Kayak Trip To Nootka Sound

It has been a while since I had anything interesting to post about, but I thought I would share some pictures of a recent kayak camping trip to Nootka Sound. My friend Mick invited me to come with him and his son Tristan on a winter adventure during a period of unusually stable weather. He lent me a single kayak and he and Tristan paddled the double

Packed for departure from Mick's family home in Gold River

We accessed Nootka Sound via the village of Tahsis - an hour or two's drive (depending how careful you are to avoid the potholes and ice) from Gold River

There is some lovely scenery on the way to Tahsis including this logging camp at Head Bay on Nootka Sound

The drive in passes ponds and mountains

We launched at the boat ramp in Tahsis. It took a bit of persuading to get these two to pose for the camera

Amongst our provisions were a few bottles of home brew to share

Paddling toward the ocean from Tahsis, the water was remarkably still. We saw a sea otter very close to the village and many over-wintering waterfowl

Mick and Tristan take a break from paddling the big heavy double

We paddled down Tahsis inlet and then turned into the narrows that lead to Hecate Channel. We took a break here for a snack and a stretch. 

Map of our route. Tahsis (upper right) and the approximate location of our camps are shown as blue dots

Tristan and Mick off the religious centre of Esperanza. See this link for more details. 

A boom protects the water from diesel spilling from this abandoned fishing boat

Mick scouts out a campsite. This location did not have enough room for two tents

Our first night'c camp. Access was a bit tricky with slippery rock shelves to walk across and a bit of tidal surge to make loading and unloading interesting

Tristan gets things sorted out for supper

The next morning we heard a funny chittering sound and came across a large flock of sand pipers of some sort. We also began to see more sea otters amongst the swell and kelp where they get their meals

I explore a sea cave

Mick and Tristan check out a blow hole. A few minutes later a large swell swept in and they took quite a bit of salty water on board!

We entered Queens Cove - a lagoon at the entrance to Port Eliza

The contrast between the swells outside in Esperanza Inlet and the mirror calm in the lagoon was remarkable

Our second campsite in Port Eliza was the best of the three. We had a gentle beach and enough room to flatten out a campsite above that day's high tide

There was also some walking/rock scrambling nearby to let us stretch our legs

Mick and Tristan heading up to get a view up the inlet

Peaceful view towards Esperanza inlet from a hill near our second camp

The next day we double back to Espinosa inlet after a quick paddle up Port Eliza. We arrived around dusk and had to use headlamps to set up camp

We reorganized the food and gear on day four because I needed to get home to do some work, while Mick and Tristan would stay out a few more days

On the way back to Tahsis I saw this supply barge heading to Zeballos with a cement mixer on board. The fog came and went and I had to navigate via my phone's chart plotter at times.

I took one break at a river mouth to fill a water bottle

Heading back up Tahsis inlet with Tahsis in the distance

I really enjoyed this trip. I have done very little kayak camping on this coast and spending time out in this amazing area with Mick and Tristan opened my eyes. I hope to get out here again soon!