On July 8th, 2007, a cold, blowy, and gray morning, some members of the Harbour City Photography Club boarded a 70 year old coastal freighter, the M.V. Lady Rose in Port Alberni for a day-cruise on the West coast of Vancouver Island. We cruised up the Alberni Canal (Inlet) and out to our first stop, the Sechart Lodge. This lodge is located in Barkley Sound and is built on the remains of an old whaling station. It serves today as a kayaking lodge and is the gateway for kayakers to get to the famous Broken Island Group.
At Sechart Lodge we dropped off supplies and several groups of kayakers who were getting ready to paddle out to the Broken Island Group for a week of camping in the most remote part of Pacific Rim National Park. After our stop at Sechart Lodge we travelled through the Broken Island Group and made our way south to Bamfield.
Here is a brief history of Bamfield:
In 1902, the Bamfield Cable station was constructed as the western terminus of a worldwide undersea cable called by some the All Red Line as it passed only through countries and territories controlled by the British Empire. The cable initially went to Fanning Island, a tiny coral atoll in the mid-Pacific, and from there continued to Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia. A second building, made of concrete was built on the site in 1926 to replace the old wood structure. This building, designated a historic site in 1930, is now used by the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre. Today Bamfield is primarily a tourist destination, either for the West Coast Trail, ocean kayaking or sport fishing. Bamfield also receives many university students who attend semesters at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre.
We stopped in Bamfield for 2 hours. During that time we hiked over to the spectacular Brady's Beach. While we were at the beach the clouds finally burned off and it got sunny and hot. Later we returned to the harbour and then walked the beautiful boardwalk that follows along the harbour in East Bamfield.
We then boarded the M.V Lady Rose again and had a wonderful sunny cruise back to Port Alberni. We stopped once along the way to pick up some new passengers who were waiting in a small boat in the middle of the Inlet.
During our cruise we saw several humpback whales, porpoises, many eagles, a mother bear and a cub, seals, and sea lions. We also saw many different kinds of boats during our travels.
Here is some history on the M.V. Lady Rose:
The M.V. Lady Rose, originally christened Lady Sylvia at her 1937 launching, was built by A & J Inglis Limited of Pointhouse Shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland, and was designed by W.D. McLaren of Vancouver. Although not the last vessel acquired by the Union Steamship Company, she was the last commissioned to be built for them. Her specifications are 105 foot length, 22 foot beam and 7 foot draft. Her 199 gross tones were powered by one 220 b.h.p. National diesel four-stroke motor with an auxiliary 28 b.h.p. Russell Newberry for driving the dynamo, air compressor and pumps. Today, she operates on a 385 horse power 6 cylinder Caterpillar engine, running at 850 r.p.m. producing a service speed of 11 knots and burning 12 gallons of diesel per hour. The Lady Rose can carry up to 100 passengers and 25 tons of cargo. Designed for the sheltered coastal waters of British Columbia, this stocky little vessel soon proved capable of much more, becoming the first diesel powered vessel to cross the Atlantic driven by a single propeller! Today, with her small crew, the Lady Rose is continuing maritime history by servicing the Alberni Inlet and Barkley Sound, carrying cargo, mail and up to 100 passengers on her day trips in the same manner as she did when she began her life on the B.C. coast nearly 70 years ago.
It was a wonderful day and I for one will make this trip again. I cannot say enough about how friendly and casual the crew was. And it was interesting to meet some of our fellow passengers who were from all over the world and to listen to their impressions of our beautiful Vancouver Island.
At Sechart Lodge we dropped off supplies and several groups of kayakers who were getting ready to paddle out to the Broken Island Group for a week of camping in the most remote part of Pacific Rim National Park. After our stop at Sechart Lodge we travelled through the Broken Island Group and made our way south to Bamfield.
Here is a brief history of Bamfield:
In 1902, the Bamfield Cable station was constructed as the western terminus of a worldwide undersea cable called by some the All Red Line as it passed only through countries and territories controlled by the British Empire. The cable initially went to Fanning Island, a tiny coral atoll in the mid-Pacific, and from there continued to Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia. A second building, made of concrete was built on the site in 1926 to replace the old wood structure. This building, designated a historic site in 1930, is now used by the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre. Today Bamfield is primarily a tourist destination, either for the West Coast Trail, ocean kayaking or sport fishing. Bamfield also receives many university students who attend semesters at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre.
We stopped in Bamfield for 2 hours. During that time we hiked over to the spectacular Brady's Beach. While we were at the beach the clouds finally burned off and it got sunny and hot. Later we returned to the harbour and then walked the beautiful boardwalk that follows along the harbour in East Bamfield.
We then boarded the M.V Lady Rose again and had a wonderful sunny cruise back to Port Alberni. We stopped once along the way to pick up some new passengers who were waiting in a small boat in the middle of the Inlet.
During our cruise we saw several humpback whales, porpoises, many eagles, a mother bear and a cub, seals, and sea lions. We also saw many different kinds of boats during our travels.
Here is some history on the M.V. Lady Rose:
The M.V. Lady Rose, originally christened Lady Sylvia at her 1937 launching, was built by A & J Inglis Limited of Pointhouse Shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland, and was designed by W.D. McLaren of Vancouver. Although not the last vessel acquired by the Union Steamship Company, she was the last commissioned to be built for them. Her specifications are 105 foot length, 22 foot beam and 7 foot draft. Her 199 gross tones were powered by one 220 b.h.p. National diesel four-stroke motor with an auxiliary 28 b.h.p. Russell Newberry for driving the dynamo, air compressor and pumps. Today, she operates on a 385 horse power 6 cylinder Caterpillar engine, running at 850 r.p.m. producing a service speed of 11 knots and burning 12 gallons of diesel per hour. The Lady Rose can carry up to 100 passengers and 25 tons of cargo. Designed for the sheltered coastal waters of British Columbia, this stocky little vessel soon proved capable of much more, becoming the first diesel powered vessel to cross the Atlantic driven by a single propeller! Today, with her small crew, the Lady Rose is continuing maritime history by servicing the Alberni Inlet and Barkley Sound, carrying cargo, mail and up to 100 passengers on her day trips in the same manner as she did when she began her life on the B.C. coast nearly 70 years ago.
It was a wonderful day and I for one will make this trip again. I cannot say enough about how friendly and casual the crew was. And it was interesting to meet some of our fellow passengers who were from all over the world and to listen to their impressions of our beautiful Vancouver Island.
A view from the bow of the Lady Rose as we start to head up the Alberni Inlet to the West Coast.
A view from the bow of the Lady Rose as we start to head up the Alberni Inlet to the West Coast.
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