Category Archives: Hiking

Trip Report – Main Lake Provincial Park – 6-8 June 2023

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Five club members took part in a three day paddle, camp, hike in our beautiful, “backyard” playground, Main Lake Provincial Park. The flawless weather – sunny and hot – set the scene for a tremendous outing.

On day one we got organized at the Mine Lake boat launch and set off for the 45 minute paddle across Mine and Main Lakes in a fairly stiff breeze, to “Howard’s Site” on the north shore. After setting up our campsite we did a short walk/scramble to two nearby viewpoints. The hot afternoon sun tempted us back to the shade of our campsite and a first swim in 2023, for some of us. R and R, conversation and supper followed by a good night’s sleep rounded out the day.  (Paddle 3.5 km, 1 hour; hike 1.4 km, 1 hour)

(click to enlarge photos)

Day two started with a leisurely breakfast and the decision to paddle two lakes. Variable winds – speed and direction – and lots of sun, as we headed west to the end of Main Lake and into Shadowbrook leading to Little Main Lake. We did some fancy paddling to navigate the stream and stepped out of the kayaks to get past a shallow spot and a downed tree. Signs of beaver were evident and the air was filled with birdsong and activity. We circled Little Main Lake and then retraced our route back into Main Lake where we finally took a break after about three hours on our butts. After our lunch stop at the campsite northwest of Howard’s, we paddled on to the eastern end of the lake. BTW, we had seen only a few other people on the water and no other campers. After beaching our kayaks we set off on the Yeatman Bay hike, keeping cooler in the shade of the forest. At Yeatman Bay, due to a very low tide, we were able to add some distance to our hike by going out to the now accessible island and the reward of a much wider view of Okisollo Channel. Not a boat on the water here either!! Turning back, we made the return hike and short paddle back to our base camp – very hot, happy with the day, and pretty well played out. A swim, a beverage and snacks were well earned.  (Paddle 12.2 km, 4 hours, hike 3.8 km, 1¾  hours, paddle 1 km, 19  min)

A very quiet, moonlit night ended early with the first birdsong in the wee hours of our third day. We managed to break camp and get on the water by 0830 and paddled to the lake’s eastern beach/campsite once again. This early start provided the opportunity to hike the Surge Narrows Road trail in the cool of the morning with the forest beautifully illuminated…. highlighting the big trees, lush moss, ferns, creeks, lakes. Evidence of wolves feasting on a deer in a past season was scattered on a section of the trail; evidence of timber harvests by Quadra’s pioneers were scattered throughout the forest. While resting briefly at Surge Narrows Road someone commented on the fine view of a well-maintained Quadra thoroughfare! Sometimes the journey is more rewarding than the destination. On the return hike we investigated the old squatter’s campsite on the shore of “Roscoe Lake”, opined that the “artifacts” were likely never to be removed, and then headed to the kayaks. The 50 minute paddle to the takeout on Mine Lake, with a slight headwind, completed a very successful mid-week weekend.  (paddle 1 km, ¼ hour, hike 5.8 km, 2½ hours, paddle 4 km)

Vic

Multi-day kayaking, camping – Main Lake Provincial Park – 6-8 June 2023

Hiking – Plumper and Deepwater Bays – 19 June 2023

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Activity Hiking
Destination Plumper and Deepwater Bays
Date 19 June, Monday
Trip Coordinator Norris Weimer
Contact Info norris.weimer@ualberta.ca or 3710.  Please contact the coordinator in advance.
Description A relatively flat and easy hike on old logging roads. The first part is the same as for going to Maud Island, then instead of turning left, we turn right. The trail is quite gradual down to the water. There has been some recent trail work.  Plumper Bay has a nice grassy, sunny meadow on the waterfront and Deepwater has a  gravel shore with a view north up Discovery Passage. Both have recently had a beach clean-up.  About 8 km roundtrip.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Tru Value parking lot; we will convoy in our cars from there.
Departure Time 10:00
Difficulty Easy, but roughly maintained
Costs none
Trip limits 10
Dogs?
Notes: Bring lunch.

Trip Report – Santana Mine – 29 May 2023

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Nine of us, including two guests, drove out to Bold Point, the start of the old Santana Mine Road.  Gabe and Karen generously offered for us to park on and cross their property to the trailhead.  The old road needed a bit of brush cutting and sawing, but we were very grateful to Alex and Ellen for their flagging and chainsawing.  We did a bit more work on it and it’s not too bad now.  After climbing the final rise below the mine, we had a snack at the viewpoint toward Vancouver Island and admired the Western tanager singing loudly in the tree in front of us.  We continued up the tailing slope and explored the mine with it’s colourful entrance, old rail tracks, and a few crickets.  There were no spiders this time.  
 

After we returned to the cars, doing a bit more trail work along the way, we drove to the old Bold Point trestle, where the Union Steamship used to dock.  The planking is seriously deteriorating, but it’s a beautiful vista onto Hoskyn Channel.

Thanks for all the community support for our hike out to the mine.  The mine trail was 3.3 km; 2¼ hours.

Norris
 

(click on photos to enlarge)

Hiking – Santana Mine – 29 May 2023

Trip Report – Morton Lake Provincial Park – 23-25 May 2023

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Tuesday:  There were seven of us on this camping, kayaking and hiking trip, with flexible arrival and departure times.  Les went out early and stayed Monday night at Morton Lake Provincial Park.  The rest of us arrived on Tuesday morning and set up our campsites right away.  After a picnic lunch at the Mohun Lake boat launch in the sun, we launched and paddled south into Mohun Lake with a light northwest breeze following us and fabulous views of Strathcona Park ahead.  We checked out two campsites on the way and then got out at the Pacific Yew Rec Site to stretch our legs before heading back.  The Lake and campgrounds were very quiet and we only saw two canoes all day.  The water levels were high everywhere, sometimes making it tricky to get ashore.  After returning to the Provincial Park, most of us took a short walk along Morton Lake to a rocky outcropping along the shore where people had made many, many cairns.  We enjoyed a great happy hour at Les’ campsite with much too much yummy food, before a restful evening at our campsites.

(click to enlarge photos)

Wednesday: We were on the water shortly after 9:30 on a clear day with a light northwest breeze.  We headed north through the old trestles into Goose Lake, with the Menzies Massif high above the Lake.  We made leisurely progress checking out the campsites on the shore and getting out at G6 and G7 for closer inspection.  We continued north to Seagull Bay and hauled out there.  After lunch on the dock, most of us walked the portage trail connecting to Twin Lakes.   The forest walk was lovely with dappled light in a good forest and the trail often following a creek.  There was a guided group of students at the north end with four canoes, just about to launch.  We returned to the boats and headed south, enjoying the many islands and islets, before turning into the lagoon to explore.  We paddled the very shallow waters over to the campsite at Loon Bay, which had a great location and set-up.  We headed back to the campsite and again had great appies at Stephen and Carrie’s campsite before another quiet evening.

Thursday: Terry had to head home and Les departed at check-out time.  The remaining five of us first walked the loop trail north of the campground leading to Andrew Lake and then back.  Next, we walked the old railroad line out to the trestles at the narrows between Mohun and Goose Lakes.  There were flowers and lake views along the way.  We went a bit further through the forest to open shore by an islet, with a spectacular view of Mohun and the mountains beyond it.  After returning to the campground, Bonnie, Norris and Debbie departed, with Stephen and Carrie remaining another night. They explored Morton Lake by kayak and poked into Mohun Creek.

Friday:  Stephen and Carrie took a trail south of Morton Lake to a lovely lake perhaps named Oglarama, if you can believe the sign on the tree.

This is a beautiful area book-ended by Menzies on the north and Strathcona Park on the south.  This was the perfect time to visit with excellent weather and very few people on the Lakes and in the campsites.

Debbie

Thanks to Carrie, Bonnie and Norris for the photos

Multi-day kayaking and camping – Morton Lake Provincial Park – 23-25 May 2023

Hiking – Heron Point and Mt. Sweat – 14 June 2023

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Activity Hiking
Destination Heron Pt and Mt. Sweat loop
Date 14 June, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator Debbie Quigg
Contact Info dmquigg@gmail.com or 3710  Please contact the coordinator by Monday night.
Description This is a short hike starting on Kolker Main. We will briefly follow a logging road, a short connector and a mossy bluff to Heron Point for great views of Hyacinthe Bay and the Chinese Mtn area.  From there we will take a cairned route through forest trails and rocky bluffs to Mt. Sweat. We descend to Kolker Main through open, forested slope and return to the vehicles on the logging road.  This is a view hike and will not be done in poor weather.  About 4 km; 2½ hours.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay store parking lot.  We will drive out in a group.
Departure Time 10:00 or earlier if it’s hot
Difficulty
 Mostly easy, but some interesting places on Mt. Sweat.
Costs None
Trip limits 10
Dogs? No, some of this will be on private property.
Notes: Some of this trip is on private property and we thank Heather Kellerhals for allowing our visit to Chauntaluf Farm.  Bring gear appropriate for the weather and trail conditions, as well as lunch.

Hiking – Santana Mine – 29 May 2023

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Change of start time to 9:00.

Activity Hiking
Destination Santana Mine
Date 29 May 2023, Monday
Trip Coordinator Norris Weimer
Contact Info norris.weimer@ualberta.ca or 3710. Please contact the coordinator by Saturday night.
Description We will hike to the historic Santana Mine from the Bold Point area.  The access routes are not maintained and range from old logging roads to trails up to the mine.  This outing combines a walk through a good forest and a mine with a horizontal shaft. The history of the mine is quite interesting.  Here is a link to the claim information:  https://minfile.gov.bc.ca/summary.aspx?minfilno=092K%20%20013
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store
Departure Time 9:00 10:00
Difficulty
 Moderate
Costs None
Trip limits 10
Dogs?
Notes: Bring a flashlight.  Bring gear for the weather and lunch.

Multi-day Kayaking, Camping – Main Lake Prov Park- 6-8 June 2023

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Activity Multi-day kayaking, camping and hiking
Destination Main Lake Provincial Park
Date 6-8 June 2023, Tuesday to Thursday
Trip Coordinator Vic Gladish
Contact Info vicgladish@gmail.com; 250-285-2111; text 250-287-0459
Description We will set up camp at Main Lake and spend three days exploring by hiking and paddling. Destinations can vary with the group’s interests.
Meeting Place Mine Lake boat launch
Departure Time On the water at 1030 hr.
Difficulty Easy to moderate if windy
Cost https://bcparks.ca/main-lake-park/
Trip limits 8
Dogs? No.
Notes: This multi-day trip is relatively easy on a local lake, but requires good paddling and camping gear. Bring footwear suitable for hiking (easy).

Ask coordinator about joining for just 1 or 2 days if you have a schedule conflict.

Trip Report – Hyacinthe Bay at Low Tide – 8 May 2023

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On a beautiful spring day, eight of us enjoyed exploring Hyacinthe Bay on a 0.5 metre tide which revealed some history and intertidal life.  After arriving at Chauntaluf Farm, we sat on the deck of the Schoolhouse and talked about the history and ecology of the Bay.  About 25 years ago, the Kellerhals family noticed stakes in the stream channel at low tide.  These turned out to be the remnants of Indigenous fish traps which are several hundred years old.  We also talked about the nearly complete loss of eel grass in Hyacinthe Bay in the last 50 years.  This may be the result of a wasting disease, but it has immense consequences for the creatures who used to live there.

We wandered down to the tidal flats and almost immediately found many of the old stakes.  Although we couldn’t always see the pattern of how the trap would have worked, we were impressed with the resilience of the wood.  We found lots of oyster and clam shells, and further out there were sand dollars, mostly dead, but a few still black.  There were also many moon snail egg cases.  At the very edge of the water there was eel grass, some crabs and sea stars.  There was plenty of diversity .  

As the tide began to flood, we climbed ashore and visited a property which had recently been donated to the Regional District.  The cabin is still in quite good condition.  From there we followed a short trail leading back to the Farm.  We took the lovely, wide, grassy Maple Bay Road back to the vehicles.  This was a very easy relaxed day, giving us the time to enjoy the beautiful day and fascinating things on the shore.  (2.7 km; 2 hours)

Thanks so much for the invitation from Heather Kellerhals and all the help from Robyn.

Debbie

Click on photos to enlarge
 

Hiking – Hyacinthe Bay at Low Tide – 8 May 2023

Trip Report – Carrington Bay & Grandmothers’ Grove – 1 May 2023

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Eight of us were very happy to return to this hike on Cortes after a long break.  The weather was perfect for hiking and the trails were in very good condition although there were the usual large puddles on the logging road.  We enjoyed the excellent forest along the old road down to Carrington Bay, stopping briefly at the old Borden homestead.  We were impressed by the new aluminum bridge across the outlet from the lagoon. In a few years this crossing went from a slippery log, to the wooden bridge to this metal bridge.  There was some good variety of intertidal creatures to view at the lagoon exit before we made our way over to the granite rock on the lagoon for lunch.  It was wonderfully warm and quiet as we enjoyed lunch and the water birds.  We continued around the lagoon on a trail through the mossy Children’s Forest to the Grandmothers’ Grove.  The old trees and James Creek were very beautiful and serene.  We followed the trail until it joined the logging road ascending the hill back to the vehicles.  We hurried a bit at the end and were able to return on the earlier ferry.  9.2 km; 3½ hours.

Debbie

(click on photos to view larger)

Hiking – Carrington Bay & Grandmothers’ Grove – 1 May 2023

Multi-day Kayaking, Camping – Morton Lake Prov Park- 23-25 May 2023

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Activity Multi-day kayaking and camping
Destination Morton, Goose and Mohun Lakes
Date 23-25 May 2023, Tuesday to Thursday
Trip Coordinator Debbie Quigg
Contact Info dmquigg@gmail.com or 3710; please contact the coordinator well in advance of the trip
Description We will camp at Morton Lake Provincial Park and explore the three accessible lakes.  Mohun and Goose Lakes are on the Sayward Canoe Circuit. We may do some light hiking including one of the portages. This trip can be done as a one, two or three day trip.  Camping is not required if you wish to come for just one day.  Each participant must book their own campsite.  Morton Lake park is accessed by Menzies Main.
Meeting Place QCove ferry terminal or Morton Lake Provincial Park
Departure Time 9:00 ferry to Campbell River or by individual arrangement
Difficulty Easy to moderate.
Cost Ferry, fuel and camping costs.  If you are over 65, the camping cost (not the booking fee) is half price.
Trip limits 10.
Dogs? No.
Notes: Camping reservations can be made at https://camping.bcparks.ca/    Most of the available tent sites are double sites, where both have to be booked.  If you are trying to join up with someone else, please call the coordinator.  Site availability is limited.