Launching at Cornet Bay

M_D

M_D

Bringin' the Skunk
Forum Supporter
I have a 14' Lund aluminum V hull with a 15 hp motor.

I'm thinking about getting it into Skagit Bay ( for the outgoing 2 chum fry that might have survived the floods 😞 ) and have been considering Cornet Bay. For those who've run the pass, is this a crazy stupid idea in such a small boat? From up on the bridge, the water looks pretty turbulent at times but I'd be likely hugging the shoreline.

Thoughts, suggestions?
 
Following, also curious. Like everything with small boats, probably depends almost entirely on tide direction x wind direction.
 
  • Like
Reactions: M_D
MarshRat said:
Following, also curious. Like everything with small boats, probably depends almost entirely on tide direction x wind direction.
Click to expand...
If you're heading out of the bay and turning right (not towards deception pass) my experience has been pretty calm water as long as you pay attention to the buoys and markers. Some significant shallow spots around the mouth of the skagit, but I don't think tidal flow is too intense until you hit deception and everything is constricted.
 
From an observer who hasn't boated there, just fished the beaches:
The water is moving once you get to Hoypus point and beyond, but I've seen smaller boats moving around getting crab pots there. At Ala the water is moving on big tide changes but again I've seen smaller boats moving through there.
 
I gave my 16 ft Klamath side console to our son in Oak Harbor. He launches at Cornet Bay frequently but at or near slack tides and heads east. I made him promise not to take the boat out through the pass at changing tides. He did drive it through the pass one time but it was a high tide and calm. I wouldn’t take an open boats out on the straight. You need to pay a watercraft launch fee for the ramp. He buys a season pass.
 
I’ve spent a lot of time in and around deception pass but it’s all been in a kayak so take this with a grain of salt. There can be some rips off of strawberry and ben ure islands and the water certainly moves through the constriction off hoypus point but from cornet bay east should be quite manageable. If going through the pass, grab a Cap’n Jacks tide and current almanac and time it for the couple hours around slack. Otherwise, it’s possible to encounter large eddy fences and standing waves, particularly on a big ebb.
 
YMMV but I've launched there several times and taken a 13'6" Whaler with an 18hp engine (subsequently upgraded to a 30hp 2-stroke) both ways with no issue. If you're heading East all you need to do is take the normal precautions that you'd take anywhere else on the sound. If you're heading West and turning the corner then the prudent thing to do is consult the tidal forecasts and aim for a slack-ish tide. The times I've run it I've just avoided the times with strong tidal currents, aimed for the flat water, ripped through on plane, and had no issues or worries (and I'm a worrier by nature).

If you're going to be puttering around in the sound, I've found that the "Deep Zoom" site is the most useful site for trip planning, by far - and by far I mean it's not even close. It's a dynamic, graphic representation of the "vector" of tidal currents in the Puget Sound overlaid on a map, and you can even plot out an itinerary and you can visualize the trajectory of the tidal currents over the entire course of your day. If you pair that with a good wind-forecasting app (I've used both "Wind Alert" and "Windy") you've got just about all of your variables covered when it comes to conditions. The only exception is fog, which can sneak up on you from behind an island, etc (ask me how I know) and make the outing much more of an adventure.

www.deepzoom.com

DeepZoom Trip

View this trip on https://www.deepzoom.com.
www.deepzoom.com www.deepzoom.com
 
Waaay cool, thanks.

At first glance that DeepZoom is awesome. I’ve been running around with some old paper charts and a depth finder that often loses track of the bottom when I get up on plane🤪
 
Been super-handy for me. When I first got my boat I was incredibly naive/stupid and was like "It's the Puget Sound, not the open ocean. What's the big deal?" but quickly learned the error of my ways.
 
JayB said:
Been super-handy for me. When I first got my boat I was incredibly naive/stupid and was like "It's the Puget Sound, not the open ocean. What's the big deal?" but quickly learned the error of my ways.
Click to expand...
I laughed when this made me think about a time when, as a kid, camping with my friend and his family near Cornet Bay. We so wanted a boat and to get out on the water. Well, the WDF patrol boat was tied up at the dock, and it had this nifty fiberglass dinghy strapped on the cabin. A Navy guy fishing off the end of the dock told us that he was certain that Fisheries Patrol wouldn't be back until Monday night, and this being a Friday, so . . . we borrowed it. Took off rowing down the shoreline unknowingly headed for Deception Pass with the outgoing tide. No wonder we could row so fast! Then my friend's dad and uncle came roaring up to us in the uncle's motor boat, yelling at us to get the hell back toward the campground. They wouldn't give us a tow. Man, we were a couple or worn out kids taking turns rowing back against the tidal current. Other than that little snafu, we had a great weekend and put the dinghy back just as we had found it.
 
We took our 25' Defiance through deception pass an hour or so around the slack tide, and while the boat had no issue you absolutely feel the impact of the current. Please note that slack tide is NOT at the same time as low/high tide. Deepzoom is a good resource for figuring out when is safe to cross.
 
I grew up in Oak Harbor and back in the 70's and 80's used to troll for kings in "The Hole" just off of North Beach immediately to the west of the bridge in my 10-foot Livingston and 6hp Evinrude. My best friend lived right at Troxell's landing (I think thats what is known on maps as Hoypus) and we used to zip between there and Cornet in our skiffs regularly. Holy crap, would I NEVER let my kid or grandkids go back through the Pass in those little boats. Same boat I used to go fish Pass Lake with. Lost two cousins between North Beach and Deception Island in the early 80's who were out in a 12-foot aluminum boat off of Deception Island and didn't notice the tide change to full ebb.

Going East out of Cornet is ok with good weather. Watch the forecast for easterlies and lots of wood in the water after big tides.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top