Mike_Jackson said:
I think I am going to abandon my plan to paddle over tomorrow AM. Not sure that it makes sense to plan a longish paddle with cold northeasterly winds in the 15-25 knot range... would help the return trip, but...
The marine forecast on Haro Straight was limited to the south and ignored the perfect conditions we had from dawn on. Just as the pressures models forecasted, it was beautiful with light winds predominantly from the SE. I left at 10 and had a relaxing paddle to the south of Sidney, arriving at 12:40.
With the exceptional weather, much of the group seems to be planning to stay on S Pender for a few more days!
My ~36 km paddle up on Friday had few surprises -- the winds doing exactly as expected and changes spot on to the locations and times of the pressure models. It was just the snow that became a shocker.
With the gales against the current through Baynes, starting further away at Willows wasn't worth the effort. At 8:20 AM I left Smugglers Cove for a b-line to D'Arcy's NW. FUN! Strong 25 knots winds from due west somehow quicly building the sea in mid Haro up to the odd 1m swell with some breaking waves hitting my beam for some time. Once I made it to the leeside of Sidney Island it was a much more relaxing move to the planned shelter of Gooch Island.
From the pressure models in the morning I knew that a small but intense system was due between 12-1 with the winds shifting nearly 180 degrees to the SW. On my way to Gooch I watched the dark front to the north with Salt Spring slowly disappearing. Only a few hundreds meters beyond Gooch I was thinking that if anyone else was with me we'd immediately duck into to its leeside to avoid any trouble. I wanted to play. Exactly at 1 the westerlies dropped off and the seas became glass. Figuring that I was far enough out, I made the charge back to Gooch and readying for a full facial of the wind and spray. I got stinging hail. Within minutes the winds picked up to over 20, and continued to build. I was having a blast but made it to shelter of the Tom Point on Gooch and shelter just as the very unsettled seas were no longer so fun.
For an hour and 40 minutes I hunkered down on a gravel beach on the southern side of the a neck separating the main portion of Gooch from Tom Point... I was sheltered from the wind but the snow kept coming down on me and blowing horizontally just 5m beyond my landing. For the entire time I just paced in a tiny space between between the 3 cliffs and sea, knowing that it would take over an hour for the snow squall to blow by. Finally it did and with a fairly calm paddle and the company of some porpoises I headed on to Beaumont, arriving at 4:40.
Thanks for the trip!! It great to meet new people who are motivated get out and paddle for the sake of paddling! I'll take many excuses to take on a full day of padding!
Shelter under Tom's Point of Gooch Island
Home during the squall
Fresh snow on Mount Norman