Clayoquot Sound Kayak Tours

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Clayoquot Sound (Pacific Rim)

Clayoquot Sound is known for fjords, islands, mountains and old growth forests. It has also become a symbol for the continuing struggle between the forest industry and those who seek to preserve Canada's old growth forests.

The Sound is located about 200 kilometers north of Victoria in the Pacific Rim region on the southwest coast of Vancouver Island. This rugged stretch of coastline, 140 kilometers in length, stretches from Ucluelet north to Hesquiate Peninsula and includes the community of Ucluelet, Pacific Rim National Park and the community of Tofino, the put in point for our kayak tours of Clayoquot Sound. Pounding Pacific surf and wide, sandy beaches dominate the top part of Pacific Rim National Park on the western side of the peninsula. The eastern side, on the other side of Tofino is more tranquil and the seascape is dominated by the rainforest splendour of Meares Island.

Nearly 350,000 ha (265,705 ha terrestrial, 84,242 ha marine), Clayoquot Sound was recently designated as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Science and Cultural Organization) and is composed of the largest intact virgin rainforest in southern British Columbia. The area is home to ancient Western hemlock, Sitka spruce and Western red cedar up to 1,700 years old and 90 m tall. Inshore water exposed to open ocean conditions contains numerous islets and rocky reefs, as well as channels partly bounded and protected by land.

Kayaking Clayoquot Sound takes us places with such evocative names as Wickaninnish, Echachis and Tonquin. We camp on expansive beaches and kayak past the ancient cedar stands and Sitka spruce that have made this area famous.

The Clayoquot Sound area is the traditional territory of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation, and numerous Nuu-chah-nulth heritage sites have been found on both Flores and Vargas Islands. Our kayak tours of Clayoquot Sound also explore Meares Island and follow the coastline along Flores Island, a popular summer feeding ground for the grey whale. Hot Springs Cove Provincial Park is located at the north end of Clayoquot Sound, following a short walk in the rainforest.

A diverse array of wildlife thrives in the area, including Roosevelt elk, black bears, wolves, orca and grey whales, salmon, migrating waterfowl, shorebirds and the endangered marbled murrelet. From mid-February to June, Pacific grey whales migrate up the coast from Mexico to the Arctic Ocean and return in the fall. Bird life is plentiful, especially at low tide when shallow mud flats rich in intertidal invertebrates are exposed.