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Saturna
By Charles Campbell
MY UNCLE JIM, who with Aunt Lorraine has been farming
on Saturna Island since 1945—before there were
BC Ferries, before the Missing Link connected the roads
on the two halves of the island, and way before a four-wheeled
vehicle could pass through the draw to their place—puts
it this way: “The quality of your insularity is
in inverse proportion to the quality of your transportation
system.”
That explains why Saturna has remained determinedly
insular. It’s the furthest south of the Southern
Gulf Islands. If you have a Fido cell phone, it welcomes
you to the United States when you arrive. If you
take the once-a-day ferry out of Tsawwassen, you have
to disembark at Mayne or sometimes Galiano, and wait,
and often wait some more, and then take the wedding-cake-like
M.V. Mayne Queen, possibly to Pender and then back again,
and by the time the captain announces the near presence
of Saturna’s Lyall Harbour you could have driven
to Kamloops or flown most of the way to Toronto.
Saturna has only about 360 permanent residents. They
all get along, at least when there’s a fireman’s
pig roast, or the big Dominion Day lamb barbecue, which
is done Argentine style, with the lambs flayed open
on iron crosses and John Guy whipping them with a rope
of vinegar-drenched mint. The event draws boaters from
all over the Pacific Northwest and sells 1,400 meal
tickets. There’s still ladies’ nail-driving
but, sadly, no more newlywed pig-diapering.
Saturna’s too hilly for casual biking, there’s
no camping, and the six-room hotel keeps changing hands.
BC Ferries has no more regard for the locals than for
tourists. But that’s okay. There’s still
more of the new Gulf Islands National Park Reserve than
on any other island. On the spectacular bluff walk east
of Mount Warburton Pike you’re likely to see feral
goats. Killer whales run close along the rocky shore
where the tide rips past East Point, along with the
salmon. And everyone waves when you drive by, even if
you’re a Hatfield and they’re a McCoy, and
even if you’ve never been here before. It’s
heaven, mainly because most people have never been here
before.
STAY: BREEZY BAY BED AND BREAKFAST
The century-old Payne farmhouse, on the cooperatively
owned site of a former free school, is Saturna’s
most characteristic accommodation. The beds are less
luxurious than old, but rustic charm abounds: there’s
a wonderfully idiosyncratic library, a private beach
and rooms start from a reasonable $75 a night. 131 Payne
Rd., 250-539-5957. Saturnacan.net/breezy
Also recommended: Sandy Bay Bed and
Breakfast, a beachfront home on the road to East Point;
great breakfast, great hospitality. Rooms start from
$100 a night; full breakfast included. 449 East Point
Rd., 250-539-2641. Sandybaysaturna.com
EAT: SATURNA CAFE
Fabulous food from Hubertus Surm at this café
adjoining the Saturna General Store. Open for lunch
and dinner; reservations recommended for the latter.
101 Naravez Bay Rd., 250-539-2936.
GETTING THERE:
Two ferries from Tsawwassen every day except Sunday
and holiday Mondays; expect to transfer at Swartz Bay,
Galiano or Mayne. Travel time: three to four hours.
Seair offers three direct flights daily. Travel time:
South Terminal to Lyall Harbour: 20 minutes.
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