Kisameet Bay

Last night was a little rolley with some higher winds pushing some of the outside swells into our anchorage behind Green Island. Not bad, just enough to gently rock the boats. Pulled up my crab trap this morning with one legal sized male Red Rock crab. He’ll get steamed later. Headed out to Fritz Hugh Sound with just a little chop in 1’ seas. Winds were very light out of the south or southeast. We stopped at Kwakume Inlet to check it out. Bill and Mike decided to explore more in their Kaboats, so I told them I would continue on and meet them in our planned anchorage this evening. Not long after I left Kwakume, just off Whidbey Point, I’m pretty sure I saw the tail of a whale come up out of the water a couple times along with a steam spout. Unfortunately, the whale never came up again so no photo. North of Whidbey Point, the winds had turned to a slight breeze out of the north. And the seas became mostly calm. Bill and Mike also stopped at Koeye River to explore there by Kaboat. On my way north, I pulled into the small cove at Koeye to check it out, and sent Bill and Mike a message on Inreach about the size and depth of the cove. Koeye Point had some cabins on shore and a few larger kayaks on the beach. Seas were a little choppy around Koeye Point, but smoothed out again a little farther north. I think some porpoises were playing as I was approaching Morehouse Passage. At least I could see a couple fins/backs come out of the water a few times. (A friend just informed me those were humpback whales. The dorsal fin gave it away.) I turned into Morehouse Passage to go check out Namu. As I pulled into Namu Harbor, I could see the old cannery and village there were in shambles. I did some quick research on the internet, and found this:
Once a bustling and vibrant salmon and herring processing hub owned by BC Packers, Namu has devolved into an abandoned ghost town plagued by toxic environmental pollution. Diminishing fish stocks and shifting industry methods forced the cannery to close in 1970. Today, the ancient Haíɫzaqv (Heiltsuk) village site sits decaying as an ecological liability. The rapid decline of Namu involves a complex mix of industrial history, failed ventures, and environmental neglect:
• Commercial Boom & Segregation: In the early 20th century, Namu was a massive aquaculture hub employing hundreds of people. Workers were strictly segregated into different camps and work hours based on race, including groups of First Nations, Japanese, Chinese, and White individuals.
• Industrial Closure: The collapse of local salmon stocks led BC Packers to shut down the processing plant in 1970. The site was sold to a private developer in the 1990s with plans for a sportfishing resort, but those plans never materialized, leaving the town to rot.
• Environmental Hazards: The decaying structures and rusting fuel tanks have leached dangerous contaminants (such as mercury and asbestos) into the ocean for decades. Derelict vessels—such as the abandoned Chilcotin Princess—further complicated the cleanup efforts and posed immediate marine pollution threats.
• Corporate Dissolution & Reversion: With the last full-time caretaker leaving in 2013, the site's most recent corporate owner was dissolved, causing the lands to revert to the Crown.
• Heiltsuk Claim & Cleanup Efforts: Because Namu is an ancient, thousands-of-years-old village to the Haíɫzaqv Nation, the nation never ceded the land. The Heiltsuk have long been fighting for the restoration, cleanup, and return of the territory to its traditional stewards.
I left Namu Harbour via Cloverleaf Passage, and back out on Fitz Hugh Sound, which was still pretty calm. I turned into Fisher Channel. It was a little choppy where Fisher and Burke Channels split off from Fitz, but then smoothed out again. I entered Kisameet Bay, which has several small islands. I dropped my crab trap and anchored next to a small stream entering the bay. Just checked my crab trap after about 6 hours and had one legal Red Rock crab. Cleaned him and put the trap back downRead more