This is going to be a longer post, the reason for which will become clear.

I'm a woodworker as well as a sailor and, in my opinion, one of the signs of a good wood craftsman isn't in never making mistakes; it is how well you can hide them whole still being true to your design intent and craftsmanship. I have a similar opinion of sailing. It is not that a good sailor never makes mistakes, it is how well they extricate themselves from a situation they find themselves in.

It was time to leave Waterfall Beach Cove to continue my exploration of Tofino Inlet. My plan was to make a short trip to Irving Cove in Tofino Inlet, However when I arrived there it was clear that anchoring in this interesting cove was not a good idea. The cove is deep, exposed to the southwesterly winds that have dominated the weather locally for the lase week or so and is filled with islets and rocks. This would be a fantastic place to explore by dinghy with all the little coves in around the islets.

Next I set my course to go to the head of Tofino Inlet, thinking, albeit foolishly, that the head of Tofino Inlet would be different from all the other heads of inlets I've been in on this west side of the Island.

Knowing that inlets and heads of bays tend to shoal rather abruptly I try to enter them at low tide and proceed with due caution, motoring at about a knot and a half in well over 100 feet of water. When I saw 40 feet I was not surprised, however within a boat length I found myself in less that 10 feet then 4 feet which in a boat the drafts 6'3" is about two plus feet too little. I came to an abrupt stop. Initially I attempted to back up and then turn and motor forward but to no avail, I WAS GROUNDED!

As I noted I have found entering these areas at low tide always leaves room and depth for the tide to rise in case of a possible mishap.

the wind was blowing up the inlet and I feared that as the tide came in I would be blown further toward shore which was obviously not an outcome that I wanted. Considering my options but knowing that the incoming tide would provide sufficient depth to get myself out of this current mess I was in I decided to load my 50+lb anchor and about 100 feet of chain in the dinghy and motor out as far into deeper water as I could paying out the chain as I went until I could dump the anchor over the side, not an easy task in an inflatable dink and handling a large anchor. fortunately I was able to get the anchor over the side without tipping over the dinghy or punching a hole in the fabric, but there were a few scary moments when the anchor got hung up on the side of the dinghy. Having set my "Kedge" anchor there was nothing left but to go back to Fairtide and wait for the tide to come in. Knowing that the position of the boat as is rose was critical so I could be sure I was not being pushed farther towards to shore I set a compass and watched to be sure as the tide came in I would point towards deeper water. watching a depth gauge that is reading 4.3 feet for what seemed a long time the gauge finally read 4.6 feet, then 4.9 feet, at 5 feet I know I would be OK, as long as I didn't drift to shore. every time the depth went up about 6 inches I took up a few feet of chain to tension and keep the bow pointing in the correct direction towards deeper water. two hours into this dilemma the depth approached 6 feet and the boat swung around into slightly deeper water of a small "hole" and read 7 1/2 feet. I immediately started the engine and tensioned the anchor chain, now in 8 feet next 9 1/2 feet then 10. I was free!! I reeled in the last of the chain and was now in 20 feet and motoring happily out of Tofino Inlet. by now it was about 1730 (5:30) and I looked at anchoring options and which way the current was running and decided the best idea was to go back to Waterfall Beach Cove since I knew the anchorage and would be motoring with, not against the incoming tide.

After 6 and a half hours and 17NM I found myself back where I started and I was quite happy to be here.