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Columbia III Settler’s History Tour
Sept. 30 – Oct 6th, 2007
Led by Jeanette Taylor and crew of the Columbia III
The Columbia III, launched in Vancouver in 1956, was one
of several ships of the Columbia Coast Mission, founded by Rev. John
Antle in 1904 to provide mission and hospital services to isolated
residents on BC’s remote coast.
http://www.mothershipadventures.com/Cruising_Tours/settlershistory.htm
For a quick history of the Columbia III and Columbia Coast Mission read:
http://www.mothershipadventures.com/articles/mariner1.pdf
Hospitals were opened in Rock Bay north of Campbell
River, Alert Bay, Texada Island and the Sunshine Coast; and churches
were supported in coastal villages including Alert Bay and Whaletown,
on Cortes Island.
For more detailed information read Michael Hadley’s “God’s Little Ships” or Doris Andersen’s “The Columbia Is Coming!”
Owner/Capt. Ross Campbell presented with Harry Heine’s
original cover artwork for “The Columbia Is Coming!” showing injured
loggers being rescued by an earlier Columbia.
Map 1: Days 1 – 3 Port McNeill to Port Neville
Map 2: Days 4 – 7 Port Neville to Campbell River
Day 1
Our trip began from Port McNeill where 9
guests, historian Jeanette Taylor, and crew Ross, Fern, Miray &
Farlyn Campbell cast off for Sointula and Alert Bay, our first
overnight moorage.
A close look at this stained glass window in Alert Bay’s Christ Church reveals the Columbia III.
Day 2
Day 2 began with rain, Native history, and a tour of the U’mista Cultural Center in Alert Bay,
http://www.umista.ca/home/index.php
then on through the Broughton Archipelago to Billy Proctor’s Museum in Echo Bay.
Billy has been a handlogger and fisher for years on this
part of the coast, and more recently has worked with people like
Alexandra Morton to understand and preserve the habitat. He joined us
on Columbia III for dinner and stories of his life.
Billy’s “Heart Of The Raincoast” and “Full Moon, Flood Tide” are excellent local reads.
http://www.harbourpublishing.com/book.php?id=479
Finally, a visit to the Simoom Sound Post Office, which
was moved to Echo Bay in the 1940s. Current Echo Bay owner &
Postmaster are retiring after 20+ years so new faces for 2008. This was
the first of 5 coastal Post Offices from which I was able to mail
myself a letter. All were picked up by float plane, which has replaced
the old Union Steamships/Columbia service.
Day 3
Day 3 included more rain, Native
pictographs on isolated rock walls, more great food, and a visit with
Lorna (nee Hansen) Chesluk, 3rd generation Hansen and Postmistress at
the Port Neville Post office. Her grandfather opened the first Post
Office in 1895. It moved into the new store in 1924, and into its own
building in 1960. The 'OPEN' sign greets boaters at the wharf.
En-route we cruised past the Minstrel Island Post
Office, which is no longer on Minstrel Island but moved to Chatham
Channel. Coastal character ‘Bing’ (seen here with Fern & Ross) took
my letter with his own as he was on his way to the Post Office.
Day 4
From Port Neville to Diamond Bay on
Sonora Island, with more pictographs, exploring trails and forgotten
old fishing & logging equipment, and a sunset!
The day ended with another superb meal and a mystery
project: to make our own pictograph rocks to contribute to tomorrow’s
visit to the Octopus Islands Museum.
Day 5
Octopus Islands, Surge Narrows,
Desolation Sound, Prideaux Haven. We contributed our pictographs to the
funky Octopus Islands Museum, took our usual 3 daily trips in the
zodiac to hike and explore, including Surge Narrows with its Post
Office and School. The school runs 4 longer days per week, to ease
daily boat transportation of students from numerous isolated homes. The
Post office is open Mon/Wed/Fri., and on Thursdays the Postmistress
becomes the school’s art teacher.
Surge Narrows Post Office left of center.
Day 6
Cortes & Quadra Islands. An 1892
gravestone (didn’t fit on yesterday’s page) which took a half hour
search from a locator ribbon and a stream, the sun! Views of Mount
Denman on the mainland north of Powell River, more zodiac, and
Whaletown with my vote for the prettiest Post Office in BC.
The Whaletown Post Office. Note the bird house decorated as - the Whaletown Post Office.
This Post Office still uses a split ring hammer – mine must have been near the bottom of the pile, it didn’t get much ink.
Here is a better example:
Day 7
The trip ended with a visit to the
oldest house on Quadra Island; an apple press fresh juice
demonstration; a trip to the workers camp and scene of the 1958 Ripple
Rock explosion in Seymour Narrows, the largest non-nuclear detonation
on earth and first CBC nationally televised program; and sadly to the
marina in Campbell River for good-byes.
For more of Jeanette Taylor’s coastal history, check out
“River City: A History of Campbell River and the Discovery Islands”
from your local library or favorite book store.
http://www.harbourpublishing.com/title/RiverCity
Coastal mail service
Canada Post refers to these as 'Air Stage Offices - An
Air Stage Office is a Post Office to or from which all mail must be
airlifted for more than six (6) months of every year as a viable
surface transportation alternative is not available. These offices are
generally confined to remote or isolated communities.
They are serviced with mail pick up and delivery by companies such as Corilair. See http://www.corilair.com/
We sold this Columbia Coast Mission lot about six months ago on our bidboard.
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