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GANGES, GULF ISLANDS, BRITISH COLUMBIA
FINALLY, WE’RE OFF! We left this morning with only a short trip to Ganges but at least we’re on our way. We head out the Van Isle Marina and into the bay that we had been gazing at over the breakwater everyday at high tide. Finally we’re off even if only for a short little hop to Salt Spring Island to see our friends. We’re on our way hurray!
THE WEATHER IS PERFECT The weather is perfect and so calm after the windy rough seas of the Caribbean and their endless days of wind wind wind. It’s almost too perfect as it feels like the calm before those Bahama storms but we know it’s not. We have to remember we’re in protected waters now and things will be different from the raging winds and reoccurring Fronts of the Caribbean.
WHERE IS THE KLOSHE? We pass the harbor markers and the several little rocky islands and then up the Channel to Ganges. We don’t see any sign of Kloshe yet, that our friend’s boat. They have a 30 foot Norstar, a fast little boat, perfect for scooting around the islands up here. It’s all they need really as they have a summer house here. It’s quick and fast and comfortable. It has just enough room for two to sleep, a small galley, a protected pilot house and can cruise the amazing speed of 25 knots! To us that seems like the speed of light as we normally cruise at 9 knots max unless we get some help with a following current. Well, Bernie is an ex jet pilot, so it only figures that his brain must work about 100 clicks faster than ours. THE CROTCH OF THE ISLAND We enter one of the fingers of Salt Spring Island, the channel that heads up to the crotch of the island where Ganges lies. We finally see our friends heading up the channel behind us. They are gaining on us, gliding swiftly over the glassy waters. Their blue hull is cutting the water nicely and they looked very determined with their two new grey kayaks tied on top pointed forward like two intent horns. It’s a pretty darn spiffy image as they fly across the water. We say a brief “hello” on the radio but they must speed on ahead as they have an appointment with customs at the Ganges Public Dock at 11:30 AM. We are already in Canada so don’t have to hassle with that as Knotty Dog did her clearing in Port Victoria before she was lifted off the freighter down into the deep cold waters of Juan de Fuca. We happily and slowly trudge on up the channel following their path as they disappear into the grey mist. Their only visible trace now is a waning ripple of disturbed water and wake. We’re in no hurry though as we like to take our time and look at the outcropping of homes nestled in the forested hills and the cottages along the shore some of which have their own private beaches. I especially like the ones that are perched out on some amazing rocky outcropping, sitting there like an eagle watching the boats go by. GANGES, ONE OF OUR FAVORITE SPOTS ON
EARTH Aaaah, Ganges, one of our favorite places. It’s cute as a bug is what comes to mind to describe it. That description just doesn’t do it justice though. It’s located in the Gulf Islands which are just above the invisible line where the Canadian and American border meet, marking the end of the American San Juan Islands and the beginning of the Canadian the Gulf Islands. Ganges is up one of the fingers of beautiful Salt Spring Island. The locals and visitor’s alike are an interesting mixture of people that span the gap from crunchy granola to the money filled pickets of sophisticated wine spectator types. It’s a small little village but has plenty of spunk, life and culture as it seems to be a gathering place for a multitude artists, talented craftsman, creative musicians and respected writers and I don’t want to forget to mention the interesting culture of young and old hippies. There’s plenty of everything here, great food and restaurants, book stores, art galleries, and a wonderful hardware store that has just about everything you’d ever need living on an island and to boot there are a never ending line up of little festivals to enjoy all through the spring, summer and fall season, and that includes the fantastic Farmer’s Market which occurs every Saturday, rain or shine. We are lucky to be here this particular weekend as lots of different things are going on. First and foremost will be the Farmer’s Market, and then a boat building contest and lots of local live music in the park. We’re especially looking forward to a wine tasting dinner that Bev has made reservations for tonight at the Artist’s Bistro.
So, it wasn’t long before everyone was cleared and we were settled in at the docks. It was great to see Bernie and Bev again, though we are connected by email almost everyday, it’s good just to see their faces again. Last time we saw them was a year ago, 4th of July, for 10 days, as they joined us on Knotty Dog in Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. This afternoon though, we spent the afternoon poking our noses into the local shops, strolling around town and stopping at one of the many places to choose from for lunch.
THE NIGHT IS LIGHT AND WE DIDN’T FALL IN THE BRINK The days are long up here as it doesn’t get dark until about 10:30 PM and it always creeps up on us unexpectedly. So “the night, though light” came sooner than expected and it was time to head up the long steep dock ramp and walk across the village to the Artist’s Bistro which is located near the working marina. They were having a special dinner paired with local island wine produced and presented by Garry Oaks Winery from Salt Spring Island. You can only buy their special wines on Salt Spring so if you ever get over this way we highly recommend them. I must say the food and wine were stupendous and the liquid just kept flowing and I still think it was a miracle that we managed to wobble back to our boats at 11:00 PM that night without falling in the brink.
GANGES FARMER’S MARKET In the morning we headed to the town park for the famous Ganges Farmer’s Market which is always so much fun. It’s filled with a multitude of artistic crafts made by the talented locals, covering the gamut of just about everything including beautiful hand carved wooden bowls, colorful wool hand woven mufflers and hats, to jewelry and pottery, and more. The foods are pretty interesting too, lovely homemade gourmet cheeses, and crusty artisan breads, and even aromatic Asian pot stickers and fresh local greens and colorful veggies from the local farms (which I think all are organic). While you are shopping you are entertained by local talented musicians taking turns showing off their musical skills at the adjoining park over looking the harbor. Everyone enjoys themselves and to some it frees their inner spirit as many just can’t help dancing openly to the entrancing beat of the music.
BOAT BUILDING CHALLENGE Today we were lucky as it was happenstance that we stumbled across their annual boat building contest. We first noticed a large area of the lawn that was roped off and within that area, they had divided that space into about 10 squares, all individually roped off too and in each were identical little piles of building materials, hardly what you would think sufficient to build a seaworthy vessel. All the contestants were to make use of these meager pieces of wood and plastic to design and build their craft all within, I might add a very limited amount of time. There was a wide gamut of contestants; some were families, like a father and son team, some were coast guard officers, some just teenage friends and some old codgers with plenty of experience too. The participants had about 2 hours or so to complete their masterpieces and soon it was time to launch their “vessels”.
CROWDS GATHERED TO CHEER THEM ON IN THE FRIGID WATERS! Amazing crowds of people gathered on the shore as the boat builders carried their light weight ships above their heads, some perched on shoulders, and headed down to the muddy shore. All gathered to watch the event; dogs, kids, families, the whole town actually, maybe even the whole island came to cheer them on. Some of these newly crafted “vessels” I might say were pretty strange looking and we doubted their seaworthiness right from the start but we should’ve had more faith as each group of contestants seemed confident and determined that theirs would win “no problem”. They were all carried down to the shore, many having a bit of difficulty walking through the mucky mud exposed by the inconvenient low tide but soon were all in the water. and a few were quite wobbly as the captains climbed aboard
They were all determined to prove they would complete the course though it meant a good chance of sinking and getting dunked in the frigid cold waters. The Coast Guard was ready nearby in their trusty orange zodiacs, dressed in survival gear, surveying the activity for any emergency and finally with a loud blast of the horn they were off! A few were quite wobbly as the “ship builders” climbed aboard and some had a slow starts requiring much needed pushing and a bit of encouragement, and others were off in a flash as their homemade paddles were actively working in strong centrifugal motion. Their route was rigorous for such questionable sea going vessels but that didn’t deter these hearty souls one bit. Some were so slow and wobbly that finally a few of the builders had to swim and push. But nothing was stopping these determined boat designers. Maybe they were spurned on by the incredible cheering and support form the shore. One or two vessels, poor things, did succumb to the depths of the harbor, almost immediately, but the others headed out stoically past the channel markers no matter how difficult the task. Two of the boats were operated by the coast guard teams so there was a bit of pride and face involved. In the end they all managed to finish the course, well except of course, the two that sunk immediately. The organizer of the event won first place as someone said he does every year and I must say he is an ornery chap as he managed to start a frolicking sea war between the boats and before you know it they all managed to sink each other’s boats all in good fun and sportsmanship. It was all fun and good cheer for all.
DINNER AT PICCOLO That evening we had another wonderful but much quieter dinner at the lovely Piccolo restaurant, all of us having some fresh Alaska Halibut or BC Salmon. It’s so easy to get spoiled with their luscious fresh salmon here as it tastes like nothing you’ve ever had at home. It was a nice ending to a great few days together with our friends. It was quiet and elegant and a bit reflective as I realized it may be another long year again before we see them.
UNTIL NEXT TIME, SO LONG BERNIE AND BEV In the morning, we said our goodbyes and walked out to the end of the dock to wave to Bev and Bernie as they motored out and down the channel. Ziggy gave them a big crying howl and I could see he wondered to himself why they were leaving. He stood there on the dock with us and watched them disappear into the purple grey of the morning light. Thanks again for some great memories to add to our log.
Ganges Marina Photos
Ganges Flowers
MAKING PLANS FOR HEADING NORTH After the weekend the Ganges Marina cleared out and it was like a ghost town but we liked the quite and peacefulness of the village after the busy weekend. It gave us a quiet day to make plans for our float plan heading north. We decided our next stop would be Montague Harbor, not very far away, a place we wanted to visit again before we left the Gulf Islands.
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