Island Spot
light
by Dona Naylor
NOOTKA ISLAND, FRIENDLY COVE, & CALVIN FALLS
Photo courtesy of Dona Naylor.
First Nations people came to Yuquot over 4,000 years ago, and in March 1778, Captain James Cook, the first European to step on British Columbia soil, sailed into Nootka Sound.
N
ootka Island sparkles like a gem clustered among the crown of islands that nestle off the northwest coast of Vancouver Island. Youqot, or Friendly Cove, is the jewel – unlike anything I have discovered thus far and quite possibly my favourite location. The
cove has a good mix of wild west coast shoreline and a protected bay with smooth wave-washed pebbles and ancient totems returning to the earth where they fell, gobbled up by wild roses and blackberries. A grassy knoll separates the shorelines while huge rollers crash onto the sand on one side and waves lap the other more protected side. (Storms do also hit the cove). Nootka Island is largely unpopulated. However, there are a few
options available for travelling to Nootka, which are subject to seasonal service and inclement weather at any given time of year.
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islandtimesmagazine.ca For example, around these areas, August is known as Fogust. On
one of my trips to Nootka Island, I needed to return before my fellow hikers and asked Air Nootka, based out of Gold River, if there would be a possibility of flying me out earlier. Air Nootka responded with, “Well sure, we can meet you at Bajo Point on the west side, but due to severe fog in August, if we aren’t there, just wait for us and we will be, as soon as the fog lifts, it might be a few hours or up to two weeks!” When we inquired if dogs were able to go in the seaplane, we
were told by another tour company, “Sure, you can bring your giraffe if you want to!” There seemed to be a sense of humour among the tour operators. Air Nootka serves many of the locations throughout the Muchalat Inlet. There are also flights from Tofino, which is only 70 km south of
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