Government Dock Yellow
The first person we met in François (pronounced ‘Franzway’) was the Harbour Master when we docked at the yellow painted Government Dock ahead of where the daily ferry berths. He sent us to the other Government Dock as the ferry would, most likely, “crash into us as it overhangs it’s own berth.”
We didn’t take much persuading and headed over to the floating dock, also painted yellow. Soon after our arrival George sauntered down to warn us that the Government Dock Yellow Paint was still wet and to mind our clothing. A charming guy restoring a dory in readiness for next year’s, ‘Come Home’. That’s when those that have left the Outports to seek fame and fortune return to their town of birth to celebrate, to drink and to feast.
When we finally found the track that led up from the lake above town to Friars Rock we found that George had been hard at work with his left over Government Dock Yellow paint. Every rock and every tree stump along the steep ascent had been daubed with his favourite shade of yellow. The narrow path twisted it’s way up the mountainside allowing us to tread where others had trodden before. A far cry from the previous hour or two we had spent thigh deep in brush, boulder and bog trying to force our own route up to another peak. Hot work on a summer day with too many clothes on in order to keep the swarms of black fly at bay. George’s ‘join the dots and yellow’ was a delight in comparison.
We had started early from Hare Bay on a rising tide in order to overcome my nervousness about the Bar there. The day before we had grounded at high tide when approaching the anchorage. Obeying the instructions on our exit paid off and we never had less than 7 metres of water between us and another grounding embarrassment.
The morning was perfect and the atmosphere crystal clear. A magical run down the six mile fjord and then a ten mile passage close in under the cliffs to reach François by 1030. Another spectacularly beautiful Outport with sixty permanent residents left and a lot of Government Dock Yellow paint.
