Road Trip 2025 - Cowichan Bay - Part 3

Have you been reading along as we experience harbour life and tidal changes in our Cowibbean Cottage Airbnb? It's been a good day so far, with plenty more to see here in Cowichan Bay on the east side of Vancouver Island. As in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, I'm including the timings as things happened on that day.

Cowibbean Cottage, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

12:22 pm - The tide isn't completely out yet, but we knew it could turn at any minute. Nelson couldn't sit still for long as there was always something below the water to catch his eye. Meanwhile, Crystal has a penchant for close up photos and was often found in various poses in order to snap the perfect perspective. 

2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

12:35 pm - Blue mussel shells and green algae were finally spotted as the tide was nearing its lowest point, as can be seen in the above photo, along with the persistent acorn barnacles. 

Rock Pigeons, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

1:02 pm - A couple of Rock pigeons pulled my gaze downward to where the tide had gone out hours before. They waddled across the shell-littered ocean floor, stopping every now and then to peck at things I couldn't see. Pigeons are seed and fruit eaters and ignored the occasional bug that skedaddled out of their way.

 

Low Tide, 2 pm, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

2:07 pm - Low tide had unofficially arrived as the white tire on the left side of our dock was exposed. I kept watching for the water to go lower, but I soon realized the water had started to rise as the tide slowly returned. My first notice of the tide going out had been at 7 am and now it was just after 2 pm. That's 7 plus hours to go out and return with the moon's help. So amazing.

2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

2:10 pm - Look what I found! It's the last photo I took of the ocean floor before the tide returned and it shows a bit of everything we've covered in the Cowichan Bay series. Do you recognize anything?  I see clam shells, oyster shells, mussel shells, a muddy crab, a crab leg/claw?, algae/seaweed, barnacles, and lots of small breathing holes for creatures hiding in the muck and waiting for the water to return. Did I miss anything?

Harbour Seal, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

3:49 pm - The Harbour Seal in the above photo had just come up for air. I took many photos of him as he swam and dove in the harbour, but this is the most detailed one. He finally disappeared among the boats in the marina.

Glaucous-winged Gull, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

4:42 pm - This Glaucous-winged Gull seemed to be the most common gull in Cowichan Bay. It was our first time seeing one as most of our gulls back home are Ring-billed gulls with a black ring around their beak instead of where the red spot is on the Glaucous-winged Gull. 

Great Blue Heron, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

8:00 pm - This Great Blue Heron flew in low and landed on this little building. The size and shape of this bird was recognizable to me and although it didn't show the long plumes at the back of its nape, the setting sun really lights up its striking belly feathers.

2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

8:05 pm - A flash of white across the water had me turning my head to a flock of birds landing on the far side of the bay. I believe they are swans, although their necks seem too short and I don't know what type of swans inhabit Vancouver Island and the Strait of Georgia.

Harbour Seal in water, 2025, Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, Canada

9:15 am - The next morning we packed up for our next adventure. Before I left, I took one last photo from our Cowibbean Cottage deck. It was a peaceful photograph that would be chosen for our calendar, and yet it wasn't until I was drafting the calendar that I noticed the Harbour Seal in the centre bottom. The funny thing was that I'd looked for the seal off and on throughout the morning, and the evening before as we ate supper on the deck, relaxed, and listened to the kids describe their day in Victoria.

I had assumed that the Harbour Seal I'd spotted at 3:49 pm the previous day had grabbed some food and headed back to deeper waters. But no, there was a chance he had stayed the night near the marina, and then by some miracle I managed to photograph him as he swam away the next morning. Probably not the same one, eh, but I'd like to believe it's the same one. A small blessing to end our memorable visit at Cowibbean Cottage.

One last thing...weeks later when we were all back home, I sent out a survey asking Nelson and the kids what was their most memorable stay and where they'd like to go back if they could...the unanimous answer was Cowibbean Cottage. 

Our amazing visit to Cowichan Bay is featured on the June calendar page.