Tofino, Pacific Rim, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Kayakers setting off to explore Clayoquot Sound

Kayaking: The spectacular Clayoquot Sound is a premier sea kayaking destination, offering miles of sheltered inlet waterways, exciting coastal stretches, and pounding surf beaches. Boating and paddling these waters is one of the most rewarding ways to experience this environment. Depending on your skill level, you can either plan a trip on your own or join up with one of the tour operators that use Tofino as their base.
Kayaking day trips close to Tofino include paddles to Meares, Stubbs, Wickaninnish, and Vargas Islands, all within sight of the federal dock in Tofino.
You can land on the east coast of Vargas Island, a 3-mile (5-km) paddle north from Tofino, and make the one-hour journey across island on foot to Ahous Beach. If you paddle to Ahous rather than hike, be prepared for a stretch of open ocean as you round the exposed southwest corner of Vargas. If it's blowing too hard, check out isolated Medallion Bay on the south end of the island, a delightful place to land. Nothing on Vargas, however, tops the lengthy expanse of Ahous Beach, which rivals Long Beach in size. So vast is its hard-caked, sandy surface that light planes occasionally land here.
As intimidating as the ocean can be at Long Beach, there are wonderfully long, calm days in summer when boaters and paddlers can safely enjoy an excursion offshore. A boat launch is located beside the parking lot at the north end of Long Beach, beside Highway 4.
Grice Bay is a sheltered niche of ocean waterway tucked in beside Meares Island in the backwaters of Clayoquot Sound. At low tide, the bay drains so low that it takes on the appearance of a green marshland. Eelgrass covers much of the mudflats in Browning Pass, which links Grice Bay with Tofino to the north. A boat launch is located at the end of Grice Bay Road, which leads east from Hwy 4, almost 9 miles (14 km) south of Tofino.

Hiking: The extensive network of trails in the Pacific Rim National Park is provided for hikers only - no bikes or horses are permitted - and motorized vehicles are not allowed on the park's beaches or trails. The hiking trails are designed to expose visitors to the miles of quiet sandy shoreline and to the truly wonderful forests of the region. Many of the trails in the park provide short, easygoing walks. The Wickaninnish Trail (easy; 6 miles/10 km return) involves a much longer excursion between the beaches on Wickaninnish and Florencia Bays. It begins beside the Wickaninnish Interpretive Centre and follows the same route as the South Beach Trail, before striking off on its own towards Florencia Bay. This is one of the best rain-forest trails in the park.
Numerous short trails lead through the salal and Sitka spruce forest and along the beaches of the park. Some of the trails follow pathways that have been tunnelled through the overhanging salal; others follow wooden boardwalks. Many of the trails lead through interpretive zones where plaques describe the biodiversity in the surrounding rain forest. From mid-March to September, park naturalists are on hand at the Wickaninnish Interpretive Centre to answer questions and lead tours. In the off-season, take one of the self-guided trails such as the Shoreline Bog Trail (0.5-mile/0.8-km loop), the Rain Forest Trail (two 0.6-mile/1-km loops), and the Spruce Fringe Trail (1-mile/1.5-km loop). The Gold Mine Trail (2 miles/3 km return) leads visitors to Wreck Beach on Florencia Bay from Hwy 4. It passes through an old gold mining site. The South Beach Trail (1 mile/1.5 km return) leads from the Wickaninnish Centre to Lismer and South Beach, across a rocky headland with great ocean vistas. As the motion of the surf rolls the pebbles on the beach back and forth, it produces a percussive, musical sound. Towards the north end of Long Beach, the Schooner Cove Trail (1 mile/2 km return) leads through the rain forest and down a staircase to a secluded beach from Hwy 4.
Hike into history; the 3-km Meares Island Big Cedar Trail leads to the Hanging Garden Cedar, a living tree with a trunk circumference of 20 meters and estimated to be over 2,000 years old!

Camping: With almost one million visitors a year to Pacific Rim National Park, it's important to have somewhere for them to camp, especially after they've driven all that way. With this in mind, Parks Canada maintains campgrounds in the park for both those who wish a formal site and those who wish to make contact with the wilderness. At the Green Point Campground on Long Beach, about 10 km north of the Tofino / Ucluelet junction on Hwy 4, you'll find 94 vehicle/tent sites and 54 walk-in sites on the beach, sheltered by thick stands of salal.

Tofino Harbour on Clayoquot Sound

Diving: A vast tableau of the marine life that thrives in the nutrient-rich waters of the west coast of Vancouver Island is arrayed underwater in Dawley Passage Provincial Park, a popular local dive site located due east of Tofino. Strong currents surge through a narrow passage, which makes for clear water but sketchy conditions. Divers must be sure to explore the 1899 wreck of the schooner Hera, right off Tofino Harbour, British Columbia�s first designated underwater heritage site.

The magnificent Pacific Rim National Park is the only national park on Vancouver Island, providing protection for substantial rain forests and an amazing marine environment on the west coast of Vancouver Island. The full force of the mighty Pacific Ocean mercilessly pounds the constantly changing shores of this rugged coastline. This unique park encompasses a total area of 49,962 hectare of land and ocean in three separate geographic units - Long Beach, the Broken Group Islands and the world-famous West Coast Trail. Nature's reward to hardy hikers include immense old-growth rainforests and significant Nuu-chah-nulth archaeological sites, long sandy beaches, prolific and abundant marine life, isolated beaches swept by powerful surf, cliffs, sea stacks, and surge channels.
Long Beach: Located between the villages of Tofino and Ucluelet, the Long Beach unit is the most accessible and most developed component of the Pacific Rim National Park and is open year-round. Named for its 12-mile stretch of surf-swept sand, Long Beach offers outstanding beach hiking.
The Broken Group Islands: A pristine archipelago made up of more than 100 rocky islands and islets in Barkley Sound, the Broken Group Islands can only be reached by boat. Eagles, sea lions and marine life abound, and tide pools and dozens of sandy pocket beaches beckon to photographers and nature enthusiasts.

Vargas Island Provincial Park protects the rugged western portion of Vargas Island, Blunden Island and the tiny La Croix Group of islands immediately northwest of Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

Flores Island Provincial Park includes the western and southern parts of Flores Island, in Clayoquot Sound northwest of Tofino. This vast, untamed wilderness area protects three undisturbed watersheds and hosts a network of trails through ancient Sitka Spruce forests.

Nuu-chah-nulth Totem Pole

Maquinna Provincial Park is located on the east coast of remote Hesquiat Harbour, northwest of Tofino in the remote northern end of Clayoquot Sound. Outdoor enthusiasts will revel in the wide range of exciting activities available in the park, including sea kayaking, hiking and swimming. One of the main attractions of the park is the hot mineral water of Hot Springs Cove.

Annual Events: Most of Tofino's annual events focus on family fun, including Aboriginal Days, the West Coast Maritime Festival, and the Tofino Lantern Festival. The Shorebird Festival is held in May to celebrate the arrival of tens of thousands of shorebirds to resting places on the beaches and mudflats of the estuaries in Barkley Sound and Clayoquot Sound. Tofino and Ucluelet are directly in the path of the Pacific Flyway, making the area an ideal location for nature watchers when large flocks of birds fill the sky.

The Edge to Edge Marathon is hosted by Ucluelet and Tofino in June. Runners will run a slightly undulating course through the Pacific Rim National Park between Tofino and Ucluelet - a perfect marathon distance on a beautifully natural course.

Just a half-hour drive south of Tofino is the fishing community of Ucluelet, which means "safe harbour" in the Nuu-chah-nulth language. Visit the scenic Amphitrite Point and Lighthouse, explore the trails around He-tin-kis Park, and visit the Thornton Creek hatchery.

Quait Bay is a remote bay nestled in a hidden cove deep in the wilderness north of Tofino on Vancouver Island. Located off Herbert Inlet in Clayoquot Sound, Quait Bay offers a unique experience for the discerning outdoor enthusiast.