West Coast Vancouver Island

[Amy Neal]

Planning on circumnavigating Vancouver Island counterclockwise leaving in early June in our 35 foot trawler with an active dog. We have traveled the east side of the island several times on our way north but the west coast of the island will be a new adventure for us. Wondering if anyone who has traveled this area has any pointers. I have the Waggoner's and Douglas' guides but looking for any other input like don't miss places, don't go places, watch out for, etc...
Thanks!
Amy

 

[Coastie54]

Having done a circumnav twice, I can say that all the guides will have the most needed information already. What I will add is to stress not to be on a schedule, esp on the passages around Cape Scott, Brookes Peninsula, etc.
You are going in the right direction for the usual prevailing winds and the fact you're going early and not in August means less likelihood of fog.
The areas around Nutchatlitz and Kyoquot were our personal favourites...

 

[RedRascal]

This trip is on my to do list, I've only made as far as hot springs cover coming up from the south. The fog can suck so if you want to move on any bit of a schedule get comfortable running with radar or whatever you have in the fog. You can get a 10 foot seaway with the afternoon northwesterlies which is usually not too bad if the swell is spaced out. So if you are out later in the afternoon and the wind is blowing plan on going uuupp and then downnn. Even if it's a mostly mellow on the ocean side things can get a more sporty at the entrances to some of the sounds on an ebb. Pay attention to ebbs where a channel drains out. It's remote so if you go ashore you may not be able to get off the beach because the vegetation can be too thick to get through. If you don't mind a little bit of rolling at high tide I like the sunsets from the anchorage between Clark and Owens islands in Barkley Sound. On a lower tide the reefs break up the swell but you'll feel it on a higher tide. If you have 3mm wetsuits and enjoy water falls take them if you visit lucky creak in barkley sound. You can swim to the second set of falls and get behind one of the bigger falls. Be mindful of the zoom level on your chart plotter, there are plenty of pinnacles around where you can be in 100-200 feet of water and all clear then all of a sudden there can be a column of rock that will break the surface on a low tide.

That coast is a happy place for me, enjoy!

 

[Portage_Bay]

I have worked the sounds and inlets on the west side for many years. But I've never made a recreational cruise there so cannot speak to must see places.

I'll say the obvious. You will make numerous open coastal passages. General advice is to try to make them early in the day as the winds and thus waves build in the afternoons. Many of the inlets will develop strong onshore winds in the afternoons. Be aware of opposing tide currents and winds to avoid uncomfortable rides even in areas that would seem to be protected.

Charts deserve some caution. It's getting better each year but you can still find some horizontal inaccuracy due to some of the CHS charts having been made long before electronic positioning. Don't blindly trust your GPS and chart plotter. Eyeballs and radar even on clear days are valuable to cross check the GPS. If you can get CHS raster charts, now for the most part discontinued, they provide a lot more bottom detail than the vector charts. Be prepared to "discover" uncharted rocks.

I have no experience with proprietary charts such as Navionics in that area.

You mention cruising with an active dog. That will be a challenge. Much of the shoreline is steep and rocky to the water. Often the best option to find a beach to run the dog will be at the head of the inlets. If you can find an active logging or recently logged area you will find logging roads to exercise the dog. You will see black bears. Cougars and wolves are around, you'll rarely see them but keep your dog close.

Be prepared to anchor in deep water in many of the inlets.

At some point you will be near Tofino Hot Springs. Maquinna Marine Provincial Park. Even though we were working we managed to fit in a stop there. The place is over run by tourists from mid morning to late afternoon. Absolutely unpleasant. Standing room only. The way to beat the crowd is early morning or late afternoon into the evening where there will only be yourselves a few of the campers from the nearby campground. For the late in the day visit just wait for all the tour boats and float places to depart.

 

[Delfin]

Planning on circumnavigating Vancouver Island counterclockwise leaving in early June in our 35 foot trawler with an active dog. We have traveled the east side of the island several times on our way north but the west coast of the island will be a new adventure for us. Wondering if anyone who has traveled this area has any pointers. I have the Waggoner's and Douglas' guides but looking for any other input like don't miss places, don't go places, watch out for, etc...
Thanks!
Amy

We've been around perhaps 10 times, and the things I might mention include:

1. After anchoring in Bull Harbor transit Nahwitti Bar either EXACTLY at high slack, or by hugging Vancouver island, still close to high slack.
2. You have a long haul to Winter Hbr after clearing the bar, or you can break it up by anchoring in Sea Otter cove, which is a shallow, pretty lousy anchorage, but serves the purpose.
3. After Quatsino Sound, it's pretty much day cruises to the next protected area. Visit them all.
4. Brooks Peninsula is no joke, so watch the winds reported at Solander Island and steer a wide berth unless it is calm, which rarely occurs in summer.
5. Visit what locals call Jacobson's Beach just at the southern end of Brooks. There's a trail from a good anchorage there to the beach.
6. Circumnavigate Flores island.
7. The best clamming beach on the west coast is in Bligh Harbor south of Tofino. It is always closed to clamming due to red tide, but this appears to be bs. Never had a problem there.
8. Anchor in Bamfield when you get to Barkley Sound. A great spot.
9. The run from Barkley to Sooke is a long one. You can stop at Renfrew in calmish conditions.

Lots more to say, but this is a start.

 

[Marco Flamingo]

I'll second the "don't go to Hot Springs Cove" during the day. There were no float plane visits from Tofino the first time I was there. Now, they are constant during the day. When a plane leaves, you would think the tourists have left. Nope, it's arranged so that they drop off a load and go get the next one. There can be two or more plane loads there at a time even if the dock is empty. It now has changing rooms and cell phone coverage. Best time is in the dark on a rising tide with a full moon (or in really bad weather). I don't think the pilots have instrument ratings. Take a good flashlight and be very careful.

I found that many of the interesting spots were well in from the coast. You will be by yourself most of the time. Some spots, like Holberg, are a full days motoring from the coast. Be aware that most of the cruising guides (all that I know of) are out of date. Our guide book said fuel was available at Walters Cove (Kyuquot). Nope, not for several decades.

I've also never had a problem with harvesting clams and oysters. I didn't even know the beaches were closed until this year. Swell can reflect back off of the coastal cliffs, making for a choppy mess (or worse). But if calm, close in and careful is where the whales are. Mooching over a seamount with something like a Buzz Bomb will produce a salmon or ling cod in short order. Winter Harbor has a surprisingly well-stocked store if you forgot something. I don't do the dog thing, but I can see that it could be a hassle.

There are some historic things to see. Columbia Cove was used by early explorers (Captain Gray). There are some native pictographs, canoe burials and totem poles around in the Bunsbys, but you'll need local knowledge. Yuquot in Nootka Sound (Captain Cook) has an old church that's open (if anybody is there) and the lighthouse. Here are links to some pictures of past cruises on the west side of Vancouver Is.:

The C-Brats :: C-Brat Albums

The ultimate C-Dory boating community, with an emphasis on the great folks who own, or want to own a C-Dory boat. The C-Brat boating forums are also the definitive resource for C-Dory technical information.

www.c-brats.com

The C-Brats :: C-Brat Albums

The ultimate C-Dory boating community, with an emphasis on the great folks who own, or want to own a C-Dory boat. The C-Brat boating forums are also the definitive resource for C-Dory technical information.

www.c-brats.com

 

[AlaskaProf]

Loiter in the Broken islands for dinghy exploration. I liked Uclulet much more than Bamfield. Fog is common, especially near Swiftsure, but okay if you are radar competent. Expect swarms of little sport fishermen between Sooke and Port San Juan.

 

[Snapdragon III]

We have only done it once, but the above advice all sounds good to me. I would highly recommend this trip. It takes way less time than going to Alaska, (Which is also great) and feels like a bigger adventure. A few things I would add.

We enjoyed Sea Otter cove but it was SCARY coming in there. Looking at the chart now (We were there 6 years ago). I am not sure if we came in the wrong way or something? I don't have the guide book at home that I am sure we must have been following. My memory of it was that coming in it just looked like a wall of huge breaking waves on the rocks that we were heading strait into. I think we passed the breaks on some offshore rocks, then made a turn into the entrance, and it was no big deal, but it sure looked bad from out in the ocean coming in. I think the other thing that made it stressful for me was I had to bring in my stabilizer fish before entering, as the entrance is shallow, but with the stabilizers up, the boat was a lot more exciting in the rough ocean.

The hot springs at night are less crowded, but when we were there, there were several old dudes that were all about getting naked. The pools are extremely small, and we had my 9 year old daughter with us so we left quickly. We had about 1 perfect hour after the tours left, and before the naked old hippies showed up. If you have a small dingy and the right anchoring set up, you can dingy in, row in through the kelp, and anchor it right in front of the hot springs in the evening. It is a little tricky as there is ocean swell. It is much quicker and easier than walking back the trail in the dark. The trail is wonderful during the day.

The second thing that caught us by surprise was the fishing. We did really good at the north end of the island, and just assumed it would be great all the way down. It wasn't. We wished we had just stayed where the fishing was good until we had our fill. This of coarse changes by the day and week, but next time, (Hopefully this Summer a month after you) If we find fish we will stay on them. Also, figuring out the fishing zones and rules is really hard if you don't have starlink. The Canadians don't make a PDF available of all the areas and rules in BC that is easy to download before you leave and there are like 20 different areas along the island. If you have starlink it's no problem. You can also get software that lets you download a webpage, and every link from that page a few links deep. I did it the last time we fished in Canada, and it worked well, but was a pain to figure out.

Getting water was way more of a pain in the ass than I thought it would be. The only place I have ever been where this was the case. A water maker would be nice, but if you don't have one, don't let it stop you from making the trip. We didn't have one on the boat we did it on last time, and were fine, but it was a hassle, and I was worried about running out.

I would not tow a dingy out there in the ocean. We heard an epic dingy disaster over the VHF where a boat had swamped and flipped a $40K "Dingy" they were towing. They were begging the Coast Guard to come and help them, but as nobody's life was in danger, they were having none of it. The desperation in this guy's voice left an impression.

 

[JDCAVE]

I did the counter-clockwise transit last year. If possible, time your start early on a favourable WX forecast and go all the way around to Winter Harbour. Anchorages prior to that are a bit sketchy.

Also, I don't completely agree with Delfin. You should should travel on a flood tide at Nahwitti Bar along the Vancouver Island shore across this are. You want to time your travel so you are at SLACK water at Scott Channel in my opinion. A swell-against-tidal-current at Scott Channel can be very dangerous.

You also need to plan the crossing at Brooks Penninsula (Cape Cook, Solander Island) as well as off-shore at Longbeach and also down Juan de Fuca.

We had no trouble finding good anchorages!

Agree with everyone on the issues at Hotsprings cove, but there is more. We tried to see the Hot Springs late in the afternoon after the last tourist trip and were turned back. The FN that manages it was not friendly. I have meant to complain with the provincial ministry that manages the park but have not yet done so. Note that Hotsprings is a horrible anchorage. Much better places. Make sure you visit Friendly Cove (Yuquot). Beautiful spot.

Jim

 

[Portage_Bay]

The FN that manages it not friendly. I have meant to complain with the provincial ministry that manages the park but have not yet done so.

Jim

The FN that manages it? First Nations? That's new to me but it's been quite a few years. When last I visited no active management. It sounds like crowds have gotten much worse. We could wait till the last float plane and "whale watching" boat left about 3 or 4 PM and walk in. A few disgruntled locals who didn't want us there. Too bad, it's a beautiful magical place. If you can time it for an incoming tide with a decent swell you can sit in one of the lower pools and get alternately washed by warm and cold water.

Another time that worked if you're an early bird is start your walk in right at sunrise.

 

[JDCAVE]

PB: Yes. They had a rule, after 5:00 pm, no visitors to the Hotsprings other than the FN community. They were definitely running the show and would not allow vessels at the dock.

Jim

 

[Portage_Bay]

PB: Yes. They had a rule, after 5:00 pm, no visitors to the Hotsprings other than the FN community. They were definitely running the show and would not allow vessels at the dock.

Jim

Sad to hear that. But to be honest I don't blame the FN. It's their hot springs. It's the tour operators who have ruined the place.

 

[SteveK]

Nothing against the FN personally but this is getting ridiculous. Haida Gwaii, previously known as Queen Charlotte, the Haida nation was historically deeded the land, 1st time in Canada. We keep apologising for our forefather mistakes and giving those that were not born the apology.

 

[Amy Neal]

Thank you so much for all the informative input, we appreciate the responses!

 

[Moonfish]

Recommend reading:

Voyages to Windward

Here’s a description: “Part memoir, part cruising guide, Voyages to Windward is an account of author Elsie Hulsizer's quarter-century of discovery on the West Coast of Vancouver Island with her husband Steve. Beautifully illustrated with author Elsie Hulsizer's own excellent photographs, Voyages is an absorbing, exquisitely crafted story that will delight all sailors whether or not they plan to follow Elsie’s windward course.”

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as part of our own preparation for cruising the west coast of Vancouver Island. Mostly because it’s beautifully written and really gives a feel for what it might be like cruising up there. Made me want to go even more!

 

[kabyak]

We did the full ccw circuit in 2019, spent about a week in each of the 5 sounds, and some of the lesser inlets. One of the guides presented the 100 foot rule: stay in at least 100' when offshore. That meant traveling a mile or more offshore as its surprisingly shoal on much of coast. This also allows choosing your course relative to the swell. We had no "bad days" running offshore in our 40' RPH trawler. A stop we enjoyed was the Marble River near the head of Quatsino Sd. There's good anchorage nearby and you can dinghy about a mile up a rock canyon with overhanging forest, at the end is a spectaclar half dome of rock that the river has carved.
We are headed to the west side July - Aug, but approaching and leaving to the south. We'll go as far north as Nootka Sd. dividing our time between Barkley, Clayoquot, and Nootka. Perhaps our paths will cross. Cheers.
Keith

 

[Amy Neal]

Recommend reading:

Voyages to Windward

Here’s a description: “Part memoir, part cruising guide, Voyages to Windward is an account of author Elsie Hulsizer's quarter-century of discovery on the West Coast of Vancouver Island with her husband Steve. Beautifully illustrated with author Elsie Hulsizer's own excellent photographs, Voyages is an absorbing, exquisitely crafted story that will delight all sailors whether or not they plan to follow Elsie’s windward course.”

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as part of our own preparation for cruising the west coast of Vancouver Island. Mostly because it’s beautifully written and really gives a feel for what it might be like cruising up there. Made me want to go even more!

Thank you! I recently purchased this book but have not had the chance to read it yet, I look forward to it though.

 

[Amy Neal]

We did the full ccw circuit in 2019, spent about a week in each of the 5 sounds, and some of the lesser inlets. One of the guides presented the 100 foot rule: stay in at least 100' when offshore. That meant traveling a mile or more offshore as its surprisingly shoal on much of coast. This also allows choosing your course relative to the swell. We had no "bad days" running offshore in our 40' RPH trawler. A stop we enjoyed was the Marble River near the head of Quatsino Sd. There's good anchorage nearby and you can dinghy about a mile up a rock canyon with overhanging forest, at the end is a spectaclar half dome of rock that the river has carved.
We are headed to the west side July - Aug, but approaching and leaving to the south. We'll go as far north as Nootka Sd. dividing our time between Barkley, Clayoquot, and Nootka. Perhaps our paths will cross. Cheers.
Keith

Marble River sounds like a lovely stop, thank you! I like to hear the part about no bad days, as admittedly, I am a bit apprehensive about the conditions on the outside. I don't mind the swells but we had some washing machine like waters last year on the west side of Prince of Wales Island that did not sit well with me or the dog.
Our boat, the Miq Maq is a 35' blue hulled down easter type boat, we expect to be on the southwest portion of Vancouver Island mid July, hail us if you come across us. Cheers,
Amy

 

[Stevecman]

If you haven’t already discovered it, check out the collection of guides offered by SALISH SEA PILOT. The guides are offered in PDF format by a sailing couple who live on Vancouver Island. IRRC, the west side guide was compiled just a few years ago, so it should be fairly current.

There are seven guides, including one for the west side of Vancouver Island. The guides focus primarily on anchorages, with drawings to help you visualize the areas

You can purchase individual guides or buy the whole set, which you then download on up to six devices. The one-time cost is minimal and are periodically updated and available for existing purchasers for a discounted price.

 

[kabyak]

We start watching for our weather window a couple days prior to ETD, and adjust as needed. Often the lumpiest parts were the 1 mile or so run out to depth as the swell is likely on the beam. As others have suggested, travel early as winds often increase later in the day. Ceora is a full displacement hull with round bilges, so prone to roll, but its heavy and the action is predictable and soft,
without the snap of some semi displacement boats.
Keith

 

[thataway]

We spent 2 months on the West Coast in1996 on our Cal 46 (Sailboat with 6' draft). We did have a GPS and the paper charts, and not problems with our draft. We had two Labrador Retrievers aboard, and no problem finding places for the dogs to "walk" each day. In some areas, we kept them on long lead, but they were well trained, so most places they were off lead. If there were other people on the shore the dogs were on 6' leads. The labs had spent a lot of time in the wilderness areas, so were bear, cougar and wolf savvy. (One night in SE AK there was a wolf on the shoreline. We just drifted and watched the wolf. Eventually it trotted off. No bark or other noise uttered by our labs.). We would always make some commotion before going ashore at night. We would avoid places we had seen bear during the day, when we came ashore at night. We did carry bear spray when ashore and in any bear area. We didn't use any lights to preserve our night vision (Now a days we have one of the hand held FLIR scopes and "Sionyx" when walking dogs in suspect areas for critters at night.). If we had spotted something and needed to take a good look in the 90's we did have a hand held spotlight, and only used if necessary. We also had headlamps for use in "dark" areas, but usually tried to use these with low light red.

 

[Amy Neal]

If you haven’t already discovered it, check out the collection of guides offered by SALISH SEA PILOT. The guides are offered in PDF format by a sailing couple who live on Vancouver Island. IRRC, the west side guide was compiled just a few years ago, so it should be fairly current.

There are seven guides, including one for the west side of Vancouver Island. The guides focus primarily on anchorages, with drawings to help you visualize the areas

You can purchase individual guides or buy the whole set, which you then download on up to six devices. The one-time cost is minimal and are periodically updated and available for existing purchasers for a discounted price.

Looked into this just this morning, it looks like an excellent resource, we will surely download it, thank you!
Amy

 

[Marco Flamingo]

Marble River sounds like a lovely stop, thank you!

Many decades ago, I whitewater kayaked the Marble River from highway 30 to Marble Bay and then over to Coal Harbor. It was one of the most fascinating rivers I ever did. That's when I first learned that there are thousands of caves on Vancouver Island. When we stopped on the decent there were sometimes caves above us. At one point we noticed that rocks had been stacked at a cave mouth. Climbing up, we could look into it and see that the ceiling of the cave was blackened by soot. A little ancient fire ring and room for two. And people complain that a boat without modern comforts is "camping."

The river was lined with worn rocks that showed that at many times in the past it had run at 10-15 feet higher. To get a feel for what some of these rivers are like just up from their entry into Quatsino, check out this YouTube video (you'll probably want to skip the start and just get to some of the middle section where the river goes through caves). The Artlish River is too small to kayak, but the scenery and feel is the same. I've been back on Quatsino years later in my C-Dory and went up clear up to Holberg. A peaceful transit while waiting for seas to calm down on the coast. Port Alice has a good grocery store within walking distance of the marina.