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(Dec 23 2020)

SILVA BAY | NEWS BEFORE END OF 2020 | #IREMEMBERSILVA

It’s the holiday season, when we exchange gifts, decorate Christmas trees, or have a gathering with families with delicious food. It’s a special time of the year that we celebrate.

Our marina office hours will be a little bit different as well. We open 11 am-12 pm for one hour from December 24^th till January 1^st and we are open to transient moorage by reservation only as we have very limited space.

To welcome all the peaceful and jolly moments, SBRM would like to invite everyone to share the memory of Silva Bay or Gabriola Island with the hashtag #iremembersilva and tag us on your social media. We will highlight the moments to celebrate our holiday season!

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The following is our marina manager’s recollection of Silva Bay and Gabriola Island:

“The first time I came to Gabriola Island was during one of many boating explorations around the Gulf Islands and Salish Sea coastal waters. We anchored the Lady out in the Bay and puttered the dinghy to the pub on a stunningly beautiful summer evening… the food was great, and the view was spectacular. A few short years later I left the Okanagan, no longer had the boat, and sought a new place to call home – a place closer to the ocean, closer to nature. I moved to Gabriola in the winter of 2014. After a couple of days of unpacking, on a Sunday morning, I drove around the Island with plans to stop at Silva Bay for lunch, and to my dismay, the pub had closed just after Christmas that year and was closed for the season. However, over the next few summers, it became a favourite place to hang out, have a meal, listen to music, and enjoy the company of friends and visitors.”

“I started working at the Silva Bay Inn about a year after I arrived, and I fell in love with the Bay… the views – the seasons – the boats – always provided a sense of being in touch with the rhythm of the ocean. When I began my job at Silva Bay Marina, I felt like I had come home. It was the busy summer season which always brings a flurry of activity with seasonal boaters coming and going, groups arriving for club cruises, shipyard customers on-site, and of course the busy restaurant scene. Sadly, that fall the restaurant had a fire and the good times at the Silva Bay Pub came to an end. The following summer the property sold and ever since there has been great anticipation of what is to come. The new ownership group brings an amazing build out plan for a new resort and restaurant which will bring much needed revitalization to the property, to the south end of Gabriola, and to the boating crowd.”

“In the meantime, I continue to love spending my working days at the Marina. The seasons are spectacular ranging from crystal clear summer days to wild windswept, rainy winter storms.  The wildlife is abundant… otters, seals, sea lions, eagles, waterfowl, seagulls, deer, even orcas.  The rhythm of the bay is truly amazing with the boat traffic, floatplane taking off and landing, and the never-ending tide going out and coming back. The customers are fantastic… boaters belong to a unique group of people that have a deep appreciation of the boating experience.  Not a day goes by that I fail to feel gratitude for this place, this Bay… this never feels like a job but feels like an honour – a privilege. Silva Bay is a special place.”

Lisa Millard

Silva Bay Marina Manager

Silva Bay Resort & Marina is interested in knowing about your unique memory of Silva Bay or Gabriola Island. Share with us on your social media with the hashtag #iremembersilva today!

We wish everyone peace and joy this holiday season and always and look forward to seeing you in the near future.