Category Archives: Quadra Island

Hiking – Noel’s Pizza Peak – 3 July 2023

Posted on by
1

Activity Hiking
Destination Noel’s Pizza Peak
Date 3 July 2023, Monday
Trip Coordinator Les Hand
Contact Info 285-2029 or lhquadra@gmail.com
Description Noel’s Pizza peak is the informal name for the west ridge of Beech’s Mt. It is a flagged route, not an official trail. There may be some blow down and bushwhacking as it is not maintained. This is a view hike, so will be postponed if raining. About 4 hours.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store for car pooling
Departure Time 10:00
Difficulty
 Moderate
Costs No
Trip limits 10
Dogs? No
Notes: If you use hiking poles bring them. I would also recommend good hiking boots.
Be sure and sign up a couple of days early so that I may contact you if there is a change in plans.

Trip Report – Heron Pt. and Mt. Sweat – 14 June 2023

Posted on by
Reply

Four of us enjoyed this great, short loop with wonderful views and lots of variety in terrain.  It’s very quick up to Heron Point, with views from Chinese Mtn to Hyacinthe Bay.  The weather was windy and “soft”.  The sky was clear, but there was haze, perhaps from smoke.  We continued on a gentle cairned trail to an old logging road and off on another marked trail which climbs and undulates through forest and mossy bluffs up to an intermediate viewpoint and then Mt. Sweat.  We stopped for a very relaxing lunch at this viewpoint which covers more than 180°.  From there we followed a recently flagged route down the north side back to Kolker Main and the short walk to the vehicles.  Thanks to Heather Kellerhals for letting the Outdoor Club use the Chauntaluf farm trails to make this loop.  3.8 km, 2½ hours.

Debbie
 

(click on photos to enlarge)

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

Hiking – Newton Lake-Small Inlet-Waiatt Bay – 26 July 2023

Posted on by
1

Activity Hiking with swimming
Destination Newton Lake, Small Inlet and Waiatt Bay
Date 26 July 2023, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator Vic Gladish
Contact Info vicgladish@gmail.com; 250-285-2111; text 250-287-0459
Description We will hike up to Newton Lake, down to the portage between Small Inlet and Waiatt Bay and back to the Newton Lake parking lot. Distance about 15 kilometres – will take approximately 6-7 hours (including lunch and short swim stops at Newton Lake)
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Tru Value
Departure Time 9:00
Difficulty
 Moderate for distance and steep grades
Costs Share fuel costs
Trip limits 10
Dogs? No
Notes: Bring plenty of water, lunch and snacks, and swimming stuff if you want to swim.

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

Posted on by
Reply

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

Posted on by
1

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

Posted on by
Reply
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

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

Posted on by
1

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.

Trip Report – Maud Island and Petroglyphs – 18 May 2023

Posted on by
1

Five paddlers put in at Whalebone Cove and set off by 0900 on glassy seas, with bright sunshine, and warming temperatures. A beautiful summer day in the spring! And finally, after many attempts to undertake this trip, we were doing it.

Working with and against the ebbing current we made our way northward, close to shore and observing the life below. An hour’s paddling brought us to the fish farm near Maud Island and then we decided that our early lunch stop would be at the entrance to the saltwater lagoon which was at this point not navigable.

We then headed for “Kawston”, the ancient village site and its petroglyphs at the mouth of Morte Creek just east of Maud Island. Locating the flat-topped large rock with the quartz line was easy and on it was a fairly obvious petroglyph as indicated in Inglis’s little guide book. Over the next 45 minutes or so we searched for further examples and came up empty handed. However the many canoe pull outs were quite evident as we walked across the top of the beach.

As we paddled back, southward, with an increasingly strong flood current, we stayed close to shore and were passed by a solitary cetacean (porpoise?), spotted an otter, and a sea lion. We rode the fast current for several minutes, got pushed around by boils and whirlpools, and then cruised back into Whalebone Cove. 6½ hours and 17 km covered.

A fabulous outing!!

Vic

Thanks to Vic and Tak for the photos

(click on photos to enlarge)

Kayaking – Maud Island and Petroglyphs – 18 May 2023

Trip Report – Open Bay Beach Clean-Up – 15 May 2023

Posted on by
1

Five hardy club members started early Monday morning, May 15, braving the unseasonal extreme heat to show our community pride by participating in Quadra’s Beach Clean-Up. We began at Big Beach in Open Bay where Les and Neil hauled two heavy piles of already collected debris from the beach-side trailhead back up the steep trail to our large collection bag. This pile turned out to be the most garbage we would see for the entire clean-up. The three beaches (Big, Redonda, and Valdes beaches) have obviously been well cleaned in the last few weeks, by other Island teams and/or the geology students from VIU.

Kudos to Debbie and Norris who made a valiant effort at Big Beach to remove the tires/styrofoam/wood remains of an old dock.  Too heavy and bulky to wangle up the steep hill, it was finally, regretfully, left at the beach above the high tide line.

Small amounts of debris were found at Redonda and Valdes beaches, dutifully packed into the big white bag for later disposal at the Beach Clean-Up event on May 27.

The heat on the exposed beaches precluded any socializing afterwards, so we all headed back to find our cool spots at home. (about 2.5 hours; about 27° C)

Valerie van Veen
 
Thanks to Valerie and Norris for the photos
 

(click on photos to enlarge)

Beach Clean-up – Open Bay – 15 May 2023

Trip Report – Gowlland Harbour – 10 May 2023

Posted on by
1

Ten kayakers met at Gowlland Harbour resort for our spring wildflower paddle. It was a beautiful sunny summer day with only light wind. Gowlland Harbour Resort was very gracious and allowed us to launch from their beautiful Resort. Les had hurt his shoulder earlier in the week, so was not able to join the group on the water. He showed up to help everyone get launched, but Debbie shepherded the group on the water.

After launching we paddled over to Vigilant Island, where about half the group went ashore to explore the wildflowers. There were Sea Blush, Monkeyflowers, Death Camas, tiny Blue Eyed Marys, and Chocolate Lilies, so it was a great show. From there we crossed the channel to Steep Island and chatted with the couple on the three-masted sailboat before crossing the Gowlland Harbour entrance. We skirted the outside of May Island and got a glimpse of the submerged wreck, which was less than a metre under the water. We headed east across North Gowlland Harbour checking out the old stone house and glimpsing large anemones around the islets. The cliffs along the Quadra shore were a perfect rock garden in places, with sedum and Monkeyflowers on dripping walls. We dipped into the bay and chatted with Jill and Vibeke before paddling east around the islets in Gowlland Harbour where the Harbour Seals were basking on the rocks in the sun. Passing by two large sailboats at anchor, we continued on by Fawn, Stag and Doe Islands with the Sea Blush coming out and the Canadian Geese nesting.  As we landed at Les’ place, there were Geese with goslings making their way along the shore.

Les fixed appetizers for the group. We had Nan bread with cheese, ham and turkey, as well as rice crackers with cream cheese and crab, a mixed vegetable platter and cookies.  After that the group paddle back to Gowlland Resort. Les met them there to load up.  (11.2 km; 5 hours with all breaks)

Les and Debbie

(click on photos to enlarge)

Kayaking – Gowlland Harbour – 10 May 2023