First train spotters. Then plane spotters. Now. . . cruise ship
spotters? There's an enthusiastic cadre of residents who spend the warm summer evenings
with binoculars fined-tuned and tide charts in hand. They are working out the Estimated Residents and tourists alike line the shores, watching the huge ships pass by. The ships are so close to shore you can hear the onboard music and muted conversations, against a background of the throbbing engines. One of the favorite cruise ship spotting locations is Discovery Fishing Pier in downtown Campbell River. Hundreds of people gather on the pier, ice cream cone in hand, waiting for the glow of lights on the horizon. Soon, that glow materializes into a cruise ship. Chuck and Phyllis Hardy, whose Campbell River, British Columbia home faces the lighthouse on Quadra Island, talk animatedly about their new passion for calculating ship ETPs. Chuck has treated himself to a high-powered zoom lens camera. Phyllis shares the task of deciphering the tide charts and Chuck lines up his camera looking for that moment when the light is perfect. His efforts have paid off. He has managed to to capture excellent images of the ships that pass by, just a few hundred feet from shore. While not rocket science, cruise ship spotting does require some homework. Not only are the tides a variable but other marine traffic in the Passage affects the north and south lineup waiting for the right tides at Seymour Narrows, north of Campbell River. Tracking the ships heading north to Alaska is almost useless. Your best chances of spotting a northbound vessel are during the late evening. All ships leave the Port of Vancouver between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. Under ideal conditions, they should pass Campbell River about four hours later, but if the tides aren't right, they pace their arrival in this area to coincide with ones that are favorable. Your best opportunity is to chart the ships heading south to Vancouver. Get yourself a good quality tide chart that also shows water flows in Seymour Narrows. Add to the fun by purchasing an inexpensive police and marine scanner. Ship movements are broadcast on Vancouver Traffic VHF-71 and band 156.575.
If ships do make it through the Narrows in the early evening, they are not due in Vancouver until early the next day. That explains why some ships choose to do a left turn after passing Quadra Island and head east through Baker Pass towards the Sunshine Coast. There is time to kill and passengers enjoy a very scenic route as they head into Vancouver for unloading. Because it is a tricky navigational route, the ship's captain usually remains on the bridge all evening. Captain Paul Kievet, skipper of the Westerdam, often takes the Sunshine Coast route into port but it means a very long day on the bridge. If he's feeling particularly tired, he'll take the direct route south. That means doing slow circles near Bowen Island, north of Vancouver, until the crew receives the signal that the longshoremen are ready to maneuver the ship into port.
Morgan Ostler is an adventure-tour, travel agency operator and writer in Campbell
River, British Columbia. She is a frequent contributor to Vancouver Island Abound. |
Time of Passing (ETP) of
the 30-plus cruise ships that ply Discovery Passage between Vancouver and Alaska.
Southbound ships will generally show up
in the Narrows from approximately 6 p.m. on, if the tides are right. The tides are more
accommodating to southbound movements and ships aren't on the tight schedule that
constricts northbound traffic.
To
top of page