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Gulf Islands National Park Reserve Unveils New Campground Plant Walk

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By NPT Staff - June 5th, 2023

The SMONEĆTEN campground plant walk goes through a Douglas-fir forest.

The SMONEĆTEN campground plant walk goes through a Douglas-fir forest/Jennifer Bain

Gulf Islands National Park Reserve has opened camping for this year’s summer visitor season, with reservable campsites available until Sept. 30.

The park reserve is part of the iconic Trans Canada Trail, the world’s longest network of multi-use recreational trails. Many kayakers enjoy the convenience of its backcountry campgrounds to complete the Salish Sea Marine Trail section of the trail.

Located near Victoria on Vancouver Island and just a ferry ride from Vancouver in mainland British Columbia, Gulf Islands offers outdoor terrestrial and marine activities. It has three seasonal frontcountry campgrounds plus nine year-round backcountry campgrounds.

Summer highlights include:

• A new self-guided SMONEĆTEN campground plant walk spans about 1 kilometre (0.6 miles) through the Douglas-fir forest near Sidney. Panels highlight plants that are important to the W̱SÁNEĆ people and have artistic depictions of the plants by W̱SÁNEĆ artist Sarah Jim. Information about each species is presented in SENĆOŦEN (the language of the W̱SÁNEĆ people), English and French.

• A new drop-in special event at the Sidney Spit day-use area is slated for July 16 and called the Ocean Wise WhaleBlitz. The event helps people gain species identification skills and contribute to citizen science as they scan the Salish Sea for whales and other cetaceans (marine mammals) with Parks Canada interpreters. Shore-based whale watching is a non-invasive way to collect important information about whales.

• Sidney Spit and SMONEĆTEN Campgrounds provide opportunities to learn about Coast Salish history and cultures with First Nations-led interpretation programs. Parks Canada staff will lead weekly interpretation programs in July and August on the Saanich peninsula and the Southern Gulf Islands.

• Explore Greater Victoria, fall asleep to the sound of the waves and listen to the stories of a Coast Salish Knowledge Holder while camping at one of 12 campgrounds. Book on the Parks Canada website at reservation.pc.gc.ca or by calling 1-877-RESERVE (1-877-737-3783). 

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