We figured it might be safer going this way, i would have loved to go on the outside again, but the weather can turn very nasty this time of year.   So we started out, in Granville Channel, our first stop was Kumealon Inlet, all the inlets are spectacular, but we had not counted on the blackflies, and let me tell you, there were blackflies, thousands of them, the minute the anchor went down, they were in the boat, on the boat, on our face, in our hair, they loved my left foot, i have so many scars now from their bites, it looks like i have the measles. We tried to close everything up, killed a few thousand, but we couldnt go outside, even though the weather was gorgeous, so we thought to go to the next place, Baker inlet, through Watts narrows, we waited on the outside for the slack, because the entrance is very small, and a strong current runs through it, once we were inside, we marvelled at the steep mountain sides around us, this was truly a wonderful spot….well…..the anchor went down, and there they were, thousands of them , diving into the boat, biting anything in sight with blood, Annie had them crawl through her fur, trying to get to skin, anchor up again, poor Bert was in agony , trying to work  at the bow, then put Curtsy in gear, and take off as fast as she would go. We just made it through Watts Narrows, tide was already running at 4 knots, and it grabbed and pushed the boat all over the place. Back out in Granville Channel, now what……we ended up in Klewnuggit inlet, a marine park, it was not as bad here, but we had to keep the boat closed, so we watched a movie, and went to bed. The next day we headed to Nettle Basin, Verney falls, the falls would not be running hard, but they were fed by a lake,and we anchored right in front of the falls, they made a bit of a breeze, which helped.  The itching of these blackfly bites is hard to discribe, it just wont let up, so i walked around with a  bottle of vinegar, which is the only thing that took the itch .out. There were still salmon trying to get up the falls, and on the shore we saw remnants of a very old fishing weir, made by the first nations. The falls look spectacular at low tide, when they double in height. We decided the next day to head towards Hartley bay, it had been blowing 25 to 30 knots NW every day, but we did not want to cross Wright Sound in heavy weather, this piece of water is noted to be tricky.  We anchored in Coghlan Anchorage, a very quiet, shallow place, no one there, tons of room for a lot of boats, then leave early the next morning to cross the Sound.

It was both exiting to be back, but i felt sad too, i loved it in the north, and want to come back again. We stayed on the dock for two nights, did a huge laundry, i went and picked up my tree at Cowpuccinos, it had sprouted,looked very well and healthy but  did not look like a bonsai anymore, it had a lot of attention, sitting in the window of the coffee shop.  I took it home and gave it a leafcut, fed it some extra food, and it is back now in its regular spot. We left the marina on the third day, and anchored near Maddogvoyager, check out their web site at http://www.maddogvoyager.com     these guys have been living, anchoring in Glacier Bay Alaska, for 4 years. Their stories are wonderful, the animals they saw, the people they met. We werent too sure of the anchor spot, and when i storm came up , over night, we had to pull the anchor up as we were dragging, it was not possible to put out more rode, as there was no room. We left there at 4 a.m., in total darkness, and went to Pillsbury Cove, where it was very quiet, no wind!!!!   We spent some good times with Dean and Leo, who also came to anchor in Pillsbury. On September 15th , we headed out of Prince Rupert area, the weather was good, nice sunny day. We decided to go through the inside, Granville Channel, and then to Princess Royal Channel.