10 days. 2 people. 800 square feet...
...and one awesome whale watching deck
If you’d read my earlier post about the Great Bear, you’ll know that our plans to build a deck were postponed earlier in the year due a weather event that thwarted the delivery of the materials. Myself and Steve are not ones to leave a job unfinished so before we knew it, it was September and we were back up in the Great Bear Rainforest.
THIS time. We were building the deck.
The materials had arrived, the weather was looking good and we were back in our magical place.
Time to get to work.
Now I will introduce this article with the fact that Steve used to work in construction, owned a farm and can design and build just about anything he puts his mind to. I have very little experience building, but I’m learning. To date I’ve joined Steve on a few projects like extending our own deck at home, a renovation on our café and of course, building the outhouse out of driftwood earlier this year! Steve had made a materials list for Janie, drawn up a plan, noted all the tools we would need and how long it should take us. I was definitely the help in this scenario but had some basics down like using the circular saw and the pneumatic nailer and carrying materials as well as being the generator starter and whale announcer. But more about that later.
We had 10 days and were optimistic but also realistic. These were going to be some long days. Luckily it was still early September and the days were long. We were up there to work so that is what we would be doing!
So it’s about to get a little technical here…interjection from Steve and his construction hat…
Once we arrived on Fin it was time to set the plan in motion. I had made a materials list based on an approximate size and basic shape of the deck. That said I knew due to the remote and unique qualities of where we were, this was going to be a design-as-we-go type build.
On the first day (the afternoon we arrived), we set out to get our string lines in and lay out all of the square sections of the deck, drill in anchors and pour the concrete for the first 2 rows of post and beams. By nightfall we had completed our objectives for day 0.
(Insert photo of Steve with clipboard)
The design of the deck was to run 24 feet out from the side of the building and taper back towards the front with two 22.5 degree angles and join in at 45 degrees with a new 8 foot wide deck on the front of the cabin. All in all about 800 square feet. We used all pressure treated wood, 6”x6” posts on concrete sono-tubes which were anchored into the granite with 12mm rebar. 2”x10” 2 pack beams and 2”x10” deck joists on 16” centers, 2”x6” decking. (If you’re like me (Casey) and not a builder, don’t worry about the details, basically it was going to be a sturdy and well built deck).
Over the first 4 days we pinned and poured the rest of the concrete, cut and set posts and beams in place and had the first two rows of floor joists in place. This meant we could start decking from the back forwards creating a flat surface and building platform as we went. The more decking we got on, the more flat accessible work area we gained and the more productive we became. They were long days but so rewarding, I loved seeing the progress of what we were building everyday. I was proud of our work and so proud of Casey and how committed she was to continue learning how to build and work hard everyday. As we moved in to our last 3 full days of work, I knew we were going to make it. We focused on installing bomber strength railings that wouldn’t impede scanning for whales and a well placed lower railing that is great to lean your chest on when you’re sitting on the edge of the deck with your feet hanging over and watching the whales go by.
Our final 2 full days were spent buttoning up little loose ends, putting in extra bracing and building boat and storage racks under the deck as well as pouring the concrete and setting the posts and beams for the new front deck to go on next season.
Now it’s important to note that my enthusiasm for whales is pretty significant (back to Casey here), I can also be accident prone…so I was probably not the best assistant for Steve; teetering around uneven surfaces with power tools in my hands and getting distracted by whales…
Throughout our time working on the deck, in both rain and shine, Steve would be working away and I would stop, dropping whatever I was holding, point and yell ‘WHALE’! Just in case he missed it. It was pretty cool to be working on a construction site with humpback whales passing below sometimes 20-30 feet offshore.
This was our ‘reason d’aitre’ so to speak; the whales were really the ones we were building this deck for. And their human guardian Janie Wray.
Janie Wray and Hermann Meuter set up the North Coast Cetacean Society (NCCS) in 2001 and Cetacea Lab (also affectionately known as ‘Whale Point’ by its interns) was established. A whale research station in northern British Columbia nestled within the incredible First Nations Gitga’at Territory in an area known as the Great Bear Rainforest. As they began to learn more and expand, taking on interns to help with data collection over the summer, the dataset grew. From 42 individual humpbacks identified in 2004 to 420 in 2016 it was clear that this was an important area for these majestic giants. Unfortunately with a proposed LNG shipping lane running right through these waters it became clear that protecting these waters and its whales was imperative.
So we worked 12 hour days with Janie and the whales as our motivation.
In 2010 ‘The Wall’ research outpost was built and in 2017 came this new research cabin located on Fin Island (that we were currently working on). The small 16’x20’ (320 sqft) cabin was Janie’s working, living and existing quarters. The cabin was perched on a granite outcrop of Fin Island and it became Janie’s home for 6-7 months of the year.
Its location affords unobstructed views of Squally Channel and lends itself as a prime location for surveying whales, wildlife and boat traffic. However, the majority of the land is pretty steep and uneven rocky terrain on either side of the cabin. By building a deck here we were creating a level, elevated platform so that Janie and her visitors could walk up and down in order to more effectively carry out whale surveys, essentially quadrupling her working space.
Fin Island research station also welcomes expedition and charter guests to come ashore and learn more about whales, the area and why North Coast Cetacean Society is there. Quite often these interactions will lead to donations or funding opportunities which are essential for the survival of NCCS as a non-profit organization. The new deck would provide a great gathering place for these interactions and enable guests to really experience the magic of the Fin Island Research Cabin and its 270 degree ocean views.
Slowly but surely the deck began to take shape. Soon you could walk on it and it was like we had created another dimension to this rocky island research station. Next bannisters went up and it began to look like a finished deck, Janie was giddy with excitement and the daily progress. Her energy and smile along with great meals (cooked by herself and one of her friend’s who was visiting at the time) kept us well fueled and motivated.
Janie and her small team do such important work on Fin and it gives us so much joy and honor to be part of their story and do a little bit to support them in their work. The new deck provides a work area, a gathering place for visitors and great vantage points to see down and across the channels.
We had wanted to tear down and redo the front portion of the deck which already existed but we ran out of time and so just lay the foundations for the work that would have to be completed next time.
Any excuse to get back here next year…
And so it was finally complete, the deck was christened with a bucket shower in the sun and then it was time to admire our work with a glass of wine in hand and toast to the whales who had brought us all together.
We love Fin Island and we Love Janie! When we look back to how and where we first met, Janie was there. She knew both of us separately to begin with, and now she knows us together. She is such a big part of our story and now she provides us access to this amazing place and a small connection to the magical story of Fin Island.
If you want to find out more about the amazing work that Janie and her team do in this remote part of the BC coast, please go to www.bcwhales.org
The whales will thank you!
