VANCOUVER ISLAND, B.C.—On Canada’s remote western coast, the 48-foot Astral Blue tugs gently at her moorings, floating a few hundred metres from the only road out of Ucluelet, B.C.It’s been a month since her two-man crew sailed up from Panama, tied her to the harbour dock, and stepped ashore after eight weeks at sea.Dan Archbald and Ryan Daley spent three days in town. Then on a cloudy afternoon, they walked up the harbour gangplank, hefted bulky sea bags over their shoulders and vanished.That same day, some 235 kilometres away, a work van belonging to Ben Kilmer was found abandoned on a rural road near Duncan, B.C. Its engine was running and there was blood inside.Police say they consider Daley and Archbald’s disappearance suspicious, but not Kilmer’s.They also say the cases are not linked, but that hasn’t stopped a fire of speculation from spreading across the island.The question everyone is trying to answer: how did three men around the same age go missing on the same day?After a month with no answers, friends and family in both cases now suspect foul play.Panama to UclueletDaley, 43, and a father of two, and Archbald, 37, are friends from Squamish, both of them accomplished sailors.Their last-known sighting was in the harbour parking lot. Carrying large bags and looking nonchalant, they crossed through a security camera’s field of view and haven’t been heard from since.Friends and family say they were planning to find a ride to Jordan River, where Daley owns property. They never made it.Sitting in his office within arm’s reach of where Daley and Archbald were last seen, Kevin Cortes is the last known person to speak with the pair. The conversation was nothing special, Cortes said.“No different than it would be with any of my other customers,” he said. “A little bit of superficial talk but nothing of any specifics.”Friends and family say Archbald bought the Astral Blue in Ecuador tw ...
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