Sailing the Gulf Islands: Top 5 Anchorages of the Northern Gulf Islands

Sailing around the Gulf Islands off the coast of British Columbia, Canada is a sailor’s dream. People come from all over the world to cruise the sheltered waters of the Salish Sea. The Gulf Islands are quiet little havens of sunny arbutus-lined rocks, damp fern forests, pastoral farmland, and a network of protected parkland that make up the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. Add to this eagles and seabirds swirling in the skies above waters teeming with seals, otters, orcas and pods of porpoises and you have a sailor’s paradise.

Finding a quiet cove or bay to drop anchor for the night makes the perfect ending to a day spent sailing these sheltered waters. After clocking over 8 weeks sailing the Gulf Islands from one cozy to cove to another , we have compiled our top 5 anchorages to drop anchor and spend time enjoying the peaceful quiet and natural beauty of the Northern Gulf Islands.

1. Silva Bay, Gabriola Island

After crossing the Straight of Georgia from Vancouver, we usually stop for one night in Silva Bay. Timing your passage through the Gabriola Passage into the sheltered waters of Pylades Channel is tricky and you want to time it just right at slack water. Since our timing isn’t always impeccable, we usually opt to spend one night in Silva Bay to wait the tides out. Silva Bay is a great place to cool your heels though!

What we love about Silva Bay:

• It’s a large bay with plenty of space to find a cozy spot to drop anchor for the night.
• We have the best luck catching dungeness crab in the bay!
• There is excellent fishing off the reefs close to Gabriola Island
• There are two well equipped marinas ( Pages Resort and Marina and Silva Bay Marina) if you prefer to tie up to a dock for the night.

2. Pirates Cove, De Courcy Island

Pirates Cove is part of the Pirates Cove Provincial Marine Park and is located on the southeast corner of De Courcy Island. The entrance to the cove can be a bit tricky to navigate due to the long reef that extends off the tip of the island, but there are leading marks on the shore above the narrow entrance to mark the way. Once inside the cove, it is the perfect place to call home for a night or two.

What we love about Pirates Cove:

• Mooring ties along the rocky bank for an easy stern tie up
• Dinghy dock for easy access to De Courcy Island
• Clean pit toilet close to the dinghy dock
• Pirates chest on the point above the cove full of treasure for kids to raid! The idea is to take a treasure and leave a treasure for another child to find. Our kids love this!
• Wooded and mossy trails circle the island and are perfect for a morning run or walk to stretch sea-weary legs
• Perfect driftwood beach on the south side of the island with perfect views of the sunset

3. Secretary Islands

The Secretary Islands are the best kept secret and a hidden gem. It is our favorite anchorage in the Gulf Islands, but…shhhh…Keep it secret!!

What we love about the Secretary Islands:

• It is so quiet. No one usually anchors here for the night so you will most likely have the place to yourself!
• This is a shellfish lovers paradise!! The two islands are joined by a sand and shell beach that at low tide is exposed to reveal a clam and oyster haven! There are literally thousands of oyster just lying there waiting to be picked up and served on the half shell for dinner! The beach is also full of clams that take very little digging to find.
• Excellent Rockfish fishing. Just past the Northwest tip of the cove is a deep rock ledge where Rockfish like to hide. We usually catch our daily limit within 5 minutes!
• Although the Secretary Islands themselves are privately owned, there is easy access to nearby islands and rocky islets that are fun to explore by dinghy and usually full of marine life.

4. Conover Cove, Wallace Island

Most of Wallace Island is part of the charming Wallace Island Marine Park. There are two anchorages on the island: Princess Bay and Conover Cove. We personally prefer Conover Cover due to its more sheltered and protected waters (the winds can really pick up through Princess Bay) and it’s sunny aspect. Boaters can either tie up at the park run dock or anchor in the cove using the stern tie hooks on the rocky shore.

What we love about Conover Cove:

• Conover Cove is close to the charming, deserted and preserved resort built by the Conover family in the 1940s. There are still the remains of various resort cabins and the grassy orchard with picnic tables. Our two favorite landmarks are the cabin adorned with driftwood plaques made by boating visitors every year, and the abandoned and rusty vintage truck hiding in a meadow clearing in the middle of the island. This place really does capture the imagination!
• Wallace Island has an extensive trail system. The trail extends 4 km from Panther Point on the southeast point of the island to Chivers Point on the Northeast point of the island. It is a fantastic trail to go for a morning job or just to stroll after a day of sailing.

5. Montague Harbour, Galiano Island

Montague Harbour is the oldest marine park in B.C. and is always a delight to visit. The midden beach, the shallow waters, the tidy network of trails, the arbutus trees hanging over aqua marine waters…it really does have it all! There is a reason that this harbour is such a popular destination.

What we love about Montague Harbour:

• Montague Harbour Marine Park has plenty of mooring buoys to tie up for the night. I personally love mooring buoys!! All the feels of an anchorage and none of the stress about dragging an anchor!!
• The park has a lovely little trail that circles the end of the point. The trail is dappled with light from the overhanging Arbutus trees and has gorgeous views of the aqua marine water below.
• The park also has a gorgeous midden beach that glows white under the sun and makes the water sparkle a tropical blue.
• There are fresh water taps at the campground to top up water jugs. Always handy on islands with tight water restrictions!
• The Montague Harbour Marina has a great small grocery, ice-cream, a lovely patio and a fuel dock.

We love cruising these waters of the Salish Sea and hope that you can find a cozy spot to anchor in some of these beautiful coves!

For the best print resource out there on sailing in the Pacific Northwest, check out The Dreamspeaker Cruising Guides. We have the whole set and swear by them! They offer amazing in depth information about where to anchor, what marinas are in the area, where to get fuel and groceries and how to access the hiking trails on the islands.

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