Paddle Energizer

Spirit Bay to Whirl Bay - NEW MEMBERS

When Saturday, May 13, 2023 9:30 AM – 3:30 PM
Location Spirit Bay
6 of 12 open Free
Destination Whirl Bay
Trip style Day
Experience Level 1
Distance 9.86 nm
Route plan A

After leaving our launch point at the Cheanuh Marina (Spirit Bay), we will do a clockwise circumnavigation of Becher Bay until we reach the Bedford Islands at the mouth of the bay. We will then follow the shoreline between the Bedfords and Church Island. Note: we may feel some ocean swell in this area as we make our way to Whirl Bay.

After passing the Church Islands we will cross Whirl Bay to our destination on a beach just behind Shelter Island.

After lunch, we will head back west towards the Chruch Islands and the mouth of Becher Bay. Once we reach Church Island, we will cross over to the west side of Frazer Island and then over to the shoreline near Spirit Bay and our original launch point.

Following our paddle, we can debrief and swap tall tales at the Pedder Bay Marina Cafe (a few miles away on our way back to Victoria).

Route plan B

If there are unfavourable winds at the start of the paddle, we can convert the trip to a 'relaxed' paddle and do a circumnavigation of Becher Bay.

Safety reminders

Always dress for the possibility of immersion and please bring a drybag containing a spare change of clothes. The drybag goes in your kayak with you, not in your car at the launch site. Please bring a lunch or snacks and sufficient beverage to keep you hydrated, as well as a thermos of something warm. Your paddle leader will introduce the plan and make sure everyone is comfortable with the requirements. Please stay off the water until the group is ready. If you have a VHF radio please bring it with you.

Spirit Bay tide/current reference

Sources & licences

Tide & current predictions

CHS provides tide heights and current predictions. Secondary current stations are estimates; large-tide estimates are identified separately. Tide turns and slack water are independent. Conditions along the route vary with location.

CHS atlas & lookup licences

Canadian Atlas of Tidal Currents, Volume 3: Juan de Fuca Strait to Strait of Georgia (2016), Canadian Hydrographic Service, Fisheries and Oceans Canada. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2022.

Map images are reproduced from the CHS publication and selected for the date and time shown. The publication permits noncommercial reproduction in any format; commercial reproduction requires prior written permission from CHS. This viewer is not an official CHS publication and is not to be used for navigation.

Current Atlas Lookup Tables: Juan de Fuca Strait to Strait of Georgia by Emanuel Borsboom. SISKA adapts the tables to show selected hours and atlas page numbers. The original tables and these adapted tables are provided under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Canada (CC BY-NC-SA 2.5 CA).

Dewey atlas attribution

Salish Sea Tidal Current Atlas and calendar lookup tables by Richard K. Dewey, self-published. The selected volume and map number are shown in the viewer. SISKA displays extracted map images and selects them using the author's lookup tables.

For recreational reference only. Not for navigation. These products are not endorsed by CHS or NOAA and are not official Canadian or US government publications. Use current official charts and publications for navigation.

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SISKA · Paddle · Energizer

Printed Nov 9, 2026 10:59 AM · siska.ca/activities/1373

Spirit Bay to Whirl Bay - NEW MEMBERS

Saturday, May 13, 2023 · 9:30 AM – 3:30 PM

Launch
Spirit Bay4901B East Sooke Road, Sooke
Destination
Whirl Bay
Distance
9.86 nm
Leader
Dave Chater

Route plan A

After leaving our launch point at the Cheanuh Marina (Spirit Bay), we will do a clockwise circumnavigation of Becher Bay until we reach the Bedford Islands at the mouth of the bay. We will then follow the shoreline between the Bedfords and Church Island. Note: we may feel some ocean swell in this area as we make our way to Whirl Bay.

After passing the Church Islands we will cross Whirl Bay to our destination on a beach just behind Shelter Island.

After lunch, we will head back west towards the Chruch Islands and the mouth of Becher Bay. Once we reach Church Island, we will cross over to the west side of Frazer Island and then over to the shoreline near Spirit Bay and our original launch point.

Following our paddle, we can debrief and swap tall tales at the Pedder Bay Marina Cafe (a few miles away on our way back to Victoria).

Route plan B

If there are unfavourable winds at the start of the paddle, we can convert the trip to a 'relaxed' paddle and do a circumnavigation of Becher Bay.