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Port Hardy has something for everyone. If you like active, outdoor pursuits like hiking, wilderness camping, spelunking (exploring caves), surfing, kayaking or river rafting, you’ll find challenging, often world-class conditions in the area. The same is true for quieter pastimes like wildlife viewing, birding, and fresh and saltwater fishing. Culture lovers will be thrilled by the vast range of Aboriginal works on display in local galleries and the quality of the exhibits in the local museum.
Port Hardy is a small town with a lot to offer, particularly when it comes to recreation. The town is handy to three provincial parks: Cape Scott Provincial Park, Marble River Provincial Park and Raft Cove Provincial Park. All three offer superb walking and hiking trails and walk-in wilderness camping (backpackers should be prepared to be self-sufficient). There's also a vehicle-accessible campground adjacent to Marble River Provincial Park.
Experienced hikers who don't mind wet weather will enjoy the wild beauty and many points of historical interest along the Cape Scott and North Coast Trails. Together, they extend 60 km (37 mi) along mostly coastal terrain. Another challenging coastal trail, the Tex Lyon Trail, requires sturdy footwear and a tide book to navigate safely. Raft Cove Provincial Park is popular with backpackers and serious wilderness adventurers, who often set up camp on its long, crescent-shaped, sandy beach. Be prepared to travel active logging roads en route to that park. Many easier trails of varying lengths can be found in Marble River Provincial Park and, for a scenic stroll within arm's reach of civilization, there's the town's seawall walking path.
Guided caving and grizzly bear watching tours are available from a number of local operators. Cavers will be thrilled with the large number of caves and underground formations in Little Huson Cave Park and the Artlish Caves. Bear watchers should exercise caution and refrain from feeding bears at all times.
Other popular local pastimes include curling, indoor mini-golf, bowling, darts, badminton, martial arts, tai chi, dancing and golf (there are three courses in the area).
There are several excellent art galleries in Port Hardy but the most exciting aspect of the local art scene is the abundance of high-quality Aboriginal art and crafts. In fact, the town is the centre of a renaissance of the art and culture of the Kwakiutl, who are known for their highly stylized masks and colourful dances. The Fort Rupert reservation has an art gallery and a studio/gallery where you can watch totems being carved and purchase beadwork crafts, jewellery, water colours and more.
The Port Hardy Museum focuses on the history of Fort Rupert, the original European settlement in the area. It also contains a lot of Aboriginal exhibits and some information about surrounding towns. At the Fort Rupert site, you'll find the old Hudson's Bay Company fort's chimney, a historic graveyard and an impressive Aboriginal Big House. Archaeological studies of the site indicate that it was first occupied some 8,000 years ago.
One of the area's most beautiful attractions is Ronning's Garden, which was developed by a Norwegian settler from seeds and cuttings, starting in 1910. It contains many unique and exotic plants, including two of BC's oldest Chilean monkey puzzle trees. Good times to visit are spring and early summer, when the bulbs and rhododendrons are blooming. Tours are an excellent way of exploring points of interest around town and there are many to choose from. You can take a driving tour of Fort Rupert and a walking/driving tour of its totem poles. You'll learn about sustainability issues, forestry processes and machinery, and make stops in various logging communities on forestry tours that leave weekly from Port McNeill in July and August. Guided tours of salmon stock enhancement work at the Quatse River Hatchery are also available. Sports and fitness enthusiasts will enjoy the town's fully equipped recreation centre. It has an ice arena, swimming pool, spa, sauna and weight room and offers recreation programs year round.
Entertainment options in Port Hardy include shopping for Aboriginal art and crafts along picturesque Market Street, summer baseball tournaments and first-run movies at the local cinema.
Nature lovers will never run out of things to do in Port Hardy. Wildlife sightings are common in area parks and along the coast. On a guided tour, you might see Orcas (Killer Whales); Grey, Humpback and Minke Whales; seals; sea lions; many bird species; Grizzly Bears; Black-tailed deer; Roosevelt Elk; Timber Wolves and Cougars. The Quatse River Estuary Wildlife Viewpoint is a top spot for viewing Bald Eagles, seabirds and shorebirds.
The town is close to three provincial parks. Marble River Provincial Park is a good place for wilderness hiking, biking, wildlife viewing and fishing excursions. A well-maintained 4.2-km (2.6-mi) trail will take you to the Marble River, which teems with spawning salmon in the fall. Raft Cove Provincial Park offers spectacular ocean views and great wildlife viewing. It's also well situated for storm watching. Cape Scott Provincial Park is a popular day hike and backpacking destination. Scenery along its more than 115 km (72 mi) of coastline includes rocky promontories, jagged headlands and white-sand beaches. The eastern portion of the park contains a number of estuaries that are accessible only by boat.
Nature asserts herself in town as well. Carrot Park, for example, fronts the ocean and offers good views of the mountains and marine traffic in the town's busy port. It's also the starting point for the popular seawall walking path.
Storey's Beach is one of the most restful places around Port Hardy. At low tide, you can stroll along a vast expanse of packed, grey sand with Great Blue Herons and Bald Eagles for company. The calm water there is perfect for swimming and kayaking and there's a park nearby equipped with picnic tables, fire pits, a ball field and a shelter.
Diving conditions around Port Hardy are truly exceptional. In 30 m (100 ft) visibility, you can join dolphins, wolf eels, seals and sea lions as they swim among basket stars, strawberry corals, sea pens, nudibranches, sea cucumbers, plumose anemones and sunken ships on the ocean floor. Top diving spots include Browning Passage, Stubbs Island, Christie Pass and Quatsino Narrows. Equipment rentals and guided diving tours are available year round.
Lots of fishing tours, boat rentals and custom charters are available in Port Hardy, which also has a full-service marina. Marble River Provincial Park is a good place to go for both fresh and salt-water catches. Steelhead, Cutthroat, Rainbow and Dolly Varden Trout; and Chinook and Coho Salmon are all plentiful there. In fact, the Marble River is considered one of the best steelhead rivers on Vancouver Island. Other area catches include Sockeye, Pink and Chum Salmon; Red Snapper; Rock Fish; Sea Bass, halibut and crab.
Prime locations for river rafting, kayaking and surfing are Nimpkish Valley (rafting), Beaver Harbour and Cape Scott (kayaking), and Raft Cove and San Josef Bay (surfing and boogie boarding). Kayakers can take advantage of an array of day tours and two to seven-day excursions with or without guides.
In winter, people in Port Hardy head for the local ski hill, Mount Cain. Low-key and family-oriented, it's open weekends only and line-ups are rare. Activities on offer include superb powder skiing and snowboarding, snowshoeing and mountain climbing. Cabin rentals are available. Another popular winter pastime is storm watching, which can be done from any establishment with clear views of the ocean.
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