There is no finer way to wait out a gale than a pancake feed with friends. Due to high winds and rain across Queen Charlotte Sound, Mother Goose decided to hunker down for the day in Winter Harbour and enjoy a leisurely (and dry!) brunch on Deception. Robin and Johnny brought over some scrumptious southern grits. And Bonnie’s famous blueberry cornmeal pancakes stole the show.  After several rounds of coffee, the crews from Patos and Hele Mai geared up and braved the storm for a stroll along the boardwalk encountering a fantastic number of Rufous Hummingbirds congregated at the local hummingbird feeders.

Right at dusk, Jean and Meg piled into Deception’s dingy to look for bears. Bears, being crepuscular criters, are typically active during dawn and dusk. We lucked out and spent a long while watching a black bear forage in the low tide, flipping over rocks to look for crustaceans and mollusks.

Mother Goose fleet said farewell tonight to Marc and Marnie of Hele Mai. Early tomorrow, after rounding Cape Scott with the fleet, Hele Mai will branch off on a solo circumnavigation of Vancouver Island. To send off Marc and Marnie in style, Patos’ crew hosted a lovely a social hour on their boat. It was a bittersweet goodbye, we will miss you in our fleet but are excited for your adventure ahead. Fair winds and following seas Marc and Marnie!