August Cruise: Guys Only

Our good friends Garry & Joanne from Sidney, B.C., have been helping us out by checking on Kozad on a regular basis, providing us with a place to stay and being wonderful hosts and friends. This has been a tremendous help to us, especially during the winter months. Knowing that all is well with a floating asset is a great comfort! Thanks so much Garry & Joanne.

Craig has wanted to take Garry out cruising for the past two seasons, but schedules have been in conflict to allow for a guys cruise. Finally in August there was an opportunity for Garry & Craig to head out on Kozad for that Guys Only cruising! Not sure what that entails, but they sure had fun anyway!

Garry & Craig enjoying steak dinner on Kozad

Prior to the guys outing, Craig & Jan arrived on 2nd August to do some work on Kozad prior to the planned cruise. During our June Cruise we met a boater who told us about some very good sound insulation product which was available. So it was time to spend more boat money to re-insulate the engine hatches as the old material was coming off.

Old insulation on Engine Hatch

The work went well, and with help from our son Jim, we were able to get two layers of paneling installed on all the hatches and stair treads. Craig seems to think the sound level has been cut by 50%; Jan is not sure if that is right but there was a significant drop in engine noise! So much so, we now can even make a cell phone call while standing at the helm.

New Sound Insulation on Hatches and Steps

Garry, Craig & Kozad were now ready to depart for three nights and four days; the plan was to take in the Gulf Islands. As this was Garry's first opportunity to cruise Bedwell, Port Browning, Montague, Ganges, Otter Bay and the surrounding Islands, the decision was to stay local. It was a great time, although the weather had turned by the time the guys went boating. So cooler temperatures, wind, overcast days, some rain and fog was included on the trip.

The "boys" at Montague Harbour

There was also a lot of sea life to be seen on this trip, small & large jelly fish, seals, a large pod of killer whales off the north west side of North Pender Island. Unfortunately the rough water and a slow finger on the camera resulted in no photos of the whales!

This is a huge jelly fish which was in excess of 2 feet in diameter
with tentacles reaching up to approx. 10 feet in length, Do Not Touch as they Sting!

Of particular interest during this trip was the amount of Pan Pan & Mayday traffic. The Canadian Coast Guard was run off their feet; a boat which was departing Montague just behind Kozad struck the rocks and was stuck on a falling tide, three sailboats and a power boat had engine troubles and required assistance, an elderly couple at Winter Cove needed help as their dinghy got stuck half way up to their top deck when their winch seized.

The most tragic incident though was a Mayday call just east of Swartz Bay; a diver had surfaced and was swept away in the current. An extensive search ensued and unfortunately his body was recovered four hours after he went missing.

Kozad ran flawlessly with no mishaps or operator error on this trip! Craig slept soundly, and Garry's snoring did not even bother him as the new bedding we placed on board was so comfortable!