Where do old boats go...

to rest, here in ganges there are 4 or 5 depending on what you classify as old, next to us is the Breeze, she is 110 feet long and was an ocean tug, it has been converted to a charter boat and took sightseers up the coast and fishermen to the small nooks and crannies along the coast, 

further out is a old wooden tuna fish boat measuring around 110+feet long, now a home. and of course there is our boat the Atrevida, built in 1928 coast ferry,  so many boats with stories to tell it is worth the trip down here into ganges just to see them, living history all around, all showing the care that their owners are giving them, all in different states of refurbishment.

 down deep in the bay is the old navy yard tug called the Sea horse, the owners are busy painting and scraping away on her,

A trip to ganges is like going to a museum.... lots and lots to discover

stay safe out there today boaters...

That reef wasn't there last time we came

to Montague... there is a channel that you can enter Montague from the north, it has a couple of reefs that one must be aware of.... DO NOT CUT THE CORNERS , as the "MIRAGE lV" will tell you all about cutting corners, he wedged his 40+ power boat up on the reef  this weekend and there he sat until help arrived to pull him off.. Damage was done, how much, who knows until the power boat gets inspected, their holiday ruined and the cost will be , well I hope his charge cards are clear cause he is going to need them... The boat is still floating but pumping water, something to do with the stuffin box and shaft. okay guys just cause ya can't see the buggers does not mean they are not there,,,,

stay safe and dry guys...

United Nations move over

there is a new boy in town,   we declare that the Atrevida should be the new united nations centre for the water, yesterday we had visitors from sweden and from seattle, the seattle group came by kayacs



 and arrived just in time for fresh cin-buns coming out of the oven,

so Am I tempting you to come visit.....

see ya soon..



A Visitor from San jan Islands...

We had a  visitor stop by and pick up some cinnimon buns, he was on vacation from the San Jan Island with his grandparents......

I am sure they brought the sun with them.  have a great time visiting us in Canada...



Bread is out of the oven

and here it is... come on over and get some while it is hot!!!!



oh where is summer

okay it is now almost june and we still have had no sign of summer, I am now sending off an e-mail to mother nature, this is enough spring, enough rain, enough windy time to move on and give us our summer weather.  other than that the park at montague is fairly full, most of the buoys are full, I think due to the US holiday, lots of our american friends out boating this weekend.  The swiftsure is almost over, how quickly they sailed to their marks and now they are back,  some of them are already finished.  The pies are out, the bread is in the oven and the cinnimon buns are on thier first raise, like I have time to be up here in the wheel house blogging... okay I am gone!!!!



Too good not to share!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Due to the current financial situation caused by the slowdown in the economy Congress has decided to implement a scheme to put workers of 50 years of age
and above on early, mandatory retirement, thus creating jobs and reducing
unemployment. This scheme will be known as RAPE (Retire Aged People Early).

Persons selected to be RAPED can apply to Congress to be considered for the
SHAFT program (Special Help After Forced Termination).

Persons who have been RAPED and SHAFTED will be reviewed under the SCREW
program (System Covering Retired-Early Workers). A person may be RAPED once, SHAFTED twice and SCREWED as many times as Congress deems appropriate.

Persons who have been RAPED could get AIDS (Additional Income for Dependents
& Spouse) or HERPES (Half Earnings for Retired Personnel Early Severance).

Obviously persons who have AIDS or HERPES will not be SHAFTED or SCREWED any further by Congress!

Persons who are not RAPED and are staying on will receive as much SHIT (Special High Intensity Training) as possible. Congress has always prided themselves on the amount of SHIT they give our citizens.

Should you feel that you do not receive enough SHIT, please bring this to the attention of your Congressman, who has been trained to give you all the SHIT you can handle.

Sincerely,

The Committee for Economic Value of Individual Lives (E.V.I.L.)

And their off,

yes the swift sure is about to begin here is a link so you can track your favorite boat though out the race.
http://tracker.swiftsure.org/#  I  am going to watch praire dancer,  anyone else have a favorite.  want to make a bet, on of my pies if I lose and perhaps something from you if you lose...  So now the montague report.... a dozen or so boats made it in here last night, still lots of room for everybody, we have a group of small wooden sailboats arrive yesterday and they are staying the weekend, they just went out of alittle sail, there are more power boats here today than sail.  so okay i got to go and check the baking,   stay safe out there and happy racing...

The Sun, The Sun

Just sneaking in here for a minute to announce the sun is shinning,   who knew!!!!!! Come on boaters this is it, the park is nearly empty so you get your pick of buoys and the bakery is open..... come on down or over or up or in or..or...or.......

Let the Weekend begin

It;s Friday guys, up and at em... This morning is is rainy and overcast, not to many boats in the bay here in Montague, 5 on buoys, 2 or 3 on anchor.  very quite. Not sure how much to cook but oh well we will never starve in the goodie department. Had visitors from the states yesterday and from Austria the day before so there are people on the move.  A sailboat anchor behind us is getting ready to leave for around the world, offered my services as a cook!!!!! maybe next time.  With the help of our son we got our big generator in the hold last week and it is working so good, we have had a lot of troubles with generators, if you need a recommendation on which gen. set to use come and talk to us and we will show you 5 different kinds and which one has worked the best for us. Believe you me we put them through their paces so I feel comfortable in recommending the ones that really work with out to much fuss..For you sailing enthusiasts the swiftsure is this weekend, All kinds of sailboats racing out of Victoria on a 2 day race. \you can follow them on line by googling Swiftsure race.     Looks like this is going to be a weaving day yayayaya. keep safe on the water people and today keep dry. Here is a great scarf to help keep you warm, Our registered BC Tartan.

It's thursday!!! and we have left the building

well accually we have left ganges, wow what a windy,rainy couple of days. makes it kind of interesting toget supplies out to our boat from dock, well here we are back in Montague, the park is fairly empty, a couple of boats on the buoys and a couple on anchor, there are two big boats on the park dock, what's with that, thought the dock was for small boats!!! anyway it is windy here too but there are no big waves like in ganges, the pies just came out of the oven the scones are done the french bread just went into the oven and then the cinnimon buns,  okay so I have lots of work to do yet,,, while I was in ganges I managed to do some weaving have a look,

there is a lot more on my artfire shop, stop by and have at look 
okay guys have a safe day on the water and if you are going to work it is only 2 more days till the weekend, see ya on the water

CANUCKS CANUCK..S I Know

 you have already heard it  But I still have to say it...  YA CANUCKS.WE ARE IN THE PLAYOFFS...  like most of BC we watched the game, we dingyed over to the Oyster Catcher here in Ganges and watched it on one of their 5 TV's in their pub.  Wow what a great game. Met some really cool people from Vancouver visiting here on a Vacation.  They came by car.  So lots of beer and lots of cheer made for a great evening,  This moring tho our weather has changed and the clouds have moved in. We are expecting some winds later this after noon so we will lift anchor hopefully before they start and go back to \montague.  I am not fond of Ganges in the wind, it can get really nasty here in a Southly type wind as it seems to come all the way up from Bellingham and by the time it reaches here the waves are big.   So right now it is calm and we have to get a bit more supplies before we go,,, bye for now  and keep safe on the water people...

So how windy is it in Ganges today

The answer my friend is blowing in the wind.........

Don't Leave home without it!!!

The first long weekend of the summer is over, We have picked up anchor and are now reanchored in Ganges \harbour, Going to do some supply shopping, some cleaning and generally get some rest before we head out again on thursday. The harbour is fairly empty, there is just a couple of boats visiting the harbour on anchor and there are few on the docks. There was a big wind here on saturday and the coast guard and vessel assist was busy. Have \I told you how great Vessel Assist is... for a $100.00 dollars  or so a year they are your BCAA on the water. They will tow you to hell and gone if you are introuble, they will help you with a stuck anchor and so much more. If you are a boater don't leave home without this great protection. There are vessel assist boats all up and down the coast of  Vancouver Island and they really do provide great service.  The Vessel assist out of Ganges has 4 boats, a very fast big zodia and serverl others. They have a diver available or airbags if that is what it takes.  If you do not have this protection and you get into trouble then remember it will cost aprrox 250.00 an hour to have them come. one call would more that pay you back for your investment....  Most other boats out there coming to your aid may not have insurance so it they damage your boat then you are outta luck,,,, go with the expereience and the insured and be protected..

okay now guys have a great day and stay out of trouble....

The Weekend Almost over,

Here it is monday morning and the end of another long weekend, The bay here in montague was not always full, there were buoys available all the time and there was lots of room to anchor all weekend, \I do beleive the highest count of boats was saturday and it was approx 80 boats.  The sun did shine and the rain did rain and the wind blew very little, it has been a great weekend, oh did i mention for those that live under a rock that the Canucks won!!!! Now for the next game at home... and no i am sorry we were not amoung the chosen ones that left this earth on friday so i guess I will just have to pay my bills tommorow.. darn.. I wonder if any one was chosen....  So life goes on, back to cooking for now,,, see ya later people..

IT'S FRIDAY

let the long weekend begin.... lots of buoys open at Montague, it is just past noon, I would guess that they will be filling up soon, so better hurry if you want to tie to a buoy, there is also lots of anchorage out here, sharpen up those picks and we will see ya soon..

The \long Weekend

The Long Weekend

Is coming and the bay is filling up, it is thursday night and there are approx 10 buoys left in the park, lots of traffic out there. not to many anchoring yet so lots of room that way, seems to be lots of room on the north side of Montague, infront of Shell beach for anchoring. We've counted the boats and the grand total so far is.....................................31.... okay so it's not that much but hey it is sure a lot more than yesterday...right now there is not a breeze and the water is still, not even a current running, and Montague is giving us one of her most famous sunsets... see ya soon..

And the Wind Blows

Blow, blow, blow,  what else did we expect being anchored out in Ganges.. \yes all day today it has been blowing up to 20 knots, that means one of us must stay with the boat at all times,  bummer.. at least the sun has been out and the solar panel got a chance to work, now if we can ever get our wind generator to work!!! So nobody new in the bay , just the same boats anchored out, most of them are on buoys and there is only a couple of us on anchor, two of us are visitors the rest all have been here for a long time, at least over winter.  the planes have been going in and out all day, they sure come close to us, did they not know that when they are on the water that they have no more, no less rules to follow than a boat,  when I put wings on our boat and fly \i will follow air nav. rules,  when they are on the water they must follow the rules put forth by coast guard ....  okay off my soap box for now.. 

Ganges harbour..resupplying and moorage

ah today we find ourselves in the busy harbour of Ganges.. planes flying, boats that do not know what 5knots is, school bus boats starting early,  this is a busy bay but the shopping is fantastic with the grocery store at the top of the ramp and all the other cool stores. Mouats hardware store has everything you need from this great kitchen supplies section in the basement to a fully stocked hardware store on the first floor. Remember you are in ganges and need to supply your own bag or you will be carrying it out it your hands.  The big government dock that you first see offers a sewage pump out and you can tie to the dock for 4 hours without charge, you can also full up with fresh water. Not so good to tie up in a southerly wind as it is hard to get off the dock, there is ganges marina if you want to part with you money, they do have washers and dryers but only offer it to overnight guests the same with their water, their fuel is the most expensive around, but if you need it get your charge card out, oh and while fueling up you can water up, Garbage is always an issue at their docks and their do not appreciate you leaving any, for overnighters you will be supplied with a small bag and the charge is small. They do offer some great power. Seems like the place is about to have a management change, good or bad who knows, they have been fixing up their docks.  they do offer temp moorage on the outside dock but there is a charge and unless you are staying overnight you still will not be able to water up get rid of garbage or use the facilities. then there is Salt spring \marina at the head of the bay on the east side, they have great moorage also. If you are anchoring out there is a great dingy dock just below the grocery store. no charge for using it. All in all this is a great stopping place to either anchor out or seek moorage.

the harbor

sunday --may15..  so the rain continues and aren't we glad we live on a boat.. lots of buoys available here in Montague Provincal Park. There were a couple of boats on the park dock, which by the way is a good deal if you are under 30 feet, the charge is $2.00 a meter, for my american friends that approx 39inchs to a meter... the buoys are $12.00 a night. Still early in the season so the parks people are not going around to pick up the money so you need to go ashore and use the drop box at the top of the stairs, which by the way have been fixed. Did you know that you can tie to a buoy all day until 6pm without charge, same for the park dock... great deal if you have kids or dogs or need to go to town and not to sure about anchoring yet... there are all kinds of reasons to tie to a park buoy. Looks like this year the park is accepting garbage.. yahoo, great news for sure, just small bags but atleast there is someone stepping up to the  challange. During the summer there is also water ifyou want to pack it.. they have a tap just up from the beach,  water is a percisous comodiatity here on the islands so it is always great if there is somewhere you can get some.   The gas dock here in montague DOES NOT offer water as theirs is not potable...



Atrevida is back baking for another season....

We run a floating bakery on the west coast of British Columbia.  Our boat the ATREVIDA was once a coastal ferry back in 1928. she has a long histroy of carrying passengers all along the coast of BC. Now she is our home and our summer business. We are anchored out in Montague Harbour, a beautiful marine park on Galianno Island, in the Georgia Straight or as they now call it the Salish Sea. We have been doing this for over 10 years, seems like a lifetime, the stories I could tell, wait a minute this is going to be my blog, so yes the stories I am going to tell. Just like yesterday there was this beautiful bavarian 41 foot sailboat anchored in front of us, they had lifted their anchor to leave, dingy in the davits , as they turned the boat to manover around their dingy edge caught the water, you see they did not raise the dingy up they just
lifted it high enough to be out of the water, anyway when they turned the boat the dingy edge caught in the water and it tipped upside down spilling all the contents into the water.  there were gas contaners and fuel containers floating all over the place, who knows what went down to Davie's Jones locker.
     So I invite you to join me as we summer here in Montague Harbour and I will tell the tales that noone wants repeated I will keep you informed as to what is happening way out here and if there is any buoys in the park available or how many
boats are anchored in the bay, or maybe who was that big boat was that was anchored here last night.. OkayThink automobile dealership.. yes you are right it was the AFTER EIGHT, owned by the Weaton family out of Vancouver BC. 
And last follow me in our stuggle to survive another summer of baking.
I will be udating my blog in the evenings or early in the morning between batches of Cinnimon Buns..