Day 9: Marianne Cove, Casson Peak and New Friends

Looking into Marianne Cove, Baie Fine (planning on getting Seapickle nestled into that open spot straight ahead)

Seapickle anchored and tied to two trees in Marianne Cove

 Saturday, August 3rd (cont): We had originally planned to go all the way through Baie Fine to the Pool today, but with dark rain clouds following us, we saw a space in Marianne Cove and jumped on the opportunity to anchor there for the night! It was definitely on our list of places to see, and we couldn't wait for the rain to pass so we could hike up Frazer Bay Hill to Casson Peak.

Enjoying a lunch of soup and croutons! We're pretty fancy on Seapickle.

Cruzan the coolest Boating Golden taking a ride on the Paddleboard

Afternoon concert on Traumfanger

As soon as we anchored the rain started, so we were forced to relax and enjoy some drinks on the boat while we waited out the rain. Once the rain let up, we made a quick soup lunch on the campstove. While we were having lunch, we noticed music coming from somewhere nearby. Ben looked out the window and noticed our sailboat neighbors playing the guitar and cello together. With a concert to go with our lunch, we were liking this anchorage more and more.

Kayaking over to the trail to Casson Peak

 Soon after finishing lunch, we got lil' pickle ready to kayak over to the trail leading up to Casson Peak. We heard it was a pretty challenging trail (it was), but that the views from the top were well worth it. When we got to the trail, we found that our concert-playing neighbors were already there about to start the hike up. We asked if we could follow them up, since they'd done the hike before. On the way up, we had plenty of time to talk and found out they were also from Indiana and that they were just finishing up a 2 month North Channel trip, and that they loved IPAs! Perfect new friends!

Hiking up to Casson Peak with Jim & Anne

Arriving at the top of Casson Peak, looking over Baie Fine & Frazer Bay

Once we got to the top of Casson Peak, we were blown away by the spectacular views. You could see all the way past the entrance to Baie Fine, Frazer bay, and the mountains beyond. It was really amazing, and a lot to take in. We were just so thankful that we had made it here. We went a little picture crazy, so some of our favorites are below!

Looking out over Frazer Bay

The entrance of Baie Fine

Cruzan "the Golden Bear" - who Ben saw climbing up the rock and mistook for a bear! haha

Ben and Dana enjoying the views from Casson Peak, Frazer Bay Hill, Baie Fine

Another view of Baie Fine & Frazer Bay

We spent quite a bit of time on the peak taking in the scenery and also taking tons of pics. We were sad to leave, but it was a somewhat long hike back down, and we saw lots of blueberry patches that we wanted to get to on the way. 

Channeling Pixie on Casson Peak, with Baie Fine & Frazer Bay in the background

Starting the hike back down

lil' pickle Waiting at the Bottom of Frazer Bay Hill

We enjoyed great conversation with Jim & Anne on the hike back down to the kayak, and when we handed one of our boater's cards to Jim, he handed us their CD, Madeleine Bay, in return! How cool is that! You can find the links to purchase their CD on their website (click here). 

Jim & Anne rowing over for a cocktail

Later on we invited Jim & Anne over to Seapickle for an evening cocktail, and we enjoyed a wonderful evening getting to know these kindred sailers. We even made plans for breakfast the next morning on Traumfanger. So far this North Channel trip has exceeded our expectations, and we cannot wait to see what the next week brings!