The wind picked up right around noon reaching up to 35 NMPH from the West with an average speed around 30 NMPH throughout the afternoon and into the evening.
One ecotour vessel was in the reserve.
-worked on trying to fine tune boat house door, unsuccessful.
-cut, chopped, stacked fire wood, successful.
-cleaned solar panels
-fuelled up station whaler
-replaced corroded hose clamp on whaler fuel line
NE wind 10-15 NMPH , 2-3 ft swell coming into the jetty. The fog horn started up sometime in the middle of the night but stopped before sun rise, visibility was less than 5 NM most of the day. Light rain most of the day. Barometer falling.
I had planned on going in to campus for christmas lunch and to pickup guests but the lunch was canceled because of snow on the roads and the NE swell kept me from leaving the island.
Another day foiled by Black Oyster Catchers, I scrutinized around 12 of them on the South side of the island but no leg band seen.
-Sharpened bow saw
-cleaned solar panels
-ran desalinator
Overcast, good visibility, wind NE 10 NMPH, light in the afternoon.
Went off island around noon to get parts and provisions.
-brought 15 fire extinguishers off island to the college to get serviced, brought back spares.
-cleaned solar panels
Ed note: Congratulations Alex…. this is the 1000th Posting to be added to the Race Rocks website.
Steady west wind 15-20 NMPH most of the day. Bit of hail in the evening.
Chunk went off the island last night and is back on middle rocks with the female elephant seals. I have been trying to get a closer look at the Oyster Catchers to get the ID from the banded one but have not been able to see it yet.
-Cut, chopped, stacked firewood
-Cleaned solar panels
-Installed rain water container on down pipe of energy building to use for cleaning solar panels.
Still grey out here, the fog rolled in before noon, fog alarm was going for a few hours. The fog had lifted by late afternoon. Wind has been light today and yesterday.
The DND were burning again yesterday at Rocky Point.
I went off island yesterday to get plumbing parts and some provisions. It was my first time using the new boat dolly. It is a much appreciated improvement that makes launch and recovery easier and faster.
-getting parts off island
-fixed broken pipe and faucet on roof for PV panels
-pressure tested then drained lines
-sent photos and measurements for wood stove
-ran desalinator
Over the last few days the weather has been consistently overcast and there has been a consistent E/NE wind between 10-20 NMPH. It rained briefly today around noon.
In the morning the DND was burning invasive species (broom, Gorse) at Rocky Point, smoke visible.
-taking measurements for wood stove installation
-cutting and storing fire wood
-planning for solar panel replacement and tilt
-cleaning solar panels daily as there has not been much moisture
-reviewing new standard operating procedures manual
-got help from Jonathan (Pearson IT) to fix some problems with programs/files on station computer
Planning/making list for minor repairs:
-a water pipe on engine room roof needs replacing
-lower valve on rain water tank leaks when opened
-air vent pipe on main house letting water in which collects in the duct.
-hose nozzle on engine room roof broken
overcast, misty, light wind. Temperature is up a bit from previous days.
Erik brought chimney sweepers out after noon to clean the chimneys in both houses.
-chimney sweeper suggested we get assist house furnace serviced as it is creating more soot than it should.
Clear skies. Moderate NE winds. 2+ ft chop
Today was the first real test of getting the Boston Whaler back on the new boat cradle with Easterly wind and waves. The trailer lowers down into the water great because we added big cement paving stones for weight and ballast. It also means that the boat doesn’t pull it up off the track when a wave rolls in. The boat stays pretty straight on the trailer, even with waves, because of the new stern posts. Although, it helps to run the stern line to a cleat on the jetty and then forward to be able to pull the stern in next to the jetty when you need to. The new ratchet winch (used to pull the boat up on the trailer) is safe for the fingers, easy to use, and has great torque. And despite filling my boots with water, the new setup works great.
Off station from 1400 to 1530
Jamieson and Jer are no longer on site
-Worked on SOPs
Strong W, SW, and S winds this morning. Strong W for the rest of the day. Rain.
Mike Cullen + apprentice came out to do maintenance on the desalinator.
The day started with moderate NE, and dropped to light variable SE. Low E swell in the am. Glassed off this evening. Scattered showers.
Erik dropped the new boat dolly/cradle off this afternoon. With some slight modifications, it came up the track just fine. Tomorrow we’ll see how the boat sits on it (fingers crossed).
[Daily Marine Conservation Link]
The area around Race Rocks is a Rockfish Conservation Area, which means that any type of fishing that could impact rockfish is prohibited. Established by DFO, there are over 100 sites on the BC coast. It is a complicated issue that involves many stakeholders and even more species. The debate is a heated one (as are all fisheries debates in this province) and, despite some level of protection, there is still concern regarding the risk to these long-lived and sensitive fish, as well as the habitat in which they live. Today’s link is an editorial about some of the conservation progress that has been made because the fisherman are concerned about the sustainability of the resource, and their livelihoods, to a point that they are voluntarily working with NGOs and the government.