Newcastle Island Provincial Park
Newcastle Island is the perfect day trip within Nanaimo. Visitors to Nanaimo can leave their vehicles at their hotel and walk down to the Newcastle Island ferry terminal, located at Swy-A-Lana Lagoon Park, just north of downtown. Or better yet, you can camp at the beautiful oceanside Newcastle Island campground (see the links below).
Newcastle Island - Nanaimo's Great Secret!
Visitors to Nanaimo usually encounter this park as a large, undeveloped island on their left as they enter Departure Bay on the ferry. Newcastle Island was bustling in the elder days; it's been home to quarries, a fish packing plant, generations of First Nations residents, and coal mines. All of these facets are visible today as park installations and leavings.
- Newcastle Island Ferry information
- BC Government's Newcastle Island Park webpage
- More government info: Project G.O.'s Newcastle Island webpage
Newcastle Island was acquired from the CP Railway by
the city in 1955, then passed on to the Province in 1961, at which
point it was made into a park. It is quite large, especially
considering its proximity to downtown Nanaimo; a walk around the
circumference covers more than 7.5 kilometers. The hiking is easy.
There are camping facilities on the south end of the island, close to
where the ferry drops off passengers.
The island is home to albino raccoons (or are they simply blonde?), deer, bald eagles, rabbits, some kind of weasel, mallards, geese, and a host of other kinds of wildlife.