DRURY INLET DREAMSCAPES

Winter 2008

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.

To download a pdf copy of the magazine click here: > DOWNLOAD

Story by Carol-Ann Giroday

For Rick and I, mothership kayaking offers all the joys of paddling without the discomfort that can be associated with kayak expeditions—like rain, wet gear and loaded kayaks. Our boat, the MV Sea Foam, a 40 ft. pilot house trawler, is a comfortable home to us year round, and a great vessel in which to explore our coastal waters. We have a substantial tender that we use as a scuba dive platform, and two 12.5 ft. Necky Santa Cruise kayaks. We also carry fishing equipment, crab and prawn traps to satisfy our seafood cravings, a small freezer, an excellent reference library and first-rate satellite music for lazy days and quiet evenings. Our mothership acts as a mobile, floating base where a hot meal and a dry bed await at the end of the paddling day. We nudge the noses of our kayaks into intimate passages during the day, and by late afternoon meet up with the Sea Foam for hot showers, a glass of wine and splendid meals cooked in the small but efficient galley. Nights are cozy in the glow of the saloon lamps as we relax around the table.

This summer we spent five days aboard the MV Sea Foam exploring the nooks and crannies in the wilderness of Drury Inlet, on BC’s Central Coast, where low lying islands hug the water and great heaves of mountain thrust their peaks heavenward. While the Broughton Archipelago is a popular cruising and paddling destination during the summer months, Drury Inlet is among the least traveled in the region. Unlike most mainland inlets, Drury’s head is northwest of its mouth, and although most inlets are steep-shored, Drury’s terrain is relatively flat, allowing the prevailing westerlies to whip down-inlet. Southeast winds can make travel unpleasant here as well. Tidal rapids guard Drury’s mouth, and the current in Stuart Narrows can reach seven knots on large tides. Navigation can be challenging once past Jennis Bay, but it is well worth the effort to explore this inlet. Scenery, excellent anchorages and diversion abound here for those with an adventurous spirit.

We arrived at Stuart Narrows, west of Wells Passage at slack tide. With the help of guidebooks, we navigated past the hazards at the narrowest part of Stuart Narrows and proceeded west up the inlet, finding it to be a considerable body of water. The low surrounding land was forested with second growth timber and had obviously been heavily logged over the years. Beyond the narrows, the most popular anchorages are Richmond Bay, Jennis Bay and Sutherland Bay. They all have reasonable all-weather protection and good holding.

As we negotiated past Welde Rock, we approached Richmond Bay to port and proceeded to the eastern side of the bay and anchored where we had a view up the inlet to Ligar Islet and beyond. The winds for the night were predicted to be variable so we weren’t worried about a strong westerly blowing in on us. It was a quiet night with a striking sunset, and the morning sky the next day was equally beautiful. The plan for our first full day in Drury was to paddle west up the inlet about three miles and visit the marina at Jennis Bay.

Allyson and Tom Allo are the new owner occupants of the marina property at Jennis Bay, once owned by Allyson’s father many years ago. When the property (including the docks, house and some shore-front land) again became available, Allyson and one of her brothers bought it and secured provincial permission to establish an eco-resort. They have lived there for two years, and enthusiastic, eager, and very welcoming, they have big plans for a four-chalet resort that can accommodate up to sixteen guests.

Six boats were tied to the dock as we approached and were met by Allyson and Tom and their two young children. The marina, with its cookhouse and gift shop, has become a popular spot for boaters since it started in the summer of 2006. Many logging roads surround this area and Tom will happily take adventurers in his truck to nearby Huaskin Lake to fish, kayak or just explore.

They are proposing to expand their seasonal services and activities in coming years to include three and four-day adventure packages with “historic logging camp style” accommodations and dining, advanced geo-cache treasure hunts, cold water diving and freshwater and saltwater fishing with local contractors. They are getting geared up to have accommodations available for visitors in 2008. Tenting is an option as well.

Allyson mentioned there was a memorial in Helen Bay near Welde Rock for a tug boat captain and crew member who lost their lives when their tug and barge lost control in the tidal water. The next day we searched the north shoreline two miles east of our anchorage and found the memorial on the rocks on the southwest side of Helen Bay.

As we paddled back to the Sea Foam, we met another boater fishing from his tender at Leche Rocks. He told us there was good ling cod fishing in the Richmond Bay area and that he had caught a 45 inch cod the week before in this spot. Around Leche Islet was his favorite place to fish as the underwater rocky terrain is perfect habitat for ling cod.

The next morning we motored up to the Muirhead Islands and dropped anchor in a small notch behind an islet at the northeast end of the group. We were in the midst of a cluster of rocks and islets—exactly the sort of formation in which we love to paddle. Once anchored and secure, we took the kayaks off the roof of the pilot house and prepared for another adventure. We had a gorgeous paddle in the lagoon-like hidden channels among evergreen encrusted rocky islets, tree limbs draped in lichens and shores thick with moss.

Next morning we pulled up anchor and headed out into Drury Inlet and north into Actress Passage. This passage requires close attention to the charts and the helm, and should be transited only at slack according to our guidebooks. We found Peter Vassilopoulos’ North of Desolation Sound (ISBN 0919317324) with its vibrant photographs to be particularly helpful for this area, which is narrow and rock strewn. We were glad we didn’t have to deal with strong current our first time through.

We anchored in Skeene Bay and were pleased to find that it was out of the current and the prevailing winds. Skeene Bay is a lovely anchorage with a spectacular view of Mount Bullock to the northeast. Unless the winds are coming from the east, the small anchorage is tranquil and still.

Once anchored, we packed a picnic lunch and prepared to depart on a ten mile round trip into Actaeon Sound. The current would be in our favor until 1800 and then would switch and push us homeward. At 1400 we paddled out into the current in the narrows just outside our anchorage. We had only to steer the kayaks, as the flood current was pushing us along at a good clip.

We paddled up to Bond Lagoon that is only passable for larger vessels at high tide because of the rocks at its entrance. As this was the middle of the rising tide, the water was rushing through the narrow opening into the lagoon. We paddled as close as we dared, being careful not to get sucked in, knowing we’d have no hope of getting out for several hours.

We continued on along Actaeon Sound and next came to Creasy Bay on our port side. It is a large bay and the wind was funneling through Actaeon Sound over the treetops into the bay. We paddled along the western shoreline and explored some old logging debris inside a boom breakwater. Along this shore are decade-old ruins from past logging days as well as new equipment from operations underway along the hillside up to Creasy Lake. At the end of the bay was a steam donkey on a rotting barge, further evidence of past logging activity.

By now we were getting hungry and were looking for a place to get out and stretch our legs. The area had little in the way of landing beaches, and trees grew right along the water line. There were two small islets on the east side of Creasy Bay where we could have enjoyed our lunch and the sun if the wind hadn’t been blowing so hard. We paddled into a mud flat bay just south of England Point and found an old barge beached at the back of the bay.

We climbed out of our kayaks a short distance from England Point on a small outcropping of rocks. Around the corner was a building that we thought was either a fish farm or logging quarters. Just beyond that was Tsibass Lagoon where, when it is emptying, there is such a rush of water flowing that the sound is covered with foam.

As we ate our lunch, a tug, the Fraser Yarder, was heading toward the lagoon pulling a small log boom. Within about twenty minutes she was coming back down empty and the skipper slowed down so his wake would not bang our kayaks against the shoreline. Rick called him on our handheld VHF to thank him for his courtesy and they had a chat before signing off.

When we climbed into our kayaks for the return trip to the Sea Foam, the clouds had rolled in and the wind had picked up. We were pushing against a one foot chop so I paddled closer to shore in an attempt to find calmer water. It was at its worst at Creasy Bay where it was more open and the wind slid down off the rocks and out from the opening of Bond Lagoon.

When we turned the corner at Bond Lagoon and headed west, the wind was there to greet us and the ebb current was not helping as much as we had hoped. It wasn’t until we were almost at our anchorage that the current gave us a welcome lift. Just as when we left, the current was really only noticeable at the bend at Skeene Bay where Actress Passage turned into Actaeon Sound.

After breakfast the following day we wanted to depart Skeene Bay. It is recommended to travel through the narrows only at high water slack, but high slack would not be until late afternoon and we didn’t want to wait that long. The current was still ebbing when Rick took our tender through the area to check the strength and condition of the current flow. He decided that it would be fine to go, and added he would rather see the rock “alligators” at low tide as long as the current was not too much of a hazard.

We passed through Actress Passage without incident and as we entered Drury Inlet we noticed another yacht enjoying the anchorage we had left in the Muirhead Islands. We pointed the Sea Foam eastward and carried on out to Wells Passage to further explore the beauty of the Broughton Archipelago. As we motored away I thought of two of Kenneth Grahame’s characters from the Wind in the Willows—cautious Mole and boat-loving Water Rat. Emerging from his home at Mole End one spring, Mole’s whole world changed when he hooked up with the good-natured Water Rat and was told, “Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING—absolute nothing—half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”

We agree with Ratty!

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Getting There Without A Mothership
Air Service: Pacific Eagle Aviation in Port McNeill, Vancouver Island, has two daily scheduled flights to Jennis Bay. Approximately $126 per person with 25 lbs. luggage allowance, length of flight is approximately 15 minutes. 250-956-3339.

Water Taxi Service: Shawl Bay Water Taxi from Port McNeill to Jennis Bay has two vessels. The smaller vessel is $275 one-way and can carry 3 people and gear, including kayaks/bikes, etc. It takes approximately 1 hr. 30 min. from Port McNeill to Jennis Bay. Their large boat can carry 6 people and gear for $375 one-way. 250-483-4169.