Pacific Swift 2009 - Trip 5

Drowsy trainees gently rubbed their leaden eyelids after an
unprecedented opportunity to sleep in this morning. A delicious
breakfast of berry topped fresh banana pancakes settled well into our
stomachs after a calm night at the dock. We traveled deep into Clayquot
Sound´s sheltered inlets to allow for some contrary weather to pass by
the coast. The steep, narrow and densely wooded shoreline is reminiscent
of the inner coast with the addition of the ragged cedars and gray
ghosts. We holed up for the day in Pretty Girl Cove. It is nestled
amongst steep forested hills and is completely free of any evidence of
human interference. After lunch the juniors settled in to write their
sail training exams and the intermediates prepared for their upcoming
tests.  The highlight of the day undoubtedly was an expedition deep into
the surrounding rain forest. Once the dories dropped us off on the
slim shore, two steps plunged us into the awaiting old growth. Leaving
the sea behind we blazed a trail beside a creek bed with an inspiring
sense of the grandeur looking down upon us from the towering cedars and
the dense salal while the fresh water stream danced between mossy
boulders. After a reasonable hike the forest opened up into a clearing
boasting many fresh water pools fed by tumbling streams and waterfalls.
With some trepidation we discovered that the water was wonderfully warm
and soon people slipped into the pools and enjoyed a massage from the
cascading water. It was a place as raw as it was beautiful, embodying a
sense of the wildness and purity of the west coast. It was overall a
wonderful experience and very unifying for everyone as a group. We were
rewarded with a meal of fresh pizza upon rowing back to our now familiar
floating home. With the Swift resting gently on her rode in the calm
waters, the sound of streams trickling into the cove and cedars watching
patiently, one could imagine being taken back 200 years.