Eucott Bay and Hot Springs

This morning we all left Ocean Falls at 7am. Cloudy chilly day. The sun did come out between the clouds this afternoon and warmed into the mid 50’s. Coming past Martin Valley on Cousins Inlet, we passed some kind of old dock not far past Martin Valley. Then a little farther on we passed an old upside down boat hull. Since Mike and Bill had seen that earlier on their way in, I had asked Les (back at the OF Marine Ways building) about that. He said that was one of two built there along the shore, but that one was never completed, and just left there. Next to the hull I also noticed a marine railway probably for launching boats. However, I suspect stormy waters had pushed that rail over to on top the rocks. Saw a few cabins along Cousins Inlet as well. Just about every channel we’ve been on, we see cabins here and there along the shore. Some in better shape than others, but none that look used any more. These are not the nicer shore homes or cabins that do appear to be lived in, but rather old ones that have probably existed for some time. We turned into Dean Channel, where the water got a little choppy after Thorenson Point. But it did smooth out later, about 3 or 4 miles before we turned into Eucott Bay. Eucott Bay has some very hot springs in an enclosure of roughly poured concrete among rocks. The temperature is controlled by a stick placed inside a pipe inlet. I’m estimating the pool was around 100 degrees. And did NOT smell like sulfur. Since I run a tad faster than Bill and Mike, I got to Encott Bay about 30 minutes before they did. As I entered the bay, just before anchoring, I watched a Bald Eagle circle close by me and then dove down to catch a fish. I didn’t waste much time getting anchored and getting my kayak down, then headed over to the shore to check out the hot springs! There was one other person and his dog there. As we soaked in the ht springs, we chatted and I learned a little more history about the people here. Mike and Bill got here, and since I had earlier told them it looked like there was a couple and their dog over there, they just explored some with their Kaboats. The other guy left after an hour or so, and I went back to my boat until Bill and Mike got over to the hot springs. I went back to join them. The heat of the water is controlled by a stick stuck into an inlet pipe that supplies the water. As we were getting out, I noticed three bears a couple hundred yards away, on the grassy shore. Later this evening, Bill saw three bears over on the other side of the bay from us. Reviews of this bay speak of bears frequently on the shores at low tide.Read more