Our trip from Nanaimo to the Desolation Sound area found us winding our way through a variety of islands and channels, with lots of boats to check out.

Here’s a tug that’s been converted to pleasure use, but still doing tow duty (if somewhat lighter than in the past). From the two dinghies trailing it looks like these guys are into serious fishing.

They were also in a hurry, going flank speed here. Tugs are by nature heavy, with short water lines, so regardless of how much power is applied, they are never going to climb out of the valley formed by their bow and stern waves, which are so clearly shown above.

If there was ever an area that was ideal for motorized cruising, it is British Columbia. Yet on our journey in and out of Desolation Sound, sailboats outnumbered power by five-to-one. OK, we have to admit they were usually powering.

But often they seemed to just be enjoying going slowly and quietly, and taking in the scenery.

Many of these cruisers are fitted with sun awnings and solar panels, which leads us to believe they have plans of cruising closer to the equator.

There are a lot of these MacGregor 25s, usually under power, as well. The boats may be small, but their owners are having as much fun as anyone.

These guys really have the system down. The husband runs ahead on the jet ski to scout out the best spots, while his wife follows at a more sedate pace in their larger yacht. And when they’ve got the hook set, they both take off at what looks like 40 knots to explore on their dinghy.

Speaking of which, there are some exquisite rock formations lining the anchorages. It is so quiet (assuming none of the boats are running generators) that the only thing you hear are the birds, and then the echoes of their calls.

We keep talking about the scenery, which is hard to photograph without perfect light and atmospheric conditions. This is a rough attempt.

We’ve not seen a lot of wildlife so far. The odd seagull, and eagle, and then this group of seals sunning themselves on a rock at the entrance to the Malapina Straits.

Lots of kayakers are out cruising as well, often camping on the shore.

Many of the cruising boats also carry kayaks.

The weather has been wonderful. Warm, clear skies, without a hint of rain. If this were normal we’d probably move here.

The next photo requires that you suspend your belief system for a while. That’s our friend Bill Brees water skiing, with a shorty wetsuit, behind our dinghy. This, of course, was a challenge to which Steve had to rise, in his own shorty wetsuit.

To which Linda said, "You guys are sissies. I don’t need any form of warmth!". We never expected to use our skis, ski vests, or wetsuits in this part of the world, but the water temperature during the first week of July was warmer than what we are used to in Southern California.

The one thing that’s missing, so far, are places to take long walks. This is the dinghy dock in Grace Harbor. The barnacles on the rocks provide great traction, but otherwise the facilities are limited. A good walk around here requires a chain saw or at least a sharp ax.

We’ll leave you with this photo of the boat anchored in Desolation Sound. And in this lovely spot there were no other boats.