Gabriola Island Trip Help!!!

[high tide]

I've been running the mouth both South and North for 40 + years, yes it can get hairy, Now I'm running 21 everything previous to that was smaller, just use your head watch weather report. Park at Mcdonald ......... the thing you need to worry more about is a big wind coming up over the time your there for a few days, that might extend your stay ...... maybe not a bad thing.

I only run with wind under 20 but prefer light to moderate 5 to 10 type of a forecast.

HT

 

[demco99]

I think I remember Pippen telling me that if it's during one of the Celebration of Fire nights then it's OK to overnight at Vanier or anywhere in the surrounding neighborhood, as long as you've had a decent amount of booze.

 

[Pippen]

I think I remember Pippen telling me that if it's during one of the Celebration of Fire nights then it's OK to overnight at Vanier or anywhere in the surrounding neighborhood, as long as you've had a decent amount of booze.

Ya.....the door's always open but for YOU it's BYOB....the stuff I have here is too refined for your uneducated palate.

No Schlitz, boxed wine or $10 vodka here.......and especially no Bud Lime or any lime beer unless you put it in yourself...and you'll have to look high and low to find Bacardi Limon.

 

[JAC]

Hight Tide,

In your 40 years of boating the south and north arm, have you noticed that one is better then the other. I would think that the north side maybe calmer but just wondering what you have noticed over the years?
Thanks

 

[Pippen]

So JAC.....I walked over to the launch at Vanier today and for the life of me I can't tell if you can park there overnight.

You CAN pay for parking that covers you 6am to 6am but without purchasing an $18 dollar day on the machine I couldn't figure out if they allow multi-day parking.

There is a sign that says no "camping" in RV's, vehicles etc.....but that is just to keep the sorta homeless folks out that live in vehicles as they frequent different areas on the west side of Vancouver.

I would tell you to call the Burrard Civic phone number mentioned earlier and ask them "if" you can leave a truck and trailer for a few days. There are signs in one area down there that say "no overnight parking" but on the side where the vehicle/boat trailer parking is it doesn't really specify.

 

[JAC]

Hey Pippen,

Thanks for looking into that I will have to give them a ring and find out forsure. If the weather and tides are good maybe I will just launch on the fraser and run out.

 

[dmurph]

Hey JAC , I moore up in the north arm and run in and out of that river 2 times a day 3 days a week all summer I never had an issue , for me I would be more concerned with getting my boat into a unknown slip over on the other side lol. I always just drop anchor for that reason. The North are is way less likely to blow up compared to the south arm and when it does the south arm gets pretty savage . You should just use vanier or MacDonald.

 

[JAC]

Hey Dmurph thanks for the advice, I was planning to book some morage at Pages Marina have you ever been there? When you say you would be more concerned about unknown slips on the other side are some of them a ***** to get at over there?

Thanks

 

[dmurph]

No I have not been to pages and I am sure they are fine, I am just not great or confident at taking my boat into slips in general, always scared to bump something. Just a personal skill issue lol. I always stay at silva bay which is just beside pages and most times I drop anchor as it is a nice protected area and we try and save the moorage cost to budget . Gas and fishing gear every weekend adds up. My point was you should be fine with the river and the crossing, i am not even confident in a marina with my boat but have no worries navigating the river or straight, i have been out in pretty much the worst conditions and its doable , just have to slow things down and your boat looks good and sea worthy. I will check pages out this year

 

[Pippen]

Hey JAC,

I have moored there before and the slips are pretty easy to get in and out of. Their "guest" docks are just long fingers where you basically are just "parallel parking" into the slips. They don't have a ton of room on the guest docks so I would book as soon as you can to confirm dates. As I mentioned we have been over there on derby weekends that happen in Silva in late May/early June and were forced to stay at Pages one year instead of Silva and we were lucky to get slips for 3 boats.

http://www.pagesresort.com/facilities.html

You can putt in your boat over to the Silva docks if you want to eat at the Pub there but the walk is a bit tricky as you have to go cut around a bunch of streets then a walk on a trail through some woods which is tough to find if you don't know where you're looking. You "can" cut through people's property but it isn't too well received....I speak of that from experience as a woman who was washing dishes in her kitchen came outside to give us sheeot as we were somewhat lost/turned around. Add to that if you are walking back after dark make sure you have a flashlight as we didn't the first time and lost two of our "soldiers" in the dark...hahaha.

 

[JAC]

I know what you mean I get pretty freaked out some times around the dock, there is a lot of money at stake!!! Don't want to hit someones boat, don't want to damage your boat. I new dock with a strange current and a cross wind can be pretty intimidating to say the least. One things forsure if you have one or two good guys on your boat it makes coming into a dock a lot safer!!! You watch Deadliest Catch they are always yelling and screaming aroud the docks,so it happens sometimes to the pro too. Some boats handle a lot better then others at the dock, my new boat seems to cut and hold a line a lot better then my hewescraft did. It may be because I have more deadrise on the boat and it cut better I don't know but its better forsure!!!

 

[dmurph]

Ya my old boat was a 21 foot trophy with a 150 yamaha I upgraded to a 2359 pilothouse trophy last year and it handles way better than the old boat but unknown current and wind pulling into slips is still tricky. I know you just have to be on the throttle but its hard to commit sometimes. As for crew it is usually just the wife and myself but now we have the baby so just me to handle the docking now.

 

[sir-vivor]

know what you mean guys , went from 16' to 21' and its a whole new ball game !

I guess we just have to get out more now eh !

 

[happy hooker]

Jordan, rocky point has free parking on the street outside the park and lots of it. I launch there exclusively because I always am staying in Coquitlam. It is a 1/2 hr run in decent water to the Cap, 15 mins more to Point Atkinson. The cash you save on parking will more than make up for the extra distance on the water. Usually pretty flat til Iron Workers Mem. bridge. My 2 cents. I would launch there, true there are alot of inexperienced ppl trying to back trailers in there but there are 5 or 6 lanes as well, and early morning should be less busy.

 

[JAC]

Sounds good free parking and no river would be great, Is that launch good on low tides? Maybe we should just go to Bamfield with you guys and not mess with the gulf islands?

 

[happy hooker]

Launch is fine unless you hit about a 1ft or less right at low. I am waiting for uncle Pauly to give me dates for this years June trip, will let you know, if you can take the ferry cost there is no comparison btwn west coast and the gulf islands imo. If the salmon arent there at least you have bottom fish and big hard crab. Plus the bonus of 5 star accomodations at the beam

 

[JAC]

good call on the 5 star accomodations at the beam, it might not be fancy but I think thats the reason everybody loves it and has a blast!!!

 

[Red Monster]

When will the ling cod be open there? And when it opens, is it every day or only certain days?

 

[trophywife]

if ya come to port moody lemme know,, always like to run across with other boats.... or if in bamfield,, i be der!!!

 

[happy hooker]

Hey Pippen,

Thanks for looking into that I will have to give them a ring and find out forsure. If the weather and tides are good maybe I will just launch on the fraser and run out.

Absolutely, love the beam. Always great people there too.