Clayoquot Sound

Clayoquot Sound, originally uploaded by macatay.

For the past week we have been exploring the bays and passages of Clayoquot Sound. We approached this area with high expectations: we bypassed Clayoquot entirely last time we traveled this coast due to lack of time. Plus this is a storied place in the history of environmental activism. In 1993 over 12,000 people gathered here to protest the provincial government's decision to open 62 percent of the sound to clearcut logging. This was the largest incidence of civil disobedience in Canada's history, and 932 people were arrested.
It is quiet here now, there has been some recent logging, but most vistas remain unscarred. We have had remarkably good weather: morning fog provides contrast to the nearly hot afternoon sun, and we have been knocking around in shorts and tee shirts, and walking barefoot on beaches. From the kayak we can gather huckleberries off bushes hanging near the high tide line. It still feels quite wild here (we were howled at by a lone, long-legged wolf all of one afternoon), but we have enjoyed the company of crews from other boats in most anchorages. Lazy and peaceful, a fine August interlude.