Gillard Passage — BC, Canada

Gillard Passage runs between Gillard Island and Jimmy Judd Island, off Stuart Island at the east end of Cordero Channel, and carries traffic bound east or west. It is one of the Yucultas, the local name for Yuculta Rapids proper, Gillard and Barber Passages, and Dent Rapids. Together they make up the inside route between the Strait of Georgia and Johnstone Strait by way of Calm and Cordero Channels, which is more protected and has less traffic than the route through Discovery Passage. (PAC 201)

How the pass behaves

On large tides the stream in Gillard Passage reaches 12½ knots, against 10 in Yuculta Rapids and 11 in Dent Rapids. (PAC 201) The flood sets east and the ebb sets west. (CHS current table)

Dangerous whirlpools form east of the Gillard Islands from two hours after the turn to flood until one hour before the turn to ebb. In Devils Hole, at Dent Rapids, violent eddies and whirlpools form over the same part of the tide. (PAC 201)

How slack works here

Gillard Passage is a reference current station: the Canadian Hydrographic Service tabulates its turns to flood and ebb and its maximum rates in the Canadian Tide and Current Tables, Volume 6. Yuculta Rapids and Dent Rapids are secondary stations referenced on Gillard Passage, so each turns at its own published time difference from it. (PAC 201)

Slack is very brief in all of these rapids, usually no more than 5 minutes. Local weather and land drainage can shift the turn, and at times it comes abruptly with no dead slack at all. (PAC 201)

Planning a transit

None of the Yucultas should be attempted other than at or near slack water. At slack they can be taken without difficulty. (PAC 201)

Because slack is so short, the three rapids are planned as one transit. The Sailing Directions advise low-powered small craft bound west to approach Yuculta Rapids about an hour before the turn to ebb. Ride the back eddy along the Stuart Island shore to Kellsey Point, then cross to the Sonora Island shore, where a northerly current prevails. That leaves time to get through Gillard and Dent before the ebb reaches full strength. Favour the Sonora Island shore through Dent Rapids. If you are late and unsure of Dent Rapids, wait in Big Bay for the next slack. (PAC 201)

Expect tugs. Mermaid Bay, on the south side of Dent Island, is a mooring ground for tugs with log booms waiting for slack, and tows move from there through Gillard Passage. Innes Passage, south of the largest Gillard Island, is narrow and shallow, suitable only for small craft with local knowledge. (PAC 201)

Stuart Island Community Dock in Big Bay has moorage, water and a small store, but no fuel or power. (PAC 201)

Nearby

Westbound from Calm Channel the sequence is Yuculta Rapids, then Gillard Passage, then Dent Rapids into Cordero Channel. Further west, Greene Point Rapids reach 7 knots and are referenced on Seymour Narrows rather than on Gillard Passage. (PAC 201) The main shipping channel runs up Discovery Passage through Seymour Narrows instead. (PAC 202)