Looking back at my Rescue Bay campsite as I paddle off.
My night in Rescue Bay was very peaceful, and since my paddle today would be rather short, I decided to sleep a little later than normal not getting up until 6am. The tide was very low at my 8:40am launch time and I had to carry all my gear a long way to the waters edge.
Looking north up Mathieson Channel as I make my way through some small islands at the entrance to Rescue Bay.
Today’s route took me through Jackson Passage, which connects Mathieson and Finlayson Channels. This is a beautiful narrow channel bordered by the steep, heavily wooded slopes of Susan and Roderick Islands.
The narrow spot in Jackson Passage.
Guidebooks recommend traveling through a shallow and narrow spot in the channel at high slack tide. Since high tide would not occur for another six hours, I had no choice but to try to make it through now. I went through at one hour before low slack and had no problem. In fact, a few yachts came through right behind me traveling at cruising speed.
Heading west through Jackson Passage.
I reached Begg Point, where Jackson Passage meets Finlayson Channel at 11:20am. As I headed west across Finlayson Channel toward the southern tip of Cone Island, the water was calm as glass. By the time I was half way across, the wind had increased and was whipping up some small waves that were coming straight at me out of the west. I reached Cone Island at 12:05pm and paddled north up Klemtu Pass, reaching today’s destination, Klemtu, at 1:15pm.
Looking north up Finlayson Channel from it's junction with Jackson Passage at Begg Point.
I headed for a place called the Float House that I had read about in some of the guidebooks and on the Klemtu website. The description is of a lodge where a paddler can get a place to sleep for the night. I was hoping they had room for one more. I soon found out that the entire building had been leased to the Canadian Fisheries Department, and that it was not available at all for travelers passing through. After talking with one of the local officials, I got permission to set up my tent on the dock outside the Float House.
A large float plane takes off from Klemtu Pass.
Klemtu has very limited facilities available for a kayaker. There is no lodging available, not even a campground, and the grocery store has a limited selection of food that should not be depended on for re-supply. A snack bar in the grocery can make you a burger and fries but that is the only food service in town. There is a public toilet, shower, and laundry facility that seems to be kept locked until you ask around to find out who has the key. Since there is no public shelter in Klemtu, if it rains while you are there, you will be out of luck as there is no place to get out of the rain except for whatever rain shelter you have with you. My cell phone did work there however, and I was able to contact home and check in.The dock in Klemtu.
