Lingcod!

Friday August 14^th Pendrell to Blind Channel – Today we are making the 43.65nm run to Blind Channel, Northwest of Pendrell Sound.  We’ve never been that far north so were excited to see new some country!   We left and hour earlier than the others because we are the slow boat and we need to hit the Yuculta & Dent rapids close to slack water.

Yuculta, & Dent rapids can run like a river up to 9 knots.  Large whirlpools can form and steep standing waves can be very dangerous.  We are not taking any risks so we planned out arrival near slack water.  At 30 minutes before slack the water was still running 4 knots in places as the current whisked us through the channel.  The other two boats we were with hit the rapids a little later than we did.  They were on the other side of slack so the current had changed, going against them.  At one point they hit a strong current and their boats suddenly and sharply turned 45 degrees.  All the dishes drying on the counter in Todd’s boat went flying on the floor, breaking most of them.  This is not an area to mess around with!

We got tied up at Blind Channel Resort and took all the kids on a hike to see an 800-year-old cedar tree.  It was a beautiful, fun hike through the woods and the tree was massive!

We decided to try our luck Lingcod fishing and our dinghy and Todd’s across the channel just before slack water.  No luck at first but then the fish really started biting!  We all had fun taking turns bringing in the fish.  Between all of us we caught our limit – 9 Lingcod total!!  We filleted them up then vacuum bagged and froze them for a later date.

Each night for dinner we’ve all been gathering on Bruce and Gloria’s boat.  They have a beautiful 66’ Tollycraft that has plenty of room for the 12 of us to have dinner and socialize.  Bruce and Gloria have been very welcoming and fun, we are so thankful for their hospitality!

Trip Log – 321.71nm