Grace harbor, Sept 2nd

After our somewhat dreary stay at Teakerne Arm, we decided to check out Malaspina Inlet, which is a big body of water to the South  just as you enter the Desolation Sound area. This was a great place! We found pleasant weather and an excellent little anchorage at Grace Harbor. We dropped the hook in glass flat water, almost completely surrounded by undeveloped shoreline. There was a nice little hike to a lake at the head of the anchorage.

Some old logging equipment slowly being absorbed by the forest:

Nice freshwater lake at the end of the trail...

Good for a quick swim - the bottom was covered with mud and peat moss so you hop in, swim around & hop out (don't stand up or you'll sink into the ooze!). It feels wonderful to swim in fresh water on a hot day.

Saw a lot of this...new tree growing out of the stump of a previously logged cedar.

We made reservations at a fancy restaurant (The Laughing Oyster) about five miles up the inlet from Grace harbor. Winds were light so we decided to dinghy there and back:

This was an unexpected site along the way:

The Laughing Oyster was wonderful. Nice to dust off the "fancy" clothes and eat out. This restaurant came recommended by a local who chatted w/us at Refuge Cove. It also got high praise from the guidebooks and we can see why. Lovely weather & atmosphere, good service & delicious food all made for a perfect evening. 

We passed on desert so we could (hopefully) get home before dark. We had no lights, and there was a fair amount of logs and other debris to get through along the way. We made it back to the boat as the last bit of  light fell below the horizon.

Later that night we went out to check the stars and luckily looked down too as we were treatewd to a spectacular phosphorescence light show in the water. Its hard to describe, and impossible to photograph. As you look into the dark water, you see countless little pinpoints of light. It's similar to a bright starry sky, but three dimensional due to the clarity of the water. Also, the lights are produced by living organisms that move and dart around in the water. The bioluminescence critters are also activated when agitated by other creatures swimming through the water, so you see trails from fish, jellyfish, and larger plankton darting through the water column in three dimensions. Just running your hand through the water creates a countless little trails of bright lights. It was AMAZING - the best we've ever seen. Tried to photograph and/or video but unfortunately it does not come out. 

You had to be there...

Jellyfish skies. Reflections in still water the next day:

A nice little prawn catch on the way out of the inlet. These were big guys.