Gulf Islands Long Weekend

Returned yesterday from an inspiring trip through the southern Gulf Islands, camping in the Gulf Islands National Park. My friend Chris and I decided to spend the Canada Day long weekend, which really wasn't a long weekend because it was a thursday, so we took an extra day off but anyway, we spent the extended long weekend on a trip that took us to Sidney, D'Arcy, Rum and Portland Islands.


Originally we had planned to due a purely public transit trip, taking the train and bus to the ferry terminal, and leaving on Wednesday evening. But too much to do and too little time so we wound up driving to the Tsawwassen ferry terminal, parking there and walking on. Since it was raining on us and we had no idea how to get down to the government dock due to all the changes at Swartz Bay we grabbed a cab. Cheating I know but I wanted to conserve my strength for the paddle!



Lots of crazy big jellyfish floating around on this trip.


And we're off! Under some very grey skies. The only rain we got though was just a small sprinkling as we set up.



Our first stop was for some lunch at Sidney Spit, on Sidney Island. I had been wanting to visit here for years now and was looking forward to it. It's a big island. This is the tip of Sidney Spit and it took us another half hour to get to the end.


Very nice place.


There is water here on Sidney and this was the big mistake of the trip. I only packed a couple of litres thinking I would fill up here but the water here is salty, and not that great. It's drinkable, but as the sign says not safe for people with kidney or heart problems. And it tastes awful. So we had salty water or water scrounged from the BC ferries bathroom taps. Next time, even though it's heavy, I'm bringing water!!

Sidney Island would make for a nice car-less camping trip, as you can take a bus from Swartz Bay to Sidney, then walk on a ferry here. And it really is a very nice spot, but heavily used, and is $13.90 per site! This was just a lunch stop though, we were headed for D'Arcy for the night.


We were even getting some blue sky by now. The forecast kept changing all week, but the latest was, cloudy with showers Thursday (Canada Day!) sunny on Friday, and cloudy with showers Saturday and Sunday.


Most of the trip down to D'Arcy is along Sidney Island, with just a short crossing at the south end. The outer edge of Sidney Lagoon is particularly nice, with long stretches of white sandy beach.


D'Arcy and Little D'Arcy Island ahead. You'll notice that Chris, in his home-made Yostwerks kayak, is always ahead of me! As much as I love my Sunny it's really more of a 'slow and steady wins the race' boat.



And finally we arrive, exhausted and hungry and glad to be ashore. At least I was.


D'Arcy Island was a former leper colony. These poor guys were sent here to live out their days without even a doctor. Every three months they sent a load of supplies and coffins. Very sad. The campsite is at the site of the old colony. There are some ruins of the caretaker's cottage and some other buildings on the other side of the island.



I was expecting at least a couple more people but we were the only ones here, so I got the best spot.


Slept like a baby and snored like an elephant all night, and I even got to sleep in. I got up once in the night, at 3 am and it was almost mystical. Bright shining moon, no wind, and perfect silence. You just cannot find an experience like that in the city.

We had decided since it was going to be a nice day we would simply take it easy and have a day off. No paddling, just relaxing on the beach and exploring the island.


Our tax dollars at work! A Canadian Navy destroyer on patrol.

Spent a very relaxing morning on the beach and welcomed a couple of new arrivals. By the end of the day there was six of us there but everyone was cool and we never felt crowded.


You can hike the whole perimeter of the island and it's well worth doing. D'Arcy is ringed with gorgeous beaches and views.


Little D'Arcy Island.



Sidney Island in the distance.


The remains of the caretaker's home.





And just round that corner is yet another beautiful beach, and then the beautiful beach we're camped on.


And back to relaxing. By the way, a chair like one of these is an absolute must, in my opinion, for camping. Well worth the weight if you have any tendency towards back pain.


Our kitchen, sheltered from the wind. I should mention that it was freakin' cold on this trip!!! During the day, when it was sunny, it was nice. But once that wind came in, brrrrrr! I almost didn't pack a sweater, but at the last minute threw it in. Good call! I regretted not bringing even warmer clothes.


Chris baked us up an awesome pizza for dinner.


I boiled up some pasta but we wound up having this for lunch the next day.


Another stroke of good luck was that I had brought along a bunch of water flavour crystals a friend had given me. At the last minute I noticed them in the cupboard and threw them in. They made that salty water from Sidney Island taste really good! And I have to rave about these flexible water bottles. Love em. They're light, strong, and collapse down to nothing when empty. Greatest advancement in water bottle technology in years. I used to imagine people from the future drinking from containers like these. The future is here!


Of course I always love the classics too. I got this flask for Christmas and had filled it with Cinnamon Whiskey for the trip. I think this kept me warmer than the sweater did.


The next morning we were up bright and early for the 10km to Rum Island.



One of the Washington State ferries leaving from Sidney.


Approaching Rum Island, the small one on the right. On the left is Gooch Island. Gooch was also the name of the bully who tormented Arnold Jackson on 'Diff'rent Strokes'. Whachyoutalkin'bout Gooch? RIP Gary Coleman.

We had planned to stay on Rum but when we got there it was packed. There were a couple of groups in sailboats, as well as another four kayakers who showed up right behind us. Everyone was super cool, but we decided to just lunch here and head for Portland instead, as the conditions were good and we both felt we had another few hours kayaking in us.


The Parks Canada landing craft coming in.


You can see Portland way off in the distance there.


Only 9.17 kilometers to go.


A few whale watching boats were zipping around. I was hoping to see Orcas but no luck.


Whom ever owns this piece of paradise is a very lucky person.

I was so happy we decided to push on from Rum, because this turned out to be the best paddle I've had so far this year. The wind and the current was at our back and we were zipping along with almost no effort. The sunshine and the breeze covered the water with sparkling diamonds.


This is what kayaking is all about to me.


Approaching Portland Island we had to be careful of two ferries, one coming in, one leaving.



We got a few whoops and waves from the ferry passengers.


We made it across just fine and wandered around Princess Bay.


We had planned to camp on Shell Beach, but once we got there, it was packed. Oh well, what can you expect on a long weekend? The weather was finally nice and people were out to enjoy it. Can't blame them at all.


As soon as we pulled into Arbutus Point we met a friendly group of campers with a very cool wooden boat. The girls immediately offered us a shot of cinnamon whiskey, just like I had brought, so they obviously had good taste. They also said they loved my 'sunny boat'. Now see this is just one more reason my inflatable is better than Chris's Yostwerks. His boat gets all the attention from kayaking nerds. Mine gets all the attention from pretty girls!


Had a great night here but a short one. By 10 pm I was falling asleep on my feet, and was passed out and snoring immediately after laying down. We took our time packing up and leaving, as the weather was still holding beautifully. Once it got cloudy, we packed up and headed out.




And two hours later we were packed and ready for the 4 pm ferry.


The walk back to the ferry wasn't as bad as I was expecting. The collapsible cart was a lifesaver. I'd never do a trip like this without one!

Just as we were leaving Active Pass we got a very nice surprise. A pod of Orcas! I got to see some whales after all.





Not the greatest photos but a real joy to see. They were splashing around, playing, showing off their tales. A beautiful end to a very enjoyable trip. Happy Canada Day and happy Fourth of July!