Canadian Yachting May 2022 - 18

CANADIAN DESTINATION
Cowichan Bay
C
A SLOW-LIVING ESCAPE TO MARINE HERITAGE,
FOOD AND LOCAL ARTISANRY
Text and Photos by | Marianne Scott
owichan Bay is a waterfront village
with a row of shops, artisan products,
marine supplies and a variety
of places to eat. It also has a delightful
Maritime Centre. You can easily spend a
day or more here at one of three marinas
hosting transient moorage. The place feels
like an old-fashioned fi shing village.
We arrived at this quaint hamlet on a
calm day when the sun burned off twists
of mist and created undulating oval diamonds
on the wavelets. From the water,
the village looks enticing with its dense
jumble of colourful character buildings,
fl oat homes and houses-on-stilts lining the
coast.
Cowichan Bay was home to the Coast
Salish people for millennia. They harvested
salmon and shellfi sh found in the
local coves, tidal fl ats and the Cowichan
River. The name Cowichan (it's had
many other spellings) is derived from
the Halkomelem term, " shkewétsen, "
or " Quw'utsun, " which is explained as
" basking in the sun, " and " warming the
back, " a reference to the nearby rocky
Mt. Tzouhalem where, tradition has it,
the shape resembles a frog sunning itself.
European settlers arrived here in the 1860s
and established commercial logging and
fi shing industries. Today, tourism is the
mainstay.
Located about halfway between
Victoria and Nanaimo, on Vancouver
Island's east side, Cowichan Bay isn't diffi
cult to approach. Separation Point shelters
the harbour somewhat, and whether
you arrive from either the north or the
south, you traverse Satellite Channel, bordering
the west side of Salt Spring Island.
Calculating the tides through this waterway
will certainly help your speed as currents
fl ow swiftly. Except for the marked
Paley Rock and Musgrave Rock, there are
no obstacles until you close in on your
Cowichan Bay marina; there you must
wend your way carefully among the horde
of boats anchored in the Bay. There are a
group of liveaboards here, as there are at
many locations along the BC coast. Most
of these residents occupy their vessels as
an antidote to high real estate prices.
18 CANADIAN YACHTING | MAY 2022
View of Cowichan Bay
thetis
Island
riot
Brewing
co.
chemainus
River Rd.
Henry Rd.
averill creek
vineyards
emandare
vineyard
Maple Bay
First St.
craig street
Brew pub
zanatta
winery
duncan
Allenby Rd.
red arrow
brewing
company
Rocky Creek
Winery
blue grouse
estate winery
venturi
schulze
vineyard
Glenterra
Vineyards
silverside
farm &
wineRy
Fisher Rd.
cherry
point
estate
wines
meRRidale
cideRy
Damali Lavender
& Winery
unswoRth
vineyards
enrico
winery
mill Bay
Trunk Rd.
Merridale Rd.
Beverly St.
Koksilah Rd.
Hutchinson Rd.
Kilmalu Rd.
Blue Grouse Rd.
Telegraph Rd.
Miller Rd.
Cameron-Taggart Rd.
Cobble Hill Rd.
Lakeside Rd.
North Rd.
Bell-McKinnon Rd.
Herd Rd.
Cowichan Bay Rd.
Somenos Rd.
Lakes Rd.
Glenora Rd.
Norcross Rd.
Bench Rd.
HWY. 18
Cow Bay Rd.
Glenora Rd.
Marshall Rd.
Indian Rd.
Government St.
Canada Ave.
Stelfox Rd.
Waters Rd.
Drinkwater Rd.
Tzouhalem Rd.
HWY. 18
Cherry Point Rd.
Parker Rd.
Chemainus Rd.
Vineyard Rd.
Myhrest Rd.
Shawnigan-Mill Bay Rd.
Victoria Rd.
Chemainus Rd.
Canadian Yachting May 2022

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