Departed Shelter Bay Marina last Saturday, February 18 to spend several days on the water, weather permitting. Actually the day started out pretty nice; reasonable temperature, some sun breaks, but wind on the nose what little there was. First stop was Eagle Harbor to spend the night. Quiet night tied to a mooring ball with a single 5/8th inch three strand nylon line.
Sunday morning awoke to a strong easterly, which blew into the harbor a long fetch of rolling chop. Belle-Vie rocked and rolled all day, swaying back and forth, to and fro. Over the years I've made a practice of establishing land marks whether at anchor or on a mooring. I check those landmarks periodically depending upon sea state, as well as moorings and anchor set. I also make it a practice to back down on a mooring just to make sure that it will hold.
Two hours earlier I had checked the mooring line and it appeared fine, but in a two hour time frame the mooring ring cut through the line. I was below deck in the aft cabin just finishing an article when I glanced up to check my landmark and it was not there. Dashing up on deck found Belle-Vie adrift heading for the bottom of the harbor's shallow waters a short distance away, I light off the engine and bring the boat back into safe water. Whew! That was a close call.
The wind was still blowing hard and lots of heavy chop a I tried to snag the mooring. My final try that worked was to secure the eye of my long dock line to the midship cleat, approach the mooring as if approaching a dock, got the line through the ring and secured it to the bow cleat in the nick of time. Then I worked the ring forward to the bow where I was able to secure a new mooring line, then released the midship line. This time I doubled up the mooring line leaving the backup line a bit slack and the primary carrying the load.
Belle-Vie's high freeboard makes it very difficult to secure a mooring line in a blow. The wind will push the bow away before you can get the line secured, and with a displacement of 35,000 pounds, no way you can hold on, even in gear. Even tried backing in, but no luck.
The wind finally died down late afternoon leading to a pleasant evening and restful sleep. Monday was off north around the top end of Cypress Island with a west heading toward Pevine Pass under sail in a moderate breeze across Rosario Strait.
Pevine Pass most always a dead zone in a northwesterly and even persisted on through Harney Channel, so ended up motoring. Typical island wind shadows.
At one point Blind Bay was going to be a mid point layover, but the day was still early, the ebb was an hour away, so Wasp Pass provides a north entrance to San Juan Channel, just north of Friday Harbor, my destination. Once I make the turn into San Juan Channel the favorable northwesterly returns for a nice leisurely sail south.
Arrived Friday Harbor in due course will plenty of sun light left. My usual destination is the yacht club reciprocal dock at the end of "F" where the first night is free, with easy access to town.
The whole purpose of the cruise, besides filling my sail tank, is a bacon cheeseburger deluxe with fries at Haley's across the street from King's Market.
The return part of the cruise was just as memorable. This time I did layover in Blind Bay across Harney Channel from the Orcas Island ferry landing. Had a nice sail beat up San Juan channel taking two tack changes to finally pinch into Wasp Pass entrance. Then back into the island wind shadows until reaching Rosario Strait.
Had plans to catch a mooring at Pelican Beach, but the easterly was bringing in a chop, so Eagle Harbor was a better choice. Just got back today, Friday, February 24 where cold weather was the order of the day just about every day. Wallas was running most of the time keeping below decks warm and inviting. Yesterday stayed overnight at Anacortes Yacht Club reciprocal dock in Cap Sante. Had sailing friends over for a beef stroganoff dinner on Belle-Vie.
One of the better and more quiet times of the year to go sailing absent other boaters to interfere with finding crowded places to anchor or tie up. Spring cruise next time up before the season begins in earnest.
