Wild Coast Publishing

08/08/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: If you explore Shelter Inlet near the mouth of Megin River in north Clayoquot Sound, you will find a narrow tidal passage that leads to a small basin and this delightful little waterfall. It is worth seeking out. The location is pinpointed in our mapsheet #207.

08/07/2024

Continuing the Wild Coast rant on how antiquated and inaccurate Environment Canada's marine weather forecast system is, check out their online map used to identify weather regions. Have you ever seen a worse map of British Columbia? Apparently Cortes and the Redonda Islands are one land mass, Johnstone Strait is adjacent to the BC mainland its entire length, Quadra Island doesn't exist and there are blobs and areas that don't exist. This is the best they can do? Really?

08/07/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: No matter how perfect the view, Mother Nature always finds a way to add details to make it that much better.

08/06/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Would you feel confident paddling through here? It looks benign, but what if two swells converge as you're in the middle? The location is Tzartus in the Deer Group, Barkley Sound. Use our mapsheet #211 for information on how to visit here.

08/03/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The view across Clayoquot Sound from the peak of Lone Cone on Meares Island. This is a must-visit location for any exploration of Clayoquot. See our mapsheet #208 for details.

07/30/2024

Travelling the BC coast this summer has made us very aware that Environment Canada's marine weather forecasting system is dangerously broken. How to fix it? We have some answers. https://www.wildcoast.ca/blogs/editors-blog/how-environment-canada-has-to-improve-its-marine-weather-forecasting

07/28/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Our office! This allows us to research the coast while producing and updating products and even printing and distributing them. Follow us for photos of our explorations and if you wish to visit any of these locations, check out our resources to help get you there.

Publishers of maps and outdoor resources for coastal British Columbia, for kayakers, boaters and hikers.

07/21/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Sunset in the Discovery Islands.

07/20/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: A perfect morning for a humpback whale encounter at the mouth of Sutil Channel, near Cortes Island.

07/18/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Rebecca Spit, Quadra Island.

07/17/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The distinctive Townley Islets off the Copeland Islands at the entrance to Desolation Sound. We'll be spending more time here in the next few weeks, so you haven't seen the last of the Copelands! A beautiful kayaking destination, without question, along with some of the best sunset campsites you'll find anywhere.

Publishers of maps and outdoor resources for coastal British Columbia, for kayakers, boaters and hikers.

07/15/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: We spent the night at McRae Cove on the north entrance to Jervis Inlet and listened to these guys all night on McRae Islet. A lone kayaker pulled up to camp on the beach across from us. Good on him! Not many paddlers attempt that area of the coast, and he must have had a tough day. There was considerable wind and chop. He earned a good night's sleep.

07/12/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Baker Beach Park, Pender Harbour. This and Francis Peninsula offer some great shoreline to explore, but to be honest, overall we have found Pender Harbour to be short on charm. Mostly it is docks, houses and marinas. Next up farther north to Desolation Sound and some real wild coast!

07/11/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Our office aboard the MV Wild Coast has left Howe Sound, pictured here, and we are now headed up the coast, with some hiccups, including dropping the Wild Coast cell phone overboard. Oops. If we don't return your call, now you know why...

07/05/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Plumper Cove Provincial Park, Howe Sound. MV Wild Coast made it here this morning, but only by completely neglecting the potential for turbulence in the entrance to Howe Sound crossing from Vancouver. It got nasty! Thankfully all is calm here at anchor. No kayakers camping here at the moment. Disappointing!

07/04/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: It's not the wild coast by any stretch, but False Creek in Vancouver has its moments. This is where the MV Wild Coast has started its summer coastal survey, with the next leg the Sunshine Coast to Desolation Sound. Join as as we try to post photos of our stops daily along the way.

06/20/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Lucy Islands, near Prince Rupert. This island is not just delightful for the wonderful beaches (which are otherwise few and far between in this region), but for being nesting habitat for rhinoceros auklets that can be seen regularly bobbing on the water between dives. These auklets are delightful, so we added a terrible photo of one that doesn't reflect that at all. Wildlife photography from a kayak can have its limitations...

06/19/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The view from Pachena Point, near Bamfield on Vancouver Island's west coast. The lighthouse at the point is an achievable day trip from the West Coast Trail trailhead at Bamfield, with access allowed this far without the need to purchase a trail pass.

06/17/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Yesterday's anchorage of the MV Wild Coast, our mobile publishing office at Wakes Cove Provincial Park on Valdes Island looking out towards the Flat Top Islands. This park is so beautiful it is difficult to pick out a single photo to highlight it after a visit.

06/16/2024

B.C. Coast Photo of the Day: crazy weather on the Strait of Georgia this morning. Our MV Wild Coast (our mobile office) was attempting the crossing but given chop and rain fell back to spend the night at anchor at Wakes Cove Provincial Park, which may well be tomorrow's photo of the day.

06/14/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The view up Quatsino Sound from the shore of Quatsino Provincial Park. The interior of Quatsino is a problematic location for paddlers for a number of reasons: long distances, few scenic highlights, a propensity for poor weather and strong winds... and yet a calm morning can be sublime.

06/13/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Who says bears and people can't live in harmony?

06/11/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The view south from Paradise Beach on the south side of Brooks Peninsula -- a surprisingly wonderful beach in one of the wildest and most remote regions of the coast.

06/10/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: One of the many beaches on the Wild Side Trail on south Flores Island, Clayoquot Sound. This is a perfect location for both paddling and hiking. For hiking, a regularly scheduled water taxi can take you to Ahousaht to start your trip. Great beaches await along the 11-km stretch.

06/09/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: A view amid the Dunsmuir Islands, Ladysmith Harbour. These islands are a short kayak trip from Transfer Beach Park in Ladysmith. A good itinerary for a day kayak trip is to explore these islands and follow the shore out to Elliots Beach Park outside the north mouth of Ladysmith Harbour for a beach break, then paddle back.

06/07/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Bonilla Point on the West Coast Trail, one of the prettiest sections given the sea stacks. More a hiking destination than a paddling area, the trail can be transited by water by veteran paddlers with some decently accessible beaches, including at the nearby Tsusiat Point sea arch.

06/06/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Foggy scenes along the coastline of Juan de Fuca Provincial Park. This is a shoreline rarely seen as it is rarely paddled and the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail seldom follows or allows glimpses of the water, instead staying in the forested inland, missing vast portions that include sea caves, sea stacks and other beautiful elements well worth seeing.

06/05/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: Ahous Bay, Vargas Island. A few days ago we showed the southern approach along the exposed outer coastline. Today we thought we'd show the reward once you arrive -- one of British Columbia's best beaches.

06/04/2024

Adventures in generative AI... Since artificial intelligence was added to a program we use here, it seemed fun to ask it to generate an image of kayaker encountering a killer whale. We got this...

06/04/2024

BC Coast Photo of the Day: The rough shoreline of God's Pocket Provincial Park, northern Vancouver Island. There are beaches, but this is typical -- rocks and scrub. Add a good chance of grey skies and you are truly at one with the nature of north Vancouver Island!