Saltery Bay revisited...sunshine, sea, and starfish

kayaking out of Saltery Bay

We're just back from a fabulous weekend camping in Saltery Bay. We had it all...sunshine from dawn until dusk, warm temperatures, a fantastic campsite and the campground was very quiet...and we were able to have campfires. I think it's the first time that we've had all of the above things on one trip!

A view of Mermaid Cove

Saltery Bay is on the sunshine coast. About an hour and a half drive from Powell River and just after the Earl's Cove ferry terminal. It is two ferry rides...but they time quite well and they are relatively short. On a beautiful summer's day they are fully part of the adventure. Here's some pics of River enjoying the wind blowing on the deck of the ferry.

We spent a week in Saltery Bay last year...my post on that is here. I included lots of info about the area in that post so I won't repeat all of that.

Low-tide and lots of tidal pools. The tide comes up to cover the whole ramp. Perfect for swimming when the tide is in

We headed out the Sunday before last; the perfect day to get out of Vancouver and avoid all the summer traffic. We didn't book our ferries or our campsite and we didn't need to. That in itself saved us around $50...yay! We arrived at the campsite just before 2pm (left our house at 8am). Most of the trip is ferries and waiting for ferries. There is only about 2 hours of actual driving involved. There was a hitch at the beginning of the trip. We discovered that we lost River's yellow ball. It was his favourite toy. He has loved that slightly deflated yellow ball since he received it from Bronwyn for his first birthday. We think it must have rolled out of the van when we were getting in and out on the ferry. Mark actually went back to the ferry to see if anyone dropped it in the lost and found. But to anyone else it's probably just a slightly deflated, scruffy ball.
It was even part of last year's trip...

River napping on last year's Saltery Bay trip

We did find another ball in Powell River. It is red with white spots and is slightly deflated. He seems to have taken to it. We think it was the feel, rather than the colour, that appealed to him....maybe. On Monday it was pretty windy and quite cool, but the rest of the days were beautiful and warm. The kids had a fantastic time. No water-fountains for River to get drawn into. It took him a while to get used to the beach and the water. We've spent the past 6 months toilet-training and he's finally got it. However, he's over generalized to the point that he thinks he must get changed every time his clothes get wet. So he takes his pants off every time they get wet...even if it's from paddling. We're trying to teach him that it's okay if he's in a bathing suit. But he hasn't got that yet. At first he wasn't keen on getting his hands in the sand, and he didn't like the water much. But then he got used to it a little. He usually spend 10 or 15 minutes with us and then he'd take off and Mark and I took turns going with him while one of us stayed with Bronwyn. The kayak was a major hit with both of them and Mark took turns taking them out. I took a couple of nice trips out myself.

Kayaking back to the shore

Bronwyn just had the time of her life. She enjoyed every beach we went to. We went to the Saltery Bay day-use beach...but it was like quick sand...I almost lost my croc (much to Mark's amusement). We also spent time at a couple of other beaches.

We watched crabs scurrying back to the tide, moon jellyfish drifting with the current and starfish huddled under dark rocks. But mostly we stayed at Saltery Bay and took out the kayak, sat on warm rocks, collected shells, threw rocks into the water, and watched the marine life under the crystal clear water.

playing at the beach

I was a fire-maker this trip. It was the first time I actually chopped logs with an axe. I have to say there is something very satisfying about swinging an axe and splitting logs...and then building a fire. I'm surprised I didn't chop logs before...I left it for "man's work". This trip River kept saying, "Mummy make fire". He loved watching the fire. Bronwyn is always too busy to sit and watch a fire. But River loved it. It was the first thing he asked for in the morning.

the centre of operations...nestled in the tall trees.

the family with our trusty VW van

The van worked out great. Mark and I take turns sleeping on the top with Bronwyn. The grand-master plan is to have both kids sleep up top. But that won't be for a while. It is way more comfortable than a tent. Ellee did okay. She's not that keen on camping anymore and it's a bit like bringing along your grumpy elderly relative. But she got into it after a while...once she'd had a couple of sausages. Probably our best trip so far!