 Water Bomber Welcoming a Cruise Ship to Port Alberni
There is plenty to experience in Port Alberni and its surrounding valley. The many outdoors activities include fishing, scuba diving, kayaking, windsurfing, hiking, golfing and wildlife viewing. Some visitors choose to explore the area via helicopter and floatplane tours, while others discover the region’s history through the Heritage Network.
The Alberni Valley is home to a host of First Nations Heritage Network attractions. The Alberni Valley Museum boasts a superb collection of native baskets. Recently carved native welcoming figures rise from the banks of the Somass River alongside the highway. Visitors can also take an interpretive canoe ride along the river that ends at Port Alberni Harbour. In Sproat Lake Provincial Park, First Nations carvings (petroglyphs) are found on the shoreline rocks of Sproat Lake.
The Alberni Valley offers numerous campsites from which to explore the region. They include China Creek Marina and Campground, a particular favourite of sports anglers and windsurfers. Many hikers, cyclists and horseback riders follow the Log Train Trail, a historic railroad grade that leads through the Alberni Valley to the Mclean Mill National Historic Site. Those who prefer gently rolling greens head to the Alberni Valley Golf Club, an 18-hole, PGA course nestled at the foot of the Beaufort Mountains.
The architecture of the Port Alberni area reflects its past. Visit the McLean Mill National Historic Site to view Canada's only remaining steam-powered sawmill in a community restored to what it was a century ago. Or board the Alberni Pacific Railway's #7 steam train, a restored 1929 locomotive. The Maritime Discovery Centre was built around a decommissioned Canadian Coastguard lighthouse, while Sproat Lake Provincial Park is home base for the Martin Mars Flying Tankers, the world's largest water-bomber aircraft used for fighting forest fires.
The Alberni Valley Heritage Network offers four great attractions that explore the arts, culture and history of the area. The first is the Alberni Valley Museum, which features the forestry, fishing and First Nations histories of the region. The Maritime Discovery Centre is an interactive centre dedicated to exhibiting and interpreting Port Alberni's cultural, environmental and industrial maritime history. At the Alberni Harbour Quay visitors are welcomed aboard the Alberni Pacific Railway steam train for the 35-minute ride to the McLean Mill National Historic Site, home of Canada's only remaining steam-powered sawmill. The surrounding community has been restored to what it was a century ago, giving visitors a glimpse of what it was like to live and work as a logger and mill worker in the early part of the 20th century.
The Alberni Valley Heritage Network offers four great attractions. First, the Alberni Valley Museum features the forestry, fishing and aboriginal histories of the area. Next, the Maritime Discovery Centre is an interactive centre dedicated to exhibiting and interpreting Port Alberni's cultural, environmental and industrial maritime history. At the Alberni Harbour Quay visitors are welcomed aboard the Alberni Pacific Railway steam train for the 35-minute ride to the McLean Mill National Historic Site, home of Canada's only remaining steam-powered sawmill. The surrounding community has been restored to what it was a century ago, giving visitors a glimpse of what it was like to live and work as a logger and mill worker in the early part of the 20th century. You might even be held up by the notorious Beaufort Gang, train robbers on horseback. The steam train also makes a stop at the Chase and Warren Winery for a tour and tasting.
Make time for Port Alberni's Capitol Theatre. This vintage movie house has been completely restored and is now a live theatre venue. Tourists will also want to view Port Alberni's fascinating murals, which are located around the town.
Port Alberni stages entertainment all year round. The Portal Players offer live theatre events in the Capitol Theatre. The Port Alberni Bulldogs Junior Hockey Team plays to sold-out crowds in the Alberni Valley Multiplex. Port Alberni is also well-known for planning successful sports tournaments and events.
Visitors head to Alberni Harbour Quay for shopping, where the waterfront boasts many shops, galleries and restaurants.
The Port Alberni region is a nature lover's paradise, particularly for wildlife viewing. In late summer or early fall, head to Stamp Falls in Stamp River Provincial Park. Watch as thousands of Pacific salmon circle in the pool below the falls before ascending fish ladders on their way to spawning beds. Take time to hike through the lush forest and river rapids of this wonderful park, too. There are more fish to be viewed at the Robertson Creek Fish Hatchery, while birders head to the J.V. Clyne Bird Sanctuary located on the west side of the Somass River. The trumpeter swan arrives in November and remains until March. Massive salmon runs attract black bears; photograph them from the grassy bank of Victoria Quay across the river from the sanctuary. The hike up Mount Arrowsmith is worth the effort, offering superb views from its summit of the Strait of Georgia, Coast Mountain Range, Port Alberni and the mountains of Strathcona Provincial Park.
Afternoon tea is an institution at the Rollin Art Centre, particularly on the summer terrace of this historical home and gardens. There are also a number of spas in the region that provide pampering treatments for their clients.
Anglers head to Port Alberni for salmon and halibut. There are plenty of guided charters or boat rentals available for fishing expeditions of all durations. Go in June or July for sockeye, August for chinook and anytime in the spring or fall for halibut.
Sproat Lake is one of BC's finest freshwater lakes for water sports such as waterskiing, tubing, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and paragliding. On hot summer days, tube down the Stamp River. Kayak rentals are available on the waterfront along the Somass River. Port Alberni is also the gateway for kayaking trips into Barkley Sound via the MV Lady Rose. Scheduled service into the Broken Group Islands runs from June to September.
Anglers the world over head to the Stamp River system to experience some of the best steelhead fishing in Western Canada. Professional guides and outfitters help to locate the fish and keep fishers safe. Barkley Sound in winter provides excellent visibility for diving. Explore famous wrecks in these waters.
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