Tides & Times, Fish & Wines

Moving northwest through Desolation Sound compels every boat to pass through several challenging tidal rapids.  These can be safely navigated only at slack tide.

Finding slack tide for the Octopus Islands passage

After wrestling with the maths and tide tables, and poring over cruising guides, we were happy to stop and refocus on the local, small production wines from SouthEnd Farm Winery on Quadra Island, our previous night’s moorage.  The primary grape used in the red and the rosé is Cabernet Franc.  In the market on Quadra we were drawn to their simple labelling and functional stoppage.

Tasting local wines from Quadra Island

Given our goal to eat and drink locally, these wines were a perfect pairing with fresh-caught Chinook salmon gifted to us on the dock at Toba.  On the first day, simply grilled with salt and pepper, served with creamy mashed potatoes and a cucumber salad, this present from the deep made a hearty lunch.  With the remainder of the cooked fish we made salmon cakes.

Fresh caught Chinook salmon on the grill

Flake cooked salmon into a bowl with finely chopped sweet pepper, jalapeño pepper, spring onions, mayonnaise and a glob of left-over mashed potatoes.  Season with salt and pepper, toss to mix well, and form into patties.  Sauté in ghee or olive oil over medium-high heat until pleasingly browned on the outside.  Serve on a salad of local greens with smoked potato chips and a wedge of lemon.

Fresh Chinook Salmon Cake with green salad

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