Big Bay to Octopus Islands

Today’s run to the ever-popular Octopus Islands is another short one, but this time our route takes us through Hole in the Wall—another first for OceanFlyer.

As with all narrows and rapids, timing is everything. Arriving near slack water makes for a comfortable, uneventful passage. Of course, it also means sharing the route with other cruisers who have done the same calculations.

Hole in the Wall is a popular passage, particularly because of its proximity to the Octopus Islands. We passed nine boats heading in the opposite direction, while at least five others were traveling with us. Fortunately, the channel—and even the narrowest section—is wide enough that the opposing traffic was never a concern.

As expected, plenty of boats were already anchored throughout Octopus Islands Marine Park and nearby Waiatt Bay. To our delight, however, “our spot” was open. We dropped the anchor in almost exactly the same place we had occupied earlier in the trip.

the octopus ISlands showing the north entrance on the right

looking back into the eastern end of waiatt bay and the southern entrance into the octopus islands

As the afternoon heat built, we launched the dinghy and made our own breeze with a complete circumnavigation of the area. Along the way, we checked out our fellow cruising boats and took a closer look at some new construction in Waiatt Bay.

Waiatt Bay is one of the great attractions of this area. It is exceptionally large, with a broad, consistently flat bottom and anchoring depths generally between 20 and 40 feet. That makes it suitable for vessels of almost any size. We eventually lost count of the boats anchored there, yet the bay is spacious enough that no one felt crowded.

For us, the Octopus Islands are a convenient stop along the way. For many others, they are the destination. That is part of the magic of cruising the Pacific Northwest: the same anchorage can offer each cruiser exactly what they are looking for, even when the experience is different for everyone.