Tacks Beach!

We have had a trip to Tacks Beach planned now for well over a month and last week the time came to get the trip underway.  Thursday morning I checked and rechecked my gear to be sure I wasn't missing any key items.  When I was sure I had what I needed to get me through 4 days of camping I loaded my car and took off to our rendezvous point at the TCH Irving.  We left as a group to drive to Davis cove which took us about 3 hours.

Just driving past Swift Current.  I thought the scenery was great here so I took a quick pic on our way through.

After our long drive to Davis Cove we wasted no time loading our kayaks and getting them in the water.  There was no slipway in Davis Cove so we all teamed up and carried our boats down the bank into the water.  I volunteered to go down and tie them all together until we were all ready to go.

Making our crossing was one of my favorite parts of the trip, and that's not something I'll say too often about crossings.  The wind was up and so were the waves!  I think we all enjoyed the trip over but I had a blast climbing the bigger waves, catching a few small surf rides, and rolling all over the place.

After 12km and about 2 1/2 hours we arrived at Tacks Beach.

Our home for the next 4 days!

We pulled our boats up on the beach then everyone started their own routine for setting up camp.

First thing I did was change into some fresh clothes, then myself and Dean headed off to clear a spot to hang our Hammocks.

Yes hammocks are a little extra work to set up, but in my opinion that's part of the whole experience.

Besides that they are WAY more comfortable! ;-)

Here is a shot of my accommodations for the week.  My Hammock with my DIY underquilt which kept me plenty warm for my 3 night stay!

Once our fun was over setting up out hammocks, we just sat around to relax and enjoy a drink or two for a while before starting a small fire for cooking!

I had a New York steak grilled rare over the camp fire, and my god it was delicious!  The best steak I've had so far this year!

Here is a shot of some of the bys tents on the narrow strip of land between the North and South beaches.

Our Hammocks are just 30' up the trail behind those tents.  A local man told us on the 3rd day that the Caribou run down this trail all the time but considering I was furthest up the trail, Dean figured it was safe to stay one more night!

Always look forward to the huge camp fire, a few drinks, and the great laughs and stories!

Now this isn't the best picture because it was taken with my iPhone BUT, this was the best moonrise I have ever seen!!!

We were all just standing there watching the moon rise up over the hill top.  I saw the moon just start to peak over the hill so I pulled out my phone and turned it on, and by the time my phone was ready to take a picture the moon was already half way up over the hill top.

Definitely one of my favorite parts of camping is how clear the sky can get and how well you can see the moon and stars.

The morning routine was to set up my stove and cook my eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns all from the comfort of my hammock.

I like to eat a real breakfast when possible.  Oatmeal just doesn't do it for me. 

Delicious breakfast! 

After my breakfast was gone each morning I'd clean up, take my coffee, and head down to see how everyone was and how the day would shape up.

I didn't get many pictures on the second day, but I got one of our lunch stop by North Tilt Island.

The trip up was calm and easy paced but our trip back wasn't so easy.  We were paddling directly into the 30km/h wind funneling up between the Islands which certainly made for a bit of a workout!

Here is a shot of most of the group.  I believe its only myself and Ryan not in the picture.

Day 3 we took on the South end of the Islands leaving from Tacks Beach, heading in around Broad Cove and crossing over by South Tilt Island to head back up.

Our trip down wasn't too bad paddling into the wind because we were weaving in and around all the little islands giving us some shelter.  We found a little beach to pull in and have a stretch and a snack before heading back up.

Once we crossed over top of South Tilt Island to head back up to Best's Harbour, things got interesting, and by interesting I mean my favorite paddling part of the trip!

The wind was strong at our backs and the waves were big enough to catch some good surf rides.

I have a lot of fun crossing into big waves.  Having the occasional wave big enough to break on you, and playing around with some rolls was for sure the best part. 

Once we turned to make our way back it was all surf rides!  I got my Nordkapp RM up to 15.5 km/h.  There were rumors of Torngat owners getting up to speeds of almost 18/km/h but I think their GPS was faulty... 

A few of the guys went South of South Tilt Island and were well behind us.  The wind had pick up a lot since we got back and the few that took a longer adventure were probably close on 2 hours after us before they got back.

I would say with the conditions and the wind they had no trouble hitting 18km/h... even in their Torngat's and Victory's ;-)

Cathy also did her first roll in bigger conditions which was very impressive consider the size of some of the waves we were dealing with.  Good Job!

On our final day we got up and had our breakfast then everyone got into packing mode to get ready for the crossing back to Davis Cove.  We had fog in the morning so the more experienced guys broke out their map and compass and gave us a bearing to follow.  The conditions weren't quite as big as the way over but still a good bit of fun.  It was a whole new feeling for me to be out in the middle of the ocean and looking around all you can see is fog.  Different feeling for sure and I'm glad that was the situation we had to deal with, but not a situation I'd want to be in alone. lol

I was really looking forward to this trip and I loved every second of it!  For 4 days it was nothing but fun and stress free living!  To everyone who joined in on this trip, I had an awesome time with all of you!  Can't wait until our next trip to do it all over again!

I'll put together a short clip from the trip later this weekend and add the link here.

Thanks again guys!