victorian Buildings abound in Tacoma

We arrived at the Dock Street Marina (voted 2009 Best Marina) which is situated in a great location; the only negative we experienced was the loud whistles from passing trains; ambiance! The marina has new docks, free showers and easy access to explore Tacoma’s unique downtown core.

Dock Street Marina

Kozad at Tacoma

We had just tied up when a Tacoma Fire Boat/Barge went passed us; not doubt those firemen were just wanting to check out the sights! Jan was wondering which one of them was Firefighter September on the Tacoma FD Calender!

Tacoma Fire Department: Fire Boat Commencement

MV Northstar passing the 11th Street Bridge

Kozad and Northstar at Dock Street Marina

The City of Tacoma dates back to the last half of the 1800’s; and is an interesting collection of Victorian buildings intertwined with structures of modern architectural design.

Flatiron Victorian

Free Trolley Service in the Downtown Area

There is a new Federal Court House within the rebuilt Union Railway Terminal, the Museum of Glass is located above the marina; restored Victorian buildings are seen while walking along the local streets, including a unique Flatiron building on a narrow wedge of property! The amazing Chihuly Bridge of Glass, a free trolley service and the Washington State History Museum are just a few more attractions this city of two hundred thousand offered us!

Funnel at the Museum of Glass

Union Station now the Federal Court House

Front of the Court House

Notice the glass sculptures hanging from the cieling

Glass Bridge from Museum of Glass to Downtown Tacoma

Notice the left side of the bridge, this wall houses Glass Art Work!

These are some of the pieces in that wall!

Heading to the glass bridge area with a covered ceiling of glass sculptures.

This is the ceiling along this bridge!

Photo from Chihuly Bridge of Glass site

Glass sculptures abound!

Tacoma is also the home of Almond Roca Candy which was started in 1923!

During our 2010 spring cruise at Princess Louisa Inlet, we were told of a local Washington State beer called Mac & Jack’s African Amber! Craig finally had the opportunity to taste this brew while in Tacoma!

Craig with his Mac & Jack's African Amber Ale

As always, we walk the docks wherever we are! Craig, as usual, found another boat he would like to have; only problem is it costs more than our Coldstream town home and Kozad both put together!

MV Burnaby; a beautiful 52' Sunfjord Trawler only $619K

MV Night Watch, a Willard 36 which has solid side walls enclosing part of the cockpit!

MV Double Trouble, reported to one of the last Willard 30 PH built!

MV Kozad and big brother MV Northstar

Our friends Warren and Darlene from Red Deer, Alberta were in Seattle visiting their daughter and her family. They dropped down for a visit, lunch and a tour of the Museum of Glass.

Warren & Darlene. Warren was the Best Man at our Wedding!

Craig & Warren were best friends growing up

They have a 42' sailboat, SV Mahi Mahi in Trinidad

Hot Shots demonstration at the Museum of Glass; they are making a large vase!

The inside of the funnel, where all the fumes & furnace gases escape!

Night shot of the funnel.

We had a great view from our boat; especially at night when the bridge was lighted!

Tacoma is a great city to visit by boat! We thoroughly enjoyed being docked in an urban environment; lots to do and see and this is definitely a place we will visit again on Kozad.

Fall Cruise 2010: Puget Sound

2010-09-12T12:25:00.000-07:00

8th to 13th September, Anacortes to Poulsbo, Washington:

We were going to leave the dock at 0600 but it was dark so we left at 0645hrs for our first time out of the new dock!

Now our routine is to raise our mast upon leaving the marina. This was our first time attempting this with the wind blowing and current flowing! Things went well but this is definitely a two person job while tied to an open outside slip.

Kozad's mast in folded position!
We were just 9" too tall to fit under cover,
Jan said "can't we just go in at low tide!"

We had great weather with cloudy skies!

The Light House at Guemes Channel
Notice the boarded up windows, this is an automated LH

The plan was to cruise to Port Ludlow as the half way point on our way to Poulsbo; which is a very nice waterfront Norwegian themed town. The tides, currents and winds were in our favour and we decided to continue to Poulsblo; we averaged 6.6kts and had a 10 hour day travelling 66 miles.

At the entrance to Puget Sound the USCG had stationed a Cutter and enforcement RIB; checking south bound boaters? We were not boarded and continued along our way!

USCG RIB following a Nordhavn Trawler

Clipper Catamaran Ferry from Victoria to Seattle

Kozad on the docks at Poulsbo Very few boats were out cruising

Jack & Nora on MV Elizabeth 1954 Mathews 42' wood cruiser from Seattle

Craig showing off his "Kozad" apron and towels; presents from Garry & Joanne!

We were in Poublso for one night and then our good friends Richard and Gwen on MV Northstar (W40); and then Dave on MV Liberty Bell (W30) and his friend Wayne on SV One Thousand Tango joined us the next day!

MV Northstar arriving at Poulsbo

MV Liberty Call

SV One Thousand Tango

Richard Enjoying Margarita Time
A Willard Rendezvous Tradition!

Gathering on Northstar
Jan, Gwen & Wayne

Richard, Craig & Doug
Showing off our newly purchased oil lamps

Richard & Craig
Portland Pudgy Cruising

An old abandoned sail boat at Poulsbo docks

Portland Pudgy on Kozad's Davits!

Sluys' Bakery
Jan's Favorite Pastry Shop
We only went here every morning while in Poulsbo

Hot Shots Java
Great coffee and you can even bring your Sluys' delights here!

Front Street Gallery
This is an Artists Co-op; we bought a beautiful piece of work here

Jan enjoying life in Poulsbo!
We stayed 5 nights here we liked it so much!

September 2010: Kozad's First Cruise From Anchor Cove Marina

2010-09-10T17:44:00.000-07:00

6th to 8th September: We arrived in Anacortes from Sidney after spending the weekend in Victoria visiting our son Jim, attending a wedding, touring the Victoria Wooden Boat Festival and a few days with Joanne and Jennifer.

The weather was unseasonably cool; overcast with some rain but nothing that is dampening our spirits of getting back on the boat! A benefit of this unsettled weather are the beautiful sunsets and cloud formations!

View from our Marina looking West

We spent the first evening getting to know some new boating friends we met in Campbell River (June 2o1o). Charles and Joan also have their Pacific Trawler 40 "Sea Eagle" at the Anchor Cove Marina; Charles happened to be at the dock and invited us for an impromptu supper.

This is our first trip to Kozad since moving to Anchor Cove Marina!

What a difference covered moorage makes; the boat is dry, clean there was no work to be done! Only thing we had to do was have a diver scrape barnacles off of the rudder and prop!

Frank diving on Kozad!

We spent the next day provisioning (Costco and just about every other grocery store in town); we were up early (0645) the next morning and started our long awaited cruising on Kozad!

Our Cruising Grounds

2010-08-26T18:02:00.001-07:00

The following four maps provide a visual reference and illustrate the areas where we cruise.

Our cruising grounds; the Pacific Northwest!

We cruise MV Kozad along the East Coast of Vancouver Island; Victoria,
Gulf Islands, Nanaimo, Princess Louisa Inlet, and the Strait of Georgia up to
Campbell River. We have also visited the Octupus Islands, Desolation Sound and the Broughton's up to Port Hardy on MV Whiteshell with our good friends Janice & Glenn.

Kozad's home port, Anacortes, Wa.
We cruise the San Juan Islands a lot, but spent a month (September, 2009)
exploring the entire area shown above. We plan on exploring
additional anchorages and marinas in this area again this September!

This map shows some of the locations we frequent, as well as those we wish to visit.
Further information regarding these Ports can be accessed below!

Canadian Ports
1. Brentwood Bay Marina - Saanich Inlet

2. Dinghy Dock Pub & Marina – Protection Island

3. Fulford Harbour Marina – Saltspring Island

4. Ganges Marina – Saltspring Island

5. Genoa Bay Marina – Cowichan Bay

6. Lyall Harbour – Saturna Island 250-539-5725

7. Maple Bay Marina – Maple Bay

8. Montague Harbour Marina – Galiano Island

9. Oak Bay Marina – Oak Bay

10. Otter Bay Marina – North Pender Island P 250-629-3579

11. Poet’s Cove Marina – South Pender Island

12. Port Browning Marina – North Pender Island

13. Port of Victoria – Victoria Harbour

14. Saltspring Marina – Saltspring Island

15. Silva Bay Marina Resort – Gabriola Island

16. Telegraph Harbour – Thetis Island

17. Thetis Island Marina & Pub – Thetis Island

18. Van Isle Marina – Sidney

American Ports

19. Blakely Island Marina & General Store – Blakely Island 360-375-6121

21. Islander Lopez Marina & Resort – Lopez Island

22. Port of Friday Harbor – San Juan Island

23. LaConner Marina – LaConner

24. Roche Harbor – San Juan Island

25. Rosario Resort Marina - Orcas Island

Spring 2010 Cruise: Recap!

2010-06-29T11:37:00.000-07:00

We are once again back home in Coldstream! We were either at or on our boat "Kozad" for the better part of eight weeks.

Some of you have asked that we provide an overview , together with a map to show the areas we have cruised!

Therefore, we will summarize our cruise with the aid of a map so that we may outline the areas we have taken visited this spring!

Map of Cruising Locations

The following is a summary of our cruising dates and locations; the areas are referenced on the map:

25 April: arrive at Kozad; provisioning, cleaning and organizing prior to departure.

Location A: Portside Marina, Brentwood Bay, 25th April to 1st of May
Location B: Ganges Public Marina, Saltspring Island, 1st to 9th May
Location C: Montague Harbour Marine Park, Galiano Island, 9th to 10th May
Location D: Silva Bay Marina, Gabriola Island, 10th to 13th May
Location E: Boho Bay, Lasqueti Island, 13th to 14th May
Location F: Harmony Islands Marine Park, 14th to 15th May
Location F1: Chatterbox Falls, Princess Louisa Inlet, 15th to 18th May
Location G: Pilot House Marina, Pender Harbour, Sechelt, 18th to 21st May
Location H: Newcastle Island Marine Park, Nanaimo, 21st to 22nd May;
Location I: Dungeness Marina, Cowicahan Bay, 22nd to 28th May
Location J: Newcastle Island Marine Park, Nanaimo, 28th to 29th May
Location K: Ford's Cove Marina, Ford's Cove, Hornby Island, 29th to 30th May
Location L: Comox Bay Marina, Comox, 30th May to 5th June
Location M: Discovery Harbour Marina, Campbell River 5th to 10th June
Location N: Comox Bay Marina, Comox, 1oth to 11th June
Location O: Ford's Cove Marina, Ford's Cove, Hornby Island, 11th to 14th June
Location P: Ladysmith Marine Society Marina, Ladysmith, 14th to15th June
Location Q: Chemanius Municipal Dock, Chemainus, 15th to 16th June
Location R: Otter Bay Marina, Hashi Cove North Pender Island, 16th to 17th June
Location S: Friday Harbour Marina, Friday Harbour, San Juan Island, 17th to 20th June
Location T: Anchor Cove Marina, Anacortes, Washington, 20th of June, depart 25th for home.

You will notice that we frequented Marinas more than we anchored! In fact we only anchored out a couple of nights! This was not our initial plan, but rather as a circumstance of weather and commitments to family and friends; this combination changed how we cruised this trip!

The weather, in particular severe wind conditions, restricted our plans immensely! We therefore were limited in where and when we could travel! This kept us on the dock more often than planned and for longer periods of time! The winds also kept us from going to Desolation Sound and Lund this trip! No complaints, just more opportunities to cruise the area again next summer.

After we arrived in Anacortes, we had to return to Victoria to pick up our vehicle, so we took the Washington State Ferry to Sidney, B.C. on the 21st June. We visited with our son Jim and friends Garry & Joanne then returned via ferry to Anacortes on the 23rd June.

The plan was to do some work on Kozad while we were in Anacortes; but Craig's back has been not very good on this trip and was causing him a lot of pain and restricting what he could and could not do! So the decision was made to forgo the work and instead we played tourists for a few days; exploring Anacortes, lunch in LaConner and some relaxation!

We left Anacortes on the 26th June and stopped in Vancouver, arriving home on the 27th of June.

Our current plans are to be home in Coldstream until the 13th of July at which time we fly to Toronto for a visit with friends, Ken and Carol! Then we meet up with our three children and drive to Niagara Falls area where we have two family reunions to attend.

We are then back in Coldstream until the first of September; then we have a wedding to attend on the Sept. long weekend in Victoria.

We then hope to be back in Anacortes so we can get out on Kozad in the fall; exploring the South Sound area including some time in Seattle!

June 2010: Anacortes, the final leg!

2010-06-24T07:36:00.001-07:00

We left Friday Harbour for Kozad's new home at Anchor Cove Marina in Anacortes!

This has been our longest time out on Kozad and we have both truly enjoyed the experience; so much so that we do not want to leave the boat!

We are seriously considering moving up to a larger boat; we love Kozad but would like to spend 4 to 6 months on board! A few more feet would be nice; don't they call that two footitis!!!!

On our way to Friday Harbour we saw a large 65' motor yacht who was loosing diesel fuel out of the side of the boat! It was like a red waterfall pouring down his hull! Craig tried to hail him on the VHF, Channel 16, but there was no response as the skipper was obviously not monitoring his radio! We were so busy trying to call him that we did not get the camera out, so no picture unfortunately!

We saw a beautiful classic 1920's cruiser!

Anchor Cove Marina
Situated on the Guemes Channel along the North shore of Anacortes

The entrance to Anchor Cove Marina

Little boat amongst large new neighbours!

As usual, one of the first things Craig does is clean the boat!

Having covered moorage is great; while Craig was washing the boat it was raining outside!

We caught the Washington State Ferry to Sidney, B.C., the day after arriving in Anacortes; this was so we could pick up our car which we had left with our son Jim! We once again stayed with Garry & Joanne our close friends who live in the Sidney area on Vancouver Island.

Garry & Joanne
over the past 4 years had made many trips to the Portside Marina
in Brentwood Bay to keep a watchful eye on Kozad!

Craig & Jan with son Jim!

Ian, Jim & Luke!

This crew of University/College Students, live together in Victoria
Jim, Luke, Ian, Sean & Peter

This is a beauty, the boat is nice also!

MV Wells Gray
This is a retired 53' Fisheries Patrol Vessel
We were invited on for a tour by the owner!

One of our favorite past times is walking the docks!
This is a beautiful 60 plus motor boat!

We were fortunate to connect with Bill and Darith who are also Willard owners living in Anacortes! They invited us to their home to meet, and we had a great evening visiting and sharing diner at the Adrift Restuarant!

Bill and MV Quest
1984 Willard 40 Pilot House
Anacortes Marina

MV Annabelle
Another W40 which is moored with MV Quest

Anchor Cove Marina

The marina is very private with secure gate and restricted access!

Nicely Landscaped and Well Kept

Kozad where are you????

Kozad under cover at Anchor Cove Marina

We had to have Kozad's mast cut so we could fit into our new slip!
Who would think it would cost so much to cut a piece of wood in half.

We were planning to work on Kozad before leaving on Saturday, 26th June for home! But Craig's back has been very bad for the last 5 weeks; something to do with kicking the soccer ball and throwing the Frisbee with our nephews Brandon and Dillon in Duncan! Somehow he thinks he can do things he can't, must be a man thing!

So, we are planning on some quiet time when we will play tourists and explore Anacortes before our holiday ends!

We have had a great time on the water, the only complaint is the weather has been unseasonably cold, wet and windy. It obviously has not been that bad, as both of us are feeling somewhat sad and a little depressed that we are having to leave Kozad for our Coldstream home!

We do though thoroughly love our new marina and the Anacortes area. New adventures and a lot of exploring await our next trip on Kozad!

June 2010: Chemainus to Friday Harbour

2010-06-24T06:35:00.000-07:00

Our first stop after leaving Chemainus was into Otter Bay! This is a beautiful spot, set in Hyashi Cove on North Pender Island. The marina has been totally updated; includes new landscaping, washrooms, laundry, a nice store/restaurant and even boasts two heated swimming pools.

Otter Bay has a Flag Deck over the Break Water
Flags displayed from all of the Provinces!

Kozad alone at Otter Bay
Jan was surprised by 6 otters who wanted to come and visit her on the dock!

Otter Bay Marina

Marinas in the Gulf Islands are down approx. 60% due to the poor weather.

Heated swimming pool for family & children

Adults only pool is close to the beach.

The plan was to stay a second day at Otter Bay; but we awoke once more to overcast, cool and wet weather. So off we went to Friday Harbour! We raised our US Courtesy Flag and headed off to clear Customs, we were inspected by an officer; then we pulled into one of our favorite slips near the very end of G Dock at the Port of Friday Harbour Marina.

Kozad at Friday Harbour, one of our favorite San Juan Island stops!
This is a busy harbour with lots of traffic from State of Washington Ferries.

Large pleasure boats come into this marina!

We met Richard and Mary Anne, our Friday Harbour Willard Friends,
for an early dinner at one of the great water front restuarants!

Terry and Ted, whom we met cruising in the Gulf Islands in May,
took us to Snug Harbour where they keep their boat Ciao Bella.
They have just bought a second boat, a 37' Hershine Trawler.

We toured the local Lavender Farm
They were also kind enough to invite us for a fabulous lamb dinner at their home.

Classic Cab, Friday Harbour

There were large shrimp swimming off the marina dock!
Honest, this guy is alive.

One of Jan's favorite thing to do is visit the local farmer's market!
We bought some wonderful canned smoked tuna; delicious!

Jan enjoying one of our sunny days!

June 2010: Ladysmith to Chemainus

2010-06-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

This leg of our journey was definitely the shortest we have done so far; 6 miles, one hour! This is our first trip to Chemainus by boat; a very nice town with a lot of murals painted on the buildings.

Chemainus Harbour
The ferry goes to Thetis & Kuper Islands
The marina is just behind the ferry!

Nice view from the new City floats
I meant the harbour, although Jan is also very nice!

Kozad on the Chemainus Docks

Chemainus is famous for the painted murals on buildings found throughout the Town

Paddle Wheel Park
The band stand is just to the right behind this display

After dinner we went for a walk to the park and had live music at the Band Stand

The Twilight Shuffle
This is an annual 5K run event; along with costumes!

Old Growth - I meant the tree stump!

Not many of these around anymore!

This building housed the Fire Hall and RCMP Detachment in 1974
Craig worked here, sometimes, from Ladysmith
The detachment entrance was just in front of the black Pick up!

June 2010: Campbell River to Ladysmith

2010-06-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

We decided to start heading south as the weather is still unsettled. There has been one weather warning after another; this means we have one nice day and then 3 to 4 days of wind, clouds, rain and cold!

Red Again.....
Does this look familiar!
We have been experiencing these severe wind warnings constantly
since started our boating on the 1st of May!

The forecast for the next four days showed severe wind warnings from the NW with speeds varying from 10 to 35 knots; so the decision was made for us! We were to work our way south!

Don & Judy

When we were in Comox, Don & Judy invited us to join them at Ford's Cove on Hornby Island! So we cruised 3 hours south and stayed Friday, Saturday & Sunday nights on the Ford's Cove dock! Joining us there were two other couples from the Comox Yacht Club; Marv and Lynn on their 38' Bayliner MV Silver Cloud and Kelly & Brenda on their 46' Maxxum! We need a bigger boat!!!!!

Kozad, Whiteshell along with two other Comox Valley Yacht Club Boats
Ford's Cove, Hornby Island is a great place
and there is a wonderful store here for provisioning

This is a fire hydrant on Hornby Island!

Jan did lots of hiking; my back has been acting up of late and had me resting and not walking anywhere. Drugs are a wonderful thing! We had extreme winds on Saturday night and had to make sure we were securely tied as winds were out of the NW blowing up to 35 knots!

Purple Martin repopulation: the number is the year (2001) and bird family ID

Jan did lots of hiking and this was a campground on Hornby Island

Don and Jan got out for some fishing: unfortunately no Salmon were caught!

This dive boat was moving picnic tables to the break water!

The tables were for the remote control sailboat races!

This sailboat was on the grid with a little bit of growth!

We went for a walk to a pottery shack!

We came across a small herd of goats! Too cute!

We departed Ford's Cove on Monday at 0600 for Nanaimo; we were lucky to hit an ebb tide with a NW wind on our stern. This allowed us to average 6.5 knots and were able to get to Dodd's Narrows at noon for slack current; which kept us steaming south to Ladysmith. This was a long day and we travelled 8 hours and 54 miles! By vehicle is definitely faster.....

SV Trofast
We passed this 30' Willard Horizon without Mast or Rigging
Apparently he got tangled in some marina pilings?

Ladysmith
Craig's first posting in 1974

Ladysmith was Craig's first Detachment when he left RCMP training in 1974

The right half of this small building was the Police Office.
Craig was posted here for 6 months before being transferred to Campbell River.

Ladysmith Maritime Society Community Marina
This was a great stop!

Just off of the dock a sailboat had sunk!
Hazard to Navigation

Kozad docked behind a 1928 tug: MV Leslie Ann, a beautiful vessel!

MV Leslie Ann

MV Leslie Ann

Beautifully Restored

June 2010: Comox to Campbell River

2010-06-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

Jan has been passionate about bringing Kozad to Campbell River! This is in part due to the fact that Kozad was named after Iolla and Cozy our close friends from the seventies who introduced us to Boating!

There was no way the weather would keep us from our goal of spending time on the docks of Campbell River, and spending time with our friends who had been waiting to see our boat "Kozad"!

When we left Comox the weather was finally holding; previously the weather had been a continuous challenge! We were lucky it broke for a couple of days at the end of our Comox visit!

So under semi-sunny skies, we headed to Campbell River; a 34 mile cruise at an average of 6 knots; it took us a little more than 5 hours! Jan pointed out it is a 40 minute drive by car!

We once again came across Don & Brennan who were fishing in “Big Smoke”!

Brennan saying Good Bye to Kozad!

Kozad at Discovery Bay Marina, Campbell River

After tying up to dock I-13 at the Discovery Bay Marina we had a visit from two of our friends; Curt and Rick! One of the reasons we wanted to come back to Campbell River is that this is where Iolla and Cozy lived in the seventies! We wanted to bring Kozad here so that those who knew Iolla and Cozy would have a chance to see our boat.

While here friends took us hiking along the Campbell River, we visited the Campbell River Pier, took in the Sunday Market at the Pier, toured the Museum and were able to spend our days here with our long time friends Rick & Judy, Curt & Odette and Larry & Shawn.

Fresh Cod at the Campbell River Government Docks

We had supper at Dick’s Fish & Chips by the Quadra Island Ferry Terminal

Lots of wild cats along the sea wall along with a racoon!

Jan, Larry & Shawn on the Canyon Walk which is along the Campbell River and it's Rearing Ponds: these are man made tributaries of the Campbell River

Larry & Shawn bought our house when we were transferred to Prince Rupert in 1978!

Larry was with the Fire Department in 1975 when we first met!

These rearing waterways provide spawning beds for the returning Salmon!

Campbell River is a famous Salmon Fishing destination which is why our old friends Cozy and Iolla moved here in the early 1970's from California

Making of a Rearing Pond

Jan found a friend at the market!

Cruise ship heading to Alaska

Foreshore Park, Campbell River

While walking along the park a group of people were gathering as a pod of Killer Whales were swimming North between Campbell River and Quadra Island!

We were lucky to see this pod of Killer Whales just off the Foreshore Park on our last night in Campbell River

If you notice the breathing mist above this pod, called blowing!

It was amazing watching approximately 14 Killer Whales playing!

They were breaching, slapping their tales and swimming upside down!

This is a large male Killer Whale.... I think we need a new camera with a bigger zoom!

Jan liked the looks of these three tugs at the Government Docks!

Judy & Rick; Craig and Judy worked together in 1975 at Campbell River Detachment!

We have been extremely lucky to have maintained our friendships with Judy & Rick, Curt & Odette and Larry & Shawn over the past 35 years!

Curt, Jan and Odette; our long time friends since 1975!

We were first posted together in 1975 in Campbell River. Then in 1990 when Curt & Odette transferred back to Campbell River and bought a house next door to us!

Good Friends are nice to have!

Thank you to Rick, Judy, Curt, Odette, Larry & Shawn for showing us such a good time on our trip home to Campbell River on MV Kozad!

May 2010: Ford's Cove to Comox

2010-06-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

Departing Henry Bay for Comox we rounded Chrome Island Lighthouse; one of the few remaining manned light houses on the BC Coast.

Chrome Island Light House

We noticed a small boat out fishing; and later learned it was Brennan Somers in their new to them small boat; complete with a red canopy.

The three hour trip to Comox was uneventful and a little windy! We refueled in Comox taking on 242 liters of diesel at $1.02 and also filled up our gas cans for the outboard motor!

The weather remained bad in Comox but settled down after a few days.

When the weather finally turned we had a spectacular view of the Mountains!

We were on the docks at the Comox Bay Marina where our good friends Janice, Glenn, Don & Judy keep their boat MV Whiteshell. Spending time here has been one of our goals since we started boating with Kozad; so we were thrilled to be visiting with Don & Judy, Lauren & Brennan as well as Janice who was in town from Kelowna.

Brennan & Lauren: newly engaged!

Don & Judy introduced us to some new friends Carol & John; interestingly enough Carol wrote a book on Haida Argillite Carvings; we bought one of her books which both her and John signed for us.

John & Carol

We had one relatively nice morning when Craig was able to clean and wax Kozad.

Our good friends Rick and Judy from Campbell River met us in Comox to see Kozad.

Simon, another of our friends from Kelowna

Simon is completing a solo circumnavigation of Vancouver Island on SV Trewartha.

Jan, Janice, Simon and Judy

Hey wait a minute! Simon is supposed to be out soloing???

There is a great youth sailing program offered in Comox.. oops darn wind!

Comox Pier at Dusk

Jack & Bailey on Kozad

We would like to thank Don & Judy, Brennan & Lauren, Janice and all our other Comox friends for the great hospitality you provided to us!

We like Comox very much; actually we like being by the ocean a lot! Hmmm; wonder if we should consider moving?

May 2010: Cowichan Bay to Hornby Island

2010-06-06T08:29:00.000-07:00

Our departure from Cowichan Bay was early once again so that we would arrive at the proper time to necessitate transiting Dodd's Rapids at slack time (1050hrs). This leg of our journey had us travelling up Vancouver Island to Comox! It is a long two day cruise on a 6 knot boat, so we spent the first night, once again at Newcastle Marine Park!

The weather has been much of the same: cold, windy, lots of rain, low, low, low cloud (ie. fog), basically pretty crappy! This of course means we are spending more time than normal in our boat; good thing we still like one another!

While at Newcastle this trip we were the only boat on the dock, a stark contrast to last week where the place was full due to the May Long Weekend.

This time we took the opportunity to explore Nanaimo by foot, and paid our toonies to board the little foot passenger ferry which travels between Newcastle and Nanaimo! We visited some shops and Thrifty’s Grocery store and walked the foreshore which was well worth the time and effort.

The next day, again under low cloud and high winds, we headed for Ford’s Cove on Hornby Island using the steadying sail is now mandatory on these windy days.

Ford's Cove is a small working marina!
The only space available was on the break water.

There is a small art gallery and a well stocked general store.

The beach walking here is spectacular with wave sculpted sandstone carvings.

Yes, after 5 weeks on a small boat we are still alive!

Craig has not yet had to walk the plank!

The shoreline was a spectacular gallery of sculpted stone.

We spent a couple of hours just walking this beach.

And of course Jan had to take some more photos!!!

The unsettled weather has provided us with some beautiful sunsets.

We departed Ford's Cove for Comox which was 3 hours to the Northwest.

May 2010: Cowichan Bay

2010-05-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

The cruise from Nanaimo to Cow Bay was windy but relatively non eventful with the exception of a loose fitting on the transmission which caused fluid leaking concerns. Craig finally traced the problem to an access bolt which had loosened off, once tightened the problem was fixed. Whew.... no major mechanical fix or cost was needed!

We arrived in Cowichan Bay where our boating friends Penny & Mike live! This is our second visit to "Cow Bay" with Kozad!

We arranged to come to Cow Bay this trip so we could watch Craig's niece Kaya compete in the BC Performing Arts Dance Festival held in Duncan. Last year we drove to Prince Rupert so we could watch her compete in 2009!

Welcome to "Cow Bay"

The weather had kept us from arriving on schedule and as we sat on the dock at the Dungeness Marina, we were blown about by the strong winds and unsettled seas.

Marine weather map; the red area depicts severe wind and gale warnings!
We have had this weather advisory for the past 7 days.

We were rock'n on the dock with beam winds/seas!
So we raised our steadying sail which dampened our rolling.
First time used & it worked!

Penny and Mike had us to their home for a great BBQ Salmon Dinner

Next day we helped them tidy up their cottage on Cowichan Lake

The "Cow Lake Cottage"

Sunset at Cow Bay

The weather was a bit of a challenge!

We woke up to more clouds with a bit of sun shining through!

The Family complete with Comet!
They joined us for supper at the Rock Cod Cafe
to celebrate Jan's Birthday!

This is the first time Guy, Akosua, Kaya, Branden & Dillon have seen our boat!

Kaya doing that Titanic thing!

The Fire Department was inspecting the docks and doing a practise

Fire Practise at Cow Bay

We have planned to stay in Cowichan Bay until Kaya's Dance competition is over; which means we will be leaving on Friday to work our way up Island!

May 2010: Newcastle Island Marine Park

2010-05-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

After the 4 days of Gale Warnings and being landlocked by high winds we shoved off the dock early Friday 21st of May for a bumpy, lumpy and bouncy cruise from Pender Harbour to Newcastle Island; which is just across the harbour from Nanaimo.

This was our first visit to this marine park and it was a great surprise! This park is absolutely beautifu; with great hiking trails, nice beaches, great docks and a wonderful views of Nanaimo!

Newcastle Island was a summer campsite for early First Nations people; then European Settlement saw white settlement which included a shipyard, coal mining, sandstone quarries which supplied the sandstone which built the San Francisco Mint. These quarries then produced giant pulp stones which were used in North American pulp production!

Japanese Fishermen also used the Island for salting Herring and in 1931 the Canadian Pacific Steamship Company purchased the island and operated it as a pleasure resort; building a dance pavilion and bringing vacationers for day trips from Vancouver on their Princess Steamships.

We really, really enjoyed this stop! Ted & Terry, SV Ciao Bella, also docked at Newcastle as Silva Bay was full for the May Long Weekend. They decided to extend their stay here as it was so nice, and there were festivities planned as well as fireworks on Sunday night!

Entrance from public dock to Newcastle Island Park

Lots of First Nations History!

The Marine Park Docks; great place to catch Rock Crab right off the dock!

These are nests for Purple Martins; which are being reintroduced to the region!

Purple Martin Recovery Program

Two Totem Poles are on the grounds of Newcastle Island.
The small one belongs to Craig!

This is the cutting bore drill which cut the Pulp Stones!

The history of the stones! Sort of sounds like Harry Potter Film.....

These are the bore holes!

These are some of the cast off stones which are approx. 48" in Diameter

View of Nanaimo Harbour from one of the hiking trails!

We saw a lot of wildlife; including a large population of Canada Geese & Goslings

On one of our walks we saw three white tailed deer!

There is reported to be a population of Albino Racoons who inhabit the Island.
This guy must have been the black sheep of the family!

Large numbers of Heron feed on the tidal pools and beaches at low tide!
They have wing spans of approx. 6 feet!

Kayak rental returning and restocking from Nanaimo!
Newcastle Island is very popular and there are passenger ferries which run constantly.

A nice place for Kayakers to stop.
There are numerous campsites on the Island as well as large picnic gathering areas!

Kozad on the dock at dusk with a gorgeous view of Nanaimo!

We thoroughly enjoyed our very brief visit to Newcastle Island. It was an unplanned stop due to the weather, so we have the winds to thank for introducing us to this beautiful spot! We are planning on returning here when we cruise North from Cowichan Bay to Comox!

May 2010: Pender Harbour

2010-05-21T06:55:00.001-07:00

We were to stay one night in Pender Harbour on our way south to Cowichan Bay! As boating happens the weather plays a minor influence on our plans. In this case there was a Gale Force Wind Warning; with winds of 50 knots! The winds were bad for the better part of four days and kept us at the Pilot House Marina where we met up with Ted & Terry from SV Ciao Bella!

We explored Pender Harbour, taking in some of the local flavour with some hikes, dinghy rides and visiting!

Kozad at Pilot House Marina, Pender Harbour, B.C.

Ted & Terry from San Juan Island
They were sitting out the storm at the same marina.

Don and Pat, SV Syringa, also were anchored near our marina!
They were the one's who followed us into Chatterbox Falls.
The mass of rope was entangled in their propeller after they went thru MacDonald Island prior to departing Malibu Rapids

Craig going grocery shopping at the Maderia Park IGA
We took the dinghy to the public dock so we could resupply our provisions!

At the IGA we bumped into Larry & Bev, SV Pearl Jem, with their Portugese Water Dogs.
They, along with John and Kate from England, were also sitting out the storm at the public dock!

Our third day the sun came out and we went for a walk to Garden Bay.

We spotted a prawn boat who was unloading spotted prawns!

These hold 10 pounds of prawns each! Yummy!!!!!

Here is one of the big ones!!!!

The prawn is quite large too!

We had a delicious feast on SV Ciao Bella; Prawns, Salad, Bread & Wine!

Cape Pine is a 1942 WWII Wooden Sub Chaser
Ronin the owner also operates Pilot House Marina

MV Shear Fantasea from Bimini Islands is approx. 140' in length

Their tender is bigger than our 30 foot boat! It can go faster too!
Notice the underwater lights at the stern of MV Shear Fantasea
Lights up the water so you can be entertained with sea life activity!

As the weather was clearing the local Dragon Boat Team went out to practise!
Jan would have very much liked to join them as their "Head Stroker"
A position she gave up this year so that we could cruise on Kozad!

On Friday morning we cast off the lines and headed off to Nanaimo on our way to Cowichan Bay!

May 2010: Princess Louisa Inlet

2010-05-18T21:42:00.000-07:00

Princess Louisa and Chatterbox Falls is truly a beautiful and magnificent place to visit!

We have been told that this area is ranked as one of the "top 10" cruising destinations in the world!

Jan and I tried to get here last year; but as you may know our trip was cut short when my step father "Earl" suddenly passed away.

This year was to be the year, and Jan convinced me that the trip could be made earlier than planned - before we had to be in Cowichan Bay to meet up with family. So needless to say,I had no real choice and we went for it! Gotta keep the wife happy!

This was a long journey; I will post some maps once we get settled in one spot long enough!

The ocean was like glass, the sun shining and the trip was amazing!

We witnessed two seals and thought one was injured and/or dying but later thought ... they were not suffering but doing a mating ritual dance - "Sex" in the middle of the ocean!

SV Syringa; a 44' Ketch going two knots through the rapids behind us!

We arrived early for Malibu Rapids and waited till slack.
We still had a 4 knot current against us and almost stalled halfway thru at 2 knots! Our boat only cruises at 6 knots. We are happy we made it ... otherwise Jan would have been in trouble for not waiting another half hour!

The docks at Chatterbox Falls!
Kozad is docked at the far end of the dock on the left.

This is Chatterbox Falls which tumbles 1,475' down a granite face to the ocean below!
We moved Kozad to the other end of the dock and this is the view we had for three days!

We took the dinghy for a ride in front of the falls!

While we were standing on the dock, we heard a thunderous crack and roar!
It was an avalanche!

Jan grabbed the camera and was able to capture the avalanche of snow and water!

There are very nice hiking trails; with the appropriate warnings!

The vegetation was brilliant shades of greens!
Plants of all sizes and shapes!

Jan standing beside an old growth cedar tree!
Or maybe a 2nd growth cedar?

We hit the flowering season; all sorts of very fragrant blossoms were along the trails!

Craig & Jan at Chatterbox Falls!

We were lucky and shared the dock with great people.
SV Concerto and MV Zulu

Malcom and Charlene from MV Zulu

Bob and Susan from SV Concerto were on their honeymoon!

MV Zulu's fabulous flybridge!
This is a 55' Hampton, a beautiful vessel!

Larry and Beth with their two Portugese Water Dogs, Galley and Bosun out for a dinghy ride!

The docks at Princess Louisa Inlet; Chatterbox Falls!

We went for a dinghy ride to explore all of the many waterfalls!

There were literally dozens of these waterfalls within the inlet!

We arranged for a camp fire and impromptu party for the dock dwellers on our last night!

Jan with Don & Pat from Birch Bay, SV Syringa, and John from England.
John and his daughter Kate chartered SV Serendity for a week out of Nanaimo!

Kate from England, Larry and Beth from SV Pearl JEM from Orchard Bay, Wa.
We all had a good time visiting and enjoying the refreshments and camp fire!

The next morning (Tuesday the 18th May) was rainy with low cloud
when all 6 boats left the dock and headed south!

May 2010: Silva Bay to Harmony Island Marine Park

2010-05-18T21:09:00.000-07:00

We left our friends Jules, Mary, Julia and Louise in Gabriola; as we had a week to fill before we are to be in Cowichan Bay to meet Craig's Brother Guy and his family. Jan made a valid argument to head Northeast for Jedidiah Island on our way to Princess Louisa Inlet! So we headed off once again.....

We past this beautiful home where Jules & Mary were staying as we left Gabriola Island!!!

We had beautiful weather and sat on the deck while the autopilot did the work!

Craig playing tugboat Captain helping to stern tie.
The stern tie ended up being 500 feet long or 1000 feet of rope!

First stop was Jedidiah Island, all anchorages were full,
so we met up with Ted & Terry on SV Ciao Bella at Boho Bay on Lasqueti Island

We left early the next morning and headed for Harmony Islands
Friell Lake Falls are part of the scenery!

We anchored in a very small area called Kipling Cove in the Harmony Islands.

Kozad was stern tied to a tree as there is not enough area to swing at anchor!

Much of Harmony Islands is privately owned so our stern tie was an attempt to keep it legal without losing our line! We were very much alone there as we explored this picturesque area on our dinghy. And to bed early, as we planned an early departure to make slack tide at Malibu Rapids; which is quite a "challenging" entrance to Princess Louisa Inlet!

May 2010: Montague Harbour and Silva Bay

2010-05-12T12:18:00.000-07:00

We departed Ganges on Sunday, Mother's Day at 11 AM after making the calls to both of our Mothers and awaiting the calls from our own children: Kim, Andrew and Jim! Good thing we did not wait too long because the calls never came till late in the day, when we no longer had cell phone coverage .... bad little kiddies:(

Local Tai Chi Club practicing on the Ganges Dock

We had an easy cruise over to Galiano Island to the BC Marine Park at Montague Harbour.

As we were entering the waters between Parker Island and Phillimore Point we spotted a Willard Voyager at a private dock. We circled and spoke briefly to the owners who advised they were from Ladysmith.

Willard 30 Voyager
It is not often we see a Willard, let alone the same model as Kozad!

Mother's Day on Galiano Island

We spent the night on a mooring buoy in Montague Harbour!
We like spending time here hiking and enjoying the shell beaches!

We have been lucky viewing wild life on our cruises!
This trip we watched an otter fishing and feeding off the beaches North of Montague.

Departing after an early morning hike, we cruised up to and through Gabriola Passage timing our arrival for slack tide.

Along the way we saw a Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) Hovercraft;

this is the first time we have seen one of these vessels patrolling

Jan pleased to be back on Kozad!

Silva Bay Marina
Gabriola Island

Kozad and Ciao Bella (Beautiful Hello/Goodbye)
This beautiful 31' Sailboat is owned by Terry & Ted.
We met them first on Ganges and hope to meet up later on this cruise.
They are from Friday Harbour and we plan on a visit in June at their home!

Our Silva Bay visit was to meet with Mary, Jules and Julia from Halifax
Jules' sister Louise hosted their visit at a beautiful home on Gabriola.

Jules and Craig relaxing on the deck taking in the Strait of Georgia!

We went for a beautiful walk along the Drumbeg Provincial Park
This is the view of Gabriola Passage where we came through with Kozad.

The beaches have wonderful carved sandstone motifs!

Jan and Jules enjoying the beach

Part of the festivities was a fresh Halibut & Chip dinner!
Louise' friends Robin, David and Jules (another one) prepared the feast!

Jules on chip duty!

Sunset from Louise's house overlooking the Strait of Georgia! Gorgeous....

We had a low tide and this sailboat had a draft of 7' while the tide was at 3'
Oooops!!!

May 2010: Ganges on Salt Spring Island

2010-05-06T16:10:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 1st May: Although an extreme weather advisory for the entire B.C. Coast was still in effect we departed Brentwood Bay at 0630hrs in an attempt to beat the predicted increasing winds (30 to 35 kts out of the SW).

Our cruise to Ganges was uneventful and Jan was pleased to be on the water once again at the helm Kozad!

She was also very pleased to be arriving in Ganges in time for the Saturday market! You may recall Jan always wants to start her Gulf Island cruising with a stop in Ganges!

Ganges has a lot of shops and restaurants to explore!
Including Mouat's (shopping) and the Tree House (eating),
two of our favorites.

Jan at her favorite market!

Ganges Market is every Saturday 8 to 3 from April to October

We were fortunate to get moorage on the Kanaka Docks, which are operated by the Salt Spring Harbour Authority! These docks are centrally located, in great shape and include power, water and have showers and washrooms!

Kozad on the Kanaka Docks in Ganges.

Our good friends Richard and Gwen on MV Northstar joined us in Ganges for the week; you may remember they also keep their boat at the Anchor Cove Marina in Anacortes where we are relocating.

MV Northstar at Ganges Harbour

Jan and Gwen

Richard and Craig

Ganges is home to CCG Patrol Vessel Cape Kuper
Salt Spring Air is extremely busy
with daily flights into and out of the harbour!

If you visit Ganges, it is well worth spending the two dollars for a bus ride to Fulford Harbour! There is an eclectic collection of shops, artisans and restaurants to experience; including a well stocked hat shop! We spent Tuesday exploring Fulford's local flavor and lunching at the Salt Rock Cafe; excellent Green Curry Chicken was ordered by Richard!

Two large Raven carvings on a shed in Fulford Harbour.

MV Scholarship, one of two vessels which are floating school buses!
These boats travel in all but the worst weather bringing students
to Ganges from North & South Pender, Mayne and Saturna Islands!

Laundry day on Kozad!
Weather permitting.

Our last three days in Ganges has seen sunshine and warm weather. We have taken the opportunity to wax and polish Kozad as well as giving the inside a good cleaning! Lots of walks, reading and still more shopping as Jan was able to get one more market day in as we have stayed here for a week.

Mother's Day saw us leaving the docks of Ganges Harbour and moving on to Montague Harbour; we will be staying there at the Marine Park while we work our way up to Silva Bay on Gabriola Island.

We are meeting our good friends Jules, Mary and daughter Julia from Halifax on Monday 10th May at the Silva Bay Marina. They are visiting Jules' sister who lives on Gabriola; this trip is part of a University graduation present for Julia, which includes an Alaskan cruise! Pretty lucky!

April 2010: Leaving Portside Marina

2010-05-06T14:50:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 25th April to Saturday, 1st of May: We took this time to prepare Kozad for the extended cruise and move to Anacortes, Washington.

The winter, as usual, has left the boat dirty and in need of a good cleaning; so part of the time was for Craig to use some elbow grease and scrub the entire outside of the boat!

Not only does the topsides get abused during the winter; but Kozad's bottom also requires a good cleaning!

Isaac from Scuba Scrubbers
Last dive on Kozad before we leave!

Prop & Shaft (notice silver area top right which is the zinc)

After cleaning and new zinc

While Craig was cleaning the boat Jan visited Butchard Gardens!

This is the small moorage area at Butchard Gardens.
A small dock & mooring bouys are available!

Portside Marina
Kozad's home for the last 4 years!

Portside Marina has a lot of local history!

The original Marina and Boat Yard had First Nations Connections.

The carvings are all original, dating from 1952!

Abernathy & Gaudin now operate the boat yard.
Kozad has consistently contributed to their operation!

The most recent contribution was the hinging of Kozad's mast!
This will will now allow Kozad to fit into our new Anacortes covered moorage...

Stainless Steel Fabricated Hinge!

Kozad's last night at Portside Marina!

Some additional work which was started in February was completed; the Speedseal Life and new impeller installed, new oil pressure sending unit, a new CAV Filter Head (which changes the old style engine fuel filter to a spin on system), and a new thermostat for the cold plate refrigerator system.

We also totally re-organized all of the provisions, spares and items onboard! This at least allows us to know where everything is located.

The plan was to leave Portside for Ganges on Saltspring Island; unfortunately there were severe weather advisories with extreme wind warnings. So a bumpy night was spent on the docks, with an early morning departure to beat the winds.

Our longest boating journey now begins as we say good bye to the boating acquaintances we have made over the previous 4 years; Portside Marina, Abernethy & Gaudin Boat Works, Gartside Marine Engines and Scuba Scrubbers!

Preparing for 2010 Cruising Season

2010-03-18T08:50:00.000-07:00

Kozad has survived the winter once again! We are now getting ready for our spring cruising which will begin the last week of April and will see us on Kozad until end of June.

In February, we visited Victoria and spent a couple of days on Kozad getting things organized, engine/transmission fluid changes, new fuel filters and replacing the faulty oil pressure sending unit.

Richard Soto (W40: MV Northstar) recommended Craig look at the Speedseal Product line and in particular Speedseal Life. This "handy dandy" product allows for easy replacement of the raw water impeller; take a look at their website: Speedseal for details. Of course, Craig has already ordered one!

Our diver Isaac from Scuba Scrubbers will be doing a bottom cleaning and replacing all of the zincs in preparation for our spring departure.

And finally, Abernethy & Gaudin Boatbuilders are working at fabricating and installing a stainless steel mast hinge which will allow us to fold down our mast. Currently our mast height is 21'6" above the water but we require a maximum clearance of 17' to allow us to get under cover at a new marina we have found for Kozad.

Yes, we have decided to make a change and to move Kozad under cover! The PNW weather takes it's toll on our boat! In particular, the outside wood surfaces especially the cap rails and also the grey painted anti-slip decks are taking a beating. It's exciting to make the change and we anticipate this being a great benefit for both the boat and ourselves!

In January, we attended the Seattle Boat Show and then spent some time visiting our friends Richard and Gwen Soto (W40 MV Northstar) on Whidbey Island. They took us for a drive to Anacortes to see Northstar's new home at Anchor Cove Marina .

For more aerial photos
go to Anchor Cove

Well suffice to say, one thing lead to another; and now thanks to Richard and Gwen we have also acquired a covered 40' x 16' single slip for Kozad at their marina.

Not only does this give us the benefit of covered moorage (like a carport); the marina also has secured parking which is fenced, gated and locked; also very nice and clean bathroom/shower facilities, plus the added benefit of having a single slip which gives easy access to each side of our boat! Our thanks to Richard & Gwen for becoming even closer friends last year and enticing us to this marina! We are excited!

Anacortes, Wa. is a 5 to 6 hour drive from Coldstream and as such alleviates the extra time and cost of taking the ferry to Vancouver Island every time we go to our boat (8 to 10 hours).

Anacortes is ideally situated for cruising San Juan Islands, Gulf Islands,
Puget Sound and South Sound

Our moorage at Portside Marina in Brentwood Bay ends as of May 1st, then we will be cruising north on Kozad until we need to head south, in time to arrive in Anacortes the end of June!

We are looking forward to a couple of months cruising Kozad up Vancouver Island to Campbell River, Comox, Desolation Sound and all points in between. On a few nice sunny days we will be applying two new coats of Cetol on the wood surfaces as well as giving the anti-slip decks a new coat of paint.

Can hardly wait to get started on our spring cruising!