Bowen Island Travel Guide

With a culture crawl map, we took a self-guided tour of the artisan galleries. There are so many talented artists on this island! From cute little shops to upscale galleries. Some studios too. We ended up purchasing an abstract landscape from Coastal Patterns Gallery.

'Bowmart' has been on Bowen Island for decades, mostly as a little grocery convenience store and diner. In its LAST new incarnation, it was a retro-style diner. Apparently it has accommodations too!

Now it's called Miksa. It's a little pricey, but it's the place i go to the most! If you want really good, very inventive food, then Miksa would be my choice!

Favorite Dish: Miksa has good food, a LOT of interesting options... but it's the mussels and the deep-fried battered asparagus that keeps me going back!

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon in September, my dad and I went on a 3 hour guided kayak tour with Bowen Island Kayaking. This was my first time sea kayaking, ever, and while I'm usually nervous on small watercraft, I loved kayaking - I was completely at ease.

My dad and I shared a double kayak which is always nice if you're a beginner as it's very stable and both people paddle, so you can take turns if one person is feeling tired. The person sitting at the back of the kayak steers (there are two pedals for steering inside), and the person at the front gets an unobstructed view. I decided to take the back seat - I couldn't believe that I didn't know that kayaks have rutters - much more easier to control than a canoe. And once out on the water? It's sooo relaxing. You feel as if you're on a floating recliner seat! I can see why people enjoy kayaking so much! It never felt like I was working too hard to paddle either - very easy work.

Our guide, Tom, was great. He took us and 3 other people on a fantastic tour. Because we were all beginners, we took it easy. We went up along the east coast of Bowen Island to the northern tip. We paddled back a short distance up into a bay and took a break on a beach. One woman decided to go for a swim, but the water's really cold, so she was very brave!

The scenery around Bowen Island is beautiful. We saw many blue herons perched on rocks and trees, cormorants sunning themselves, and harbour seals in the water. On the shore of the island are lots of rocky coves and cliffside cottages (or multi-million dollar homes) to admire. Despite the residential nature of Bowen Island, you really do feel as though you're a million miles away from city life. It reminded me of the Gulf Islands, but much closer to downtown!

The waters around Bowen Island's east end are relatively sheltered - no real massive wave activity, especially on calm days. The boats tend to keep their distances as well - just watch out for the ferries!

Equipment: Bring a bottle of water, your camera (they can supply dry bags), snacks, sunscreen (as the sun's reflection intensifies on the water), a hat, comfortable clothing, and sandals or running shoes. They supply the kayak, paddle, pump, and spray skirts.

Favorite thing: My favourite thing about Bowen Island is the feel of being isolated away from big city life. It's only a 20 minute ferry ride across from Greater Vancouver, but you feel like you're a world away.

Fondest memory: One of my fondest memories of Bowen Island was attending a wedding at Snug Cove. Snug Cove is a beautiful and quaint village on a beautiful bay. The wedding felt like a storybook event - too pretty for words! The weather in early September certainly added to the experience, with the golden light, the warm temperatures, and the summer flowers still in bloom.