Elphin Cove - July 20, 2018

Almost 15 months have passed since we arrived back in the Comox Valley after our three years in Mexico.  I was fairly diligent about keeping up with the blog, but lost it completely by the time we reached Glacier Bay, Alaska and, as you have probably noticed, haven’t posted since.  Well, I am going to try to rectify that over the next little while.  Thankfully, I kept a good written journal, took lots of pictures and traced our journey home through Alaska and the northern British Columbia coast on maps.  The memories of this part of our adventure are so vivid it will not be difficult to recount them.

Elfin Cove

After we left Pelican, we motored up Lisianski Strait, hung a right into Cross Straits, then slipped into Elphin Cove.  We began in windless fog and rain, but by the time we arrived in the late morning, the clouds had lifted and we were treated to a glorious, sunny afternoon.  As we approached, the transient dock appeared full, but just past the crowding of little fish boats at the end of the pier, Doug managed to manoeuvre us into a tiny space.  

The fishermen on the dock were looking very unhappy, grumbling about a miserable, windy night with high seas and no fish.   Additionally, there were two towering fish-buying barges anchored inside the tiny cove so tightly you could hardly see the water.  Mangy dogs ran up and down the docks, hopping off and on boats, excited to be ashore while their masters complained.  Amidst all the fishermen there was one brave woman, holding her ground aboard her own tiny boat.  

Most of the fishermen were from Petersburg, including the woman who sailed this boat.  Ka'sala is wedged in front

There was only one other sailboat, locked up and empty.  We were surprised to see it was Cape St. James whose owners we had been trying to connect with for several weeks.  We found out later that Fran and Jim, friends of friends from Mexico, had taken the floatplane to the hospital in Juneau because Fran had broken her arm.  We never did meet them.

Flying out of the entrance to Elphin Cove - Fairweather Range in the distance

We had heard that Elphin Cove had a good grocery store and we were anxious to stock up before heading into Glacier Bay.  Our last fresh produce, bought in Sitka, was almost gone and neither of us was looking forward to tinned vegetables and fruit.  Once Ka’sala was secured, we headed up the dock to explore.  Elphin Cove is a boardwalk village, similar to Pelican, running along an inner harbour and circling around a small promontory.  It is lined with wooden dwellings, lodges, a couple small restaurants and services such as laundry and post office.  

The grocery store was well stocked and, lucky for us, it was “fresh produce day”.   I was able to get what we needed - once I got over the exorbitant prices!  There were many Kirkland staples and I learned that the products were delivered by floatplane from Costco at $50.00 USD an order.  

Elphin Cove General Store (from Sailing Rover Blog)

We didn’t tarry as we had to be off the dock by 3pm to catch the flood tide which rushes through Inian Pass – sometimes as high as 9 knots!  We made it through with only a couple of knots behind us, accompanied by two mid-sized National Geographic cruise ships.  We wondered if they were the same ones we had encountered in the Sea of Cortez.  

Spectacular views from Inian Pass

As we exited the Inian Pass into the Icy Straits, the wind picked up over 25 knots from behind.  We let out the headsail and were forcefully pushed all the way to Mud Bay, our planned anchorage for the night.

We were tucked in behind Goose Island

We were not impressed when the strong wind, along with building swells, followed us into the bay. We were concerned we would not find safe haven and we didn’t know of any other place else nearby.  As we were pushed further into the shallowing bay, we spied a small aluminum fish boat tucked into a small cove behind a tiny island.  As we anchored just behind him, the sea flattened, and only gusts set us dancing while the shaggy island trees blocked the worst of it.  Unexpectedly, we spent a delightful evening there, watching the light fade over the many peaks and mountains.  At one point a grizzly bear came foraging down the rocky beach before returning back to the gloom of the forest.  Sea otters played in the kelp and we noticed the water had changed to an opaque light green.  

I checked the temperature – 6 degrees Celsius!!!  Well, why not?  Here we were, just across the Icy Straits from Glacier Bay – home to many retreating glaciers perpetually calving into the ocean!  We spent a peaceful night, dreaming of soon seeing those magnificent glaciers for ourselves.

See map above for position of Elphin Cove