Land on the northern side of Princess Cove extending north towards Chivers is private.

Panther Point, at the south end, has dangerous rocky reefs which extend well past the island.

Following the local tradition of naming hazardous reefs after the ships that found them, Panther Point is named after the Panther, a merchant coal-carrier, which ran aground there in 1874, carrying a full load of coal from Nanaimo.

Conover continued the tale in One Man's Island and Sitting on a Salt Spring.

[citation needed] The island was named for Captain Wallace Houston of HMS Trincomalee who served in the area in 1853.