Off to Bamfield today. My plan is to spend the night in
Bamfield, then probably head into the Strait of Juan de Fuca tomorrow early in
the morning. The forecast looks great.
The trip into Bamfield was easy, and surprisingly not foggy.
The autopilot worked, kind of. From Turtle Island to Dodger Channel (~6 nm) the
AP performed well. Then I disengaged it to explore Dodger Channel (a great
anchorage!). When I reengaged it, the erratic behavior resumed. I’m quickly
developing a list of additions/changes to the boat that I’d like to make, and a
replacement autopilot is looking like a priority. I’ll check with Raymarine
when I get back to see if there’s anything I should try.
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| Dodger Channel |
I emailed Les at EQ about the problem, and he hadn’t seen it
before. He suspects the course computer. It’s either that or the pump. Either
way, I have trouble dumping many hundreds of dollars into this AP when a new,
much better unit can be purchased for not too much more. This isn’t too big of
a problem right now, since the AP does steer me to the next waypoint. It just
uses a bit of extra gas because of all the turning.
Bamfield is a neat little town. A big university lab is at
the entrance. Then many homes, lodges, and marine businesses. The only way to
get from the west side of town (the side with the road) to the east side is by
water, so the harbor is busy.
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| Bamfield Marine Science Center |
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| A sea cave at the entrance to Bamfield Inlet |
Tomorrow I’m planning on heading to Port Renfrew. Then Sooke
the next day (Thursday). I may go to Victoria or I may head into the San Juans…
12.7 nm today
1077.3 nm total
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