Port Alice

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Port Alice
Village
Village of Port Alice [1]
Port Alice 2020.jpg
Port Alice Rumble Beach Marina
Canada Vancouver Island location map.svg
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Port Alice
Location of Port Alice in British Columbia
Canada British Columbia location map 2.svg
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Port Alice
Port Alice (British Columbia)
Coordinates: 50°25′36″N127°29′17″W / 50.42667°N 127.48806°W / 50.42667; -127.48806
CountryCanada
Province British Columbia
Regional district Mount Waddington
Founded1917
District municipality1965
Village1971
Government
 • Governing bodyPort Alice Village Council
Area
[2]
 • Land7.03 km2 (2.71 sq mi)
Population
 (2021) [2]
 • Total739
 • Density105.1/km2 (272/sq mi)
Time zone UTC-8 (PST)
Highways BC-30.svg Hwy 30
Website www.portalice.ca OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Port Alice is a village of approximately 739 (2021 census) located on Neroutsos Inlet, southwest of Port McNeill, on Vancouver Island, originally built by Whalen Pulp and Paper Mills of Vancouver. The community is known for its natural environment, pulp mill, and salt water fishing.

Contents

History

Aerial view of the original townsite Aerial view of Port Alice.jpg
Aerial view of the original townsite

Historically, before 1750, the area was home to the Hoyalas, followed by the Koskimo people in the late 1800s. [3]

It was named after Alice Whalen, the founders' mother. The brothers Whalen began their construction of the mill at its present site in 1917, [4] with first pulp produced in 1918. The mill at Swanson Bay, on the Inside Passage farther north, was also a Whalen operation.

Due to heavy rainfall and the surrounding steep slopes, Port Alice experienced mud and rock slides in 1927 and 1935, which contributed to the decision to relocate the town site away from the mill in 1965. Landslides continued to occur in the area and at the new townsite in 1973, 1975, 1987, and 2010. [3]

In 1965, Port Alice became a district municipality and was incorporated as a village on January 1, 1971. [5]

Port Alice bears a resemblance to Port Annie, the fictional town described by Vancouver Island author Jack Hodgins in his novel The Resurrection of Joseph Bourne.[ citation needed ] The new orchid hybrid "Port Alice" has been officially listed at London England in the Royal Horticultural Society's "Book of Registered Orchid Hybrids". This slipper-type flower is the result of crossing a complex hybrid Paphiopedilum "Western Sky" with a species Paphiopedilum appletonianum.

Geography

Devil’s Bath, a flooded sinkhole near Port Alice, is an example of a cenote [6] and is the largest in Canada at 359 meters in diameter and 44 meters in depth. [7]

There are a number of hiking destinations in the area. They include Devil’s Bath, Eternal Fountain, Vanishing River & Reappearing River. These are a series of ancient karst and limestone formations. The access is through dirt roads.

Climate

Port Alice has an oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) and is one of the mildest and wettest places in Canada, receiving 3.4 metres (130 in) of actual rainfall per year and exceptionally little snow, which amounts to as much as 33 percent more rainfall than infamously wet Prince Rupert and only marginally less than Southeast Alaska’s wettest cities of Ketchikan and Yakutat which each average around 3.8 metres (150 in) and receive much more snowfall.

Climate data for Port Alice
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Record high °C (°F)20.5
(68.9)		19.0
(66.2)		21.5
(70.7)		26.0
(78.8)		31.5
(88.7)		33.5
(92.3)		35.5
(95.9)		34.5
(94.1)		29.5
(85.1)		26.5
(79.7)		22.8
(73.0)		17.2
(63.0)		35.5
(95.9)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)7.4
(45.3)		8.0
(46.4)		9.9
(49.8)		12.2
(54.0)		15.6
(60.1)		18.1
(64.6)		20.8
(69.4)		20.9
(69.6)		18.4
(65.1)		13.3
(55.9)		9.2
(48.6)		7.0
(44.6)		13.4
(56.1)
Daily mean °C (°F)4.9
(40.8)		5.1
(41.2)		6.4
(43.5)		8.3
(46.9)		11.3
(52.3)		13.8
(56.8)		16.1
(61.0)		16.4
(61.5)		14.1
(57.4)		10.2
(50.4)		6.6
(43.9)		4.6
(40.3)		9.8
(49.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)2.4
(36.3)		2.2
(36.0)		3.0
(37.4)		4.2
(39.6)		6.9
(44.4)		9.5
(49.1)		11.4
(52.5)		11.8
(53.2)		9.7
(49.5)		7.0
(44.6)		4.0
(39.2)		2.2
(36.0)		6.2
(43.2)
Record low °C (°F)−12.2
(10.0)		−11.5
(11.3)		−5.5
(22.1)		−1.7
(28.9)		0.5
(32.9)		1.1
(34.0)		5.0
(41.0)		4.5
(40.1)		0.0
(32.0)		−4.0
(24.8)		−11.5
(11.3)		−12.8
(9.0)		−12.8
(9.0)
Average precipitation mm (inches)492.2
(19.38)		354.0
(13.94)		320.4
(12.61)		258.3
(10.17)		147.3
(5.80)		100.1
(3.94)		59.5
(2.34)		94.6
(3.72)		130.2
(5.13)		417.6
(16.44)		561.4
(22.10)		491.2
(19.34)		3,426.8
(134.91)
Average rainfall mm (inches)484.1
(19.06)		345.3
(13.59)		316.1
(12.44)		257.8
(10.15)		147.3
(5.80)		100.1
(3.94)		59.5
(2.34)		94.6
(3.72)		130.2
(5.13)		417.5
(16.44)		559.1
(22.01)		487.0
(19.17)		3,398.6
(133.80)
Average snowfall cm (inches)8.1
(3.2)		8.7
(3.4)		4.3
(1.7)		0.5
(0.2)		0.0
(0.0)		0.0
(0.0)		0.0
(0.0)		0.0
(0.0)		0.0
(0.0)		0.1
(0.0)		2.4
(0.9)		4.2
(1.7)		28.3
(11.1)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm)23.319.722.720.117.016.010.411.914.622.224.122.8224.7
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm)22.819.522.520.117.016.010.411.914.622.224.022.3223.3
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm)2.22.21.70.40.00.00.00.00.00.10.81.89.2
Source: [8]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Port Alice had a population of 739 living in 415 of its 538 total private dwellings, a change of

Historical census populations – Port Alice
YearPop.±%
1966 1,383—    
1976 1,497+8.2%
1981 1,668+11.4%
1986 1,387−16.8%
1991 1,371−1.2%
1996 1,331−2.9%
YearPop.±%
2001 1,126−15.4%
2006 821−27.1%
2011 805−1.9%
2016 664−17.5%
2021 739+11.3%
Source: Statistics Canada [2] [5]

Notable people

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "British Columbia Regional Districts, Municipalities, Corporate Name, Date of Incorporation and Postal Address" (XLS). British Columbia Ministry of Communities, Sport and Cultural Development. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Port Alice (Code 5943017) Census Profile". 2021 census . Government of Canada - Statistics Canada . Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  3. 1 2 Brenda McCorquodale (27 March 2014). "Port Alice has a history of landslides". North Island Gazette. Black Press Media. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  4. ↑ "Port Alice Official Website".
  5. 1 2 "1971 Census of Canada - Population Census Subdivisions (Historical)". Catalogue 92-702 Vol I, part 1 (Bulletin 1.1-2). Statistics Canada: 76, 139. July 1973.
  6. ↑ map of the area
  7. ↑ Port Alice Tourism Vancouver Island North
  8. ↑ "Calculation Information for 1981 to 2010 Canadian Normals Data". Environment Canada. Archived from the original on February 19, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Bio – Dr. Patrick Moore".
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