Shearwater Resort
I enjoyed sleeping late in a real bed for the first time since leaving New Orleans three weeks ago. After having breakfast in the Shearwater restaurant, I picked up some supplies from their grocery store as my clothes were washing in the resorts laundermat. Conveniently connected to the laundermat are individual shower rooms for campers and boaters. These turned out to be the cleanest public showers I encountered on the entire trip.
The lodge at Shearwater.
Shearwater is located across a bay from the town of Bella Bella. A shuttle boat travels back and forth between the two a few times each day so it is possible to take a ride over to visit the town. I had mentioned earlier to one of the staff that I planned to take a shuttle boat over to Bella Bella and have a look around for a few hours. They advised me that there was not much to see and it would be a waste of time to spend three hours there. With that advice, I took a shorter trip that only lasted about an hour. This turned out to be a good decision as there was truly nothing to see in Bella Bella. For a kayaker paddling the Inside Passage I would advise heading straight for Shearwater, bypassing Bella Bella completely.
My kayak on the dock at Shearwater.
I shipped a box of food to myself in Shearwater from Port Hardy before leaving on May 26. The post office had my package waiting for me when I arrived. After removing the food items I would need for the next week, I put a few things in the box that I had not used yet on the trip and shipped it back to the Sunny Sanctuary Campground in Port Hardy. Al held the box for me there until I returned in August.
The restaurant, grocery, and laundry at Shearwater.
I spent the remainder of the time in Shearwater looking around and taking photos, eating and watching TV in the restaurant, and just relaxing my muscles and letting them heal up for the next leg of the trip. For anyone paddling the Inside Passage, Shearwater is the perfect place to stop and get re-energized and re-supplied. For kayakers using an alcohol stove, the marine store carries denatured alcohol or as they call it in Canada, Methyl Hydrate. For more information on Shearwater go to their website at www.shearwater.ca
