The Chief Jack Sark Memorial Natural Area is now an Island Nature Trust property. The boundary has not been made public yet, but it is located in the area of Rocky Point and includes a significant shoreline. I have been on this shore before, but this fall (October 14), I made a special outing to check out the area in more detail. The closest boat launch for the Rocky Point area would be Milligan's Wharf. I don't necessarily like to launch from commercial wharves if I have other options. If you don't mind adding a bit of paddling to get into the Conway Narrows, the end of Wharf Road (off Brooks Rd) is a great option. The Wharf Road shore launch is also a great put-in if you are looking at exploring the Brooks River and/or the Southwest Creek.
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| Chief Sark's NA, Conway Narrows |
The day was near perfect for a kayak paddle – not too hot and perfectly calm waters! Except, it turned out that the water levels (tides) were a bit low, but I still managed okay. My first shore stop to explore the Chief Sark NA was in the Conway Narrows just east of the Brooks River mouth. I had a great walk on the shore, taking pictures of the calm shoreline scenery and the erratic boulders/rocks. I did peek into the shore forest, but I left that for another year, when I have the boundary lines.
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As I approached Rocky Point, I was able to capture pictures of two mature Bald Eagles perched there. It's always great to see – even though they are pretty common nowadays in western PEI. After Rocky Point, I paddled NE to see if I could find a channel with deeper water. I ran out of water to paddle, so I walked a bit further, but I couldn't find any deeper water. If I had walked another 300m, I would probably have found the eastern Hardy Channel, but I wasn't about to drag or carry my kayak for 500m.
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There was enough deep water near shore to paddle as far as the large marsh near Josephine Shore. I went ashore for lunch and then explored the northern part of the marsh. I would have liked to go further (i.e., Peter Creek), but it was time to head home. The return paddle was okay, but there were close calls in some areas due to low water levels. You just need to follow the white buoys that the locals have installed.
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