The Lower Mainland is a geographic and cultural region of the mainland coast of British Columbia that generally comprises the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley. Home to approximately 2.83 million people as of the 2016 Canadian Census, the Lower Mainland contains sixteen of the province's 30 most populous municipalities and approximately 60% of the province's total population.
Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is 456 km (283 mi) in length, 100 km (62 mi) in width at its widest point, and 32,134 km2 (12,407 sq mi) in area. The island is the largest by area and the most populous along the west coasts of the Americas.
Mount Waddington, once known as Mystery Mountain, is the highest peak in the Coast Mountains of British Columbia, Canada. Although it is lower than Mount Fairweather and Mount Quincy Adams, which straddle the United States border between Alaska and British Columbia, Mount Waddington is the highest peak that lies entirely within British Columbia. It and the subrange which surround it, known as the Waddington Range, stand at the heart of the Pacific Ranges, a remote and extremely rugged set of mountains and river valleys.
Port Alberni is a city located on Vancouver Island in the province of British Columbia, Canada.
The Alberni–Clayoquot Regional District of British Columbia is located on west central Vancouver Island. Adjacent regional districts it shares borders with are the Strathcona and Comox Valley Regional Districts to the north, and the Nanaimo and Cowichan Valley Regional Districts to the east. The regional district offices are located in Port Alberni.
Qualicum Beach is a town located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. At the 2016 census, it had a population of 8,943. It is situated at the foot of Mount Arrowsmith, along the Strait of Georgia on Vancouver Island's northeastern coast.
Fossli Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on Stirling Arm of Sproat Lake on Vancouver Island. The 52-hectare park, west of Port Alberni, is accessible by water or private logging road. It has few services, but has a 30-minute hiking trail to an old homestead site. The homestead belonged to Helen and Armour Ford, who donated the land for the park to the province in 1974. Saint Andrew's Creek runs through the park, and is a fall spawning ground for coho salmon.
Taylor Arm Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on the north side of Sproat Lake 23 km northwest of Port Alberni on Vancouver Island. Situated along Highway 4, the 71-hectare park has few services but provides group camping sites, undeveloped beaches, and day-use areas. The group camping site has pit toilets and a hand pump water supply, and is connected to the lake shore via a trail that passes under the highway.
Great Central Lake is a lake on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is located north of Sproat Lake and to the northwest of the city of Port Alberni. It is 45 kilometres (28 mi) long, with an area of 50.85 square kilometres (19.63 sq mi) and mean depth of 124 metres (407 ft), to a maximum of 250 metres (820 ft), making it the second deepest lake on Vancouver Island. The lake is long and narrow, with the exception of Trestle Bay located on the east end of the lake. It is nestled beneath low mountains, with second-growth forest surrounding most of the lake. The water level is controlled by a dam on the east side.
The Vancouver Island Ranges, formerly called the Vancouver Island Mountains, are a mountain range extending along the length of Vancouver Island which has an area of 31,788 km2 (12,273 sq mi). The Vancouver Island Ranges comprise the central and largest part of the island. The Geological Survey of Canada refers to Vancouver Island, Haida Gwaii, and the Alaska Panhandle as the Insular Belt including the sea floor out to 100 km (62 mi) west of Vancouver Island. The Vancouver Island Ranges are a sub-range of the Insular Mountains.
The Insular Mountains are a range of mountains in the Pacific Coast Ranges on the Coast of British Columbia, Canada, comprising the Vancouver Island Ranges and Queen Charlotte Mountains. The Insular Mountains are rugged, particularly on Vancouver Island where peaks in Strathcona Provincial Park rise to elevations of more than 2,000 m (6,562 ft). The highest of these mountains is Golden Hinde on Vancouver Island, which rises to 2,196.818 m (7,207 ft).
The Hupacasath First Nation is a First Nations government based in the Alberni Valley on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It is a member of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council. An alternate spelling of Hupacasath is Opetchesaht or Opitchesaht. Hupacasath First Nation consists of approximately 300 members across five reserves.
Franklin River in Vancouver Island, British Columbia, is located between Alberni Inlet and Barkley Sound, was named as part of the Vancouver Island Exploration Expedition of 1864. The river was named for Selim Franklin, Esquire, who was Chairman of the Exploration Committee.
Sproat Lake is a lake on central Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was known as Kleecoot by local indigenous people.
Somass River is a river on Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Its drainage basin is 1,412 square kilometres (545 sq mi) in size.
Klitsa Mountain is a prominent mountain on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, located 26 km (16 mi) west of Beaver Creek and 59 km (37 mi) southeast of Golden Hinde. It can be viewed from Highway 4 along Sproat Lake. It is the second highest mountain in the Alberni Valley area, after Mount Arrowsmith. its name derives from a Nuu-Chah-Nulth word meaning "always white".
In 1864 the Vancouver Island Exploring Expedition explored areas of the Colony of Vancouver Island outside the capital of Victoria and settlements in Nanaimo and the Cowichan Valley that were then unknown. The expedition went as far north as the Comox Valley over four and one half months during the summer and fall of 1864. The result was the discovery of gold in one location leading to a minor gold rush, the discovery of coal in the Comox Valley, an historical record of contact with the existing native population, the naming of many geographic features and a series of sketches recording images of the time.
Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve situated in Clayoquot Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. A diverse range of ecosystems exist within the biosphere reserve boundaries, including temperate coastal rainforest, ocean and rocky coastal shores.
Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region (MABR) is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve located on the east coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was designated in 2000 by UNESCO to protect a large second-growth coast Douglas fir ecosystem in the watersheds of the Little Qualicum and Englishman Rivers from being developed.
