7. Recommended Routes

Calvin Falls to Beano Creek

Calvin Falls (called Crawfish Falls on some maps)

A rest day at the Falls in the sunshine is recommended.

If it rains you should hide out in the shack in the forest on the south side of Calvin Creek — a fantastic shelter from the storm full of fish net hammocks & beachcombing treasures.

A crude outhouse is available near the shack — put the paddle across the path when you are using the toilet.

You can tent near the shack if you like, but if it’s not raining, you are better to tent in the drift logs somewhere close to the Falls. The sound of rushing water is soothing, but can be loud.

It’s usually fairly easy to wade narrow Calvin creek; shin to waist deep depending on recent rain & the tides.
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Don’t forget to scramble up to the top of the Falls. We tried to hike up the creek, but it’s difficult. There is a trail to Crawfish Lake (upstream of the Falls) but it’s said to be rough & overgrown— look for it a ways south of Calvin Falls.

Photo by Peter Gumplinger

We've heard you can see 30 million year old fossil leaves on the slabs south of the falls.

Walk the section from the Falls to Bajo Point along the coast. Sand, slippery boulders, shelf & more rotting seaweed. Look for the unusual rock formations at Bajo point.

Nearby you could look for an ancient native village site. Kellerhals found grassy mounds where longhouses once stood.

Near Bajo look too for sea otters in the kelp offshore. Hunted to extinction here, Alaskan otters have been reintroduced. Populations of this, one of North America’s most endangered species, have been increasing.

There's no end of interesting bottles, junk, toys, flotsam & jetsam on the beach.

The prize find for any beachcomber is a Japanese glass fishing float. We found a small one in 2001 which had been on the open seas for decades before landing on Nootka.

The route to Beano continues on shore with plenty of frustrating pebble beach (pea gravel) slogging. There’s just no good line when walking pebble beach — unfortunately the forest is much worse.

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