Day 17/July 17 – Miles Inlet round Cape Caution to Beaver Cove

Fullest day yet. Pulled anchor at 6am. Gorgeous, sunny, calm.

Rounded Cape Caution in just a few knots of breeze blowing over the rollers.
Headed up Rivers Inlet and the beach at Open Bight caught our eye. It’s not a usual destination due to it being NW facing, but today, with an unusual SE wind, it was perfect. Motor sailed in, dropped 30 feet of chain and rowed over the turquoise shallows to the white sandy beach with a picnic lunch. Examined the HUGE tracks on the beach – cougar? Wolf? Walked 40 feet through cedar and salal over to the other side of the bay – another gorgeous view. Back in Sturdi to the boat for showers on the bow.

Sailed off the hook into a perfect downwind leg. Perfect until we gybed and got the boom caught  on the backstay (note to self, this is possible on our boat). No harm done though, we rounded up quickly and sorted it out. Went a little further, looked at each other then went head to wind to reef to main. Reef was fussing, head sail whipping – “look a whale!” – I saw a humpback spray, then a lot of its back and the satisfaction of a full tail! Scott saw it too – about 100m away.
Surfed the waves of the Rivers Inlet daily thermal up to Dawsons Landing and tucked into Beaver Cove for a sheltered evening. Asleep by 9:30. 

(A humming bird just buzzed up to the window to check my grammar…)