Circle Route in 14 Days

Arrive Comox, early board your vessel, boat systems check, chart briefing, last minute shopping, groceries.

Depart Comox early (on flood tide if possible) with destination Quadra island, either Rebecca Spit (anchor) or Heriot Bay marina (dock).

Transit Beasley passage on Ebb tide (north) carry on through Upper and Lower rapids to Okisollo channel and down to Johnstone strait.

Head north for Port Neville. Either tie up at the small government wharf or go into the inlet and anchor. Explore the Port Neville store and post office, now a museum.

Caretaker on site in the summer. This is private property and is also Bear country.

Leave Port Neville on an early Ebb tide and head toward the Broken islands at the mouth of Havannah Channel. Continue up the Channel and transit Chatham Channel.

Keep the range markers ahead and astern in line to transit easily and successfully. Bears are often seen on the shores here looking for shellfish. Head to the Blow Hole at Minstrel island (abandoned marina, not safe) and through to Lagoon Cove. Negotiate Blow Hole carefully and dead slow.

Lagoon Cove Marina is a full-service marina, offering fuel, water, gifts, garbage, hikes propane, power, washrooms, showers and Internet. In normal years, the marina offers a great happy hour with free prawns, you bring the snacks and your favourite bevvy.

Leave Lagoon Cove on the earliest Ebb tide and proceed down Clio Channel to Beware Passage. Once through Beware, navigate to the anchorage at Mound Islet. Taking care to observe the line of rocks that are underwater at high tide. Good anchoring in mud is available here.

You can dinghy ashore to the Kayak landing and hike the island. This is a sacred burial island of the local first nations people. Please take only pictures and leave nothing but footprints.

The large depressions in the ground are the remnants of early long houses. This was an important village for early people of this area. If you encounter a local first nations person, ask permission to walk on their land.

Leave Mound Islet anchorage early for a pleasant island studded cruise on your way up to the now abandoned village of Mamalilaculla. The remains of an old TB hospital are there, plus if you are observant, you can still find the remains of rotting totems on the shore that tell of the history of this place.

This was the site of the last great Potlatch before the government made them illegal. If you encounter the caretaker, please ask permission to walk on this ground. This is bear and cougar country. After exploring for an hour or so, up anchor and head north to Echo Bay Marina about 12 nautical miles away.

Make sure you phone ahead to see what is available and reserve your dock space.

This is a planned lay day, as Echo Bay is your turnaround spot. You can go local cruising, returning to Echo Bay for the night, or dinghy into nearby Shoal Harbour. Billy Proctor’s World-Famous Museum and logging display is nearby and is a good hike from Echo Bay. Billy is a wealth of local knowledge and an icon of local settlers.

Rest early as tomorrow you begin your trip south.

Leave Echo Bay early, you have a few nautical miles to travel today. As you leave Echo bay, turn to Starboard and navigate around the top of Gilford Island, through Tribune channel. As you navigate this channel, you will pass Lacy falls, a much-photographed fall of water spread across a large rock face.

You can go in remarkably close to feel the spray and marvel at this delicate waterfall. Further along Tribune is the entrance to Kwatzi Bay and a large waterfall ( the marine is closed and is now a private water based camp) take your dinghy over to the hidden waterfall in the forest, a short but lovely walk in moss draped ancient trees.

After this stop, continue around Gilford island and down to Minstrel island, back through Chatham Channel, remembering to keep the range markers fore and aft in line for a safe navigation.

Once through carry on to anchor of the beach at Matilpi, an old first nations settlement with an incredible shell beach or continue a mile or so to the foot of Boughey (boogie) Bay for a very calm and sheltered anchorage. Cell service is sometimes available here. Ashore here are the remains of several old houses and a paved road that belonged to a highly active and long-lived logging camp. It is now abandoned and makes for interesting hiking.

In the morning, you leave early for you next destination, Forward Harbour, about 30 nautical miles away. Back down Havannah channel to Johnstone strait, to Sunderland channel and up to Forward Harbour.

Take care entering, not to cut the corners as rocks abound here. Once inside, Douglas Bay is a great anchorage with good holding in Mud. There are several hikes on shore. Watch out for Bears and Cougars here. At the far end of Forward harbour is a small settlement and is all that remains of a large logging operation that was complete with a logging railway.

As you exit Forward harbour, you are immediately into Whirlpool Rapids in Wellbore channel.

DO NOT CUT THE CORNER coming out of Forward as there are large rocks.

Make sure you transit Whirlpool at slack and then carry on and pass through Greene point rapids on the same tide. Here you can make the choice to stay at either Blind Channel Resort or Shoal Bay.

Blind Channel is a full-service resort with fuel, moorage, water, restaurant and hiking trails. Shoal Bay is a government wharf with no services, a pub, showers, toilets, laundry, internet and a great hike up to an old Gold Mine. There is also an anchorage off the end of the wharf at Shoal Bay.

You will need to be careful to meet slack at Dent and Yuculta rapids in the morning. This is a short distance from Shoal Bay and there is plenty of room above the rapids to circle waiting for slack.

Negotiate Gillard Passage only after reading the notes about this dangerous stretch of water. If you know your times and Ebb and Flood events, you can navigate without problems.

Once you are through, your destination is quiet and lovely Squirrel Cove on the east side of Cortes island.

DO NOT attempt to navigate White rock passage, this is a no-go zone for DSYC vessels. Anchoring in Squirrel Cove gives you the option to stern tie or swing free. The tidal stream and lake are good places to investigate by dinghy.

This a free day for you to make up your mind where to travel to for the night. Refuge Cove is a few miles away, Laura cove, Prideaux haven, Gorge Harbour are all within short cruising distance. You could also travel to Toba Wilderness Resort.

Today reality sets in as you make a big move from Desolation Sound over to the Vancouver Island side of the Salish Sea.

Cruising south through Thulin passage and the Copeland Islands, you will pass Lund the actual end of the Pan American Highway that goes all the way to Tierra Del Fuego in the south of Chile, but reality is there are great coffees and cinnamon buns available here.

You will continue south to Mystery Reef and then make a course for the Comox Bar. Once over the bar, you will turn to Port and anchor in pristine Henry Bay. The sun will set over the stern of your boat. Henry Bay points due west and sunsets are spectacular. You can also dinghy ashore for some nice walks along the seashore.

Unfortunately, today you have an early start to cruise over to the fuel barge in Comox Harbour, where you will refuel your vessel and notify DSYC of your arrival at the barge.

A DSYC skipper will be along shortly to take you back to your slip at our charter base. You need to be packed up and ready to leave your vessel by 0900 hrs….

We hope you had a great time and look forward to your next adventure with Desolation Sound Yacht Charters.