July 25-26 Ocean Falls!

Ocean Falls is our northernmost destination on this trip and on July 25th, we arrived!  

Ocean Falls has an interesting and bittersweet history.  Home to Heiltsuk speaking first nations for thousands of years, this area saw its first sawmill in the early 1900's and soon after, had a dam and a pulp and paper mill.  By the 1950's Ocean Falls was a single employer (Crown Zellerbach) mill town, booming with a population of about 3,500 and the construction of new homes and enviable community infrastructure.  Photos and recollections from that era suggest a bucolic small-town lifestyle including what was once of B.C's largest hotels, an Olympic size swimming pool where several Olympians trained, a kindergarten to grade 12 school,  a hospital and a courthouse.  In nearby Martin Valley, mill employees could buy nice, reasonably priced homes.  Sadly, by 1973, Crown Zellerbach had shut down the mill and its town properties.  The provincial government purchased the town and its assets for a song but by 1980, it too had given up.  The town died rapidly.  These days the winter population is reportedly around 40 people (although one local told us it is closer to 25).  The public buildings and many of the remaining homes (Crown Zellerbach bulldozed a number of them in the 70's) are abandoned and crumbling.  There is a very nice and well serviced dock though and many boaters come here in the summer to take a walk around this fascinating place and talk to the friendly people who now live here.  The Rain General Store is open for two hours, three days a week and  a lodge serves dinner and provides rooms to non-local workers (e.g. loggers and dam workers).

Walking around Ocean Falls feels strange.  Soon after we docked, Jessica and I took a walk with Blue.  Almost immediately, a large black bear lumbered across the road in front of us.  An eccentric seeming fellow walking near us (who we had not previously noticed) told us not to worry, the bear would not bother us.  One of us observed that it was "kind of a big bear".  He shrugged, said "big enough" and kept walking.  We wanted to see the bear again but decided not to tempt fate and turned back toward the boat.

Later, a group of us, with the dogs, walked through town, past the dam to Link Lake.  The dam is very impressive and Link Lake is beautiful; however, the town resembles a post-apocalyptic movie set (Jessica's idea).   The degree of desertion and disintegration makes it difficult to believe that people were living here and still hoping for a good outcome as recently as the 1980's.  It is amazing to see how fast prosperity and good fortune can unwind. 


Photos from our walk through town:

The Martin Inn, once one of the biggest hotels in the province

Even the steps leading up to the Martin Inn are impassable

A strange collection of fitness equipment and a swing set in front of the Martin Inn

This looks like it was most recently a Co-Op store

The Ocean Falls Fire Department and Ambulance bay

A lovely and well-maintained old house
The porch light was on, someone must be living here

A not-so-well maintained house

The dam is impressive and now seems out of place here

 In the nearby residential area, Martin Valley:

The Rain Country Store where we stocked up

The cemetery is now closed but is home to over 500 departed souls 

Saggos Saloon - it opened for business at 4 p.m. the day we were there

We enjoyed a hearty camp-style dinner at the lodge.  The next day, Jessica took off in a six-seater Grumman Goose; an amazing amphibious airplane that seems to do a belly flop in the water before it climbs onto land. Jessica's visit flew by too quickly but it was wonderful.  The strange looking plane may have been a bit unnerving but Jess was all smiles as she climbed aboard.  

Taking Jessica to catch her plane

The plane arrives

And climbs ashore

Jessica bravely boards

And back down the ramp.... 

it splashes back into the water and off she goes

Bill's sister, Shelagh had just disembarked from the same plane that Jessica was boarding and vouched for its airworthiness.

Ocean Falls has made an impression on us.  A sad and beautiful place; we'll be back.