"The Ringleader"
Shakedown cruise
August 12, 2007
Anchored in a cove near Tuna Point, located about half way through Johnstone Strait, on the northern side of Sunderland channel. Captain Terry confers with the owner, about where she would like to go. She explains to him that when possible she would like to have the boat placed and connected to moorage, or securely anchored by mid after noon, when she would like to retire to her stateroom suite, for 2-3hrs.
After knowing this Captain recommends they go to Port Harvey, and anchor for the evening, a good anchorage that Captain Terry Had used over a dozen years before when he captained the 70' M/Y "Staccato" for Bill& Marylou, and look into a couple other coves that might be used for moorage or anchorage at a later time, if needed.
The Owner agrees, engine checks are made, then started, the anchor raised and "The Ringleader" is underweigh to Port Harvey to spend the night.
"Mary's Promises III" comes in and anchors a few hundred yards to the north of "The Ringleader", after she is securely hooked to the bottom of Port Harvey's anchorage.
The owner retires to her stateroom suite. Captain Terry, goes over cruising manual, operation manuals, then gets into his book given to him by a past owner employer, that owned a 75' Hatteras that was sold 2 weeks after Captain Terry was hired to captain it. The book is "Vancouver's Discovery of Puget Sound". Written by Edmond S. Meany in 1907. Meany was the 1st History Department Chairman for the University of Washington.
"The Ringleader "
Shakedown Cruise
August 11th
Weather was good; supplies, provisions, parts and equipment onboard; communication (mails both e and snail) engine checks made a trip to the fuel dock to top off the fuel tanks. Then "The Ringleader" was ready for her next leg of the cruise to Tuna Cove which is 46 1/4 nautical miles northwest of Campbell River.
The first challenge is to make through Seymour Narrows at high slack tide. Seymour narrows is where in the early 1950's the largest non- nuclear explosion on earth happened when Ripple Rock was tunneled to from shore then up to the rock, loaded with explosives, then blown up, to reduce the navigation hazard it caused being in the middle of Seymour Narrows, where many boats and ships went down due to the vast quantities of water having to pass through twice a day during the tidal exchanges. Causing tidal whirlpools and rips with a current sometimes exceeding 10-12 knots. Seymour Narrows is 7 3/4 nautical miles from Discovery Marina, about 1 hr at 8kts.
This was done in perfect timing, and the ebb tide then helped carry "The Ringleader" towards it's destination. After Seymour Narrows it was north to Chatham Point turn to port into Johnston Straights that leads to Queen Charlotte Straights and then the Pacific Ocean. Along the way in Race passage a pod of Orcas, or Killer Whales, cruised by close as if checking out "The Ringleader", then proceeded in the direction that "The Ringleader" had come from in search of food or other Orcas.
Tuna Cove was found the anchor was lowered then backed down on and set into the bottom secured for the evening and night. 
"The Ringleader "
Shakedown Cruise
August 7th,8th,9th, and 10th
This time was spent in Campbell River getting provisions, supplies, parts, and equipment, while the owner received administrative and personal communication from her home, and office.
Campbell River is the 3rd largest town on Vancouver Island, bills itself as the salmon capital of the world. and a major timber/ logging center too. It is half way up the inside of Vancouver Island, and has good transportation, communication, shopping centers for supplies, all within walking distance of a new marina named Discovery Marina, with wireless internet facilities.
Campbell River is the jumping off place going north, the next place with near comparable facilities is Prince Rupert just south of the Alaskan Canadian boarder.
