After three weeks exploring Desolation Sound, it was finally time to start making our way home.
But the weather had other plans.
The wind had been unpredictable all week, and Monday was shaping up to be the only real window to start the trip south. Jared had a shift at Vancouver Fire waiting for him on Friday, so we didn’t have the luxury of sitting around for better conditions.
So on a Monday morning, we pulled anchor at Grace Harbour and pointed the boat toward home.
An Unexpected Reunion at Grace Harbour
The anchorage wasn’t busy when we pulled in, which was a nice change after some of the crowded stops earlier in the trip.
And then we spotted a familiar boat.
Our Stryker Boats ambassador, Dave Norona, was anchored right there with his family, his cabin cruiser, and his Stryker tied up alongside.
Dave’s also an ambassador for Roam Foils, and when he’s not on the water he’s usually towing one of their foil boards behind the boat, carving up the wake.
We spent the evening catching up with Dave and his family. Seafood pasta came out, the laughs didn’t stop, and we watched the sunset together before calling it a night.
Running into friends in the middle of nowhere is one of those things that never gets old out here.
Full Circle at Thormanby Island
From Grace Harbour, there was one more stop we couldn’t skip on the way home: Thormanby Island.
It was the very first stop of our three-week trip to Desolation Sound, so sailing back in felt like closing the loop on the whole journey.
Thormanby is actually two islands, North and South, separated by Welcome Passage off BC’s Sunshine Coast. At low tide, a sand bar connects them, so you can walk between the two.
The island has quite a history. A Spanish naval officer named the islands Isla de San Ignacio back in 1791, but by 1860 a British captain renamed them Thormanby, after a racehorse that had just won the Epsom Derby that year. Much of South Thormanby is protected as Simson Provincial Park, and the beaches are some of the nicest sand beaches on this part of the coast.
Standing on that beach again, at the end of the trip instead of the beginning, was a pretty special moment.
Smuggler Cove — The Last Night
Our final stop before heading home was Smuggler Cove, tucked in near Secret Cove on the Sunshine Coast.
The entrance alone tells you this place has a story. It’s narrow and winding, threading past rocks and reefs before opening into a small, protected anchorage.
And the name isn’t just for show. The story goes that the cove was once used by actual smugglers, some say to move liquor during Prohibition, others say it was tied to a local rum-runner known as the “King of the Smugglers.” Nobody’s entirely sure which version is true, but either way, it’s easy to see why smugglers would have loved a hideout like this.
We dropped anchor for our last night of the trip and watched one more BC sunset light up the cove.
Three weeks, countless anchorages, a few scares, a lot of laughs, and one very full-circle ending.
Home was waiting, but we weren’t in any rush to forget this one.
— Jared & Ang
Off Grid Enthusiasts
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