Day 3: Pure Exuberance
Our last day in Barkley Sound: sad, but we were excited to continue diving, and to see so much more! Day three began much the same way as day two: beautiful blue skies and very little wind. We had decided after much deliberation to dive three unique dive sites that day rather than returning to one we had done on the previous day. We want to stretch out a bit to cover more area around Barkley Sound to not only look for a six gill, but to discover some memorable dive sites as well. The plan was to do two dives in the morning, head back to camp for lunch, and head back out early in the afternoon for the last dive so that we would have time to drop everyone off in Bamfield and motor back to Port Alberni before it got dark.
Sanford Island Reef was our first stop, and what a spot it was! This reef is located on the south end of Sanford Island. This is not a particularly deep reef, only reaching 50 - 60 ft. (15 – 18 m.), but is quite spread out over a large area. Sanford Island is south of the Deer Group, and is a favourite spot for kayakers and campers as it has a number of small sheltered bays and beaches. Where the reef is located is about a kilometer or so from the island, which makes it susceptible to the large ground swells coming in from the open Pacific Ocean. We decided to drop anchor and use it as our decent line because of the surface current and because we weren’t sure about how good the visibility was going to be. We dropped below the surface only a few inches and WOW, clear beautiful water along with a kaleidoscope of colour. The bottom resembled rolling hills covered in invertebrates, anemones, hydroids, corals and fish. This site is definitely comparable to dive sites in Port Hardy and Quadra Island. The only real issue with this site is the ground swells: even at 50 ft. (15 m.) everyone was being pushed around by the surge. These conditions are not for inexperienced divers as the lack of control could create problems if you have not yet mastered your buoyancy. These conditions also posed a great deal of challenges for those of us with cameras! Swirling around in the water trying to focus on a subject tries the patience of even the most seasoned photographer.
About three quarters of the way through the dive, my shooting was interrupted by Ken and Jason frantically waving their lights at me to follow them. As I approached the area that they had lead me to I could see Andy focusing on a bit of the sub strait and his strobes were flashing away, although I couldn’t initially see what he was photographing. It isn’t often that I see Andy snapping away this intensely unless it’s something truly wondrous and this definitely was: Jason and Ken had stumbled upon a Starry Skate! The waters along the BC coast have one common species of skate: the Big Skate, along with three very rare, and very deep dwelling skates: the Longnose Skate, Sandpaper Skate and Starry Skate. Skates are a type of elsamobranch (sharks and rays), most closely related to rays and have a worldwide range, while living mostly in temperate waters. This was an unprecedented opportunity for Andy and I as we now had the chance to photograph a new and unique species for both of us. Most scientists we have talked to since had no idea that Starry Skates even came this far north. Not only did we get to see this animal for the first time in the wild, we were able to get some great images. Looking back on that moment I feel so lucky to have seen this creature, and to have been able to share the experience with my friend. Once we were back on the boat everyone was ecstatic: smiling and laughing. WOW, what a first dive!
Our second dive of the day was at Meade Shoal. The shoal is located just off of Meade Islets in Imperial Eagle channel. If you can imagine a cliff underwater, this is what made up the west side of Meade Shoal. The visibility was great and as we dropped down the anchor line it was clear that this could be another perfect spot to look for six gill sharks. The rocks were covered with invertebrates, and rockfish swam all around us. Tiger, Quillback, and China Rockfish seemed to be the most common species along the wall, but huge schools of Silvergreys and Yellowtails were also all around. Once again we encountered numerous Ratfish throughout the dive at all depths. The top of the wall started in about 20 ft. (7 m.) and plummeted to a depth of 140 ft. (42 m.) With the excellent visibility and natural light, you could see well below 140 ft. (43 m.) as the rocky bottom stretched on down into the darkness. This was a great dive for anyone who loves lots of life and amazing topography. Unfortunately still no luck finding a six gill!
For our last dive of the trip, we returned to a place close to Tyler Rock for one last attempt at finding this elusive six gill shark. Muntine Point is located just east of Tyler Rock on the Vancouver Island side, just at the entrance of the Alberni Channel. We chose this site at the recommendation of Rendezvous Dive Lodge. We had stopped in at Rendezvous to check out this amazing location, and to see if we could get some information on some of the local sites. Rendezvous is an amazing place and if you’re in the area please look them up for an adventure in Barkley Sound. Muntine was a very interesting wall dive. The life here is not as prolific as the other spots we had been to in the area, however the top of the wall sitting in 50-60 ft. (15-18 m.) was littered with Ratfish egg casings. We were lucky enough to have a sea lion encounter as well, as we descended down to reach the main wall. The wall itself was covered in invertebrates and large Plumose Anemones along with a multitude of rockfish species hovering close to the wall. Unlike other spots, the Ratfish here were not as inquisitive as others we had encountered.
This trip was not only an amazing experience for all of us, but it provided us with the opportunity to gain some necessary experience when we head back for our next trip to Barkley Sound. I would like to thank Jessie and Shawn from Pinnacle Diving for all of their hard work to make this trip happen and to everyone who came along: Jason, Robert, Kelli, Andy, and Ken. This trip couldn’t have happened without you guys. For those of you who dive, and want to experience an extraordinary adventure, head out to Bamfield and the Barkley Sound area. Who knows, maybe you will even spot the six gill we spent two days searching for!
Scott
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