3 day kayaking trip in Desolation Sound with Phill and Liam. Day 1 – 18.5k Okeover Inlet to West Curme Island via Hare Point. Day 2 – 20k West Curme Island to Feather Cove via Tenedos Bay and Lake Unwin. Day 3 – 11k Feather Cove to Okeover Inlet.
Thursday afternoon we caught the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Gibsons before driving to Earls Cove for our second ferry to Saltery Bay and then on to the Okeover Arm Provincial Park Campsite ($6 per person). After an early start we jumped up the coast to Okeover Inlet where we picked up our kayaks from bcseakayaks.
We set off in convoy, quickly setting up the trawling lines in the pursuit of Salmon. As we moved up the inlet the scenery was stunning but I quickly realised I was in for a long 3 days as my previous kayaking experience was pretty limited. We soldiered up the inlet fighting both the tide and wind which limited our rests as we lost ground very quickly. We eventually made it to Hare Point for lunch, a beautiful spot for a break and encountered our first snake but he was happy to slither away. After the break we moved on and crossed over to Mink Island, Liam had our first bite on the lines (and proved to be our last) while making the crossing. We then worked along the coast down to the Curme Islands, very grateful for the tailwind, where we were staying the night.
We located a camp spot, the campsites have wooden platforms to pitch your tents. The evening was spent fishing, swimming, drinking beer and eventually having ration packs rather then the fresh salmon we had planned on, unfortunately we forgot the cards but lesson learnt. Most of the campsites don’t allow campfires at any point but this was irrelevant due to the total ban on campfires in BC.
Saturday was another gorgeous day and the smoke from the fires was staying away for the time being. We set off for Tenedos Bay kayaking through loads of seals and went under a circling large bird, Liam claimed this was a Turkey Vulture, there was then a dispute as to whether this was a real thing (turns out it is). Once in Tenedos bay we encountered a shoal of herring breaking the surface, we hoped being pushed up by salmon, but the lack of salmon suggests it was probably seals. We stopped at the campsite and took the 10 minute walk up to Lake Unwin, nearly missing the sign written in sticks on the ground (as you approach the lake take the left hand path). Beautiful lake and would have been nice to explore but with a big day ahead we didn’t hang around. After lunch we started the slog to Feather Cove, again in to the wind and tide. We arrived about 4pm all pretty tired and feeling the effects of 40k in two days. Unfortunately we arrived too late to get one of the prime camping spots so camped in the woods but set up our base on the beach. Another very similar evening although this time Liam caught a rockfish (returned safely) which meant all our fishing hadn’t been in vain!! We even got Phill fishing despite his negative waves through the whole trip.
There was a brief discussion of getting up at 3am to start the journey back under the stars and with the phosphorescence but this was vetoed and with the smoke coming in strong was the right call. Instead we got up at 6 45 and for the first time with a tail wind and tide made excellent progress back to the Okeover Inlet. The smoke had come in very strong overnight which ruined the scenery but we had had two days of gorgeous weather so couldn’t complain.
Once packed up we started the long slog back down the Sunshine Coast to Vancouver, stopping at Persephone Brewery in Gibsons for a much needed pizza and a beer!
An awesome trip and would definitely go back as a lot more territory to explore, the only downside was we didn’t see as much wildlife as I expected and I need to work on my kayaking technique and fitness but would definitely recommend it!
Adventures of a fishing triathlete 