Hornby Island (population: 1,074) and Denman Island (population: 1,095) lie off the east coast of Vancouver Island. Both feature large arts communities, scenic parks and beaches, and exceptional wildlife viewing opportunities. Hornby has provincial parks, a public campground, a summer-only art gallery, and a community hall staging music and theatre productions year round. Hornby is scenic and ecologically rich, with a shoreline marked by sandstone rock formations and an array of marine wildlife – including rare, six-gill sharks.
This spring, Hornby Island is getting extra attention with its resident population of nesting bald eagles. You can watch the progress of a nesting pair of eagles through the Hancock Wilflife Foundation's live eagle nest camera:
Denman Island is a 10min ferry ride from Buckley Bay, which is just south of Courtenay on Vancouver Island. From there, it is a 10min drive to the ferry crossing for Hornby Island. The Denman-to-Hornby crossing also lasts 10min. Both islands can be accessed via floatplane or private boat as well.