Vancouver Island, Victoria & the Gulf Islands
British Columbia’s provincial capital, Victoria, lies at the southern tip of the heavily forested and mountainous Vancouver Island. This most English of Canadian towns is distinguished by Victorian and neo-classical architecture and well-appointed residential areas. In the harbour area are the impressive Legislative Buildings and the Royal British Columbia Museum. Also worth visiting are Maltwood Art Gallery, Thunderbird Park and Craigdarroch Castle (an impressive 19th-century landmark mansion home). City life is enhanced by more than 60 recreational parks, which are spread throughout the islands. Some 21km (13 miles) to the north, the Butchart Gardens have delightful English, Italian and Japanese gardens set in a former limestone quarry.
Nanaimo, north of Victoria, is home to one of the province’s largest collection of heritage buildings. Near Vancouver Island’s northern tip is the rural town of Port Hardy and the connecting ferry service to British Columbia’s northernmost destinations. Just south of Port Hardy is the town of Port McNeill, a popular ecotourism destination that is known for its caving and hiking activities.
Pacific Rim National Park, 306km (192 miles) north of Victoria on the west coast, is a popular ecological attraction, with sandy beaches offering good swimming and wilderness trails through deep, hilly forests. Two of the hiking trails in Pacific Rim are wheelchair-accessible. The remote towns of Tofino and Ucluelet offer first-rate whale-watching opportunities. In March, the Pacific Rim Whale Festival celebrates the yearly migration of Pacific grey whales from Baja California, Mexico to Vancouver Island.
Known for their breathtaking beauty and quaint seaside villages, the Gulf Islands include Saltspring Island, home to a flourishing art colony; the Pender Islands which are linked together by a bridge and have several good sandy beaches; and Mayne Island, whose history dates back to the Cariboo Gold Rush, when prospectors gathered at Miners Bay and rowed across the formidable waters of the Georgia Strait. Galiano Island’s Bellhouse Park is home to more than 130 different species of birds and is a naturalist’s paradise with numerous rare and protected plants. At the northeastern edge of Vancouver Island is a lesser known collection of Gulf Islands. Cormorant Island’s Alert Bay is comprised of a large First Nations and Finnish population. Influenced by the migration of Finnish settlers at the beginning of the 20th century, the town is a delight for photographers.
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