August 6, 2021

Saw whales, seals, and otters on our voyage across the open water.

Then it was time to traverse Rocky Pass. Rocky pass is a 2-hour trip that takes one thru The Summit and Devils Elbow. Both are very shallow areas that were certified to 4 foot in 2009. Of course, we did it at high tide and think the lowest water we saw was in the 15-foot range.

The Summit is a roughly 12-minute stretch that was basically a kelp field with some markers on the side. Pretty sure we had a garden hanging off the rudder after that passage. The other fun part is the documentation states of known obstacles. Luckily the sonar charts were somewhat up to date and showed us the way.

After The Summit there is a 15-minute regroup period and you enter the area called Devils Elbow. The coast pilot says look out as the atons are not in the correct locations. And true to that, they were not even close. The red buoy that was supposed to be at the south end was at the north end. This took a bit of technical maneuvering using Coast Pilot to guide while also referring to three sets of charts.

We made it through without a problem. Phew! We decided to end the day after the pass since we’d been at it for 6 hours and pulled up to Monte Carlo Island. Don’t get too excited by the name as it’s a no-frills anchorage that barely gets 2 stars. It’s not well protected in bad weather. We were fortunate to have little wind and the anchorage was perfect for the overnight. Tried a new recipe of beet risotto and wonderful greens for dinner.

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We went kayaking in morning around the circle of islands surrounding our boats and saw few starfish and otters floating by.

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