Port Alberni - Bamfield - Port Alberni, BC

LUCKY LAGER ROAD TRIP
 WESTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA 

October 1, 2015  (Day 13)

Port Alberni - Bamfield - Port Alberni
Today's Miles Via Ship: 134 miles / Total Trip Miles: 988

Vancouver Island

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Alberni Inlet & Ship Route

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Alberni Inlet:

Mary and I took the M.V. Frances Barkley for a nine-hour day trip down the Alberni Inlet toward Barkley Sound. The Alberni Inlet on Vancouver Island is a long, narrow channel that runs 25 miles inland from the open ocean of Barkley Sound. The ship stopped at a few residences, the floating Kildonan post office and Bamfield, where we disembarked. While passengers explored tiny Bamfield, the ship turned around for the return trip to Port Alberni.

The Frances Barkley is a 200-passenger and cargo vessel based in Port Alberni. It serves the communities of Barkley Sound and the Broken Group Islands on the west coast of Vancouver Island.  This "packet freighter" can carry 100 tons of cargo. Built in 1958, it was launched as the M.S. Rennesoy in Norway. Later, it was renamed the M.S. Hide.

Frances Barkley (1769-1845) was the wife of Captain Charles Barkley. She was the first European woman to visit Canada's west coast. Frances was also the first woman to sail around the world "without deception". Only two women are known to have sailed around the world before Frances: Jeanne Baré, disguised as a man, and Rose de Freycinet, a stowaway. Charles Barkley (1759-1832) was a ship captain and maritime fur trader. In 1787, Captain Barkley, while commanding the Imperial Eagle, explored the ocean area south of Ucluelet and north of Bamfield, and named "Barkley" Sound after himself. 

Rating for the Port Alberni-Bamfield-Port Alberni trip  = A.

Kildonan:

Kildonan is a former cannery village and steamer landing located on the east side of Uchuchklesit Inlet, which is on the north side of the lower reaches of Alberni Inlet. A cannery was built here in 1903 by the Alberni Packing Company, later known as the Uchucklesaht Cannery. The Wallace Brothers from Kildonan Scotland bought the pilchard (sardine) cannery in 1910 establishing the present name of "Kildonan". The cannery and associated buildings stood on pilings next to the shore during the 1920s and 1930s. The cannery was shut down in 1960. Due to extensive deterioration, the cannery was torn down and burned.

Bamfield:

Bamfield is a tiny hamlet nestled in a protected inlet on the south shore of Barkley Sound. This tiny fishing and harbor village has a population of around 200. It is surrounded by Crown land, Indian Reserves, and portions of the Pacific Rim National Park. 

Europeans started a small fishing community here in the late 1800s.  In 1902, the Bamfield cable station was constructed as the western terminus of a worldwide undersea telegraph cable called the "All Red Line".  The cable was called the "All Red Line" because it passed only through countries and territories controlled by the British Empire, which were colored red on maps. The cable initially went to Fanning Island, a tiny coral atoll in the mid-Pacific. From there it continued to Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia. In 1953, the cable was extended up the Alberni Inlet to Port Alberni.

Bamfield is divided into two sections, separated by about 200 yards of the Bamfield Inlet. The west side of Bamfield is linked by a waterfront boardwalk that connects the homes and docks on the harbor side. The east side of Bamfield contains most of the businesses, including a pub, a market and café. To cross between the two sides of town, you call a water taxi. Our ship docked on the west side.  Bamfield rating = B.

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M.V. Frances Barkley

The Frances Barkley turns around at Bamfield for the return trip to Port Aberni.
[Flickr]

Floating Post Office at Kildonan 
[Flickr]

Shower & Fish Cleaning Station 

The ship stopped at a residence fronting the Alberni Inlet to offload a passenger and supplies. This dock and non-PC shower belong to the residence.

[Flickr]

Flowers on the Boardwalk at Bamfield

[Flickr]

Whale Breeching

From the ship, we saw the action of whales breeching in the Alberni Inlet.
[Flickr]

Lighthouse

This lighthouse is located along the Alberni Inlet between Port Alberni and Kildonan.
[Flickr]

Fog Bank 

Fog bank on the Alberni Inlet viewed from ship. 
[Flickr]  

Photographs

These photographs are the property of Leon Jackson, and are protected by copyright laws. Photographs may not to be downloaded or reproduced in any way without the written permission of Leon Jackson. © 2015 Leon Jackson. All Rights Reserved.


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