Skookumchuck Narrows Provincial Park, Provincial park in Sunshine Coast Regional District, Canada
Skookumchuck Narrows Provincial Park covers 123 hectares where Jervis Inlet meets Sechelt Inlet on the Sunshine Coast, about 7 km east of the Earls Cove ferry terminal on the road to Egmont. The park protects the Sechelt Rapids, and it also contains a small lake, Brown Lake. Its forest is secondary growth of Douglas fir, western hemlock, Nootka cypress and red alder, with sword fern undergrowth.
Established on 25 August 1957 at 40.5 hectares, the park was created to protect the Sechelt Rapids in the Skookumchuck Narrows between Sechelt Inlet and Jervis Inlet. It has since grown to 123 hectares. Long before European settlement, First Nations hunted and fished here and named the rapids; two archaeological sites in the park document that use.
Skookumchuck is a Chinook Jargon word: skookum means strong, powerful or wild, and chuck means water. Two archaeological sites in the park show that First Nations used the area for hunting and fishing long before it became a park.
The park has no picnic area and no campground; the only facility near the rapids is a very basic toilet. The rapids reach high current speeds, so only experienced paddlers should attempt them. The park lies about 7 km east of the Earls Cove ferry terminal on the road to Egmont.
The tidal movement in the narrows creates a visual show with waterfalls and whirlpools that reverse direction based on the tide cycle. Visitors often notice surprising changes in the water dynamics between arriving and leaving.
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