Our Summer Cruise 2016

 

Monday, August 8

St Peters to Cape George Harbor - 7nm

Up early on a sunny day and fueled up at $1 Canadian a liter (around US$ 2.95) and pumped out before leaving for Cape George Harbor (not really a harbor as we would know it but a cove or bay .... a Cape Breton term) from our recommended list. Just a short run today through a series of small islands but still had to rinse the boat down as we encountered some good waves in certain stretches. The rest of the gang joined us a little later as we all had to line up for the fuel dock.

We should have used the the online Cruising Guide to Cape Breton which would have kept us out of close quarters with a sandbank in one area in the anchorage. Tug'n also encountered it; will be using it more in the future. Cape George was OK as an anchorage but not very inspiring for our first anchorage in CBI; took it off our recommended list!

A Nonsuch Sailboat Came Weaving Through All of the Boats in the Anchorage

After two long days of sightseeing and driving it was good to have a relaxing day when the boat was cleaned up, playing cards with the gang, reading, and doing some work on the blog.

 

Tuesday, August 9

Cape George Harbor to Little Harbor - 12nm

Another sunny day as we pulled anchor and made for Little Harbor which turned out to be not too "Little," about a mile in diameter with good protection behind two separate hooks of land. We anchored in the southwest corner in just 9' of clear water. Jellyfish all around us here so no swimming.

 

Hit a few good waves on the short ride here so gave the boat a quick rinse to keep the salt at bay and Rain X'd all the glass - makes clean up super easy. Dinghied around the "harbour and outside but it was quite wavy out there. The owners( the Goldsteins) of Victory, the Berger from St. Peters,dinghied over to our boat and we spent some time talking with them and they knew people in Kalamazoo (we knew the names but a bit out of our social circle). They kindly offered their mooring at their home in Winter Harbor, Maine, if we were ever there.

"Victory"

We also met a couple of other owners just dinghying around and spent time exchanging information on the cruises we were on.

The Three Amigos

Other than a Happy Hour on Wings playing cards, we had another very relaxing day.

 

Wednesday, August 10

We stayed in Little Harbor today, did a load of laundry (including bedding) which dried in minutes, and just hung out enjoying the great weather.

 

Thursday, August 11

Little Harbor to Big Harbor - 8nm

Sunshine again today as we decided to go to Big Harbor just around the corner. In truth, it wasn't that big but it was well protected from the strong west winds we were experiencing. We dinghied around the Harbor but many areas were very weedy and the wind was quite strong. Cross this one off the list!

Friday, August 12

Big Harbor to Maskell's Harbor - 18nm

Sunny, left early to Maskell's Harbor passing through the Grand Narrows at Iona, to the "little lake" as it is known. We had a minor snap leaving as the anchor bought up a load of 1/2" nylon rope with no obvious end; had to cut it off the anchor. Stephen had the same issue, except he brought up a wooden crate. It wasn't clear what it was - not a lobster trap, maybe for mussels.

There is a lift bridge across the Narrows with a clearance of at least 20' but the bridge master, one of the best we have run into, was raising it anyway for a sailboat from the other direction and kept it open way longer than normal for Wings and us. The famous Iona church sits high on the hill overlooking the Narrows.

STB Running Fast for the Bridge (thanks Jan)

Maskell's Harbor is a good anchorage and the best scenery to date with higher ground on all three sides and a traditional lighthouse at Maskell's Point.

Wings, Encore and the Maskell's Point Lighthouse

When we arrived, there were already three boats anchored but we had plenty of space for our four boats. This is a very popular anchorage with both locals and visitors.

Throughout the day, the weather gradually changed for the worse with rain clouds building until mid afternoon when the rain came. Our fresh water gauge let us down when we ran out of fresh water later in the day while it showed almost half a tank left. We had rinsed the boat well intending to use our new water maker to top the tank up, but it had an issue - no pressure. I worked on it for over an hour and gave up to to think about the problem overnight. We had enough water to brush our teeth and we went to bed dispirited and dirty, with a sink full of dirty dishes but slept like logs.

The highlight of the day was seeing two eagles in the early evening in the trees right in front of the boat.

 

Saturday, August 13

Big Harbor to Baddeck - 6nm

Back to sunny weather today as we left early for the short run to Baddeck in advance of the rest of the group to fill up with water and get a pumpout at the Marina. Scenic Baddeck was hosting two big boats - Reef Chief that we had seen as we left Charlottetown and another big boy, "Andiamo", a 140' Feadship that was recently listed for US$22 million.

Reef Chief at the Town Wharf

Andiamo at Anchor Nearby

The marina staff were very helpful and friendly and we were lucky to get the pumpout as it broke later that day. We took a mooring ball (2nd time) for $20 a night as we didn't need power and we now had water for some time if the water maker was still out of service. The only problem was finding it which took a while as they had 80 of them with faint markings!

Our new "friends" from Little harbor, the Goldsteins were also here ....

A good part of the day was spent shopping, doing laundry, checking out what Baddeck had to offer, and getting to the water maker while Judy started polishing the stainless steel outside. The water maker fix turned out to be very simple - a pump relief valve that was supposed to be shipped calibrated was wide open so the pump never built up the pressure needed to force salt water through the membrane to remove the salt. Within minutes, we were making 60 gallons per hour of very pure water, quite a bit more than than I had calculated. (I designed and built the system myself from off-the shelf components so had only some theoretical calculations to predict the output.) That was a relief!

Later in the day it was perfect - warm very calm, breeze and no bugs. being on a protected mooring is the way to go. It is amazing to us how tightly they can pack the boats on moorings but we all turned with the wind at the same time; something that doesn't happen as readily at anchor when you can have 100' of rode out and the boat sails around the anchor as well as moving about the boat end of the rode. They even run a water taxi service - call on the radio and they will ferry you to shore. We like mooring buoys!

We were across the channel from the town near Kidston Island but on the edge of the mooring field so we had a great view of the incoming and outgoing boat traffic including the "Amoeba" on a regular basis as they passed just boat lengths away.

The Schooner "Amoeba" Going Out for its Two-Hour Tour

 

Sunday, August 14

Quiet night till Forecast not good for today with 100% rain forecast for much of the day. We took advantage to dinghy from our mooring by Kidston Island a short way into Baddeck for breakfast at the Three Doors Down and, while OK, there are better places in town. In light rain, we headed for the 9:00 am opening at the Alexander Graham Bell Museum run by Parks Canada and were one of the first through the door (by 11:00am it was busy, so go early if you are ever here).

Best known as the inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) was also a pioneer in the field of deaf education. Bell first came to Baddeck in 1885 and returned the next year to establish a vacation home for his family, far from the formality and summer heat of Washington, DC. He regularly spent a substantial part of the year at Beinn Bhreagh and both he and his wife, Mabel Hubbard Bell, played an active role in the social and intellectual life of the village.

By the time of Bell's arrival in Baddeck, the success of the telephone had freed him from the need to earn a living and, at Beinn Bhreagh, Bell continued his busy routine of experimentation and analysis. His imagination and wide-ranging curiosity led him into scientific experiments in such areas as sound transmission, medicine, aeronautics, marine engineering and space-frame construction. Bell can be considered an inventor, an innovator, an inspirer of others and a humanitarian. Aeronautical work was a large part of his life at Beinn Bhreagh, from early kite-flying experiments to the success of the Silver Dart - the first controlled powered flight in Canada in February 1909. This achievement was a product of Bell's collaboration with four young men (Casey Baldwin, Douglas McCarty, Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge and Glenn Curtiss) in the Aerial Experiment Association, founded in 1907.

Fran and the Silver Dart in the Background

 

In later years, Bell and Baldwin turned to experiments with hydrofoil craft that culminated in the development of the HD-4, which set a world speed record in 1919.

 

Bell's activities at Beinn Bhreagh had a significant impact on the economic and social life of Baddeck. The estate provided work for men and women both in traditional service occupations and in jobs connected with Bell's experiments, such as production of thousands of tetrahedral cells for his massive kites. Mabel Bell played a vital role in her husband's career, providing him with both financial and moral support to pursue his diverse interests. It was Mabel Bell who inspired, founded and funded the Aerial Experiment Association which achieved heavier-than-air flight. Mabel Bell was primarily responsible for the management of Beinn Bhreagh and was deeply involved in village life, helping to establish the local public library, and the Home and School Association as well as a club for young women to promote sociability and the acquisition of general knowledge.

The major historical resources at the Museum are the large collection of artifacts related to Alexander Graham Bell's research, which he conducted both at Baddeck and elsewhere; books, photographs and copies of material from his personal archives; and various personal items, furniture and awards received by Bell during his lifetime. Most artifacts are original, but there are some reproductions that are also valuable, particularly ones such as the HD-4 reconstruction, which incorporate original parts. Some archival materials are original, others are valuable copies of original transcriptions located elsewhere.

Beinn Bhreagh

Still in private ownership, Bell's summer estate retains many elements such as roads, wharfs and buildings from his time. His descendants maintain Beinn Bhreagh Hall and many of the historic outbuildings (e.g. the Kite House, the Lodge, and the Kia Ora boathouse), although some are considerably changed. The graves of Alexander Graham Bell and his wife Mabel are located on the Beinn Bhreagh estate.

The rain still persisted but we met up with the rest of the Three Amigos for lunch before heading back to the boat for a restful afternoon. Plans for the evening, a Ceilidh Concert were scuttled as it was driving rain out.