We moved from Vancouver Island on the west coast of Canada to Montpellier in March 2011. Montpellier is not so bad, but there are a lot of things I miss about Canada. Our friends, for one thing. But also the wide open spaces. One of the last sea kayaking trips I took in Canada was a solo outing to a small (very small!) island in the Gulf Islands National Park.
Whaleboat Island is a marine provincial park, but it's unmanaged, which means you are completely on your own: no campsites, no hookups, no wardens, no helpful information boards, and yes, no toilets. There's also the minor matter that the beach only exists at low tide and you have to climb up some cliffs to find a flat spot to pitch a tent. Apart from that, it's a perfect destination. Perfect for me anyway. I'd landed on Whaleboat once before, as a possible lunch spot, but that time no-one else seemed interested in clambering over rocks to eat their sandwiches and we ended up on an admittedly very pretty beach on Pylades Island.
This time though, I was on a mission. I'd bought myself a kayak a couple of days before, and was out to try it out, as well as checking out the camping possibilities on Whaleboat.