These paddling routes follow the South Pender Island shoreline or originate from South Pender, crossing to neighbouring Southern Gulf Islands.

Bedwell Harbour Circle Tour • Last paddled by RP: August 2026 • Circle Tour • INTERMEDIATE • MAP • Launch/Landing Coordinates (Medicine Beach Nature Sanctuary): 48.76127, -123.26754 • Tide Station: Bedwell Harbour • CHS Nautical Chart 3477 • 9-10 km (approx. 5 nmi) • 2-2.5 hrs • Parking at Medicine Beach Nature Sanctuary • Services along route: Bathrooms, gift shop, restaurant and bar, coffee bar, wine and beer store at Poets Cove Resort & Spa; Parks Canada information stations (NO camping at this time) and pit toilets at Beaumont Marine Park (GINPR) • Freshwater Availability: Poets Cove Resort & Spa • Birders: Medicine Beach Nature Sanctuary—138 species since 2013 (eBird), Beaumont Marine Park—80 species since 1989 (eBird) • Highlights/Notes: Beaumont Marine Park beaches; it’s a bit tricky walking on the slippery rocks in the Medicine Beach shallows at low tides • Best time of year: Anytime, but summer’s low tides offer the best intertidal exploration.

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Around South Pender Island • Last paddled by RP: July 2026 • Circle Tour • EXPERIENCED • MAP • Launch/Landing Coordinates from Mortimer Spit: 48.767514, -123.255337 • Tide Station: Bedwell Harbour • CHS Nautical Charts: 3477 & 3462 • 16-18.5 km (approx. 9-10 nmi) • 4-5 hours • Parking on Mortimer Spit • Services along route: Mortimer Spit beach, picnic table, and pit toilet (near Canal Road); Brooks Point Regional Park/Gowlland Point walking trails and pit toilet; Poets Cove Resort & Spa facilities, fresh water; Beaumont Marine Park information signs, beaches, benches, trails, and pit toilet​s • Birders: Mortimer Spit—93 species since 2016 (eBird), Brooks Point Regional Park—155 species since 1998 (eBird), Beaumont Marine Park—80 species since 1989 (eBird) • Highlights/Notes: Watch for Pacific Harbour seals swimming on or below the ocean surface around Blunden Islet and orca transiting Boundary Pass; shoreline in Camp Bay offers some intriguing rock composition; Brooks Point Regional Park (CRD) and Beaumont Marine Park (GINPR) are great picnic spots; eddies and overfalls can present a challenge as you round Gowlland Point, as can boat traffic coming and going through narrow Teece Passage; below the rock outcrop just past Tilley Point are caves reaching nine metres below the sea surface, which attract SCUBA divers; current flow under the Canal Bridge can reach three knots • Best time of year: Spring through fall.​

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Thomson Park/Sage Hayward Vineyards (Saturna Island) • Last paddled by RP: July 2025 • There & Back • INTERMEDIATE • Launch/Landing Coordinates from Mortimer Spit: 48.76740, -123.25596 • Launch/Landing Coordinates (Saturna Beach/Thomson Park, Saturna Island): 48.77654, -123.20044 • Tide Station: Narvaez Bay • CHS Nautical Chart: 3477 • 4.2 km each way (2.3 nmi) • 45 mins • Parking on Mortimer Spit • Route: Carefully cross powerboat-busy Port Browning Harbour to Razor Point, continue due east until past the red hazard buoy to avoid the plentiful subsurface rocks, then cross Plumper Sound on a north-east heading to Croker Pt and Saturna Beach (at Thomson Park) • Services: Mortimer Spit—beach, picnic table, and pit toilet (near Canal Road); Thomson Park—beach, pit toilet, disc golf course (loaner discs), covered picnic area; Sage Hayward Vindyards—bistro with outdoor patio, wine tasting/sales, souvenirs, bathrooms, fresh water • Birders: Mortimer Spit—93 species since 2016 (eBird), Thomson Park—80 species since 2014 (eBird) • Highlights/Notes: Follow gravel road one km to vineyard, explore the Taylor Point Historic Trail or hike with feral goats on the Brown Ridge Trail (Mount Warburton Pike); spring winds can be strong winds from the southeast in Plumper Sound and fall/winter can present dense morning fog • Best time of year: When the Sage Hayward bistro and wine tasting is open (June through mid-September).​