Exploring Northern Vancouver Island

Many people love to visit the Okanagan, Whistler and Southern Vancouver Island. I love these areas as well. This summer, we decided to take a less travelled route to see parts of BC that I had never seen before. Craig has been to most of these places…but not for many, many years. He was interested in seeing Northern Vancouver Island where he visited his grandparents when he was a young child.

We booked much of our trip with BC Ferries Vacations. This experience was very positive. We were able to customize the trip to allow us more time in some areas and less in others. I booked additional accommodation through AirBNB.

We hopped on the Vancouver-Nanaimo ferry early on a Saturday morning with the reservation that was part of the package. On the Island, we travelled directly to Parksville, and stopped for a coffee, then continued on the Ocean Road…such beautiful views and leisurely drive. In Courtney, we stopped for lunch at a unique little family-run restaurant called Plates. True to its name, there are license plates from all over on the walls. Food and service was good.

Campbell River

We arrived at our destination for the night in Campbell River and settled in at the hotel after watching a parade (it was blocking access to our hotel). Those who know me, know I like to walk. I left Craig in the room and after asking some advice from the woman at the front desk, I headed out to walk along the marina with camera in hand. I didn’t pay too much attention to the dark clouds that were fast approaching until the thunder and lightning started, then the torrential downpour. I found shelter at a building with a large overhang. After about 20 minutes when it didn’t look like it was going to stop, I made a run for Moxies a couple of doors away. I was soaked to the skin! Decided to wait out the storm with a glass of wine and messaged Craig to let him know I was OK. Continued my walk (back to the hotel after about another 30 minutes, snapping some shots along the way.

On another trip, I would love to spend more time in and around Campbell River.

Elk Falls

The next day, we continued our trip to Port Hardy. About 20 minutes out of Campbell River is a fantastic provincial park with a suspension bridge right beside the thundering 25 metre falls. I can be a little afraid of heights, but I made it across and back and across again halfway to take some more photos. The park has a number of walking trails through old-growth forest. It is beautiful and peaceful.

Coal Harbour

Craig’s grandparents lived in Port McNeill and he visited the area as a child. We went to Coal Harbour on our way to Port Hardy. Craig remembers visiting this area when there was still whaling happening in the harbour. Thankfully, that practice was discontinued in the 1960’s.

During WWII, the RCAF used this area as a base for seaplanes patrolling the Pacific. A big hangar remains and houses a museum that apparently features a 20 foot jawbone of a blue whale. Unfortuantely, we didn’t venture inside the hangar. These days, Coal Harbour is a mecca for sports fishing.

Port Hardy

We stayed two nights in Port Hardy to facilitate some further exploration, and also to be close to the BC Ferries for our trip to Prince Rupert. We walked along the waterfront, had fish and chips at a local food truck and met one of the hereditary chiefs of the Kwakiutl First Nations. He had just created music for his son to sing at an upcoming event. We also had great accommodation at the Kwa’lilas Hotel, a lovely First Nations destination hotel.

There is much more to explore in Port Hardy; however, we focused our attention on Telegraph Cove and Alert Bay on the full day that we were in the area.

Our final night, we had Sushi from Karai Sushi and Grill near the Port Hardy airport. It came highly recommended by a young man working at the Tourist Info office in Port MacNeil. It was very fresh and tasty! We understand that they will be opening another restaurant in downtown Port Hardy in the near future.

Telegraph Cove

The focus of our full day in the area was on Alert Bay, but we made time to visit the picturesque Telegraph Cove in the morning. This community sprung from a one-room telegraph shack where fishermen, loggers and pioneers could keep in touch with the outside world. The community grew to include a fish saltery, sawmill, school and general store. Many of the buildings are built on stilts along the rocky shoreline. As we wandered through the colouful community, we read about the history of the various buildings many of which are cabins for rent. This is a centre for eco-tourism for Johnstone Strait and the Broughton Archipeligo. We didn’t have time for a tour, this time. Definitely on the list to come back to and stay for a few days.

We enjoyed an Americano at The Cove Coffee Company. The owner/barista made sure to understand how we liked our coffee. Craig had one of their famous cinnamon buns (with raisins) and I had a scone. All delicious and filled us up for our ferry ride to Alert Bay.

Alert Bay

We arrived in Port McNeill a little ahead of the 11:30am sailing so we had a peek in the Tourism Centre. Craig was hoping to see some old photos from the 1960’s as his grandparents lived here then. Unfortunately, the historian had retired and no photos were available to view.

Alert Bay is located on Cormorant Island and the ferry took about 45 minutes. The island is only 4 1/2 miles long and about 1 mile wide. Upon arrival we walked to the Tourist office to get directions to the Anglican cemetery where Craig thought his grandfather was buried. The woman there let us know that it was walkable, but there was a big hill to walk up. We walked along the main street boardwalk and had a look inside the Anglican Church. Then we found the path we needed to take. It was a hill…but only took about 10 minutes to get to the top.

The cemetery is quite overgrown, and had a majestic totem on the upper section ((Thunderbird, Killer Whale, Wolf). Craig and I searched the entire cemetery for a headstone of John Hunter Murchie, but with no success. Some plots appeared to have no headstone and others were so worn, it was impossible to see any lettering. Disappointing but not unexpected.

We had about an hour left before the ferry back to Port McNeill departed, so we walked down the hill through a residential area toward the U’mista Cultural Centre. We we were too late for the Kwok’Wala presentation explaining the history of outlawing ceremony potlaches in 1894 by the Government of Canada and the confiscation of ceremonial regalia and art work. U’mista’s purpose is to repatriate those artifacts.

Along the beach on our way to U’mista, we met Fred who was logging a driftwood cedar tree for shakes and for large pieces that he would have carved. Alert Bay is famous for indigenous carvers. We learned about his upbringing at Alert Bay, about the residential school that existed until the 1970’s, his moving away, and now returning to Alert Bay…or more specifically to ‘Namgis First Nation. He also told us who to reach out to for information on where Craig’s grandfathers grave is located.

The walk back to the ferry dock was pleasant. We spoke with many locals. Everyone was kind and welcoming. Next time, spending more time in the cultural centre and viewing more of the amazing totems on the island is in order.

Watch for the next installation of our travels – Port Hardy to Prince Rupert and beyond.