Surf Lodge sits on eight forested acres on the northwest shore of Gabriola Island, facing the waters of the Salish Sea, with Vancouver Island and the mainland mountains on the horizon and Texada Island visible to the north on a clear day. It's a setting that hasn't changed much in eighty-plus years — and neither has the feeling of the place: a rustic, handcrafted retreat built to slow you down.
Surf Lodge opened its doors in 1940, in the middle of the Second World War, built by Alice and Andy Anderson. In its earliest years it was a modest operation — a small lodge catering mostly to local tourists, long before Gabriola became the destination it is today. For a time, itwas even known simply as Anderson Lodge.
The single biggest transformation in the lodge's history came under Ruth and Norman Nash, who built the log structure that still stands today. Rather than bring in milled lumber, the Nashes worked with what the island gave them — the exposed logs of the current building were reclaimed from the beach itself, and many of those original logs can still be seen at the lodge. The Nash's were resourceful in every sense. When electricity finally reached Gabriola Island in 1955, they wired the lodge for power and used the opportunity to introduce indoor plumbing — a genuine milestone for a lodge this remote at the time.
By the time Heather and Graham Mules ran Surf Lodge, it had grown into a full-service destination. Their own brochure described the lodge as "artistically crafted from beach logs and local sandstones" in the late 1930s and set upon eight forested acres — and by then, it offered:
Heather and Graham's own words summed up the lodge's spirit: it was "a rustic expression of unique Island living," meant for "those who want to relax and connect with the mysteries of the natural environment." They positioned Surf Lodge as the place to consider for a getaway weekend, holiday, group retreat, wedding, family reunion, or anniversary party — a role it still plays today.
On December 15, 1990, the lodge changed hands again, this time to Dennis and Melanie Deakin, together with Rae Beckman. The handover was significant enough to make the front page of the local paper, The Sounder — a photo shows Tom Marcus alongside Dennis and Melanie Deakin, standing beside the Surf Lodge sign with a "Sold" tag hanging from it on their official possession day. The article described their vision for the lodge as one "foreverybody, from Gabriola's people to the visitors to our fair island." The lounge, formerly known as the Compass Room, was rebranded as the Sunset Lounge.
Surf Lodge has changed hands many times over more than eight decades, and each owner has left their own mark on the building and the business. But the thread connecting the Andersons, the Nashes, the Mules family, the Deakins, and today's owners, the Harker family, has never broken: a welcoming place from which to experience the beauty of Gabriola Island, and the chance to see incredible wildlife.Thank you for reading our history artical, we hope you come visit!
