Rapids

I normally think of running rapids as something done in kayaks or canoes and on rivers. That’s not the case north of the Strait of Georgia. The narrow passages between islands have very strong currents running through them. Depending on the bottom topography, some of these passes actually form rapids or overfalls.

Thankfully, unlike a river, there are times where the current slacks. With careful timing we have been able to pass through the rapids at these times. Calculating and moving according to the currents has become a regular part of our daily routine. Some days it means we’re up and moving very early. Other days, like the day I’m writing this, it means we can have a lazy morning because we literally can’t go anywhere until after noon!

The Canadian Government publishes a book–now a pdf–with tide and current predictions for the major passes. We have it on our iPads and can use it to calculate currents at various locations. We still calculate some of the currents manually. It’s good to keep our skills up to date but these days we have charting software that puts the current speeds and predictions right on the chart.

We use two navigation programs on board and they show the predicted currents for most of the passes we need to navigate. It makes navigation very easy. Our job then is to time our arrival so that we are working our way through a pass at the best time. This usually means when the current is completely slack.

Timing our day around the currents is not something we are used to. Usually, technology enables us to do what we want to do, when we want to do it. When the sun goes down, we can turn on a light. We can record a TV show or find it on a streaming service so we can watch it at a time that’s convenient to us. It’s unusual to have our day dictated by the currents but our technology can’t change them. Technology makes it easier to deal with them but it can’t control them. At times it’s a bit frustrating to have to wait before navigating through a channel but then again, it feels good to move at a different pace. I guess you could say, we are learning to go with the flow.