Leaving Port McNeill at the break of dawn, we all woke with excitement to start our journey across Queen Charlotte Strait into Pruth Bay. With our trek around 85 nautical miles getting a head start earlier in the day will allow us to take advantage of calm seas and clear passages.

Across the strait we danced along swells and ogled at the way the parting clouds exposed a skyline of the distant Coast Mountain range. We all took turns at the helm and checked on our crews, finishing the feat of our longest crossing yet, with ease.

Coming into Pruth Bay on Calvert Island we were all greeted by a juvenile humpback whale who was cruising alongshore. With a single fluke of its tail, it used the propulsion to dive deep, making its way out of the bay.

Finding a perfect anchorage to assemble a raft we solidified Deception’s position and called in the rest of our goslings to tie up as part of our floating neighborhood for the evening.

Warm sun and low winds called for nothing less than a beach day, and with everyone settled in and winding down from our 9-hour crossing, Deception provided the crew an assortment of snacks and drinks as an appetizer to our dinners back home.

Taking in the white sands and smooth water we all basked in the rare feeling of what some call the “Caribbean of Canada.”

With the coast lined in granite rocks and scattered with crushed shells, this equation made for the softest and squeakiest sands some of us had ever seen.

As the sun was setting, we couldn’t shake the smiles off our faces as we all enjoyedd the sand and each other’s company. Sharing stories and continuing to make friendships for a lifetime, we cheers drinks and begin wrapping up our evening. Cleaning up the beach as a team we make our way back to the raft, finish dinners and tuck in for the night. Sure enough, we will all be sleeping well tonight.