• Large Walk In Fridge With Fresh Fruits & Vegetables
• Extensive number and selection of staples & dry goods
• A Liquor Agency
• Hardware Department
• Post Office
• ATM, Video Rentals, Wireless Internet
  

To reach Squirrel Cove on Cortes Island, take the regularly scheduled ferry service on BC Ferries from Campbell River (Vancouver Island) to Quathiaski Cove on Quadra Island, approximately a 10 minute sailing. Then take a short drive from Quathiaski Cove to Heriot Bay. From Heriot Bay take a BC Ferries scheduled sailing to Whaletown on Cortes Island, approximately a 40 minute sailing. Then drive a short distance across Cortes Island from Whaletown to Squirrel Cove.

CLICK HERE to view a map of the Island

By seaplane - Direct flights to Manson's Landing on Cortes Island are available during the summer months from Vancouver (1 hr) and Seattle (2 hrs). By airplane; Air Canada runs daily flights to Campbell River (on Vancouver Island) and Powell River (on the mainland) from Vancouver and Seattle. From Campbell River airport, take the airport shuttle service to the ferry terminal in downtown Campbell River. From the Powell River Airport take a shuttle to Lund and then a water taxi to Cortes. You must make arrangements in advance for this service. Pacific Coastal Airlines also flies from the Vancouver Airport South Terminal to Campbell River.

Salmon Fishing in the region is legendary. The waters around Quadra and Cortes Islands have yielded some of the largest salmon ever caught on BC's west coast. Although much of the activity is centred in nearby Campbell River on Vancouver Island, there's plenty of action around Quadra and Cortes Islands. Spring salmon migrate from April through to September. Bluejacks and Coho salmon arrive in May, followed by Tyee in July, August and September. Charter boat operators are available for fishing or wildlife viewing excursions.

Freshwater Fishing
If the fish aren't biting in the saltchuk ('chuk' is a Native word for water) just turn your attention to the fish in Hague Lake. The freshwater lake is partly incorporated in Manson's Landing Provincial Park, a rarity in the Marine Provincial park system.

Hiking and Biking on old logging roads, many of which are overgrown, will take the adventuresome into seldom visited habitats. Carrington Bay and Von Donop Inlet provide a maze of trails, and Gunflint Lake and Hague Lake are surrounded mostly by parklands, with a series of marked trails at the end of Quais Bay Road and across the road from the Cortes Motel. When hiking on Cortes, please remember that most small roads lead to private residences, so take care when choosing your path.

Smelt Bay Provincial Park on the southwestern corner of the island provides a heavenly setting on this picturesque island, and your reward for going to the effort to reach Cortes Island is a great provincial park campground. Follow the island road 13 miles (21 km) from the ferry dock to the park, located near Manson's Landing Provincial Park. For a great beach walk, head south to the tip of Sutil Point from Smelt Bay Park. Identify gulls, eagles, cormorants, herons and oystercatchers while you pick up treasured shells and driftwood along the shore. The multitude of sealife provides fine dining for humans ... and seals, sea lions, seabirds and otters too.

Manson's Landing Provincial Park has blessed Cortes Island with a sublime picnic and fishing location. A wide, sandy beach beckons to those who just wish to spread a blanket beside the driftwood backrest and dig into the cooler. Manson's Landing is a great place for paddling, swimming and sunbathing. Bring your own canoe or kayak, or rent one on the island.

Desolation Sound, British Columbia's most celebrated marine destination, borders on Cothe sound. Desolation Sound Marine Park possesses a magical magnetism that draws boaters and paddlers from distant shores. Most boaters congregate in popular anchorages at Prideaux Haven, Tenedos Bay, and Grace Harbour, but with a little more imagination you'll find plenty of isolated bays and campsites throughout Desolation Sound's more than 37 miles (60 km) of coastline.

Nestled at the entrance to enchanting Desolation Sound, tranquil and friendly Cortes Island is one of the most impressive of the Discovery Islands, with its placid lakes, beaches, and rugged gorges. Located between Campbell River on central Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia, the Discovery Islands dot the intricate waterways in some of the most spectacular scenery in the world.

There are three settlements on Cortes: Whaletown at the ferry dock, Manson's Landing with its sandy beaches, and Squirrel Cove, an anchorage facing Desolation Sound. The moment you step onto a ferry heading for the islands, the pace relaxes and the smiles break out.

Cortes Island is about 16 miles (25 km) long, 8 miles (13 km) wide and 13,000 hectares in area. The southern half of Cortes lies in the rain shadow of Vancouver Island, creating a drier climate than the northern half of the island. Most of the island's population lives on the southern end, along with Arbutus and Manzanita trees that cling to the bleached granite bluffs.

Native to this part of British Columbia is the Klahoose First Nation, a northern Coast Salish tribe who maintained seasonal and permanent villages from Toba Inlet south to Cortes Island. When the main villages in Toba Inlet were flooded in the 1800s, the Klahoose Band selected their traditional winter settlement at Squirrel Cove as their permanent site.

Cortes Island (pronounced Cortez) and nearby Hernando Island were named after the Spanish conqueror of Mexico, Hernando Cortes. This unlikely link was established by the Spanish cartographer, Valdez, who charted these waters in 1793. The Spanish never settled the area, but Cortes and other Spanish names remained.

The main islands in the Discovery Islands group are Quadra Island, Cortes Island and the Outer Islands, the largest of which include East and West Thurlow Islands, Sonora Island, Stuart Island, Maurelle Island, Read Island, Raza Island, and East and West Redonda Island. Visitors from around the world are attracted to the Discovery Islands for their scenic beauty and recreational opportunities.

Population: 950

• Cortes Island is a community rich in arts and culture. Crafts stores and galleries offer drawings, paintings and sculptures by local artists. Pick up a copy of the Cortes Arts & Culture Lane brochure from island outlets; a visitor guide to Galleries, Museums and Studios on Cortes Island.

• Cortes Island Museum, on Beasley Road next to the firehall, provides a fascinating glimpse into the cultural and natural history of Whaletown and the surrounding area. Varied displays include Windows on Whaletown and the work of naturalist and author Gilean Douglas. The museum is open from late spring until early fall.

• Spawning Salmon: Several streams on Cortes Island are the spawning grounds of Chum salmon. They can be viewed in the Gorge Channel and Squirrel Cove in November as they journey to the rivers of their birth to spawn and complete the circle of life.

• Thousands of smelt come to spawn on the southwestern tip of the island in Smelt Bay Provincial Park. Smelts are a green-and-silver, sardine-sized fish that frequents these waters in huge numbers and attracts salmon. Not difficult to net, they make a tasty meal.

• There are numerous lagoons with abundant shellfish and shorebirds. Manson's landing provincial Park is the most accessible, and shellfish may be legally collected here and at Smelt Bay, Squirrel cove and the beach south of the government wharf in the Gorge Harbour. Watch for posted signs, check the legal limits and keep away from oyster and clam leases, which are marked with red concrete blocks at their corners.

• Cortes Island is a dream destination for berry picking. Blackberries, salal, huckleberries, salmonberries and thimbleberries abound on the island in season.

• There's a well-equipped marina in Gorge Harbour, and government wharves are maintained at Cortes Bay, Whaletown, Squirrel Cove, Manson's Landing and Gorge Harbour. Two yacht clubs supply member moorage at Cortes Bay. Quadra, Cortes and Redonda Islands provide a gateway to that sailing enchantment, Desolation Sound.

Please CLICK HERE tofollow the link to the Comox Strathcona Regional district for zoning descriptions and information

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Buyers should verify any information provided that is important to them to their sole satisfaction. Our best efforts have been made to provide the most current and accurate information from sources believed to be reliable.