When we got up at 0500 hrs, surprisingly there was no fog, and the wind was calm. So, we fired up and headed for Bottleneck Inlet.

The fishermen were already headed out for the day. Maybe today will be the day the salmon return.

What a beautiful day. I had mentioned to Al earlier that I’d like to kayak around Price Inlet. Al wasn’t excited about it, because it would be out of our way if we had to go up through Percival Narrows to avoid the ugly seas that are usually encountered going straight from St. John to Price Inlet. But, since we had lucked out with this beautiful weather, he decided we could head straight for Price Inlet without any problem.

Price Inlet isn’t visited much, because there isn’t a chart for it. But, a friend of Al’s had surveyed the inlet thoroughly and made up his own chart, which he emailed to us. Price is where I saw my first Sandhill Crane. I’m really looking forward to exploring Price in my kayak.

We were underway by 0630 hrs. The wind and seas were so calm when we got up this morning that we decided we’d better use this weather window to head for St. John Harbour instead of Tankeeh River. St. John Harbour is on the open ocean, and the seas getting around Cape Swaine are usually big and right on the beam, making it very uncomfortable. So, we felt we had to go while the going was good. Oh, well. There’s always next year for Tankeeh.

We had such an easy rounding of Cape Swaine, we couldn’t believe our good fortune. As we got closer to St. John Harbour, we could see all the fishing lodge boats trolling back and forth for salmon.

Our friends Mel and Bernice Gill and Ed and Ann Jackson were tied up at their float just outside the lagoon. We anchored just across from them. Mel and Bernice came by the boat when Mel got in from fishing. It had been several years since we’d seen them, so it was great to catch up on what they’ve been up to. Apparently, the salmon haven’t come in yet. Mel said he didn’t even get a nibble today. This is unbelievable. When Al used to fish with Mel here, they got as many as 68 salmon in one day — catch and release, of course. Mel doesn’t even like salmon, but he sure loves catching them. We were saddened to learn that this will be Mel and Bernice’s last summer at St. John. They’ve decided it’s time to sell their boat and do something different. We will miss them.

We were invited to happy hour on the float at 0400 hrs, where we enjoyed a chat with P.J. and Ping, from the boat Secret Cove, which was tied up to Mel and Bernice’s float. P.J. and Ping live in Florida, but fly out to Seattle every year to go cruising up here on their boat, which they keep in Oak Harbour, Washington. They’re planning on cruising up as far as Lowe Inlet this summer, so our paths may cross along the way.

We noticed that there’s a fancy new fishing lodge anchored in St. John. The guests at this lodge pay $1,000 a day for lodging and the opportunity to fish for salmon from the lodge’s boats. These people must be pretty bummed, having spent the big bucks, and there aren’t any salmon.

When we got back to our boat we discussed whether we wanted to stay at St. John Harbour, since there were no salmon to be had. Al had wanted to get a salmon or two to smoke, But, since there aren’t any salmon, we decided to leave for Bottleneck Inlet in the morning, if it isn’t foggy, or too windy.

The heatwave continues, with high fog in the morning, and afternoon temperatures in the mid-80’s. The wind came up last night and blew 30 knots. Al was seriously considering moving back to Nash Narrow, but in the end decided to try to hang in here.

We’ve seen zero wildlife, but the falls are spectacular. The tide is high this morning, so I’m able to paddle in close for photos of the falls at Bitter End.

My next stop was Ingram Falls, in Ingam Cove, 2 miles west of here. Ingram Cove has spectacular falls on Ingram Creek, with a logging road bridge above it. Unfortunately, the anchorage is too tenuous to stay overnight, which we learned the hard way many years ago.

On my way back to the boat, I spotted this tree that had blown down during one of the winter storms. It was unusual, because it looks as though there was no dirt at all under the tree, just the rock it had been attached to. It’s amazing how strong those roots must be.

Al helped me get my kayak onboard, as we were leaving for Wigham Cove, on Yeo Island. He’s decided to let me explore Tankeeh River tomorrow morning. The anchoring at Tankeeh is only recommended for a lunch stop, as the holding is not good at all. Tankeeh is where Al and I caught a 75 lb. halibut years ago. I’ve always wanted to go back and explore the river, and with my kayak I should be able to get quite a ways up it at high tide. We’ll see.

We had a four-hour run down to Wigham. The wind was blowing like stink in Spiller Channel, so we decided to go down Bullock Channel to Return Channel. It’s a little longer, but a much more comfortable ride. We hadn’t been to Wigham in many years. It’s a very peaceful, quiet anchorage. We won’t have to worry about the wind coming up tonight.

Because we were leaving this morning for Spiller Inlet, I was up at 0500 hrs, hoping to get one more paddle in. I paddled for over 2 hours and never got one shot, until I got back to the boat, where I found this eagle waiting for me.

We’ve really enjoyed the hummingbirds here at Nash. There have been three that visited our feeder almost non-stop. This poor guy got trapped when he flew into our canvas and Isinglass-enclosed back deck. He was just a bit stunned, fortunately, and made a full recovery. I was only able to get this one shot, but it’s the best hummingbird shot ever. The lighting was absolutely perfect.

By 1000 hrs, we were on our way to the Bitter End of Spiller Inlet, one of my favorite spots, if the wind doesn’t come up in the middle of the night.

I dragged myself out of my bunk at 0530 hrs again this morning, hoping to catch some more of that magical morning light.

I headed back north, thinking I might try to get some decent pics of those elusive seals. I was in luck. The tide was at their favorite level for catching a siesta —not too high, and not too low. There were about 15 slumbering seals, dreaming of fat salmon, no doubt. This time, I assumed my stealth mode, positioning myself so that I didn’t have to paddle, but let the current carry me toward them, ever so slowly. I started shooting as soon I could shoot with 75X zoom. I clicked away, taking shot after shot, not knowing when they’d scramble for the safety of the water. It was hard to frame anything, because they were all in one big jumble. I just hoped I’d have something worth keeping when I did the editing.

I was awake at 0530 hrs this morning. It was too hot to sleep anyway, and I do love the morning light. So, by 0615 hrs, I was out paddling. Today, I headed in the opposite direction, south…. I think. Such a beautiful day! The early morning sun was turning everything golden.

I stopped paddling to listen to the quiet. It’s awesome. However, I was soon shocked out of my reverie by a loon that sounded like he must be about to land on top of me. I ducked and practically dropped my paddle. But I couldn’t see him anywhere. Then, all of a sudden he surfaced about 15 feet away from me. I scrambled to get my camera out, hoping he wouldn’t dive when he saw me.

I set off early to explore the area on the other side of the Narrows, looking for those seals that usually hang out at Nash. This is a really beautiful area, with high mountains that come right down to the water’s edge, and beautiful granite outcroppings.

I dinked around all the interesting little coves that, unfortunately, are too deep to anchor in, hoping to spot some wildlife. I wasn’t finding any wilidlife, but I did find a very large log boom that had been left behind when a big logging operation left the area.

Then, finally, I looked way across the water and spotted some rocks that only dry at a really low tide, like today. It looked like there might be seals on the rocks, but it could be just more rocks. Turned out I was in luck. There, sitting fat and happy, were at least 15 seals. Unfortunately, most of them hit the water the minute they saw me coming. However, I did manage to get this brave bunch, before they dove in after their friends.

Right before I got back to the boat, I decided to check the rocks nearby for sea life, since it was low tide.

The only thing I found was this one sea star. I’d never seen a sea star with this coloring before.

And, this tree limb, which spends most of its time underwater, was covered in tiny mussels.

We’re heading for Nash Narrows this morning, so I was up at 0530 hrs, so that I could get in one more paddle in this beautiful place.

I headed in the opposite direction this morning. I had to get through another narrow shallow passage that dries at lower low tide, and this being a Spring Tide, the water would be pretty skimpy. Just before the entrance, I spotted what I thought was a crow…. turned out to be this darling mink, just sitting there, trying to figure out if I was a threat or not. I’ve never seen a mink sitting. They’re usually scampering over the rocks at low tide, looking for breakfast and not wasting any time, for fear they might wind up being some eagle’s breakfast. He’d obviously been for a swim and looked like a drowned rat. I tried to move as little as possible getting my camera out and focused on him. I managed to get this one shot before he took off for cover.

I continued on, thinking I was heading for the northern entrance to Troup Narrows. I paddled and paddled and never did find the entrance. But, I did spot this family of otters fishing in the shallow water along the beach. They kept popping their heads up out of the water to check me out. You could almost see the wheels turning, wondering, “What that heck is that?”

I’d been out almost 2 hours and was concerned about getting back through that passage, so I turned around and started paddling with gusto. It’s a good thing I turned around when I did, because I barely made it through. When I told Al that I never found the north entrance to Troup Passage, he informed me that Troup Passage is in the opposite direction. Oh, well. As soon as I had a little breakfast, we pulled the anchor and headed for Nash Narrows, just a couple of hours north of here.

We had a nice cruise up to Nash, and were delighted to find no one in the anchorage. Good thing, because there really isn’t a lot of room in the anchorage. However, the seals and seagulls were gone, which was disappointing.

I had so many places I wanted to investigate this morning. The first was through a narrow passage that dries at low tide. Unfortunately, it was currently nearing low tide. Should I or shouldn’t I? Well, I screwed up my courage and decided to take a chance that I could get back through before it dried up.

Just inside the entrance, I spotted a huge rounded rock, about twice the size of a couple of Volkwagens, that was just a foot below the surface of the water. It was covered with anemones.

I heard this beautiful loon’s mournful call long before I spotted it.

There were sea stars everywhere. I particularly liked this leather star.

And, of course, the fluorescent purple sea stars were everywhere.

These sea stars look like their partying.

This one looks like it’s dancing.

I also saw this funny critter, which is a Chiton….I think.

I started getting a little nervous about getting back through the passage before it dried up, so I reluctantly turned around. I managed to get through without hitting bottom, but it was close. Once through, this marbeled murrelet popped up just ahead of me and started bathing. There was a pair of these cute little guys.

I was on the water early this morning, anxious to check out Troup Passage. Discovery Cove is very secluded and lovely, with towering mountains surrounding the anchorage, and lots of islands and islets. I was a little concerned that I might get lost. After awhile one island or islet looks pretty much like another. And, I do have a lousy sense of direction and lack of situational awareness. I get focused on taking pictures and forget about my bearings.

I laughed when I encountered this family of seagulls. The “babies”, which were as big as the adults, were demanding to be fed.

I was having such a good time, I decided to paddle across to the other side of Roger’s Cove for a look-see. As I was approaching the shore, I spotted an eagle at the water’s edge chowing down on a small salmon. He was not pleased to see me, but continued with his repast, occasionally dragging his meal further of the beach, hoping I’d go away.

I took picture after picture, until he suddenly decided he’d had enough and took flight As soon as he left, another eagle swooped in, picked up the remains of the salmon and flew the other way. I followed him…..and so did the other eagle. They were apparently working in pairs. The second eagle flew up in a tree to finish his leftovers in peace.