THE BC COAST. TAKE TIME FOR HISTORY.

Me, in 1978

Going North is getting easier.  My first foray up the inside passage was done 37 years ago with no electronics (we did have a lead line…).

Chart plotters and Satellite navigation have replaced compass and parallel ruler work, our weather eyes muted by increased accuracy and availability of forecasts.  Guidebooks abound with instructional “how to’s”, “where to’s” and “what do do’s”.

What used to take figuring and thinking is either imbedded in electronics or laid out in a book.

None of this is bad, but ‘cerebral’ seems to be replacing ‘saltiness’.

Of course it’s not completely true — the waters are the same as they were at the turn of the century - whether you pick 1800, 1900 or 2000.

On that first trip oh so many years ago I wish I would have taken the time to be more observant, but we were too focused on the practical aspects of going north in a leaky wooden boat to step outside ourselves and absorb local history.

Now much have that history, some of it still tangibly lingering back in the 70’s, is receding.  Decay and second growth subtly erases what was.  The forest heals the marks — call them attempts at progress or scars — they are fading and we anchor in what now appear to be pristine coves, with no sign that anything preceded our arrival.

One pulls in to Shoal Bay and views the magical view up Phillips Arm and feels the remote area of the BC coast — not realizing that just over a hundred years ago the population of Shoal Bay hovered around 1,500 people and was one of the largest if not the largest town on the west coast of Canada.

The BC coast has been explored, logged, mined and fished for a couple of hundred years.  And that’s just the recent history.  Petroglyphs and pictographs along with middens trace the human history far earlier.

The coast does have some historical record, but it’s only lightly documented.  My own theory is that life was tough - very tough for those who worked the land and there simply wasn’t a lot of time for leisurely recording the developments of the time.  But there are a few books that provide a sense of what used to be, for better or worse, providing insight to those past efforts.

We are truly blessed to have access to this magnificent coast with its intricate, largely protected, waterways.  I’ve heard stories of world cruisers who marvel at our backyard.  “You just don’t know what you have here!!” is a phrase I’ve heard a few times from those who have earned the sea miles to make such a comment.  Understanding the history of some of these places offers a deeper understanding of what we once had and, to a large extent, still have.

From a couples point of view, sometimes one party gets too focused on the tactical aspects of getting there and ‘owns’ it leaving the other party with a lesser stake in the cruise. Reading something like a ‘Curve Of Time’ changes the equation where the other party can make the trip her (or his) own.   I personally loved our summer cruise where I’m plotting courses and Amy pipes in "oh, that’s where Cappy and the kids…"  and she’d relate a story that happened some 80 or 90 years ago from the viewpoint of M. Wylie Blanchet.  It was Amy’s cruise as well as mine.  Our cruise.

On board the sailboat I try to keep a library of books focused on Northwest history.  If I find myself in a cove with some time on my hands, it’s interesting to know what went on before. The collection rotates.

It’s to easy to start of with the ‘Curve of Time’, so I won’t.  Wait.  I just did.  Suffice to stay it’s a classic written by M. Wylie Blanchet, who, recently widowed, took her 5 kids on summer cruises on their 25 foot boat in the 1930’s.  My personal hero.  Heroine.

The other classic is ‘Spilsbury’s Coast’, written by Jim Spilsbury and Howard White.  Spilsbury is the guy who lived the  stories, but White’s writing makes them pop.  White is also a product of the BC coast and wrote ‘Writing in the Rain’, a great collection of stories from Pender Harbor to Minstrel Island.

We enjoyed ‘Adventures in Solitude: What Not to Wear to a Nude Potluck in Desolation Sound’.  Grant Lawrence pens what turns out to be his love affair with Desolation Sound.  Candidly it starts a little slow, but stick with it.  For at least 4 of us, it turned out be one of the better reads in a long time.  Funny, informative, and you’ll come away with a deeper appreciation for Desolation Sound.

‘The History of Desolation Sound’ by Heather Harbord is an interesting book covering (obviously) Desolation sound, from it’s pre-european influence to the hippies of the 70’s. Also on board, but not yet read, is her book entitled ‘TEXADA TAPESTRY’ a history.

‘Woodsman of the West’ by Martin Allerdale Grainger was first published in 1908 and provides a first hand account of logging life.

I just skimmed ‘Full Moon Flood Tide, Bill Proctors Raincoast’ by Bill Proctor and Yvonne Maximchuk.  It’s a ‘cross over’ book bridging a guidebooks with stories from well known Broughton personality Billy Proctor.

‘Homesteads and Snug Harbours.  The Gulf Islands’.  Peter Murry captures stories from each of the Gulf Islands. The pioneers, the good guys, the bad guys, homesteaders and general stories of hardy folk from a far and attempts to settle the gulf islands.

‘Once Upon an Island’ is a well told story by David Conover.  He and his new wife embarked on a dream to build a small resort on Wallace Island in the Gulf Islands.

‘British Columbia Coast Names’ by Captain John T. Walbran was first published in 1909 and reprinted in ’71.  The origins of named places on the coast are researched and documented in 500 pages.

‘Vancouver Island's West Coast, 1762-1962’ by George Nicholson.  Another out of print book, but great stories about one of the last wild coast lines in the world.

The large format ‘Exploring’ books are hard to come by, but are fun to read.  Excerpts from Vancouver’s journals are printed on the charts, so you can see the excerpt relative to where he was on specific days.  Other commentary is included as well and enhances the trip North.

Closer to home there are two relatively recent books by patriarchs of long time San Juan Island families.  ‘The Building of Roche Harbor Resort by the Tarte Family’ by Neil Tarte, and ‘The Buck Stopped Here’ by Sam R. Buck.  Each has some great stories.  I’ve been lucky enough to hear some of these stories first hand from both of them over the years.  Neil has passed and Sam is now in his 90’s..

There are other books that have floated through the library and have are now in other hands. ‘I Heard the Owl Call My Name’ by Margaret Craven, ‘Upcoast Summers’ by Beth Hill,
I wasn’t going to go into the many guidebooks in this missive, but the library wouldn’t be complete without them.  Any of the newer guidebooks is fine for learning about anchorages.  The newer ones clearly will have more up to date information, but Waggoneers on-line is a good way to get the latest and greatest.

Here’s my take on guidebooks:  Certainly they are useful, but each of them has a ‘voice’ in how they present an area.  On our boat I carry several and when deciding on anchorages we rely on the collection, the voices (emphasis on plural) before making a call.

Personally I like the old ‘Gunkholing’ series by Al Cummings (for most of them) and Jo Baily-Cummings.  When they wrote together, there was a warm, folksy narrative.  Yes they are out of date, yes you shouldn’t rely on them for any developments in the past 10 to 15 years, yes they are out of print, but find a copy on Alibris.com.  They run between a buck and $15 and you’ll find their writing endearing and informative.

I have two books I use a lot.  First is ’The Burgee’ by David Kutz.  Every dock and marina is laid out in clear form and you can infer the numbering sequence and layout at a glance.  From Olympia to Port Hardy, it’s in there.  If you want color commentary and folksy anecdotes, you’ll be disappointed.  If you want to minimize the unknown as your bow rounds the corner of an unfamiliar breakwater, get this book.

If ‘The Burgee’ is the nuts and bolts of marinas and docks, ‘Local Knowledge’ covers the nuts and bolts of getting there.  From Tacoma to Ketchikan, Kevin Monahan lays out strategies to connect the destinations.  There’s a great table with strategies on how to tackle the rapids above Desolation — for 6 knots, 9 knots and 18 knots.  Johnstone Strait is another body of water assessed in depth. No coverage of marinas, but that’s not the point of the book.  It’s all about getting there and leveraging the currents.

If some of these are out of print, check out Alibris.com.  The out of print books are obtainable and affordable.