Glenthorne Passage Genoa Bay

Glenthorne Passage to Fulford Harbor: 9.3NM 

Fulford Harbor to Genoa Bay: 11.5NM 

 Our trip is winding down, as we have to have Best of Times back to Friday Harbor in the U.S. by Friday morning. We also had to drop off the kayak (affectionately called “the canoe” by me) on SaltSpring Island today. So we took one more morning kayak in Glenthorne Passage, We went at low tide, which is definitely the most interesting. There were gobs and gobs of the purple starfish, crammed into newly exposed crevasses as the water receded. A few orange ones were seen here and there, but not a lot.  

 

Looking back up Glenthorne Passage from our anchorage. 

 We kayaked along the shore of Secret Island, which has cabins with small docks, and said hi to a resident who thought it was a terrific day to enjoy kayaking. He was right. As we headed toward the head of the cove and the private dock there, I thought I saw a dog on the dock watching us. Guess what? It was a big seal. He was high and dry on the dock, sunning himself. We approached stealthily and he watched us intently. Not threatened or unhappy, just alert. He scooted to the other side of the dock when we got close, but as we went around to the other side of the dock, he just sat there, craning his neck from time to time to see what we were up to. He reminded me of my cat Aspen. If he can’t see us, he must be hidden, right? Wrong!  

 We kept on kayaking and Bob pointed out a blue heron just feet away on the rocks, blended so well into the background that you could hardly notice him. How beautiful is all this wildlife? 

 On our way back to the boat, another boater said hello and “it’s a great day for kayaking, eh?”  All those Canadian “eh” jokes appear to be warranted. Really nice folk, they just say “eh” like we say “uh” or “huh” or “right” or “yes”.  

 

Picture perfect in the Kayak. 

 We decided to drop off the kayak in Fulford Harbor where the kayak place was located rather than going back to Ganges. We did this because we’d never been to Fulford and it sounded nice in the plethora of guidebooks you need for a trip like this. We found the tiny dock that abutted the kayak rental place and stayed there for 2 hours while we had a great lunch and reprovisioned at the local store. 

 Not content to linger, we headed to Genoa Bay for the night. Another spot in the guidebooks, it sounded lovely and like a nice marina, as we were ready to tie to a dock and have some shore power for the evening. Pretty place, nice docks, and an apparent convention of Nordic and American Tugs, by the look of it. Bob and I walked the docks, looking at the boats and some very nice boathouses, and I remarked that all we needed to make it a perfect day was a kitty. 

 Needless to say, ask and ye shall receive. There was a small art gallery on the docks, and the woman who ran it had a lovely 18 year old Maine Coon named Toby. This cat was so affectionate, I sat on the floor and it came over and sprawled out next to me and let me pet it for 20 minutes or so. Every time I stopped, Toby butted me with his head and convinced me to keep rubbing his jowls and his ears. This was fun! 

 Tonight we’re off to dinner at the restaurant just up from the docks and then tomorrow we’re off to Roche Harbor to clear U.S. customs and get ourselves back into the States.