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Kayak the remote shore of Vancouver Island and the Great Bear Rainforest from the comfort of our luxury Mother ship. This is a soft adventure catering to those wanting comfort, safety, and extraordinary kayaking. We paddle in remote yet protected areas where we will often be the only kayakers around.
If you only feel like kayaking for half a day, no problem, a quick call on the radio will have you picked up and taken back to the mothership for appetisers and an afternoon of enjoying a book or nap. Or, if you prefer, try your luck with an afternoon of salmon fishing or prawning.
Please keep in mind that this tour is for those who enjoy being pampered. If you would like to rough it you could always join one of our many camping tours we have to offer.
See story below
Your Itinerary
This is a six day tour. Instead of boring you with our itinerary (we can send you one in the mail) I thought I would let read a first hand account of out tour written by one of our valued customers.
Day 1: Pease read on.....
Some of you may know...perhaps you were there when it all began, that Lorna and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary on August 22. Some time prior to this, we had been thinking of what to do as a way of celebrating. This called for something special...going out for dinner as we had on 24 previous occasions just wasn't going to cut it so we decided to melt the Visa and go for broke.
Our first inclination was to go on a cruise...fly to Anchorage and take a cruise down the inside passage to Vancouver. Well for someone who spends a fare bit of time riding BC Ferries...and given the fact that neither Lorna or I wear dentures...we opted for something a little less mundane and for something that would test the spirit of our fading youth.
The answer was a mothership kayaking adventure to the wilds of the Queen Charlotte Strait near the north end of Vancouver Island. Without a doubt, this was the most memorable and exhilarating trip we have ever taken. A 10+++. An absolute must if you like the sea. With the comfort of our mothership which was a wooden heritage boat complete with wonderful cozy little state bunks...duvets and feather pillows...
We spent 5 fabulous days kayaking with our fearless guide. Each day was a picture post card of new sights and sounds. After a gourmet breakfast cooked by two very capable young chefs accompanying our tour, we set off in our kayaks to explore a wilderness coastline which I have run out of superlatives to describe.
Our little group of 8 paddled in an out of bays and inlets ... experiencing 6 foot swells to mill pond conditions..bright sun to drizzle and mist. The marine life was spectacular and there is no way in words to convey the feeling of sitting virtually on top of the water and watching a 30 foot Minke whale rise and dive a few meters off the bow of the kayak. Sure hope our pictures turn out. Next came the white sided dolphins. What a site to see 50 or so bow surfing off our mothership. Four to five deep in the water at times ...what symmetry.
Generally our day consisted of 4-5 hours of kayaking...and on a few days a radio call to our mothership anchored in a nearby inlet sent the power skiff with the chef and the fixings for our shore lunch .... gourmet of course.
At 3 or 4 in the afternoon, we would rendezvous with the mothership, climb aboard and here comes the best part..have a cocktail in the outdoor deck enjoying the sun. Luxury in the wilds. Can you stand it? This was all followed by a gourmet dinner of course...fresh crab, shrimp and a fine array of wonderful food...food to die for. On our last day, we boated it down to the top end of Johnstone Strait and again got into the kayaks to look for Orcas. And no we were not disappointed as we did observe a small pod cruising near the shore. Next came a close encounter with a black bear. Actually we were on the water about 20 feet off shore and watched the bear grub for crabs under boulders on the beach The ocean was absolutely still and there was no wind so we probably looked like a piece of driftwood to him but we respected his/her power by keeping a distance.
We also had the privilege of visiting the Jane Goodall of whales...a lady named Alexandra Morton...a world authority on the language and behaviour of killer whales. While we looked over the strait from her cliff side studio, her hydrophone came to life with the sound of some approaching whales so she jumped into her boat and raced off to identify the family. There are 100 or so resident killer whales on this part of the coast and she has identified and named every single one.
Anyway, what an experience and we would do it again in a minute. We won't wait another 25 years that's for sure. May see a couple of kayaks on our car in the near future! If you want to see the tour site, do a web search for Spirit of the West Adventures...
This was the most memorable and exhilarating trip we have ever taken. A 10+++. Thanks for letting us share our experience with you. Wayne and Lorna Quine
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Includes: (B), (L), (D). Group discounts, corporate groups welcome.
Also see tour packages in:
Canada
British Columbia
Boating and Sailing
Canoeing/Kayaking/Rafting
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