BC Parks Back Country Registration

ChrisPoteetPdx

Active Member
Joined
Jan 17, 2021
Messages
53
Location
Portland, Or
Hi Everyone, I'm looking for input and suggestions when it comes to pre-purchasing Back Country Registrations; specifically for Desolation Sound; more specifically Curme Island. My son and I will be stopping on Curme or a campsite nearby as we wander through Discovery and Desolation campsites for a week. We're starting at Quadra and will hit Octopus area, Rendezvous area and Teakerne before heading into Desolation Sound sites proper.

We intend to spend one or two days in the BC Parks Desolation Sound boundary and then head out. If we are running behind and land on Curme a day after our Back Country Registration reservation expires, what would Officers of Parks Canada think about that? Would there be frowning, a lecture and maybe a fine of some sort.

I'm not looking to cheat the system, but I also don't want to sign up for four days when we may only stay there for one night.

Thanks,
Chris
 
You probably could get cell reception and register once you're there. I can't recall where i have coverage in Desolation and have never camped on Curme but I'm pretty sure now that there's more cell towers around you'd be fine.
 
The Octopus area brings up a memory that might fit General and not be too much of a hijack. Before I launched, I put campsite coordinates in my GPS. But when I got to the Octopus Islands there was nothing at those coordinates. There were camp areas but not where whatever guidebook (or trip article) said they'd be.

I'm pretty sure this is an incidence of GPS WGS datum vs. NAD27 Datum. On second thought, I'll continue this under the Gear sub-forum.
 
Your do not say when you planning on staying on the Curme Islands. Depending on weather and time of summer, these sites can be totally booked. I would equate the Curme Islands in particular and the western side of Desolation Sound in general as a high use area for kayak camping.

Curme Islands are Provincial Park campsites not federal. A lovely place to camp and to visit, but you will need a reservation in high season I suspect, same with the Copeland Islands. There are other less used campsites within a few hours, Martin Island and Kinghorn Island come to mind in particular.

The whole western fringe of Desolation Sound is accessible and utilized by both recreational boaters and by outfitters, so it can get crowded. My advice is to make reservations where you can in high summer and to travel early and reach your next campsite early to get spots that have been vacated. There are less utilized areas such as Shark Spit, and the west side of Reid Island. The Rendevous Island sites and the Penn Island Sites are glorious, but agian they get used by outfitters, so arriving early is de riguer. Desolation Sound is well worth the visit, but the western edge is summer adventure mecca. The reservation is well worth the peace of mind in my view. Unless you have local knowledge and alternate kayak pirate camping sites in your kayaking bag of tricks.

Enjoy your time there,

Rick
 
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Years ago circa 2001 I went to the broken group in September and wow I could barely find a place to pitch a tent, not a wilderness experience at all, outfitters everywhere, it was totally ridiculous the beaches looked like I was still in the city, tents everywhere kayaks all over the place and the noise was unbelievable. People making as much noise as they could. Very disappointing, never been back. I remember the Bowron circuit in 1986 I saw four other people. The good old days. You can still find places like that, but we’ll keep them a secret. It’s best to go anywhere early spring or late fall before the great cluster **** of summer descends.
 
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Your do not say when you planning on staying on the Curme Islands. Depending on weather and time of summer, these sites can be totally booked. I would equate the Curme Islands in particular and the western side of Desolation Sound in general as a high use area for kayak camping.

Curme Islands are Provincial Park campsites not federal. A lovely place to camp and to visit, but you will need a reservation in high season I suspect, same with the Copeland Islands. There are other less used campsites within a few hours, Martin Island and Kinghorn Island come to mind in particular.

The whole western fringe of Desolation Sound is accessible and utilized by both recreational boaters and by outfitters, so it can get crowded. My advice is to make reservations where you can in high summer and to travel early and reach your next campsite early to get spots that have been vacated. There are less utilized areas such as Shark Spit, and the west side of Reid Island. The Rendevous Island sites and the Penn Island Sites are glorious, but agian they get used by outfitters, so arriving early is de riguer. Desolation Sound is well worth the visit, but the western edge is summer adventure mecca. The reservation is well worth the peace of mind in my view. Unless you have local knowledge and alternate kayak pirate camping sites in your kayaking bag of tricks.

Enjoy your time there,

Rick
Thank you for the response. My son and I head out next Sunday from Quadra. The intent is to hit all the highlights you mentioned. We plan to be at Curme around Tuesday/Wednesday. The full plan looks like this. Rebecca Spit - Fransico Island - S. Rendezvous Island - Teakerne area - Curme Area - Gorges Island - Toba - Penn Island - and Shark Spit before crossing back over to Quadra. None of these locations are set in stone. We will let our backs, butts and legs tell us far we want to go knowing there are stops between the dots.

I also picked this week in hopes it's before the mayhem starts in July.

Cheers,
Chris
 
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