Bute Inlet and Maurelle Island
by Heather Harbord, 11 June 2015.
Twelve of us went on Captain Mike Moore’s schooner, Misty Isles, to check out the entrance to Bute Inlet and circumnavigate Maurelle Island.
After the compulsory visit to Nancy’s Bakery, we left Lund at 10am, and powered up Thulin Passage to see the pictograph. It was nice to see that the Active Tug’s name printed on top of it is now fading. Mike said that the reason the pictographs have endured so long is because they have become coated with a translucent mineralization that leaches out of the underlying granite. Not far from here, we saw the famous Agarikon mushroom. Mycologist Paul Stamets and researchers from the University of Illinois have found it has antiviral and anti-bacterial qualities that may cure tuberculosis. See Mushroom Man: The Search for Agarikon
With the wind blowing steadily from the NW we continued up Lewis and Calm Channels to Stuart Island where Mike showed us a location that he thinks is the same as Vancouver’s Village of the Friendly Indians because the hills behind it match those in a contemporary drawing. After examining Raven’s Chamber Pot, a round hole in the rock, we headed for Hole-in-the-Wall and came out into the Octopus Islands where some harbor seals and an eagle greeted us. Once through Beazely Passage, we tied up at Discovery Lodge’s dock and settled in for a great meal of Sockeye Salmon cooked by Mike and Jonah with all Samantha’s trimmings.
In the morning, we ate a fantastic breakfast cooked by one of the Lodge owners, Lannie Keller, and staff before setting sail for Manson’s Landing. As we left, I took some pictures of birds in the water. Some of these were murres but when I got home and enlarged them, I found a Rhinoceros Auklet among them.
Out of the shelter of Hoskyn Channel, the NW wind was brisk and cold. We were glad of our heavy clothing as we enjoyed a wonderful sail under almost full rig round the Subtle Islands, through Plunger and Uganda Passages and into Manson’s Bay. Lots of cirrus clouds ornamented the sky with threats of more wind which didn’t materialize till Mike was trying to get home.
We disembarked into the zodiac at Manson’s Landing where a couple of charming islanders in SUVs drove us to the museum, surrounded by a sweet smelling garden of plants well loved by the pioneers. Inside we were served tea and goodies before touring the current exhibit of local wildlife. We had time to walk to the Co-op where some indulged in ice creams. Back in the SUVs, we drove to Cortes Bay where we re-embarked on Misty and sailed down to Lund.
Although we didn’t see a lot of wildlife, everyone enjoyed the trip immensely, especially as several had never been on a sailboat before.
