August 5 - Weinberg Inlet, Dunn Cove

Whale Fin with Starfish

Strange to see Canada Geese on the Ocean

Sandhill Cranes - Twice the size of their cousin Blue Heron

Betty & Mike watching a whale feed

Bum to Bum Anchoring

Morning View from the Anchorage

We travelled with Wayne and Cathy for about 10 miles and as we turned off, we watched Sambuca going down the strait. It was sad for us an we will miss them until we see them on their return.
We found another beautiful anchorage at the back of the bay. Here we taught Dave to play the "Game" (Cards) that he had so futilely resisted in learning. Mike and Dave went out fishing in the afternoon and both came back with fish. Mike about a 8 lb. Coho and Dave with a 6 lb. pink salmon. We went off gunkholing and beachcombing and before long, we ran into a huge humpback whale feeding along the shoreline. The photograph is not as clear as we would like, but in close inspection, you will see that he has starfish living on his side fin. He was with us for about an hour and had a pretty standard routine for following the shoreline. We stayed out of his way and enjoyed watching him immensely. If not for Wayne and Cathy and their bad news, it would have been a picture perfect day.

The next morning I snuck out of bed like a 6 year old before the sun had even woken up. With housecoat and running shoes on, I went up to the top deck to hear the world waking up. I was hoping to hear some wolves, but instead I heard more birds then I have ever heard before. I heard ducks quacking, Ravens calling, woodpeckers with their rat tat tat on a tree, loons calling to each other, some mournful sounding bird which I assume to be a sea gull of some kind, stellar jays screeching in the trees, eagles announcing their presence, some sort of singing bird, a peeping bird almost like a robin, Canadian geese and herons squawking. It was so still outside I watched as 5 herring swam abreast around the boat creating a 5 wave ripple as they swam on the surface. Off in the distance I heard the big whoosh of a humpback whale breathing. It was so quiet I could hear the thrumming of a tug engine long before I saw him pass by the opening of the bay. No wolves, but perhaps in a few nights when the moon is full they will see fit to make an appearance. Coffee is on and the puppies have been to shore. As I sit typing this out, I hear a pretty loud noise from birds we have never seen before. The pair of long necked birds glide past the boats and land in the bay around the corner, Dave is watching them through the binoculars and we head off by dinghy, cameras in hand, to go see. These birds sound almost prehistoric with a call that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. They’re about 4 feet tall with brilliant red heads. Another first! They allow us close enough to get a few photos before taking flight. In my bird book, they are “Sandhill Cranes” – a relative of the blue heron. We have never stayed in a bay with such diverse sounds before.