What's the lowdown on the Tofino area for paddling?

a_c said:
Probably 3 but it depends on a lot - the section from Hot Springs Cove to Hesquiat is big, open, exposed water (and getting up to Hot Springs can get rough, too, though there is the safe 'inside' route). There's no guarantee you'll get up there, especially given that the prevailing strong summer westerlies hit you right on the nose. And the Hesquiat Bar can get interesting, too.


Well, that's one version - the story we heard was slightly less altruistic. Life up there was a pretty hardscrabble existence, and a cougar bounty/pelt was worth good money. When a cougar was in the area, Annie would stake a live goat in the middle of the clearing, strategically place a few traps nearby, and you can figure out the rest.


Yes, the mail order husbands were a mixed lot - we were told this fellow somehow managed to shoot himself in the groin.
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She canned the cougar meat and ate it.
 
SWriverstone said:
In my neverending quest for knowledge about the BC coast...I've noticed (over time, from my distant perspective in Oregon) that I hear a lot about the Broken Group as a paddling destination–with obviously good reason! (It looks amazing, and seems a bit more accessible in terms of travel time?)

While staring at Google Earth recently, I zeroed in on the area around Tofino—Dawley and Epper Provincial Parks. I'd never really noticed it before...and realized that on a map anyway, it looks like there are many, many miles of possible paddling and exploration around there! Meares Island, Tofino Inlet, Fortune Channel (and it looks like you could slip through the Kennedy River to Kennedy Lake?), Bedwell Sound...and to the northwest...Herbert Inlet, Millar Channel, and (via Hayden Passage) Shelter Inlet and Sydney Inlet.

Is this area as much of a paddling paradise as it looks on the map? Or are there reasons unknown to me why not as many people seem to go there? (Which in itself could be an incorrect assumption?)
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My kayaking friend and I returned to the broken island group last summer having first paddled it about 7 years ago. I won’t be be going back. Every campsite was overcrowded. I don’t think we spoke to one group that had actually made the crossing to the island under their own steam.
 
I’m guessing that you were there over the weekend. We observed quite a bit of difference in how crowded the sound was over the weekend, when both waters and beaches were packed, versus during weekdays, when we had most islands to ourselves.
 
My experience is not likely to be universally applicable, but here's what I observed in July 2025:

Dodd Island first night: one other group, approximately 7 kayakers the first night.
2nd night: as above, plus 4 folks came in off a fishing boat. All three groups were well dispersed.

Gilbert Island first night (Saturday): just us.
2nd night: ditto

Gibraltar Island first night: busy
2nd night: a zoo. Probably 25-30 ppl there.

Hand Island only night: 2 other groups of four. Very well dispersed.


We did not observed the weekday/weekend pattern that @ELS notes.
Having paddled the BGI once before in September, it is clear that September is less busy!
 
I don't mind other groups as long as there is no electronic music and dogs off-leash. When interacting with others, I learn new ideas, techniques. That said, here's an example that was not okay ... Steve and I were on our Around Orcas in Eight Days adventure (posted in Trip Reports long ago). We were on Jones Island and set up camp chairs on the west side to watch the sunset. There was plenty of room in the area, but three women decided they needed to put down their chairs about a meter and a half away and have a loud conversation. Maybe we were supposed to "notice" them - a boy/girl thing. Steve, being Steve, wasn't rude but expressed to them that he preferred contemplating the day rather than listening to their chatter. They moved away.

Back to Tofino - when I was there, the builders had "developed" so much new housing that they had depleted the water table. Restaurants were serving meals on paper plates and drinks in paper cups to conserve water. We stayed at a Hostel a short distance from town. Long-term parking was up the street from the launch area.

The original plan was to paddle up towards Meares Island but - and I forget the details here - the clerk in the kayak shop (checking in for "local knowledge") suggested a trip to Vargas would be better. As it was our first expedition, we made a lot of mistakes and learned a lot. It was great!
 
a_c said:
the section from Hot Springs Cove to Hesquiat is big, open, exposed water (and getting up to Hot Springs can get rough, too, though there is the safe 'inside' route). There's no guarantee you'll get up there, especially given that the prevailing strong summer westerlies hit you right on the nose. And the Hesquiat Bar can get interesting, too.
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Hmm, sorry to be questioning, but this part is bit confusing, what's the "inside route" from hot springs to Hesquiat? methinks you're confusing outside route from Tofino to Hotsprings with north route to Hequiat?
 
pryaker said:
Hmm, sorry to be questioning, but this part is bit confusing, what's the "inside route" from hot springs to Hesquiat? methinks you're confusing outside route from Tofino to Hotsprings with north route to Hequiat?
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Methinks a_c meant the inside route from Tofino to Hotsprings Cove, i.e. backside of Flores. They were also discussing their route from Tofino to Hesquiat, but not implying a inside route from Hotsprings to Hesquiat.
 
pryaker said:
Pretty cool north of Hot springs eh?
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The stretch past Hot Springs towards Hesquiat is amazing - the scenery rivals anywhere on the coast. My previous 'favourite place" was between Cape Scott and San Josef Bay, but this was as good, IMO. The number of sea caves is astonishing. Paddling north the conditions were a bit dicey and we had to stay well offshore, but on the trip back down the weather was calm and we were able to get quite close.
 
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