The Gulf Islands
This morning as folks filtered out to the bow the sunshine washed over the ship. The MV Sea Lion was making her way through the Gulf Islands. Snuggled close to the southeast shores of Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands are nicely sheltered from the rains and blustery winds that blow in from the Pacific. Our morning’s destination was Saturna Island. The island was named in 1791 after the Spanish naval schooner Saturnina. The Saturnina was part of the Spanish navy fleet that discovered Georgia Strait.
Ashore we followed the calls of song sparrows into the woods and discovered a great trail that took us through a verdant mixed forest of fir, oak, madrona, big leaf maple and cedar. Along the path we spied a petite Calypso Orchid. This beautiful little orchid is often times difficult to find amongst the leaf litter and flora of the forest floor. Named after Calypso, “the goddess daughter of Atlas, a beautiful nymph hidden in the woods” (see top photo).
As we followed the path to the northwestern point of the island we came upon a rocky point with a beautiful vista of Georgia Strait and an exposed hillside of grasses and chocolate lily (see bottom photo). Later in the morning some of us kayaked while others took leisurely tours of the surrounding scenic shoreline.
During the afternoon the MV Sea Lion made her way into Georgia Strait. As the ship cruised we encountered lounging sea lions, harbor porpoise and a myriad of birds on the glassy surface of the sea.
