Visit Cortes Island

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Visit Cortes Island

A community group established to promote the island as an appealing year round destination for visitors while supporting a small, vibrant community.
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a vibrant local economy. We represent a wide variety of rental accommodations, eco-tourism providers, shops, restaurants, grocery stores, marinas, and other services that cater to visitors. Businesses involved in other industry sectors are also welcome. The success of this non-profit organization depends on diverse and active membership. CIBAT is a standing committee of the Discovery Islands Chamber of Commerce. Members of CIBATA are also members of The Discovery Islands Chamber of Commerce.

27/08/2024

Gumbooting this Saturday in the Manson's Lagoon. With biologist Deb Cowper and historian Lynne Jordan.
The weather is supposed to be gorgeous!! The event is sponsored by the Museum and Friends of Cortes Island. Contact Friends of Cortes Island to book NOW: 250-935-0087 or [email protected].

09/08/2024

Love Fest is Saturday, August 10, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Linnaea.

Tickets are available at all Cortes Island stores and at the Friday Market.

The show also features Afro-Cuban jazz artist Adonis Puentes and his band, extraordinary contemporary country songwriter Elise LeBlanc, blues keyboardist Doc Fingers, B.C. legend Rick Scott, and a special retrospective set by Anne Mortifee and her band.

Local performers Michael Keith, Heather Wolf, Johnny Hanuse, and Jemma Hicken will perform, and bands 6-foot Johnson and The Awakeneers.

Love Fest is a day of music, fun for the family, food, craft vendors, and a special kids’ tent.

Love Fest is thrilled to add Cosmo Sheldrake to the festival line-up. Cosmo will perform some of his latest folktronic songs and natural sonorous improvisations.

Rides to Festival:
Gorge Hall: 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
Mansons Hall: 10:45, 11:45, 12:45
Squirrel Cove Store: 10:45, 11:15, 3:00

Return Rides from Festival (Linnaea parking lot):
Gorge Hall: 8:40, 9:40, (10:40 if needed)
Mansons Hall: 8:00, 9:00, (10:00 if needed)
Squirrel Cove: 2:45, 8:15, 9:15

Thank you to Klahoose Nation and Island Spirits
Rides by donation

Gates open at 11:00
Music all day
Kids’ tent with Rick Scott performance, storytelling
Food and crafts

Tickets at all Island stores and Friday Market.

28/06/2024

Photo: Caspian Terns, by George Sirk.

Sail with Misty Isles Adventures: Natural Aspects of Western Cortes – guided cruise:
• Thursday, July 4, 2024
• 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., departing from the Gorge Harbour dock
• $225
• Guided by George Sirk
See this rich, varied, and rare view of Cortes Island!
George Sirk will guide this natural history experience through the legendary Gorge Harbour – an unusual island sea whose entrance, “THE GORGE,” pumps in and out millions of gallons of fresh tidal seawater daily. Journey past shellfish farms, the mouth of the Anvil Lake Creek, round Ring and Tan Islands, to the 300-foot sheer cliffs that plunge a further 60 feet into the water. Timed with “slack water,” this is your chance to drift slowly past rock walls encrusted with anemones, gumboot chitons, crabs, coral, and the rare giant barnacle! The harbour, narrows, and cliffs have been home to the First Nations peoples for millennia, and pictographs can still be seen to this day painted in ochre.
Beyond the Gorge, we will skirt the Heather Islets, making landfall (by Zodiac) on sandy Shark Spit, Marina Island. Bring out your picnic lunch, stretch your legs, beach comb, and enjoy this wild expanse. The adventure continues after lunch into Carrington Bay for a stop at the “reversing rapids” with an overview of the cultural history of the float house community of the 70s & 80s.
The journey back includes tiny Centre Islet – a rich seabird colony of pigeon guillemots, glaucous-winged gulls, and black oystercatchers. With luck, we will see the glorious and raucous Caspian terns who have recently colonized the Salish Sea. Be on the lookout for humpback whales, sea lions, dolphins, and maybe an orca or two!
This trip is your chance to experience the diversity of marine and animal life of Western Cortes up close and personal – and have some plain old fun!

Museum-sponsored historic cruises are not just a unique and educational experience but also a meaningful way to support the Cortes Island community and the Museum's programs. These cruises are a fundraising partnership between the Cortes Island Museum & Archives and Misty Isles Adventures. Your participation directly contributes to preserving and promoting our local history and culture.

To register, visit Misty Isles Adventures ( https://mistyislesadventures.com/voyages/cortes-museum-cruises/ ) or call Misty Isles at 250-935-6756.

Other historic guided tours with Misty Isles this summer:

Dinner Cruise to the Laughing Oyster
• Monday, August 5, 3 p.m. – 9 p.m., $175 (dinner not included in fare)
• Departs from Cortes Bay

Háthayim/Von Donop Marine Park Historical Cruise
• Wednesday, August 28, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., $225
• Departs from Gorge Harbour

Check our website, www.cortesmuseum.com, for more information.

15/05/2024

This Saturday, May 18! Squirrel Cove by the beach.

Food court tickets are now on sale at all Island stores:

• the Gorge Store,
• Squirrel Cove General Store,
• Cortes Market,
• and the Food Co-op.

Buy your tickets ahead of time and save some time. The price is $25, the same as last year.

We look forward to seeing you there. We'll start at 11 a.m.
The food court, good music, concessions, and more...

Come all and enjoy our delicious seafood.

See menu:

• Oysters adobo
• Dengaku miso oysters
• Oysters tempura
• Oysters, Motoyaki
• Mango madness
• Fiesta oysters
• Clams in wine and sweet chilli sauce
• Steamed prawns
• Seared scallops with citrus ginger topping (optional)

04/04/2024

The 2024 Seafest will take place at Squirrel Cove again this year! Mark your calendar: Saturday, May 18, starting at 11 AM. The food court, good music, and concessions will be available. So, come and join us.
Squirrel Cove is within a 20-minute bike distance from the Cortes ferry.

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+12509350080

Website

http://ourcortes.com/

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Our Story

The Cortes Island Business and Tourism Association (CIBATA) was formed as a community group to drive economic and holistic community development for local businesses as well as to initiate activities that promote business and the island as a whole. Initially we came together to promote Cortes Island as a year round tourist destination that leaves a lasting positive impact on visitors and supports a vibrant local economy. We represent a wide variety of rental accommodations, eco-tourism providers, shops, restaurants, grocery stores, marinas, and other services that cater to visitors. Businesses involved in other industry sectors are also welcome. The success of this non-profit organization depends on diverse and active membership. CIBATA is a standing committee of the Discovery Islands Chamber of Commerce. Members of CIBATA are also members of the Discovery Islands Chamber of Commerce.