Cortes Island is an island in the

Discovery Islands The Discovery Islands are a group of islands located at the northern end of the Salish Sea and the eastern end of Johnstone Strait, between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada. Most of these islands have very ...

archipelago on the coast of British Columbia, Canada. The island is long, wide, and in area. It has a population of 1,035 permanent residents (2016 census).Statistics Canada population figures
/ref> Cortes Island lies within Electoral Area B of the

Strathcona Regional District The Strathcona Regional District is a regional district in British Columbia, Canada. It was created on February 15, 2008, encompassing the northern and western portions of the former Regional District of Comox-Strathcona. The partition left t ...

, which provides water and sewage systems, fire protection, land use planning, parks, recreation, and emergency response. Access to Cortes Island is by plane or ferry - by seaplane to many of the island's protected harbours; by ferry from

Quadra Island Quadra Island is a large island off the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is part of the Discovery Islands, in the Strathcona Regional District. Etymology In 1903, the island was named after the Peruvian Spanis ...

, which is itself accessed from Campbell River on

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

via

BC Ferries British Columbia Ferry Services Inc., Trade name, operating as BC Ferries (BCF), is a former provincial Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation, now operating as an independently managed, State-owned enterprise, publicly owned Canadian c ...

. Cortes Island is a tourist destination in the summers, with many people visiting to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere and warm weather.

History

The office of the

Klahoose The ƛoʔos Klahoose are one of the three groups comprising the ''ʔayʔaǰuθəm'' Tla'Amin or Mainland Comox. The other two divisions of this once-populous group are the χʷɛmaɬku Homalco and Sliammon (which is a corruption of "Tla A' ...

First Nation is located on the island. The island was named in 1792 during the expedition of Galiano and Valdés, after

Hernán Cortés Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca (December 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions o ...

, the Spanish conqueror of

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. Despite the official Cortes spelling, which appeared on Canadian Hydrographic Service Charts, many of the island's early pioneers anglicized the name and referred to the island as Cortez. Marina Island, just southwest of Cortes Island in

Sutil Channel Sutil Channel () is a broad strait located in the Discovery Islands of British Columbia, Canada. Etymology Sutil Channel was named around 1864 by Captain George Henry Richards in honor of the ship '' Sutil'' used by Dionisio Alcalá Galiano in exp ...

, was also named by Galiano and Valdes in 1792, in association with Cortes Island, for

La Malinche Marina () or Malintzin (; 1500 – 1529), more popularly known as La Malinche (), was a Nahua woman from the Mexican Gulf Coast, who became known for contributing to the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire (1519–1521), by acting as an int ...

, known as Doña Marina, the

Nahua The Nahuas ( ) are a Uto-Nahuan ethnicity and one of the Indigenous people of Mexico, with Nahua minorities also in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. They comprise the largest Indigenous group in Mexico, as well as ...

woman who was interpreter, adviser, and mistress of Hernando Cortes during his conquest of Mexico. During the late 19th century Admiralty charts showed the name as Mary Island, until the original name was restored in 1906. In July 1792 William Broughton and

Archibald Menzies Archibald Menzies ( ; 15 March 1754 – 15 February 1842) was a Scottish surgeon, botanist and naturalist. He spent many years at sea, serving with the Royal Navy, private merchants, and the Vancouver Expedition. During his naval expeditions, h ...

of the

Vancouver Expedition The Vancouver Expedition (1791–1795) was a four-and-a-half-year voyage of exploration and diplomacy, commanded by Captain George Vancouver of the Royal Navy. The British expedition circumnavigated the globe and made contact with five continen ...

landed at the mouth of a stream in Squirrel Cove, on the east side of Cortes Island, to take some refreshment. They were surprised to find the stream salty. They shot some large grouse and saw some deer but could not get near enough to shoot them.

Geography

Cortes Island is part of the

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands. An archipelago may be in an ocean, a sea, or a smaller body of water. Example archipelagos include the Aegean Islands (the o ...

known as the

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, which lie beyond the northern end of the Gulf of Georgia, between

and the British Columbia Mainland. It is also considered to be part of the

Northern Gulf Islands The Gulf Islands is a group of islands in the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia. Etymology The name "Gulf Islands" comes from " Gulf of Georgia", the original term used by George Vancouver in his ma ...

. Cortes lies on the far side of

from the city of Campbell River, separated from Quadra Island by

. To the northeast of Cortes Island, across

Lewis Channel Lewis Channel is a strait located between Cortes Island and West Redonda Island in the Discovery Islands of British Columbia, Canada. It is part of the northern Salish Sea. Geography Lewis Channel connects Desolation Sound to the south with Calm ...

, is

West Redonda Island West Redonda Island is an island in British Columbia, Canada. It is part of the Discovery Islands, an archipelago between Vancouver Island and the mainland, and between the Strait of Georgia and Johnstone Strait. West Redonda Island is located w ...

Desolation Sound Desolation Sound () is a deep water sound (geography), sound at the northern end of the Salish Sea and of the Sunshine Coast (British Columbia), Sunshine Coast in British Columbia, Canada. History Desolation Sound has always been inhabited by tri ...

lies to the east of Cortes Island and, beyond that, the upper end of the

Malaspina Peninsula The Malaspina Peninsula is a peninsula in the northern Gulf of Georgia- Sunshine Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. It extends northwest from the town of Powell River, which lies near its isthmus, past the settlement of Lund, to Desolation ...

. The island is located roughly halfway between Powell River and Campbell River.

Climate

Demographics

Administration

Cortes Island is in the Sunshine Coast Forest District and the Vancouver Island Ministry of Environment's Vancouver Island Region. The island is part of the North Island Provincial Electoral District.

Communities

Communities on the island include Cortes Bay,

Whaletown Whaletown is a settlement on Cortes Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is known as the gateway to Cortes Island. A public ferry links Whaletown to Heriot Bay on Quadra Island. It is featured in the 2013 Man Booker long-list work of fiction by ...

, Squirrel Cove and

Mansons Landing Mansons Landing is an unincorporated community near the southern tip of Cortes Island, British Columbia, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend f ...

. Desolation Sound is off the east shore of the island. Forestry, fishing and mining have featured in its history. There is also a campground at Smelt Bay Provincial Park. The Campbell River School District operates the Cortes Elementary / Jr. Secondary school on the island. Until 2010 there was also the Linnaea School, a non-traditional school which offered a different approach on education. It was closed due to a lack of students and funding. After the ninth grade, students must either switch to

homeschooling Homeschooling or home schooling (American English), also known as home education or elective home education (EHE) (British English), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted ...

or transfer to a school off the island. In addition, a seasonal Canadian Coast Guard Inshore Rescue Boat Station is located in Cortes Bay during the summer. The station is staffed by a coxswain and 2 crewmembers aboard a Zodiac Hurricane Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat (RHIB).

Tourism

Cortes is known for the wilderness and remote nature of the community. Kayaking is a popular activity around the island, and the

Cortes Museum and Archives Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to: People * Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador Places * Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...

hosts the local visitor's centre. Craft markets are held weekly at the Manson's Landing Community Hall, and the Gorge Harbour Marina Resort. Hiking through K'was park and Carrington bay are popular activities for tourists visiting the island.

References

External links

*
Cortes Island information site
Cortes Island news and information website.
Cortes Island Coastal Plan for Shellfish Aquaculture
{{DiscoveryIslands Populated places in the Strathcona Regional District Spanish history in the Pacific Northwest Unincorporated settlements in British Columbia Islands of the Discovery Islands