Vancouver Island is on the west coast of Canada, just north of the American border. It is about as far west as you can go on the continent without falling into the ocean. The climate is moderate and in most areas we only have a couple of days of snowfall a year. The island is mountainous and there are many small rivers and fairly spectacular water falls as streams make their way to the coastal low lands or the beaches. The natural vegetation of the island is temperate rain forest. Does that bring to mind any concerns? Yes, it does rain a little. Cape Scott at the north end of the island has the distinction of having the greatest rainfall of any place on the North American continent. These big evergreens need to drink deep! The good news is that generally our summers are fairly dry.
When I first began coming to
the island back in 1972 the ferries used to have a first class dining room
aboard. The first group of passengers to make it up there could enjoy a
several course meal served by discreet waiters at a table nicely set with
a real table cloth and silver flat ware. The tone was subdued and the scenery
was magnificent. The sailing time which is between an hour and a half and
two hours was just about right for a leisurely dinner. I used to take the
bus on in those days and since the buses are always loaded first and I
was young and swift of foot, I always got a table. The peasant mobs who
used to watch us longingly from their places behind the velvet rope must
have complained. Now there is a cafeteria which manages to serve everyone
though it isn't anywhere near as elegant. There is also a snack bar, a
news stand and gift shop, video games for the big kids, a play area for
the little ones, tables you can work or play cards at, plug ins for computers
and of course lots of big comfortable chairs and a view of the passing
shore lines and islands which goes on forever. (This all assumes
you are not getting our new expensive "fast cat" from Horseshoe Bay to
Nanaimo....so far I have managed to avoid it but I am told that though
it is a bit faster the chairs are not so comfortable.)
Particulars of routes, schedules and prices can be obtained by visiting the
As you approach any of the cities or towns, watch for this sign. This indicates that you are nearing a tourist information center. These centers are almost always on the main street and are always signed on the highway. In the summer months even the offices in the smallest towns are manned and the staff will help you with pretty much anything you might want to know. The tourism centers in the larger centers which I have marked on the map below are open year round. You can click on the logo to get further addresses and they will send you any information you might need to plan your trip in advance. So there is my tribute to Tourism B.C.! On with the cities.
These are not all of our island communities. They may not even be the largest. I have included them on this map because these are jump off points for the other locations we will be talking about in these pages. You will find regional maps on these links which will help you locate other communities. If you are interested in exploring some of these see a
© 1998 vanisle@oocities.com
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