Lund, Past and Present

Cortes Island would be our turn-around point for heading back south and home to Anacortes, until our next voyage northward later in the summer. Pointing Got d’ Fever south, we cruised the west side of Cortes Island, checking out more anchorages along the way, then headed eastward via Uganda Pass and Baker Pass to Lund, located on the mainland “sunshine coast” of B.C.

The "Lund Small Craft Harbour"

Lund is a great jumping off point for Desolation Sound, where boaters often purchase last-minute groceries from the small community grocery store, or enjoy a meal out at The Boardwalk Restaurant or at the pub in the Lund Hotel. Having morning coffee and tasty cinnamon rolls at Nancy’s Bakery is another favorite treat. While many boaters appreciate Lund as a convenient stop, its fascinating history is often overlooked.

The Boardwalk Restaurant (right front portion was once a bunk house)

Take “The Boardwalk Restaurant,” for example, how many know that the dining area was a bunk house that was used by loggers in the 1920’s. The bunk house was towed from Toba Inlet into Lund Harbour in 1926 by creditors who had claimed it, when the logging company went into liquidation. After arriving at Lund, the bunk house was placed on piers and used for different purposes over the years. The bunk house served as a home for several different families and later became a coffee shop, then housed two different cafes. Major renovations took place in 2007 and 2008, retaining its original flooring still seen today.

The Community Rebuilt the Boardwalk in 2006

The first boardwalk was a single span cedar log, placed across Thulin Creek so that residents could walk between the bunk house and the hotel without getting their feet wet. In the 1980’s, the decaying old log was replaced by a hand-hewn boardwalk. By 2005 the boardwalk had deteriorated to the point of being unsafe. The community got together and sold engraved planks to raise funds for rebuilding the boardwalk, which was completed by volunteers in 2006.

Lund was founded in 1889 by two brothers, Fred and Charlie Thulin, from Sweden. After they settled the area, they named it Lund after the university town of the same name in their native Sweden. The brothers built a wharf; and later in 1892, a post office was established and a general store. By 1895, the brothers had built Lund’s first hotel, where a bottle of the best scotch was available for a $1.50. The basement served as a jail cell for rowdy patrons.

The Lund Hotel

When the hotel was destroyed by fire in 1915, a second hotel was built in 1918 and named the Lund Hotel. When the old hotel burned down and was being demolished, a skeleton was found in the cement pad under the front steps; sounds like an unsolved murder mystery to me. The Lund Hotel of today has been lovingly refurbished and is owned by the Tla’amin Nation, and businessman David Formosa.

During the 1930’s and 1940’s, shipwrights who came to Lund produced gill netters by the dozens, then larger boats, seiners, were built. Next came trollers, built between 1941 and 1951.

An Old Boat Shed From Earlier Boat Building Days

You can still see some of these old work sheds in the north cove (Finn Bay), adjacent to Lund Harbour. Jack’s Boat Yard serves boaters of today, offering dry-land storage and a boat yard where you can do your own work, or call on marine professionals to have the work done for you. Jack’s lift can haul out boats up to 50 tons and up to 20 feet wide.

Enjoying a Great Meal at The Boardwalk Restaurant

It’s always surprising how much more we appreciate a destination when we learn about its past. Somehow, connecting the past with the present brings all the pieces of the puzzle together for a broader view and perspective of what’s seen today.

We thank Rayana at The Boardwalk Restaurant for sharing much of Lund’s history with us. Her restaurant, by the way, is a wonderful place to enjoy some great food, including a delicious beet salad, seafood pasta, chowder and other great dishes. The restaurant definitely lives up to its slogan, “Great Food – Great Company.”