October in British Columbia -
August 8, 2023 4:41 PM Subscribe
I'm going on a work trip to Victoria, BC in October. I want to take a ~week's holiday while I'm there, preferably on a group trip of some kind. However, it seems to be too late in the year for the summer activities and too early for the winter ones. I'd like to see some wildlife, scenary, and history. Help me find what I'm after!
The holidays I like tend to be guided group tours with 5-20 other people. The kind run by G Adventures or Explore. I've called a travel agent and gone to my usual operators, but the closest trip the agent could find around my dates was based out of Las Vegas. I'm assuming that the operators don't run any October dates in BC/PNW because of the weather.
So, first question: Are there any good operators in the region who do this kind of tourism that I'm missing? I've tried my usuals, plus Canadian Sky.
Second question: Assuming that the organised tour is off the table, what would you have on your list for a week in BC/PNW at this time of year? Based on my research, an outline would be a 1 day whale watching trip, a day wandering around Vancouver (I'm very sad that the Museum of Anthopology looks like it will be shut), then hire a car, head to Whistler for a 2-3 nights to do some outdoors-y things, then work my way back toward Vancouver. What's the amazing thing that I've missed?
Other notes:
- I'm reasonably fit and healthy, but also 40. No mountaineering or overnight hikes. I'm not into fishing.
- I can ski well. October is way too early for the Rockies, right?
- Given a good reason I'd be willing to take a short flight from Victoria/Vancouver
The holidays I like tend to be guided group tours with 5-20 other people. The kind run by G Adventures or Explore. I've called a travel agent and gone to my usual operators, but the closest trip the agent could find around my dates was based out of Las Vegas. I'm assuming that the operators don't run any October dates in BC/PNW because of the weather.
So, first question: Are there any good operators in the region who do this kind of tourism that I'm missing? I've tried my usuals, plus Canadian Sky.
Second question: Assuming that the organised tour is off the table, what would you have on your list for a week in BC/PNW at this time of year? Based on my research, an outline would be a 1 day whale watching trip, a day wandering around Vancouver (I'm very sad that the Museum of Anthopology looks like it will be shut), then hire a car, head to Whistler for a 2-3 nights to do some outdoors-y things, then work my way back toward Vancouver. What's the amazing thing that I've missed?
Other notes:
- I'm reasonably fit and healthy, but also 40. No mountaineering or overnight hikes. I'm not into fishing.
- I can ski well. October is way too early for the Rockies, right?
- Given a good reason I'd be willing to take a short flight from Victoria/Vancouver
Whistler is in the Coast mountain range, not the Rockies. And yes, October is too early for skiing.
If you want to hike, Squamish might be a better base camp. Depending on when exactly in October you are visiting, the weather and your level of preparedness, you might even be able to sneak in higher mountain hikes such as Garibaldi Lake or Joffre Lake.
Consider picking up Tofino. You can whale watch from there, take kayak excursions, go to Hot Springs cove, or even try surfing.
Forget history in Vancouver. They knock over this place every 50 years and try again. For culture, I’d be looking for Mandarin or Cantonese speaking guides to take you on a food tour of Richmond. You can also get a feel for the food experience at the Crystal Mall food court in Burnaby.
posted by shock muppet at 5:20 PM on August 8, 2023
If you want to hike, Squamish might be a better base camp. Depending on when exactly in October you are visiting, the weather and your level of preparedness, you might even be able to sneak in higher mountain hikes such as Garibaldi Lake or Joffre Lake.
Consider picking up Tofino. You can whale watch from there, take kayak excursions, go to Hot Springs cove, or even try surfing.
Forget history in Vancouver. They knock over this place every 50 years and try again. For culture, I’d be looking for Mandarin or Cantonese speaking guides to take you on a food tour of Richmond. You can also get a feel for the food experience at the Crystal Mall food court in Burnaby.
posted by shock muppet at 5:20 PM on August 8, 2023
Forget history in Vancouver. They knock over this place every 50 years and try again.
First Nations peoples have been living in and around Vancouver for a good four thousand years, I believe. The MOA is closed right now. If you go to the Sunshine Coast, there is a small but interesting SC-specific museum in Gibsons near the ferry and a Sechelt people-specific museum in Sechelt itself (I haven't visited, looks fairly small, too).
posted by praemunire at 5:31 PM on August 8, 2023
First Nations peoples have been living in and around Vancouver for a good four thousand years, I believe. The MOA is closed right now. If you go to the Sunshine Coast, there is a small but interesting SC-specific museum in Gibsons near the ferry and a Sechelt people-specific museum in Sechelt itself (I haven't visited, looks fairly small, too).
posted by praemunire at 5:31 PM on August 8, 2023
Both things can be true. Remember that we stole their land and worked really hard to erase their culture.
One interesting First Nations site is the Sen̓áḵw development at the foot of the Burrard Bridge. It’s a marvel of what you can create in an urban setting if you focus on building for people instead of cars. However, it’s currently a construction site and not much of an attraction.
For my money I would visit the Big Tree Trail in the Tla-O-Qui-Aht tribal parks near Tofino. All of the businesses in Tofino and neighbouring Ucluelet are pretty invested in keeping good relationships with the First Nations.
posted by shock muppet at 7:12 PM on August 8, 2023
One interesting First Nations site is the Sen̓áḵw development at the foot of the Burrard Bridge. It’s a marvel of what you can create in an urban setting if you focus on building for people instead of cars. However, it’s currently a construction site and not much of an attraction.
For my money I would visit the Big Tree Trail in the Tla-O-Qui-Aht tribal parks near Tofino. All of the businesses in Tofino and neighbouring Ucluelet are pretty invested in keeping good relationships with the First Nations.
posted by shock muppet at 7:12 PM on August 8, 2023
Best answer: October here can be pretty nice or very grey. Last year we had sunny days with temps into the mid-high 20s C.
Victoria is windier but drier than Vancouver and the rest of the Fraser valley in the fall. Squamish and Whistler are likely to be cool, damp and cloudy to rainy.
I am biased, I chose to live here, but I like what Victoria has to offer. That being said it’s likely to be waking rocky coast lines climbing hills or driving out of town to see other things. Unless you like hipster coffee, local ice cream and seagulls. All of which I rather like :).
Driving upisland (Victoria is at the southern tip - virtually everything is upisland) you get to:
- Goldstream Park on the edge of the metro area has ferns and big trees. A pocket of temperate rainforest. Many walking/hiking trails.
- near the summit of the Malahat there’s the skywalk. It’s the for a reason - the view is spectacular and there’s a slide!
- Mill Bay is basically a village but there’s also a ferry there. It’s a 20minute ride back to the Saanich peninsula
- further up Nanaimo also has a ferry back to the mainland. Two actually. Duke Point (leaves from the terminal south of Nanaimo) lands in Tsawwassen same as the Victoria ferry. Departure Bay (downtown Nanaimo) lands north of Vancouver
- a little further along you get to the hwy 4 turnoff that goes west towards Tofino. Tofino is spectacular if you like cold water surfing, storm watching and sandy beaches.
- if you don’t want to go that far and don’t mind driving to see giant trees Cathedral Grove is just past Cameron Lake and not far from Nanaimo
- WildPlay Nanaimo is just south of the city and offers ziplining and bungee jumping. The bungee jumping goes from a bridge built just for the purpose, what, 35 years ago? If memory serves it doesn’t actually touch the other side of the ravine.
- if you were coming in late dec you could drive another two hours and ski at Mt Washington. The snow can be spectacular but the season is short and you’ll be much too early
There’s a lot to see if you like what we’ve got. If you don’t particularly care for it then it’s all more of the same. If you’re interested in staying closer to Victoria I can recommend
- Mt Tolmie for hiking or diving - you get the best views of the city.
- East Sooke Park for hills and trees and picturesque shorelines
- Harbour Air flies to a number of destinations but the one you might be most interested in is Victoria harbour to Vancouver harbour. Takes about 35min, runs about $250ish. The ferries are out of town at both ends and the sailing itself takes 95min
- there’s also a ferry to Port Angeles at the foot of the Olympic Range. The view is better from Victoria though. There’s also the clipper to Seattle.
- very close to home you should still be able to rent a kayak or similar personal watercraft and paddle up the gorge if that’s your thing.
posted by mce at 8:34 PM on August 8, 2023
Victoria is windier but drier than Vancouver and the rest of the Fraser valley in the fall. Squamish and Whistler are likely to be cool, damp and cloudy to rainy.
I am biased, I chose to live here, but I like what Victoria has to offer. That being said it’s likely to be waking rocky coast lines climbing hills or driving out of town to see other things. Unless you like hipster coffee, local ice cream and seagulls. All of which I rather like :).
Driving upisland (Victoria is at the southern tip - virtually everything is upisland) you get to:
- Goldstream Park on the edge of the metro area has ferns and big trees. A pocket of temperate rainforest. Many walking/hiking trails.
- near the summit of the Malahat there’s the skywalk. It’s the for a reason - the view is spectacular and there’s a slide!
- Mill Bay is basically a village but there’s also a ferry there. It’s a 20minute ride back to the Saanich peninsula
- further up Nanaimo also has a ferry back to the mainland. Two actually. Duke Point (leaves from the terminal south of Nanaimo) lands in Tsawwassen same as the Victoria ferry. Departure Bay (downtown Nanaimo) lands north of Vancouver
- a little further along you get to the hwy 4 turnoff that goes west towards Tofino. Tofino is spectacular if you like cold water surfing, storm watching and sandy beaches.
- if you don’t want to go that far and don’t mind driving to see giant trees Cathedral Grove is just past Cameron Lake and not far from Nanaimo
- WildPlay Nanaimo is just south of the city and offers ziplining and bungee jumping. The bungee jumping goes from a bridge built just for the purpose, what, 35 years ago? If memory serves it doesn’t actually touch the other side of the ravine.
- if you were coming in late dec you could drive another two hours and ski at Mt Washington. The snow can be spectacular but the season is short and you’ll be much too early
There’s a lot to see if you like what we’ve got. If you don’t particularly care for it then it’s all more of the same. If you’re interested in staying closer to Victoria I can recommend
- Mt Tolmie for hiking or diving - you get the best views of the city.
- East Sooke Park for hills and trees and picturesque shorelines
- Harbour Air flies to a number of destinations but the one you might be most interested in is Victoria harbour to Vancouver harbour. Takes about 35min, runs about $250ish. The ferries are out of town at both ends and the sailing itself takes 95min
- there’s also a ferry to Port Angeles at the foot of the Olympic Range. The view is better from Victoria though. There’s also the clipper to Seattle.
- very close to home you should still be able to rent a kayak or similar personal watercraft and paddle up the gorge if that’s your thing.
posted by mce at 8:34 PM on August 8, 2023
Mid to late October is usually the beginning of the salmon run at Goldstream. That would be worth checking out if you haven't seen it before. Plenty of day hiking to do in that area as well.
As for tour operators, they usually operate into October and close up in November. For example, Maple Leaf Adventures has a tour of Desolation Sound that still has spots available. You'd have to be able to get to North Vancouver Island, though. A lot of these kinds of tours are out of Port McNeill and Port Hardy.
Generally speaking, the tours in BC are more of the eco tour variety. You won't get a lot of history in tours like this. There are some tour companies operated by First Nation's groups, like K’awat’si Tours, that will have more of a focus on indigenous history and cultural experiences, but they are still primarily eco tours. K'awat'si Tours operates out of Port Hardy, so that's North Vancouver Island again.
Vancouver/Victoria have a lot of day tours that you can do, especially if you're interested in food tourism. Also whale watching out the wazoo, if that's your thing.
posted by forbiddencabinet at 10:23 PM on August 8, 2023
As for tour operators, they usually operate into October and close up in November. For example, Maple Leaf Adventures has a tour of Desolation Sound that still has spots available. You'd have to be able to get to North Vancouver Island, though. A lot of these kinds of tours are out of Port McNeill and Port Hardy.
Generally speaking, the tours in BC are more of the eco tour variety. You won't get a lot of history in tours like this. There are some tour companies operated by First Nation's groups, like K’awat’si Tours, that will have more of a focus on indigenous history and cultural experiences, but they are still primarily eco tours. K'awat'si Tours operates out of Port Hardy, so that's North Vancouver Island again.
Vancouver/Victoria have a lot of day tours that you can do, especially if you're interested in food tourism. Also whale watching out the wazoo, if that's your thing.
posted by forbiddencabinet at 10:23 PM on August 8, 2023
Best answer: I would look at Tofino if you want to focus on wildlife and nature. There are lots of guided tours. It's a lovely place to visit and also one of the few places where old growth rainforest is accessible.
posted by lookoutbelow at 11:42 AM on August 9, 2023
posted by lookoutbelow at 11:42 AM on August 9, 2023
Response by poster: Thank you everyone, I had a great time on the island itself
posted by Urtylug at 2:29 PM on November 28, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Urtylug at 2:29 PM on November 28, 2023 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
I'd recommend Vancouver Island and/or the Sunshine Coast over Whistler for this time of year, since Whistler will be colder and generally less pleasant. Realistically, you are probably looking at some grey, windy, rainy days in most places. If weather is a top priority, the southern Gulf Islands will be your best bet for warmer temperatures and sunshine.
Alternatively, if you want time in a city, Vancouver has plenty to offer to keep you busy for a week.
Yes, October is way too early for skiing in the Rockies. Most ski hills open in December. Dedicated backcountry skiers can get some turns in during October, but that's not easy.
posted by ssg at 5:12 PM on August 8, 2023