Toba Wildernest Marina

Toba Inlet is the kind of fjord that makes people stop mid-sentence. Walls of granite rise two thousand metres directly from tidewater, draped in waterfalls during snowmelt and capped by glaciers year-round. The water shifts from deep indigo at the channel entrance to jade green and, farther in, a milky glacial blue fed by rivers draining the interior icefields. Homfray Channel — the scenic alternative return leg — holds some of the deepest soundings in coastal North America, exceeding nine hundred metres. Anchoring in the fjord proper is rarely practical; Toba Wilderness Marina is effectively the only overnight option for visiting boats.

The marina occupies a protected position tucked behind Double Island at the convergence of Pryce, Homfray, and Waddington channels, roughly 22 miles north of the main Desolation Sound anchorages and reachable in a comfortable half-day run from Refuge Cove or Squirrel Cove. Concrete floats offer approximately 1,400 feet of side-tie moorage with a guaranteed no-raft policy and a 200-foot maximum LOA. Shore power (30A and 50A) and potable mountain-stream water are included in the moorage rate, along with WiFi, hot showers, ice, and use of the covered Welcome Pavilion.

The experience here is shaped as much by the hosts as by the scenery. Current managers Nahanni and Paul are consistently described in cruiser reviews as the gold standard for wilderness marina management — knowledgeable about local conditions, wildlife, and hiking, and genuinely welcoming. Radio ahead on VHF 66A on approach; the marina asks guests to keep channel 66 monitored while docked so staff can relay wildlife sighting reports.

Five kilometres of maintained hiking trails wind through old-growth forest behind the dock, including a 25-minute route to a 120-foot waterfall — bear spray and bear horns are provided at the trailhead. Wildlife encounters are a matter of when, not if: orcas and humpbacks are common in the channels, grizzly and black bears roam the shoreline (particularly August through October), and bald eagles are a daily fixture. The waterfall visible from the dock is the marina’s drinking-water and hydro-electric source; the entire operation runs off-grid.

There is no fuel, no store, and no restaurant. Plan your range accordingly; Refuge Cove and Lund to the south are the nearest fuel stops, with Campbell River a longer run to the southeast. The no-fuel situation is the only practical limitation, and experienced cruisers uniformly accept it as the price of admission to one of the finest destinations on the BC coast.

Operating season runs May through September. Reservations are strongly advised in July and August and can be made through Dockwa. Moorage rates include all utilities.