5-14 July 2011 Pirate's Cove

Pirate's Cove entry reef. This is covered with water at high tide. Despite markers ashore and on the reef, boaters still try to cross it....

Pirate' Cove and a new statuette created by an unknown boater artist.

A few young entrepreneurs built a log house - with two rooms, a few tree stumps for seats inside, and a glorious view through the cracks in the log walls

Ok - the treasure is BURRIED here - somewhere...

Pirate's Chest in Pirate's Cove

And another bit the dust -at least until high tide re floated her...

Back on the Park Host dock first time this summer season. The 'Patio', as I call the dock, consists of a little floating concrete island in the middle of a mini Eden. The dock box contains an official uniform jacket, report books, brochures of every marine park in the Gulf Islands - except the one I am in - replenishment treasures from the dollar store for the 'Pirate's Chest' ashore, and two of the most uncomfortable folding stools ever designed for human posteriors. Happiness for the next ten days....
It is unusually quiet, with a much reduced visitor volume to the park...even on the weekend I counted only 20 boats, a fraction of the usual summer crowd.
That does not mean 'no groundings' in the somewhat tricky anchorage. So far, only one sailboat crewed by two merry making couples (the vino and cerveza were speedily being depleted aboard to lusty shouts and exuberant laughter) found itself teetering stern upward, bow down on the rocky slope of west shore at low tide. As it was calm, the happy and oblivious crew slept throw the whole thing. They floated off to their next destination after recovering sufficiently to figure out which end was the bow...
A young couple from Germany stopped over in their Russian design (faster to paddle) tandem Kayak, portable version, loaded with all their gear to cover all eventualities of a five week paddling Odyssey. They started in Haida Gwai, the islands previously known as Queen Charlottes, and had made their way down partly by ferry and partly by kayak. That is a hard trek in any boat - but a kayak??
The cove showed itself from it's most agreeable side, not plagued by anchor dragging winds, nor plastered by mood dampening rains, but blessed with summery pleasant temperatures, inviting visitors to cannonball from their top decks into the water, or taking dips into the invigorating waters from their stern ladders.
However, after one particularly cold night I dug out the Charlie Noble (chimney) and started a roaring blast in my cabin heater - the place was freezing!
The eagles are parenting an invisible brood somewhere, judging by their incessant twittering and hunting around, so close to the boat that one could almost count their tail feathers. The raccoons still ply the muddy shore at low tide, and the herons stalk amongst the oysters on the rocky ledges.
Life is good.