Island NatureExploring nature on Vancouver Island, British Columbia and beyond

This is the time of year on Vancouver Island to get down to local riverside trails and check out the spring wildflower bloom. One of my favourite places to walk is the the Canyon View Trail in Campbell River. We usually start this moderate 6 km loop trail at the John Hart Generation Station and [...]

I am looking at Google Earth, following the coast south of Courtenay and I find myself staring at a river, the Trent, as it snakes down to the ocean, opening into a fan-like delta that forms a prominent bump on the coastline. Even from this bird’s eye view, I’m stuck by the estuary’s beauty—a geographic [...]

If you have a chance, pull over at the Government Wharf in Fanny Bay and enjoy the show. The floats just off the dock are a regular haul out for California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) and are usually far enough away that the sea lions can sleep in peace while on lookers can watch without [...]

You can smell when winter arrives in Courtenay, British Columbia, particularly if you’re driving through an area of town known as the “Puntledge Bowl.” At this time of year, the Pink Salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) are done and it’s time for the “dog days” of winter and the arrival of the Chum Salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). The [...]

This week I put on my gumboots and headed into the heart of Merville, British Columbia to explore Tsolum Spirit Regional Park. It’s a nice place to take a leisurely stroll (the trail isn’t too long, so no need to rush) and enjoy the fall colours as well as a viewpoint overlooking the river. The [...]

It’s a spot where few people stop on their way to Ralph River Campground in Strathcona Provincial Park. There doesn’t look like there’s much to see and the road is so narrow, twisty and windy in this section that there aren’t many places to pull over safely as well, especially if you’ve got a Boliden-Westmin [...]

The Canyon View Trail in Elk Falls Provincial Park is a six kilometer loop that follows the banks of the Campbell River is spectacular right now and getting better every day. Allow yourself about 1.5 hours to dawdle along looking at spring wildflowers and doing some early spring birding. You’ve got a couple of options [...]

The name Sointula, the Malcolm Island community of utopian origin off northern Vancouver Island, translates as ‘Place of Harmony’ – but it might equally be called ‘Place of Rainbows’. A frequency of rainbows of course means an abundance of rain, of which Malcolm Island receives over 150 cm annually – but the south facing shore [...]

A hundred years ago, the name of Ripple Rock evoked dread in the hearts of mariners, but today entices hikers to explore natural history as well as human history, on the Ripple Rock Trail. The stretch of water in Seymour Narrows, part of the Discovery Passage north of Campbell River, is famous as the site [...]

During a recent visit to Sayward I happened upon a patch of giant horsetail rising from a roadside ditch. Strangely alluring, the pale brown wand-like fertile shoots appear in spring, followed shortly after by green, vegetative shoots. These anemic fertile shoots, which only last for a short period, are easily overlooked. Most of us are [...]