Staying in Touch

Phones and Internet Access

*  British Columbia Coast

We found frequent cell phone coverage, and Internet access during our travels up to Port McNeill.  North of there, along the B.C. coast, we had cell phone coverage only at Bella Bella and Klemtu.  Shearwater Marina had wireless Internet access on the docks, although their satellite uplink was broken during our first visit.  The pay phones at Shearwater seemed distinctly unfriendly – they would not let us make a coin-paid call to the U.S., and they would not accept our credit cards.  (Other boaters from the U.S., with different cards, experienced the same frustrations.)  A pre-paid phone card would be the best way to go here. 

Bella Bella did not have public Internet access available.  However, during our search there, we were eventually directed to the small, local college.  The staff very kindly booted up a machine in their computer lab for our use. 

We again prevailed upon the kindness of strangers in Barnard Harbour on Princess Royal Island to phone home an update to our float plan.  MJ had noted in the Waggoners guide that there were luxury sport-fishing lodges moored there during the summer.  She reasoned that the lodges must have phone access.  They do; and the first lodge we tried was willing to let us use their satellite phone (expensive, but worthwhile).

*  Queen Charlotte Islands/Haida Gwaii

Sandspit airport had both good cell phone coverage and also a wireless hotspot that was up whenever the main lobby was open.  The airport basically shuts down after the last flight of the day, which was about 1630 or so.  Some boaters with more sensitive cell phones than ours, were able to make calls from the parking lot of the marina, a few miles from the airport. 

*  West Coast of Vancouver Island

We used a pre-paid phone card in Winter Harbour and Kyuquot (Walters Cove).   In Winter Harbour, there was internet access available for guests in a “hotel” associated with the general store.  However, all the portals were being used by sport-fishermen staying there; so we were out of luck. 

Tofino had good cell phone coverage, and we found wireless internet access at virtually all the coffee shops.  I expect that we would have found the same thing in Ucluelet as well.  On down the coast at Bamfield, it was back to pay phones and the pre-paid phone card.

Float Plans

Our cruising guides strongly recommended filing a float plan with Prince Rupert Coast Guard before starting across the Hecate Strait.  We did contact them, on Channel 83A, with the intention of filing a float plan.  They politely responded that they are no longer in that business, and suggested that we contact a family member instead.  There may be radio-telephone service near Larsen Harbour that we could have used, but we did not explore that option.  We had phoned in an update to our float plan from Barnard Harbour (one day earlier) and decided to leave it at that. 

Medical Emergencies

The first recourse would be to contact the Canadian Coast Guard via VHF radio.  Their nearest station would be Prince Rupert for boaters along the northern BC coast and the Queen Charlotte Islands.  Help might be a while arriving due to the distances involved.  They would likely broadcast a request for assistance from any nearby boaters.   (We did hear them working with a sport-fishing lodge to get help to a lone kayaker who had been attacked by a wolf along the BC coast.)  Within the National Park Reserve, park wardens would respond to medical emergencies.  However, there are only two stations and the wardens have a lot of territory to cover. 

How to be reached in case of Family Emergencies

We called the local U.S and Canadian Coast Guard offices to enquire as to the best means for family members to contact us while cruising in Canadian.  They recommended that a family member call the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Victoria, CA at (250) 363-2333.  The family member would need to provide them the name of our vessel and an approximate location based on our float plan.  The Rescue Center would then forward the message to the appropriate Canadian Coast Guard radio station.  That station would attempt to contact us via VHF radio.   They might also add a trailer to the continuous weather broadcasts such as: “this station is holding traffic for the vessel XX”.