Sunny Island (c 1944)

The Sunny Island was built by Jirokichi Arimoto in 1929 at Ritherton Bay, in Barkley Sound on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. The vessel represents a hybrid between West Coast style vessels and a traditional Japanese style of construction. The vessel is associated with the dry salt fisheries for salmon and herring that were operated by Japanese fishermen and merchants in British Columbia in the years preceding World War lI.

The Sunny Island was abandoned in Ewan Slough, possibly at the time the West Coast Japanese fishing fleet was seized during World War II. The intact vessel is fully exposed during low tides and mostly submerged at high tide.

Note: British Columbia’s Heritage Conservation Act automatically protects all heritage wrecks, including the remains of all wrecked vessels and aircraft once two or more years have passed since the date of loss. It is illegal to damage, alter or remove a heritage object from a heritage wreck except under a permit issued by the Archaeology Branch.