The August Rendezvous at Port Browning was my first real return to a BCA rendezvous as a fully participating member. It had been such a long time since I was a Dreamer, being a Doer in 1998, and a Doner and Communications watchkeeper in 1999, teaching ham radio email and celestial navigation. While my focus was offshore cruising, sadly it’s no longer. But the BCA culture of seamanship, community, and exploration transcends the open ocean. I see old members who no longer have a boat but pay it forward to keep dreams alive.
More work goes into planning a larger rendezvous. As Ryan discovered with Makoolis, surprises happen, and Eric’s boat, Arahura, became the host boat, while I received several large bins to take across on Aramoana. Plan B.
Potlucks, pancakes and emergency provisions from the life raft. Aramoana stepped up to bring some of the supplies.
With my health issues and our dog, my boyfriend paid for moorage at the dock, a first for me. While offshore in Mexico, the dock usually meant being harried by boat work. But not this time. Another Plan B, but with the opportunity to meet other boaters, both BCA and not. A pleasant surprise.
Of course, it was convenient to head over to the life raft demonstration aboard Arahura. A life raft is yet another Plan B, one that you hope you don’t need. And if you do, you hope it works. I was surprised by the intrepid volunteers who braved the cool waters and had trouble getting over the life raft tubes. The attached rope, which hangs in the water to help with boarding, would just force their feet under the raft. It was better to use it after their body was over the tube. It was a relief to finally climb inside the raft, pump the floor, and discover its accoutrements: food rations, patch kit, oars, a sponge, even an instruction manual. To add to the realism, the local Coast Guard Auxiliary participated in the “rescue”.
Deployment of the life raft provided a full-immersion experience for those who wanted it.
Thanks to the volunteers, there were the usual activities that I remember from the days when BCA rafted up in Montague Harbour: dinghy races, potlucks, awards, offshore packages, visiting boats. While the dinghy rafts are fun for lunch, I do miss the big rafts, like the 22-boat circle raft in Degnen Bay in 1995.
As members received their offshore packages, I couldn’t help but remember when I received mine. Later as Communications watchkeeper, I decided to upgrade the packages with an archive of useful websites on a CD. Times have changed with Starlink, although I would still have contingencies for being offline, like ham radio and Weatherfaxes. What used to be Plan A would become my Plan B for a future trek like going to Alaska. How fortunate that two recent Club Nights have discussed that journey north! I just upgraded my anchor chain to 400-ft in case I need it. New electronics is next.
Top left: World cruising map in the background with cruising routes from earlier BCA members; Top right: The lunchtime dinghy raft up with Roger and his dog Lu-Bu (named for the Chinese warrior, Lü Bu); Bottom left: BCA Commodore David Vincent; Bottom right: Door prizes being given out, thanks to generous sponsors.
You don’t need to go far away to get the offshore experience. A couple of years ago while anchored in Ucluelet, I met participants on VICE. Indeed, my trip through Juan de Fuca in both directions was just as challenging as the trip back from Hawaii with a triple-reefed main and staysail jib to handle a gale. But there’s nothing like sailing bare poles in a Force 11 shearline coming off Cape Blanco. [Note: A BCA boat, Dragon Spirit, was lost there in 2005, which prompted me to get NOAA to add the 21Z GEOS-West Visible satellite image on their Pt. Reyes Marine RadioFax schedule. The shearline is not really visible on IR (infrared) because it’s not associated with a low pressure front. Back then, Eureka National Weather Service said that location is a “data hole”.]
While going offshore is no longer an option with my injuries, my Plan B is to explore the BC coast, one of the best cruising grounds in the world. I remember a culinary show, called Galley Chefs, that started in Victoria and headed north. There was a gradual transition from urban to rural, from crowded anchorages to isolation, and from developed shorelines to rugged coasts. I hope to see more presentations by members who explore these northern destinations and its natural and cultural diversities. Diversity is what makes exploration fun and interesting, even at times challenging and scary. It’s what makes club nights engaging.
At the rendezvous, a variety of rendezvous activities got people with different backgrounds to mingle, like the jigsaw puzzle and guessing contests. BCA’s educational offerings and volunteer positions provide opportunities for growth and interdependence. As former commodore, Peter Doherty, once said, getting boaters together to do something can be like “herding cats”. But using our collective diversity to run such a large organization has made BCA more effective in its mission to foster seamanship and friendship for those interested in offshore cruising.
Top left: Rendezvous Coordinator Ryan Shellborn; Top right and bottom left: Members contributing their parts to the world map puzzle; Bottom left: Heather handing out tickets and perhaps guarding the candies from the guessing games.
Dreams come and go; some are realized, some not. But I’ll keep dreaming, even if it’s Plan B.
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Interesting article, Roger!
“the BCA culture of seamanship, community, and exploration transcends the open ocean. I see old members who no longer have a boat but pay it forward to keep dreams alive” I like how you put it, Roger! Glad you got to the RV and wrote it up, and good pictures too