Canada’s Gulf Islands

[Honey]

The Gulf Islands, an archipelago that stretches up the Vancouver Island coast, are prized by in-the-know Canadians for their rustic beauty, bountiful farms and friendliness to typically cash-poor artists and craftsmen. Below, the view from the top of Mount Maxwell on Salt Spring, the largest of the islands.



One of many self-service produce stands on Salt Spring Island.



A seaplane used to transport visitors to Salt Spring Island.



Retreat Cove at Galiano Island, perhaps the most rustic of the Gulf Islands.



The trail leading to Pebble Beach on Galiano Island.



Searching for crabs in Montague Harbour Marine Provincial Park, which has 240 acres of wetlands, woods, beaches and campgrounds.



La Bérengerie is a restaurant and bed-and-breakfast run by Huguette Benger. She went to Galiano for vacation nearly 30 years ago, but ended up making it her home after falling in love with the trees and the sea.





Beaumont Marine Park, a gorgeous, secluded campground reachable only by boat or by a two-mile hike through forested hills, on Pender Island.




Canada’s Gulf Islands - The New York Times > Travel > Slide Show > Slide 13 of 14

[McJag]

Very beautiful. Very cold in winter?

[A*O]

It does get cold in winter but nowhere near as cold as it gets on the eastern side of the Rockies.

[L1049]

There's one particular (large) beach that looked amazing from the air. If you had something like a Cessna 172 or small Piper, you could land there and camp out for the night.

I've never been on the islands, but I've flown over them and have some air shots if anybody's interested?

But they're not the greatest quality (plane window mixed with wrong lens filter).

[Pippin]

I would love to have a small house on my own small island!



This area is sort of like The Thousand Islands of the west.

[ang]

gorgeous. i want to go visit. stat.

[mizglam]

Looks so beautiful and peaceful there!

[L1049]

Originally Posted by Pippin

I would love to have a small house on my own small island!
This area is sort of like The Thousand Islands of the west.

Here ya go Lighthouse complete with helipad. This is a bit further north than the islands in the article.


The beach I mentioned in my first post:


Another big ass beach:


This is further north but it's another beach. Only problem is that there's no way the public can get to it since it's protected being a 'Rubbing Beach' for the orca's *insert Kirstie Alley joke here*


I wish I had that GPS program for my camera, so I could tell which pics were, for sure, the islands

[Chilly Willy]

Very nice.