Words & photos:
Cory Jones
Website blog
https://highlandexperiences.com/paddling-with-whales-and-orca-johnstone-straits
Paddling with Whales in the Johnstone Strait, Vancouver Island
The Johnstone Strait east of Vancouver Island is world renowned for watching orca. Historically there were huge salmon runs through the waters between the archipelago off Vancouver Island and mainland British Columbia which was food for both residents and migrating pods of orca. The salmon are still funnelled through the islands, but in a smaller number than previously.
Summer of 2022, I spent July and August on a 1000-mile canoe expedition through the Peel river catchment in remote northern Yukon and Northwest Territories. The trip crossed both the Arctic Circle and Continental Divide. At the end of this trip, I returned to Vancouver and had a week to spare. As I never had sea kayaked in British Columbia, I thought a few days on a solo sea kayaking trip searching for whales and orcas would be a great way to relax. It was the week after Canadian Labour Day, so early September.
Port McNeill
From Vancouver, I travelled to Port McNeill on the northeast coast of Vancouver Island to organise this last-minute trip. With a little research, it was possible to talk to a range of sea kayak outfitters in the area about hiring a kayak and some safety kit, like a VHF radio.
As I had already been on an expedition over the summer, I also had a Garmin InReach, bear spray and plenty of general paddle sport equipment. As part of this research and the hiring company sounding me out, we discussed getting local weather forecasts, rescue services, tidal planning and the best camping spots. The local kayak guides were incredibly helpful, and their knowledge was very useful in the brief period I had to plan this mini trip. I purchased the expedition food I would need for the trip in Port McNeill, which was readily available at the main supermarket.
Telegraph Cove
The starting point for the expedition and sea kayak pick-up point was Telegraph Cove, about 20 miles south of Port McNeill. Telegraph Cove is situated in a sheltered inlet at the northern end of Johnstone Strait, across from the Broughton Archipelago. Today it has a community of about 20 inhabitants, working mainly in the tourism sector or local timber enterprises. A century ago, all there was a one-room telegraph shack from which loggers, fishermen and pioneers would stay in touch with the outside world.
As the settlement grew, a fish salting plant, a sawmill, a school and a general store were built. Today those timber buildings and boardwalks around the edge of the cove make for a very picturesque base for the area’s eco-tourism enterprises. As well as kayak outfitters, there are whale watching operations, a campsite for motorhomes and tents, a cafe, a restaurant, and a number of the old buildings are available for holiday rentals.
As part of the discussions with local guides and by looking at the weather forecast for the next few days, I planned a journey which would start by crossing Johnstone Strait and on into Blackfish Sound—from there, touring and stopping around the many approved camping spots before heading into the Broughton Archipelago Provincial Park. Having the archipelago of islands was great as I could paddle out of the wind with simple route selection and try and make the best use of the tide between the islands.
As it turned out, predicting the tidal flow between the islands was tricky, and I found myself paddling against the flow at several places, but the current was not too strong, and there were plenty of eddies at the sides of channels which meant progress was never impeded when paddling against the tide. The regular weather updates provided by Canadian Marine forecasts were very accurate.
Broughton Archipelago Provincial Park
The Broughton Archipelago Provincial Park, British Columbia’s (BC) largest marine park, a collection of undeveloped islands and islets between Queen Charlotte Strait and the mouth of Knight Inlet, is a sea kayaker’s dream. Relatively sheltered waters, with a backdrop of magnificent mountains and the chance to spot orcas and humpback whales.
These islands have been home to First Nation peoples for thousands of years. Much of the land and islands in the area have been ceded back to the First Nations peoples as part of treaty agreements. It is vitally important to respect these initiatives, and some of my research with local guides focused on whether camping is allowed as part of these arrangements.
After setting out from Telegraph Cove, it was only 20 minutes before I spotted the stiff, erect black fins of two orcas swimming through the main channel of Johnstone Strait. These were quite recognisable about a kilometre from where I was kayaking. I remember thinking, “Wow, that was great, seeing an orca at the start of my journey.” Over the five days of my expedition, I saw orcas on four days. One of the closest sightings was when I saw three orcas feeding off Flower Island, where I camped for a couple of nights; they were only 200m offshore.
Robson Bight
What a fantastic site, the island is tranquil, and I was alerted to the orca’s presence by hearing their blowholes, and when I looked out of my tent, the orcas were just offshore. The other close sighting was on my return crossing of Johnstone Strait back to Vancouver Island, about 3.5km, when a party of five orcas passed within 300m of my kayak. This family group of orca were heading south to the world-famous Robson Bight.
Robson Bight (Michael Bigg) Ecological Reserve was established to provide a sanctuary for orcas. The reserve protects key habitats for killer whales, prevents their harassment and provides unique research opportunities. The area is famous as an orca ‘whale-rubbing beach’, where the orca rubs their underbellies on the pebble beaches to remove parasites.
I had hoped to see orca and was happy to see them virtually every day, but I was surprised to see so many humpback whales. I saw them every day of the trip and in good numbers. I was usually alerted to them by the noise of their blowhole expelling air as they surfaced. On the calm days, this could be heard several kilometres from where the whales were. There were single humpbacks, mothers with calves and areas where two or three would feed together.
humpback whales
The Pacific population of humpback whales, which spend much of their time in BC waters during the summer months, have experienced a remarkable recovery in the past few decades. They had been hunted to near extinction by the mid-1900s, but since hunting was banned in the 1980s, their population has slowly recovered. There are now anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 humpbacks in BC waters.
There are now so many whales in coastal waters that they are hazardous to ships! They are listed as a species of ‘special concern’, now frequenting fishing hot spots, shipping lanes, and busy harbours where they are likely to run into nets or collide with boats.
There was plenty of other wildlife around in the water. Steller sea lions, up to nine feet long, are the largest sea lion in the world and swam right up to my kayak. Various species of dolphin and I spotted plenty of species of birds, including Pacific loon, harlequin duck, scoters, tufted puffin, a couple of species of auklet, as well as lots of bald eagles.
Weather-wise it was generally calm for three of the five days of my trip. A heavy fog developed in the late afternoon and evening on calm days, and this stayed overnight and precluded early starts. During my stay, these fog banks burned off by mid-morning, so there were problems with navigation, but I was always watchful of fog banks forming in the late afternoon as I was heading to my camping destination. On the days when there was a southwesterly wind, I paddled between islands to be sheltered from it. As my expedition was based around wild camping, I could alter my route for the day depending on the weather; this allowed me to stay out of the wind.
Black bears
One of the first questions people ask me about the trip is not about seeing the orca but about bears. It is true that the area to the east of Vancouver Island on BC’s mainland is famous for grizzly bears, but it is very rare for them to venture out into the island archipelago or onto Vancouver Island itself. But it is crucial to be bear aware. Black bears are common on Vancouver Island. I spotted my first within an hour of leaving Telegraph Cove, turning over seaweed on the strand line of a beach, looking for food.
On the evening I camped on Flower Island, I spotted a black bear swim from one of the neighbouring islands onto the one I was camped on. I then had the choice to pack up and leave for another campsite or stay and try to scare the bear off. The local guides I had spoken to said that the bears were not interested in people; they were looking for food. Many of the small bushes had berries this late in the season, which the bears were looking for. I chose to stay on the island and, using the age-old techniques of shouting loudly and madly banging pan lids together for ten minutes, prompted the bear to swim off back to the island it had come from. Panic over!
I was carrying bear spray in case of encounters while camping, but this would have been a last resort. I was careful about packing my food away each evening into the hatches of my sea kayak, so it was off my campsite. This reduced the attractiveness of my camp to any hungry bear.
In the main channel of Blackfish Sound and the Johnstone Strait, there were several large cruise liners on the ‘Inside Passage’ route; these passed through in the late afternoon. I was always mindful of spotting these huge ships later in the day, so I had plenty of time to avoid them.
There are designated camping spots around the islands. I stuck to these sites for my trip; however, they did not all have fresh water. I had been warned about this and carried 10 litres of fresh water, which I kept topped up from the rivers I passed on the trip. Some islands did not have landing spots, but the ones designated for camping had pebble or white sandy beaches, which made for easy landings. Old Growth Forest surrounded the camp spots on Vancouver Island itself.
rainforests
These temperate rainforests are dense damp woodlands dominated by pine and spruce trees with many eerie mosses and lichens hanging from their branches. The forests came down to the strand line of the beaches, so for camping spots, it was a choice between camping in the forest where it was going to be damp and cold or on the beach where it was dry, but there was the chance the tide might inundate my tent.
The mountain scenery was spectacular throughout my expedition, with forest cover all around. The wildlife was exceptional, and I never imagined seeing so many humpback whales and orcas. I am looking forward to returning to the area in 2023 for more exploration.
