BC trip

January 11, 2006 12:42 PM

My wife and I are talking about going to Vancouver and the San Juan Islands this year. What's the best time of year to go? We have a young son so kayaking is difficult... What's the best way to whale watch that's family friendly? Which island is best to stay on? Any other parts of BC you'd suggest we explore?
posted by Shanachie to travel & transportation (11 comments total)

best time of year to be a tourist is in September when the other tourists are gone ;) As well, the weather tends to be better - usually less rain

While you are in the San Juan's, why not drop by Vancouver Island? Then I would suggest going to Ucluelet and Tofino to see big powerful Pacific Ocean waves, and enjoy the tranquil lushness of our rainforest.
posted by seawallrunner at 12:55 PM on January 11, 2006

Agree with seawallrunner about the timing.

If you head down to Steveston (southwest Richmond area) there are whale watching tours that are apparently quite well received. It's also a nice area for a walk/ride on the dykes and just spending time near the ocean. Bicycle rentals are right next to the docks.

BC is really big and varied, so you might want to say how long you're in the area for and how much actual travelling you'll accept. I really like the Quesnel/Barkerville area (which I why I bought 5 acres of land up there), but it's an 8.5 hour drive from Vancouver.

Assuming you're sticking around Vancouver and the islands, Victoria is a nice overnight trip (I suggest dinner at The Reef).
posted by Kickstart70 at 1:06 PM on January 11, 2006

I've been to the San Juans in July. The weather is typically beautiful, and if you go on a weekday the crowds aren't bad at all. If at all possible don't take your car (at least not to Friday Harbor.) That is definitely a pain whenever, and the Washington State ferries costs a small fortune in the summer to drive onto.
posted by sevenless at 1:31 PM on January 11, 2006

If you want good weather, you're stuck going between Jul 15 and Aug 15. May and September can be nice, but you're taking a chance. Whale watching takes place in March/April and again in October. The outfits in Steveston are good and will probaly be able to find resident killer whales outside of the Grey Whale migratory seasons.

BC is huge, you need to determine what you want to see, but a one week trip, including the San Juans, Vancouver is your only real possible destination. Tofino is superb, but is approx. and eight hour journey by car, accounting for ferrys and stops.

Victoria is good and close, as is the coast west of Victoria towards Sooke and past. Damn near as pretty as Tofino/Long Beach, way closer, and far less crowded.
posted by Keith Talent at 1:32 PM on January 11, 2006

I spent all my summers on San Juan Island and still go there a lot, so maybe I am biased, but it does have the most to offer - an actual town with amenities, good beaches, great walks, and some bizarro stuff. So here goes:

- in the spring-summer you can usually see orcas from the bluffs between County Park and South Beach. Its free of course! Ask the locals for the best spot, or look for the parked cars, around 6 or so in the evening. Whale watching out of Friday Harbour usually takes you there anyway. There are a lot of dolphins - harbour and white-sided - around those waters, I have a 100% rate of finding them when taking people sailing to see them, so whale watching trips are unlikely to be skunked.

- visit the amazingly surreal "Afterglow Vista" at Roche Habor. Its a Masonic mausoleum, outdoors. Very odd. Get an ice cream or a clam chowder at Roche Harbor too.

- South Beach is a good beach for walking though slightly gravelly. The best sand beach by far is Eagle Cove near False Bay. Jakyl's Lagoon is a good morning beach. For sunsets, South Beach is unbeatable.

- The Pig War (British- American mid 19thC) is an interesting historical vignette, and the opposing camps are well represented and preserved historical sites. Both are best visited in late afternoon I think.

- the walks on the clifftop dunes above Cattle Point are good.

- the UW has a marine research station which sometimes offers tours. There would be a lot of critters for kids to look at.

- Egg Lake is good for swimming.

- You can take the ferry direct to/from Sidney on Vancouver Island from Friday Harbor. IN summertimes, the clipper passenger catamaran stops in FH on its Victoria BC to Seattle route.

- FH has things like a movie theatre, drugstore, library, cafes, hardware, etc., that the other islands lack. It also has a great little theatre with plays and some good performers rotating through - I saw Wynton Marsalis & Octet there a few years back -- it only seats 200 so a pretty good concert! These kinds of diversions/resources can be useful for with-kids traveller. Those other islands are mostly about walks and views. Shaw Is is quite flat if you are cycling, while Orcas is very rugged with great views to the east of Mount Baker if you go up to the top of Mt. Constitution.

- Southern Vancouver Island has a lot to offer but that's a different topic. Don't forget about the BC Gulf Islands as well, and, as noted, the west coast beaches are pretty great (note: there are some spectacular beaches -- Mystic, Sombrero -- just 1.5 hours north of Victoria on the Sooke-Port Renfrew road, which beats driving 5 hours to Tofino/Ucluelet/Pacific Rim. Bamfield/Pacheenah is a better destination that ways anyhow, in my opinion.

- in both BC and San Juans you can get on the Gulf Islands/San Juan ferries and just go around and around -- very cheap mini-cruises of some pretty spectacular scenery.

I live here (Victoria) so emailme (profile) if you want any more info. There was a thread a while back on visiting Victoria with kids, that might be useful - depends how old.

Seasonality -- September is good, as noted, reliably sunny, fewer crowds - but - often the ferry schedules are reduced. Long term patterns suggest May is drier than June. From mid July to the end of August it is not uncommon to have no rain at all in Victoria/San Juans. Even in the summer it cools down at night from ocean breezes.

On preview: whale watching for greys is indeed seasonal but the boats go out all year round, looking at orcas, dolphins and sea lions primarily.
posted by Rumple at 1:53 PM on January 11, 2006 [1 favorite]

One of the nicest experiences I had when I was living on San Juan Island (at Friday Harbor Laboratories) was going to Lime Kiln Park and watching the sunset and the orcas. Amazing.

Your son would probably enjoy the Whale Museum in town too (you didn't mention how young he is...I assume older than a toddler?)
posted by nekton at 1:57 PM on January 11, 2006

If you want to really get away from it all, take a look at the road from Victoria to Sooke all the way to Port Renfrew.

Port Renfrew is a tiny little hamlet at the end of the road, but the beaches are cool for rock-hopping and tide-pools.
posted by frogan at 3:28 PM on January 11, 2006

How young is your son? The best *way* to whale watch is in an open Zodiac boat, the rubber raft-type boats that bounce over the waves, making you feel like you're on a Greenpeace raid. You wear insulation suits that make you sweat on shore, but seem barely enough out at sea. I'm not sure I'd want to take a toddler that way though.

I live on the west coast of Vancouver Island and throw my vote behind some of the beaches here too, if you can't make Pacific Rim park out by Ucluelet.
posted by Yogurt at 3:36 PM on January 11, 2006

If you do the Port Renfrew drive, make sure you've got a full tank of gas. The one time I made the trip -- years ago -- I had to stay the night because there was no place open to fuel up and I didn't have enough to get back.

In the morning I did stop at a cool little espresso stand in the woods though. Different vibe there.
posted by showmethecalvino at 3:46 PM on January 11, 2006

Anyone coming to BC should definitely visit the Gulf Islands, Saltspring is the hub.

A trip up the Sea to Sky Highway to Squamish, Whistler, Pemberton and even Lillooet is also not to be missed. If you travel that far, the trip back down the Fraser Canyon is pretty spectacular. Depending on your mood you can do such a journey in a day or two, or take your time and make a week of it.

The last two weeks of July and first two weeks of August are the best times to come, with the least chance of rain.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 11:28 PM on January 11, 2006

I'm not sure if it's already clear, but based on the title of the question it looks like you think the San Juan islands are in B.C., but they are not. They are in Washington State. There are a bunch of nearby similar islands in B.C. called the Gulf Islands, of which Salt Spring Island is the largest. I'd say that the gem for visiting is Hornby Island, which is further north and reached via ferry from Vancouver Island (the ferry is a 3-hour drive from Victoria).

Having grown up on Vancouver Island, I would agree with those who recommend visiting. If you're going to drive up from Victoria to Port Renfrew, which is indeed worthwhile just for tidepooling at Botanical Beach (I remember loving that when I was a little kid - except when I fell into one of the tidepools!), you can make it a round-trip by driving from Port Renfrew to Cowichan Lake on very well maintained logging roads, then to Duncan and back to Victoria along the highways.

There is a ferry from the San Juans that goes to Sidney (near Victoria on Vancouver Island).

I also agree with the most recent post recommending driving the Sea-to-Sky highway to Whistler, them Pemberton, then Lillooet. The stretch from Pemberton to Lillooet in particular has incredible scenery. This is on the mainland near Vancouver, by the way.
posted by Emanuel at 8:13 AM on January 12, 2006