Down East Circle Part 5 Chapter 4

1. We were not ready to depart Lunenburg until late in the morning for the sail down to the La Have Islands, the weather was a bit forbidding with rain and gusty conditions forecast for the next day. The wind, 10-15 knots, was well forward of the beam, actually right on the bow, not Phantasia’s best point of sail, so we motor sailed most of the 15 miles over, rounding Rose Point & Point Enrage with a terrific view of waves crashing on the gray & rust colored rocks.

2. As the wind and waves built nearing Pollock Shoal we decided to take a short cut listed in one of our cruising guides, going between West Ironbound Island and Gaff Point. This gave us a terrific view of the waves roaring over Shag Rock and we saw the waters depth drop to just 30 feet crossing the shallows between the island and mainland.

3. Our 400 amp hour house battery bank was down to just 160 amps, after 17 days out from St. Margarets. We had our 38 horse diesel engine running at 2700 rpm, with the main sail up to add horsepower, as we fought the wind and waves. By the time we arrived at The La Have Islands our 120 amp engine alternator had put back 100 amps in the battery bank. In sunny weather our 2 – 60 amp solar panels can almost, but not quite, keep up with the daily DC power needs of the fridge, lights and navigation system.

4. Once in the bay leaving Ironbound and Gaff Point behind us, conditions began to moderate, as we anchored behind West Spectacle Island the wind dropped to almost nothing, allowing us to row ashore and inspect our latest island paradise.

5. Near West Spectacle’s north eastern end are a small sand beach and a drying bar that connects to East Spectacle, the larger of these two islands. South West is Coveys, Hirtle & Mosher Islands, which we would later explore. To the North is the mouth of the La Have River. West Spectacle proved to be excellent for walking and is covered by interesting ferrous rock formations, some dense forest, marshes and salt grasses. We’d come back the next day and circumnavigate on foot, the dingy engine unfortunately stopped working back in Lunenburg, rowing is better exercise anyway.

6. We spent a stormy second day at anchor off of The Spectacles collecting rain water for drinking, reading and listening to world radio on the SSB.

7. The following day the sun came out and the temperature shot up as we made our way up the lower La Have River to La Have were we docked at the Bakery. This must be one of the most perfect destinations on the South Shore. The bakery has space for 3 or 4 boats on their dock as well as a mooring.

8. There is limited access to AC power if you need to charge up and there is good well water, for drinking only, no boat washing. As a guest at the Bakery’s dock you have use of their showers and washrooms for the nominal fee of two dollars. The bakery itself is a treasure, coffee, pizza, bread and an assortment of other food may be purchased, such as eggs and milk. All this surrounding a wonderful crafts co-op, dory shop and art gallery is nicely managed by friendly local people.

9. At the dock there was a constant procession of vessels: Tim and Eileen on their re-fit Covey Lobster Boat were from Turks Head Ireland, Simons’ Pride, a working lobster boat we had seen in Lunenburg stopped for an afternoon, and another couple on a sloop we would later see in Bridgewater called to enjoy this fun and lively place over the few days we were there.

10. We set off on foot to Fort Point only a few kilometers away, with Jayne spotting birds along the way. This area was first mapped by Samuel de Champlain in 1604. The original fort, now reconstructed, was built by Isaac de Razilly in 1632 when he and the colonists he had brought from France referred to La Have as an earthly paradise.

11. In the 1750’s Joseph Pernette came to the by then British colony of Nova Scotia and established him self as a prominent business man and land owner in the La Have, Bridgewater area. Pernette’s Cove where the La Have River Yacht Club is bears the same name still…