San Josef Bay: Sea Stack Hike & Wildlife Day Trip from Port Hardy

4.93

(129 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I’ll be honest, we almost missed our pickup in Port Hardy because I couldn’t find my other boot. Our guide, Mark, just grinned and said he’s seen worse—apparently someone once showed up in flip-flops. The van smelled faintly of wet cedar (from yesterday’s rain?) and there were granola bars stashed everywhere. We rumbled out of town along these logging roads that felt more like a rollercoaster than a highway. Mark talked about the logging industry—he used to work it before guiding—and pointed out where elk sometimes cross. I kept peering out the window hoping for a bear, but all I saw was a deer darting off into the brush.

Holberg is this tiny place—blink and you’re through it—but we stopped for coffee anyway. The last stretch to Cape Scott trailhead was bumpier than I expected (my sandwich nearly escaped its wrapper). When we finally started hiking, the air changed completely: cold and damp, with that mossy smell you only get under ancient trees. There’s something about walking under those Sitka spruces that makes you feel both small and safe at the same time. Sunlight filtered down in patches; I tried to take a photo but it never looks quite right on screen.

The beach at San Josef Bay is wider than I pictured, all pale sand and driftwood piles. We wandered around looking for shells—someone found a purple one shaped like a heart—and poked at tide pools where tiny crabs scuttled away if you got too close. The sea stacks really do look otherworldly up close; water hissing around their bases when the tide shifted. Mark told us how they formed (I only half-followed, geology isn’t my thing), but honestly I was just happy to sit on a log eating my sandwich, watching the clouds move over the water. It’s quieter out there than anywhere else I’ve been lately.