Islands shores littered with abandon homes
To head toward Lake Melville from Emily Harbor I would have to either go north again and round the whole of the big Brig Harbor Island or pass south of Deadman Island and dare the Dark Tickle. The Dark Tickle is a deep but narrow passage between Butt and Camel Islands. The islands shores are littered with abandoned homes from an era long gone from the lands of Labrador. They add a sense of forlorn loneliness to the stark beauty of this remarkable place. Was the tickle named for these broken dreams on her shore or the darkness of the rocks that bound her waters? Even in the bright sunshine of this morning, there is a darkness here and a trepidation. Still, I choose to dare the Dark Tickle.
A passage less than half again as wide as the CAP’N LEM
I checked the tidal current by creeping through the channel past Deadman Island. It was near slack. The wind? None. Slowly I turned the CAP’N LEM south around the Camel Island and felt as much as sighted my way toward the north entrance. The rudder is free to kick up, the dagger board is floating in its case ready to rise. Bump! A rock! I’m too close to the shoals of Butt Island. The slow impact merely slides the hull to one side and I reposition more to the west for the run into the tickle. Checking the chart plotter I see it is I and not the rock that is miss positioned and this gives me courage to press on. The little engine is pushing ahead ever so gently at idle and we slip into and out of the passage less than half again as wide as the CAP’N LEM without incident. With each boat length the waters grow deeper into Dark Tickle Harbor and I line up my escape. But not time to relax, there are rocks and shoals a plenty around Double and Thomey Islands and Man Of War Point. The main channel is still ahead. And the wind just started to rise.
Escape
NOTES: I define deep water as any water that will float my boat and shallow water as any water that won’t. Bumping a rock at anytime is not to be taken lightly and I made a thorough assessment to be assured there was no damage.
