For those of you cruising BC waters, or locals weekending in Howe Sound this is a great stopover.
Good holding in sand/mud in the end of the bay, with other areas not too bad either. The eastern side of the bay used to be booming grounds but it's been years since any rafting of booms have been seen in there. The bay does have its issues, though, as there is at least one poorly charted rock mid bay so the safe approach is to keep to the eastern shore until abeam of a prominent steel dolphin. I've stood ankle deep on this rock at a "0" tide... and have seen it snag many an unaware visitor.
It's a low amenities park with only a dinghy dock, pit toilet, and rustic camping spots but is popular with kayakers and nearby youth camps, as well as as an anchorage. There are several trails to neighbouring bays and a grueling walk to the top of Mt Artaban.
The anchorage as seen from the shore:
It's the rocks you can't see that can be a problem!
Pretty trails in the woods. This area is remarkable for the clear undergrowth, unlike the much more common impenetrable Salal that grows most other places.
Typical campsite....
Pier and Dinghy dock... the nasty rock is mid-bay in line with this dock
Nice pebble beach behind the dock.
This place is no secret, we shared the bay with 16 other boats this past weekend, and have seen more.. but it's one of the few Howe Sound anchorages that's free of outstations, and with only a few private homes outside the park boundaries. It's the eastern most south-facing bay on Gambier Island. Best anchorage area is inshore of the drying rocks near the dinghy dock, keeping an eye on the shoaling bottom at the head of the bay.
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