Leaving Walker Bay was a long, uneventful, easy cruise with time for naps and wildlife viewing: black bears foraging on shore, humpbacks feeding, and seals popping up their distinctive dog-shaped heads. Heading way into the back of Yes Bay provided lots of opportunity to practice careful navigation, as the entrance had some skinny spots, but Bob brought us to a great anchorage and as the rain started, Brian headed out to drop crab pots.

The next morning we set off for a short cruise to Marguerite Bay, a spot the whales clearly prefer. Sometimes it’s seeing the blow that alerts you to whales, other times you hear the blow … the gentle push of air as they surface; in a calm bay it’s an unmistakable sound. Brian caught more crab here and we feasted on dungeness crab for two days.

As we left Behm Canal and entered Clarence Strait, we saw a return to civilization: cruise ships, other pleasure boats, and a few small fishing lodges on the shore. We made an unscheduled trip to Thorne Bay for provisions, and found it a lovely, quiet bay on Prince of Wales Island. With a population 471, everyone was friendly and knew we were visitors. We head today to the quaint village of Myers Chuck.