Page 63 - Travel Guide to Canada 2019
P. 63
BC
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VANCOUVER AT DUSK • SHUTTERSTOCK/R.M. NUNES
At the Great Bear Rainforest on B.C.’s bountiful Okanagan Valley vineyards
northern coast, First Nations guides will (www.route97.net).
take you on a search for the elusive white Park Pick
kermode spirit bear (www.spiritbear.com). The Pacifi c Marine Circle Route meanders KOOTENAY NATIONAL PARK
from Cowichan Valley’s wineries to the
Icy waterfalls and steamy hot springs.
Go faster, higher, stronger at the Richmond towering rainforests of remote southwest
Deep canyons and towering mountain
Olympic Experience, North America’s fi rst Vancouver Island, with panoramic ocean
peaks. Remote wilderness within easy
offi cial member of the Olympic Museums views along the way (www.circleroute.ca).
reach. Kootenay National Park, part of
Network (www.richmondoval.ca/therox).
a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a
Take the week-long Hot Springs Circle Route
place of beautiful contrasts. It is long
Join a whale watching tour from Tofi no. through the Kootenay Rockies and soak in
and narrow, running eight km (fi ve
You’ll spot dolphins, orcas, sea lions and, if the region’s spectacular mountain views as
mi.) on either side of Highway 93 in
you’re lucky, majestic humpbacks frolicking well as its mineral-rich hot springs.
southeastern B.C. Its quirky shape is
in the waters off Vancouver Island (www.
the result of a 1920 agreement
tourismtofi no.com). For info on these and other driving trips visit:
between the provincial and federal
www.hellobc.com/travel-ideas/road-trips
governments that created the park in
Taking tea at the Fairmont Empress Hotel is exchange for a highway through the
a longstanding Victoria tradition. Even FAMILY FUN
Rocky Mountains. As a result, rugged
better? Cocktails. Stop by for the royal purple Little ones (and big ones, too!) will love
though it is, many of the park’s
Q 1908 cocktail at the hotel’s chic Q Bar meeting British Columba’s wilder residents.
greatest attractions are easily accessi-
(www.fairmont.com/empress-victoria). Whale watching off Vancouver Island is an
ble, even by wheelchair, including the
epic adrenaline rush, but you can also hang
SCENIC DRIVES with sea lions and other marine creatures at popular healing Radium Hot Springs
(www.parkscanada.gc.ca/kootenay).
From the rushing waters of Hell’s Gate to the Vancouver Aquarium (www.vanaqua.org).
the First Nations heritage village of Learn about cougars and coyotes at the BC Forget the map, use the app: To
explore Kootenay National Park,
Tuckkwiowhum, the winding Fraser Canyon Wildlife Park in Kamloops (www.bcwildlife.
scenic drive along Highway 1 off ers a thrill a org), go bug-eyed at the Victoria Bug Zoo download Parks Canada’s fi rst guided
minute, with delicious stops en route. (www.victoriabugzoo.ca) and The Exploration driving tour app, Explora Kootenay.
Place Museum and Science Centre in Prince
The open road of Route 97 takes you from George (www.theexplorationplace.com), National Parks and Historic Sites:
www.parkscanada.gc.ca
the windswept grasslands of the Thompson or visit the resident grizzlies at Grouse
1-888-773-8888
River Valley cowboy country through the Mountain (www.grousemountain.com). 
