BCAA

IS L A N D E XCU R S IO N Launch and Lunch ONE DOESN'T have to own a yacht or be a Popeye-pumped kayaker to reach one of B.C.'s largest island parks. Andrew Cardiff, owner of Malaspina Water Taxi, ferries chill seekers to remote 243-hectare Jedediah Island Marine Provincial Park where they can relax in solitude, explore the old-growth forest and enjoy a scrumptious picnic packed by Pender Harbour's Copper Sky Café. The island, which is located between Texada and Lasqueti Islands, became parkland in 1995 — partially thanks to B.C. adventurer and philanthropist Daniel Culver, who died descending K2 in 1993 and whose legacy helped acquire the island. >> Visitors to Jedediah can pick berries, explore the old Palmer homestead, swim from one of the many beaches, harvest shellfish (if they have a licence), track wild goats and SLOOP O'WAR This year's Tall Ships Challenge commemorates the bicentennial of the War of 1812 — with a race that begins in Savannah, Georgia (May 3 to 7), and finishes in Halifax (July 19 to 23) as well as various Nova Scotia outports (July 24 to 30), including Lunenburg. Details on the high-masted flotilla at sailtraining.org Prow Pride ECO-TOURING AS ATLANTIC CANADA prepares for the 2012 relaunch of the Bluenose II (a replica of the 1921 darling of Dartmouth that defeated so many schooners in her 17-year racing career), on the West Coast the crew of the Maple Leaf (B.C.'s oldest tall ship) quietly prepares for another season of eco-tours up the Inside Passage. >> Both of these legendary, two-mast vessels were built to race, but the Bluenose (see inset) was also designed to haul scallops and other fish from Newfoundland's Grand Banks. Launched from Vancouver in 1904, the Maple Leaf (above) did not discover its prowess as a fisher until World War I, when the Canadian government purchased it, melted down the 13,600-kilogram lead keel for the war effort and sent the ship north to the Bering Sea to hunt halibut. >> Today, Bluenose I exists only on the back of the Canadian dime and in memories conjured by the 161-foot replica currently dry-docked at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. Meanwhile, the Maple Leaf continues to sail April to November to destinations such as Haida Gwaii, Alaska and the Great Bear Rainforest (see video and story links) while her Maple Leaf Adventure owners continue to rack up eco-travel accolades – the latest being a nod from the Responsible Tourism Awards. schoonerbluenose2.ca; bcaa.com/haidagreatbear mapleleafadventures.com (illustrations, opposite) Islands in the Salish Sea/Touchwood Editions, (Maple Leaf) Ian McAllister/All Canada Photos, (inset) Bluenose II p12-15_FreshTrax.indd 14 1/27/12 7:59:47 AM

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