Van Travel in the Canadian province of British Columbia is amazing, exciting ….and a little intimidating. There are thousands of acres of Crown Land, (Crown Lands are the Canadian equivalent of National Forest and BLM lands) relatively few established roads, and more than a few types of charismatic megafauna to consider. Last September, we ventured north and explored as far as the roads (and season) would take us. In this post, we’ll share some of our favorite campspots, sights and places to catch some great food and drink.
A few general tips for van travel in BC: Provincial Recreation Areas are cheaper and more remote than provincial parks. These Rec Areas are often free, but be prepared to drive a good ways on dirt/gravel roads. iOverlander was as helpful as ever in BC, we found many great spots using that app.
A caveat: our list is all about less well known spots. No Canadian Rockies or National Parks here. Those spots are awesome, but there’s lots of great info out there about them –such as this guest post right here on Crazy Brave Adventure. BC is big– HUGE even–and our list is but a starting point for your own explorations.
If you’d like to see all our camp spots on our route through BC, and south along the West coast, check out our adventure map (year 2). We’ve tried to add a bit of info about each spot along the way.
Our Five Favorite Sleeps
Usually, we are all about the boondocking. Free camping is our middle name 🙂 But in BC, we appreciated a mix of wild and not so wild. The camp spots below are just that.
Kinbasket Lake
Kinbasket lake is a huge reservoir south of the teeny town of Valemount in Eastern BC. We were headed south to Kamloops and happened upon it when looking for a stay-over spot. The very helpful staff at the Valemount visitor center tipped us off to free camping along the East side of the lake, and what a lucky tip that was! We set up on the shore with magnificent mountain views in every direction.
While Kinbasket Lake felt pretty remote to us, it was an easy afternoon for locals. A few groups camped not too far off and there was more than a bit of trash at this spot. There were also some interesting ruins from mining or other industrial operations, including a whole concrete foundation(!) No services here: no water, no pit toilets. None of this dampened our enthusiasm. The views were just that great. If you’re into kayaking or canoeing, even better. We hear there are developed campgrounds along the lake to the south, but we didn’t venture any further. A bonus: Valemount has an awesome coffee shop with delicious baked goods!
Sunset Lake Recreation Area
This free campground on the shores of a sweet little lake is not far off the Yellowhead Highway, and the road in was relatively easy to navigate in our two wheel drive van. (Blacktop most of the way!) We were able to park right next to the lake and watch otters play out the back door. There are pit toilets here, and extra room for parking if the established sites are taken when you arrive. It’s a beautiful, quiet spot, not far from Granisle, and all the recreation available there.
Riverside Campground, Smithers
This campground is not particularly wild or scenic, although there are some awesome trails along the river nearby. And it’s not cheap to stay here; sites range from $26 CD – $40 CD. We mainly included this spot because of its proximity to the town of Smithers.
After a week or so of “roughing it”, we truly enjoyed our night on the town here in the outdoorsy, hip town of Smithers. We visited a microbrewery and awesome bookstore, even enjoyed the quintessentially Canadian fast food experience that is A&W (Impossible burgers!)
The campground itself has showers, flush toilets, and more proximity to neighbors than we are used to. Everyone was superfriendly though, and we enjoyed those trails along the Bulkley River quite a bit.
Smithers is an outdoor enthusiast’s mecca with climbing, mountain biking, fishing, boating, skiing and even rockhounding nearby. This spot could be a great homebase for many adventures.
Ferry Island Town Campground, Terrace
Here’s another close-to-town spot we enjoyed. This campground is HUGE, situated on an island in the middle of the Skeena River. It’s close to the highway, which is a bummer. And Terrace doesn’t have the panache of Smithers. But, the trees! There are many hidden and not so hidden carvings in the trees, and lots of dog-friendly trails through the forest to explore. Hiking here is like a treasure hunt. The sites themselves are heavily wooded, with a lot of privacy, considering the size of this place. Also, there are showers, flush and pit toilets, bike trails, a playground and access to the river on all sides.
It was pretty quiet when we were here mid September, but we imagine this place gets busy when the summer starts up. A night’s stay costs around the same as Smithers’ campground (30ish CD). But don’t be deterred, it sure is a convenient spot stop over, and the trees are pretty amazing.
Meziadin Lake Provincial Park
We found many nifty boondocking spots in BC, and — in compiling this list– we’re surprised that we included so many actual campgrounds. Truth be told, the wild lands in BC are just that: wild. And many of the roads are rough, or unmarked, or both. Also, our favorite boondocking spot (Kitwancool Lake) had um, issues… rodent invasion issues. So we can’t quite recommend it.
We were still recovering from “the night of mice” when we happened upon Meziadin Lake Provincial Park. Meziadin is a beautiful little park on the edge of an amazing, expansive lake. Salmon spawn in the rivers that feed the lake, and brown bears roam its shores. This park is an hour or two from the towns of Stewart, BC & Hyder, AK with their many amazing opportunities for exploration.
We were exhausted when we arrived here, and it had been raining (and raining and raining). This spot, though it had the “campground feel”, with neighbors nearby, was a welcome stop. The lake is beautiful and wild, and it was just what we needed. Maybe you’ll feel that way too.
Our Five Favorite BC Adventures
We were on a time crunch for much of our time in Nortrhern BC. The winter was bearing down and the bears were mostly gone. Really, there were so many amazing sights here. It was hard to pick just five, also hard to convey the sheer immensity of this place and its wildness. Every day was truly an adventure here. But the five “sights” below are a starting point anyway.
Fulton River Salmon Spawning Channel
This amazing place would be easy to miss. Although we (well, Perri) read up on the area before we arrived, we had no idea such an amazing spot was just up the road from our camp at Sunset Lake Rec Area. We were super lucky that another camper recommended it to us. This post is paying that kindness forward.
From August to October, sockeye salmon swarm this narrow river and with them, come bears, eagles, ravens, even wolves. There is a walkway over the river so that you can view all this amazingness up close. We truly had a David Attenborough moment, watching a brown bear fishing in the river.
Don’t miss this place, if you happen to be in Northern British Columbia during spawning season.
Bear and Salmon Glaciers
These two are challenge by choice. The Bear Glacier, is easily viewable from the Stewart Highway. It’s beautiful, startlingly so. The Salmon Glacier, while accessible by road, is a more challenging go. We had planned to drive the long, rough dirt road up to the Salmon Glacier but it had been raining for days and the road was a mess. We had to save that one for next time.
Stewart & Hyder
The twin towns of Stewart, BC and Hyder, Alaska are worth a visit. Stewart is the larger, and has more services: two campgrounds, a few restaurants and bars, a hotel, visitor center and food truck. Hyder, has a famous bar, a few houses, a strange, beautiful harbor, and the Fish Creek Bear Viewing Area, which we definitely recommend.
We spent a few days in this area, poking around by the rivers and beaches and ruins (on the Hyder side), visiting the bear viewing area (we were too late in the season for bears) and even doing our laundry (Stewart). It’s an interesting, tucked-away area with a lot of wid land and history surrounding it.
When visiting, keep in mind that there is a border crossing between the two towns. The Canadian side is “manned”, and they are pretty thorough with their questions considering there is no way, by land, to reach Hyder without passing through Canada.
We read about many great hikes here but the weather (RAIN!) and late season pushed us on before we had done all that much. We will definitely return someday.
Nisga’a Memorial Lava Bed Park
Anhluut’ukwsim Lax̱mihl Angwinga’asanakwhl Nisga’a, or the Nisga’a Memorial Lava Bed Park is definitely off the beaten path. But there is so much history and geology, wilderness and sheer beauty here. We totally recommend a visit. If we had more time, we’d have spent a few days exploring this area, but it was late in the season and we had to get our fair weather van south.
This valley in the Nisga’a Nation was flooded with lava relatively recently. Stories of the lava flow are part of their oral history. Several villages were destroyed, and the park is a memorial to those who died. It is jointly managed by the Nisga’a and the Province of BC. Driving through the valley, evidence of the lava flow is everywhere, green moss and small trees just starting to take back the land. There are many short hikes and viewpoints. We saw waterfalls and grizzly prints. It was an amazing side trip. In order to catch our ferry south, we missed the hot springs and historic structures here. Another one to return to!
Hiking Cluxewe Beach Recreation Trail
This last “must see” is near the northern tip of Vancouver Island. After a 17 hour ferry ride, we found ourselves in Port Hardy, “enjoying” a rainy night in a parking lot. We so needed to do something fun.
So, we took a break from our (increasingly frantic) drive south, hiked out to Cluxewe beach, embracing the cold rain that had been dogging us for so SO long.
We followed directions from Port Hardy Visitor center, got lost a few times, but eventually found a deep forest, a deserted beach full of starfish and rocks and lots of bear sign. It was awesome, and memorable! The hike is short (just a mile or so to the beach and then as long as you want it to be along the strand). Totally worth it.
Food & Drink Worth Stopping For
We spent over a month in BC and enjoyed lots of great meals (most of them cooked in our very own camper van). But when we did go out, we enjoyed it! Here are a few notable places we wholeheartedly recommend.
Desert Hills Taco Stand
Okay, bear with us here: Some of the best tacos we’ve ever had are in BC. Really. The Desert Hills Taco Stand is locally famous, and for good reason. We visited this spot with Dan’s sister from Kamloops then stopped AGAIN on our way north. There is outside seating (only), a salsa bar that’s like a vision from a fever dream. And it’s dog friendly too! If you are traveling in central BC, make time for this place.
Smithers Brewing Company
We really enjoyed our time in Smithers. It’s not a fancy town. But it is outdoorsy, and has a creative vibe that surprised us a bit. We enjoyed meeting the bookstore owner and talking rockhounding. Also enjoyed window shopping around town. But best of all was Smithers Brewing Company. It was hopping when we were there mid week and the beer was awesome.
Devil’s Bath Brewing Co.
Another brewery, right? This one, though, this one was perfect! After our rainy hike on Cluxewe Beach, we headed to Devil’s Bath Brewing Co. in the tiny town of Port McNeill to warm up and dry off. we shared some homemade soup, an awesome soft pretzel, and a flight of beer, and everything was good again. It was Saturday afternoon, and this spot beside the harbor was hoppin’. Highly recommend!
Freyja Croissant Bakery
This place was the real deal. Unexpectedly perfect baked goods (and coffee) in the middle-sized, nondescript town of Campbell River in east-central Vancouver Island. We spent several days in town, camping nearby, hiking, chore-ing, and working at the library. But when we discovered this place, our view of this town changed. It is just that good. If you happen to be in Campbell River, do yourself a favor and check it out.
Farmer’s Market, Campbell River
We lucked upon this market while doing laundry on a Saturday at the end of September. Not only did we buy the best smoked salmon we have ever eaten, but we also scooped up some lovely local mushrooms. A great dinner was had by all.
But BC is so much more
Turns out this meager “best of” list does no justice to the immense and varied province of British Columbia. There is so much to see here, so many areas we never got to explore. We will definitely be back, BC. And when we do, we’ll share some of the awesome things we encounter to aide you in your own crazy brave adventures.