Bottleneck Anchorage to Hartley Bay, B.C., Canada (69NM)

A cool morning with whisps of fog great us at our anchorage in Bottleneck. We pull anchor and head out of the tiny opening for another day of ‘log-watching’. Thankfully, today is clear and mostly flat with few obstacles. The temptation to gaze at the cascading waterfalls is overwhelming so we slow down and take a peek into the old Butedale ‘Ghost Town’ (more later). By early afternoon we pull into Hartley Bay and attempt to radio for a spot in the marina. We finally dock at the municipal pier and Larry runs up to find the harbor office. Note-to-self, there is no office and the town folk just tell you where to dock. The entire marina is filled with fishing and commercial boats of every size and the docks are filled with their contents; coolers, old batteries, nets of every shape and size, jerry cans, cords, lines, fenders, kayaks and paddles. We shove our way into a spot and head to shore to explore the township of Hartley Bay.

The little ‘Ghost Town’ of Butedale beckons us for a closer look. Butedale is located on Princess Royal Island and was founded in 1911 by John Wallace. According to the Google search, it evolved into a thriving salmon (and Halibut) cannery, ice manufacturing center and logging camp. It housed over 400 summer residents before shutting down in the 1970’s.

Some of the company buildings still stand and look as if they may still be used. This is one of the only privately owned land plots on Princess Royal Island.

The town had a brilliant, self-contained power system. A pipeline was built to channel water from Butedale Lake above these falls and down to a hydro plant, providing natural electricity and (according to Google) some of the best block ice on the coast.

Entering Hartley Bay, like most of this area, only accessible by boat or seaplane. Described on Google as ‘an isolated, off-grid Indigenous community of roughly 170 residents…’

The ‘Where’s Waldo’ version of our boat on the municipal docks of Harley Bay

Modern power lines juxtapose with traditional monument art. The village is home to the Gitga’ata, members of the Tsimshian Nation.

The most unique and enjoyable experience of walking the boardwalks of Hartley Bay

Rush hour on the boardwalk

While investigating the trails we found the Frisbee Golf Course. Larry cleaned my clock and got a hole in one on the 9th basket from 75 yards out!

After golf we continued on the boardwalk through the shady forest near the creek…

…this creek is at the base of the Salmon Hatchery that the town uses to help support itself and the salmon fisheries.

The Salmon Hatchery was started in 1981 to help the depleted salmon fisheries

The salmon smoke house is located, smartly, across from the hatchery

A view of the harbor from the boardwalk

The charming town church