Hike to Conover Cove – Wallace Island, BC

Conover Cove – The Dream of David and Jeanne Conover –

The next morning we rowed to the dinghy dock located at mid-point in Princess Cove. We wanted to hike the path at the perimeter of Wallace Island, which leads to Conover Cove. Once there, we stumbled upon a surprising find, the structural remains of Conover Settlement. One of the buildings, in particular, knocked our socks off because of all the, mostly driftwood, carved, painted, and decorated mementos left by boaters to mark their visit to the island over the years. It truly is a work of art in the making.

Royal Cedar Cottages Were Built by the Conover’s mid-nineteenth century.

The island’s origin was charted as Narrow Island but was named after Captain Wallace Houston, a surveyor in the 1850s. More recent history states that Wallace Island was owned by David Conover and his wife, Jeanne in 1946. Their desire was to build a resort on the island, Royal Cedar Cottages – there were once ten buildings built in the effort which remained for 14 years. Truly a Robinson Crusoe saga. Once Upon an Island, One Man’s Island, Finding Marilyn, A Resource, and Sitting on a Salt Spring, are all books written by David Conover about the couple’s mutual dream, the hardships they endured throughout the seasons, and the resulting experiences of their decision to buy an island.

It was a beautiful hike over to Conover Cove. We walked up hills through a lush forest with breathtaking views of the surrounding water.

A huge cistern was almost hidden in the woods (above-left). We also spotted a very rudimentary plumbing and electrical system woven in and out of the floor of the forest, over rocks and roots. (Photo-below)

Several boats were tied up at the dock. Everyone was in a cheerful mood, happy to get out of the high winds they encountered over to the island.

Back to Princess Cove to watch the arriving boats settle in for a quiet second night on the hook.