SOUTHWESTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 300

Points and the 400-meter-wide (1,300-foot-wide) rock-strewn waterway between them. The
tides of three inlets roar through this narrow passage four times a day. The resulting rapids
and eddies boisterously boil and bubble to create fierce-looking whirlpools—fascinating to
see when your feet are firmly planted on terra firma, but very dangerous for inexperienced
boaters unfamiliar with the tides. It's a particularly amazing spectacle one hour after the
ebb of extra-low spring tides, when the rapids may reach as high as five meters (16 feet)
and the water whooshes past at 20 kph (12 mph). At any low tide, you'll also see abundant
marine creatures in tidal pools—it's a fascinating spot. Take a picnic lunch, pull up a rock,
and enjoy the view.
EARLS COVE
Earls Cove marks the end of this section of Highway 101. From here, BC Ferries offers reg-
ular service across Jervis Inlet to Saltery Bay. The 16-kilometer (10-mile) crossing takes 50
minutes.
SALTERY BAY AND VICINITY
Less than two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Saltery Bay ferry terminal is 140-hectare
(346-acre) Saltery Bay Provincial Park, one of the Sunshine Coast's diving hot spots.
All the best dive spots are accessible as shore dives, including a bronze mermaid. The
park is broken into two sections. The southernmost is where the diving takes place, and it
also holds a campground (519/826-6850 or 800/689-9025, www.discovercamping.ca , mid-
April-mid-Sept., $16). Less than one kilometer (0.6 mile) farther west is the park's day-use
area, with picnic tables and a grassed area fronting the rocky foreshore.
Bookended by the park's two sections is Kent's Beach Resort (604/487-9386,
www.kentsbeach.com , Mar.-Oct.), one of the coast's many old-fashioned, family-friendly
oceanfront resorts. In July and August, the eight self-contained cabins are rented by the
week ($725-1,020). The rest of the operating season, you can snag your waterfront getaway
for just $100-115 per night. Either way, furnishings are sparse (bring your own bedding),
but the setting is unbeatable. Camping is $20-30 per night, with the more expensive sites
right on the waterfront.
From Saltery Bay, it's 30 kilometers (19 miles) of winding road to Powell River. Along
the way you'll cross Lois River, the outlet for large Lois Lake, and pass a string of coastal
communities clinging to the rocky shoreline of Malaspina Strait.