.jpg)
Great Bear Rainforest Expedition Kayak Tour (25.118)
| Location: | Great Bear Rainforest |
| Price: | $3295.00 |
| Duration: | 10 days/9 nights |
| Departs from/arrives at: | Port McNeill |
| Accomodations: | Camping |
| Tour Type: | Leisure Tour |
| Activity Level: | Intermediate |
| Nearest Town/Village: | Port McNeill |
| Inclusions: |
|
| Exclusions: | |
| Guest Parking: | Yes Details: Parking available at pre-trip meeting area. |
| First Nations: | Walking tour of Klemtu and a visit to the Big House with local guide |
| Additional Information: In true expedition style, this expedition explores British Columbia's central coast between the small coastal villages of Klemtu and Shearwater. Also called the ‘Great Bear Rainforest’, it is one of the few pristine temperate rainforests left in the world. This rugged and challenging coast offers diverse paddling routes, abundant wildlife and a rich First Nations culture. As these tours are more expeditionary in nature, we operate as a smaller group (six guests, two guides), paddle longer each day, and leave the itinerary flexible to deal with the dynamic environment we will be traveling in. This is our most challenging tour and thus we require participants to have prior kayaking experience. As we kayak between the remote coastal village of Klemtu and the remote wilderness islands to the north of Bella Bella we enjoy diverse kayaking conditions, campsites, and scenery. Our route takes us down protected inlets, along open coastline, and through narrow passages with strong tidal currents. We camp on long sandy beaches, islands with shell beaches, and small beaches of pebbles and cobble. All the time we are surrounded by the rainforest that is dominated by ancient red cedar, western hemlock, and giant Sitka spruce trees. The rainforest and surrounding ocean are intricately entwined to form a rich and diverse ecosystem. The forest is home to a wide variety of wildlife including ravens, bald eagles, sandhill cranes, wolves, deer, black bears and grizzly bears. The sea is home to salmon, orcas (killer whales), humpback whales, seals, sea lions, dolphins and porpoises. We view a wide variety of wildlife as we kayak but many of the land animals are shy and elusive and sometimes we just see their telltale tracks in the sand or hear a howl at night. If we are lucky we may catch a glimpse of a wolf or grizzly bear foraging on the shore. As we kayak, we travel through the traditional territories of both the Kitasoo Xai’xais and Heiltsuk First Nations. This has been their home for thousands of years and during our travels we encounter evidence of past and present use. At low tide we may come across stone fish traps, when walking through the rainforest culturally modified trees may be seen, and if conditions allow we meet a local Kitasoo guide to tour a traditional big house. We provide high quality three season tents. For couples we provide three person tents and for solo travellers a slightly smaller tent. Therm-a-rest sleeping pads and warm mummy style sleeping bags with liners are all provided to ensure a good night’s sleep. A library of natural history books is on every trip. On the water we use stable single and double fibreglass kayaks and lightweight carbon/vinyl paddles. Waterproof kayaking jackets and neoprene kayaking mitts are provided to keep you warm and dry while kayaking. |
|
Itinerary
-
Day
1Day 0 - Plan to be in Port McNeill the night before the kayak tour departs. There is a pre-trip meeting at 7:00 pm with your guides at our office, located at 1790A Campbell Way, across the street from the Haida Way Inn and next to the Black Bear Resort. Your guides provide you with an overview for your trip, distribute dry bags to pack your clothing, and answer any questions you may have. The cost of pre-trip accommodations is not included in the cost of the tour.
Meals Included: None
---
Day 1- - An early morning. The ferry to Klemtu departs at 7:30 am but we need to be there 2 hours before departure so we pick you up at your hotel at 5:00 am.
We arrive in Klemtu around 3:00 pm and transfer to the Spirit Bear Lodge for the evening. If available, we will take a tour of the village’s Big House.
Meals Included: Dinner
Breakfast and lunch is at guest expense on the ferry. Ferry costs and accommodation in Klemtu are included.Meals: Dinner
Accomodation: Lodge
-
Day
2Kayaking. As this trip is run ‘expedition’ style, we leave our itinerary very open to ensure our flexibility. This is a beautiful area to paddle, but we must work with the conditions and remain open to adventure.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
3We can expect a combination of exposed open coastline and more protected inner passageways during this trip. As this is a nomadic tour, camp is usually moved each night. We may have an opportunity to stay in place for two nights, conditions allowing. On these ‘expedition style’ trips, we generally paddle an hour or two more each day than on our regular tours. We also paddle in more challenging conditions. Swell, wind, and open water crossings are common.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
4Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
5Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
6Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
7Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
8Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
9Kayaking.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accomodation: Camping
-
Day
10Our water taxi picks us up mid-morning to transport us to the Shearwater Resort near the village of Bella Bella. You can either decide to spend the night at Shearwater, or connect to a flight from Bella Bella to Port Hardy (on Vancouver Island) or Vancouver. Or you can also opt to take the ferry back from Bella Bella to Port Hardy, and from there take a taxi back to Port McNeill.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Accomodation: Accommodation by Customer
