Vancouver Island Chapter
An Update From the Islands and Inlets
Scott Crawshaw
It has been a great season so far, with in-person attendance at Club Nights in the mid-thirties and online attendance at around fifteen computers and other devices. The end of 2023 included a pot-luck dinner at the Nanaimo Yacht Club for the Mid-Island group, and a casual appies social and awards night at RVYC. The […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – January 2024
Campbell Good and Bill Eisenhauer, VI Fleet Coordinators
Everything you ever wanted to know about offshore insurance but were afraid to ask was asked at January’s VI Fleet meeting. And Sean Thompson of Dolphin Insurance had it covered. With detailed tips on how to get the right coverage for your specific cruising needs, Sean detailed options for worldwide coverage or region-specific plans for […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – December 2023
Campbell Good and Bill Eisenhauer, VI Fleet Coordinators
The VI Fleet wrapped up 2023 with a lively panel discussion featuring returning cruisers who shared insights on their bluewater experiences. Fleet members posed wide ranging questions from what our panel of Doners wished they had known before setting off and their must-have items to how they successfully managed relationships aboard to keeping kids engaged […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – November 2023
Campbell Good and Bill Eisenhauer, VI Fleet Coordinators
The VI Fleet’s November focus was Provisioning. We had a great presentation by Brent Alley and Sonia Crawshaw, with additional input from Barb Lyall and Jennifer Handley. Topics included: Who Are You Provisioning For? Fair Trade for Food Factors to Consider When Stocking the Vessel Galley Equipment List Gimbaled Stove & Harness Review Your Cooking […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Reports – September and October 2023
Campbell Good and Bill Eisenhauer, VI Fleet Coordinators
The Vancouver Island chapter decided to continue offering a hybrid Fleet in 2023-24 and this has allowed us to invite Calgary chapter members to participate as well. So far, nine boats have registered this year, including one from Calgary. Our first meeting was at RVYC on Sept 27, with 4 in-person and 4 virtual boats. […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Rendezvous Report
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The 2023 V.I. Fleet Rendezvous was a huge success and it all started on Friday, April 21 with the seven vessels able to attend heading for Port Browning on Pender Island. All were given explicit instructions that they were to heave-to en-route. Ever tried herding cats? Not all had the opportunity; Daragh and I did […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – April 2023
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The last VI Fleet meeting this year involved some mystery and subterfuge and was well appreciated by the 12 in-person and the 14 Zoom sailors in attendance. High on the list of announcements was the upcoming V.I.C.E. event and the VI Fleet Rendezvous on April 21-23. This included the announcement of a mystery prize to […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – March 2023
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The 2022-23 Fleet season is winding down and Wednesday night, March 15 was the second last evening of the season. One of our new V.I. Fleet Coordinators, Campbell Good joined Daragh Nagle and I to lead our in-person V.I. Fleet Group of 14 sailors in a workshop addressing the use of MBTiles with Open CPN. […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – February 2023
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The presenters at the February Vancouver Island Fleet meeting were a tribute to the success of past Fleet experiences. Debbie and Rob Warren met with our group to share their experiences in the past year sailing their Saga 43, Northern Star I, from the Chesapeake Bay area to Portugal via the Bahamas, Bermuda, and the […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – January 2023
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The January VI Fleet meeting began by extending a welcome to our new members, a past member Mel Finley, and one of our coordinators for next year, Campbell Good. Mel joined us before she heads off to join Morgan and their girls in French Polynesia. Unfortunately, Campbell’s assistant coordinator, Bill Eisenhauer, had a previous engagement […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – December 2022
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
On the evening of December 21st, in spite of Christmas preparations, pub meal delays, and road conditions we had 11 people join us in person and the gang of 11 on Zoom to hear Tony Gooch present his thoughts on preparations for Heavy Weather Sailing. Tony has been a perennial pillar of the Vancouver Island […]
Vancouver Island Fleet Report – November 2022
Al Kitchen – VI Fleet Coordinator
The Vancouver Island Fleet meeting on November 16 was reasonably attended with 15 folks at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club and 11 computers on the Zoom platform. Dr. Catherine Ascah followed our usual announcements, education news and Show and Tell from Brent Alley. Brent’s gems included a trusty handheld wind speed indicator and some great […]
