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Carrot Park in Port Hardy with the Government wharf in the background

Watch your Wheels! You've reached the end of Island Highway 19 - Port Hardy is as far north as you can drive.

Port Hardy was named after Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy, former captain of H.M.S. Victory. With a population exceeding 5000, this turn-of-the-century townsite is now the largest community in the region and the bustling terminal for B.C. Ferries' service to Prince Rupert and the Queen Charlotte Islands via the Inside and Discovery Coast Passage sailing routes.

As 97 percent of the population of Vancouver Island lives on the southern half of the island, outdoor recreationists in search of solitude come north. Much of Vancouver Island once looked as the north still does today. Thanks to recent government protection, some of the remaining wilderness has been preserved. Other places, such as the most northerly tip of the island, are sheltered from the preying eye of industry by the elements.

Cape Scott Provincial Park is one of the wildest, windiest, most woebegone locales in the province for human habitation. Journeying to either Brooks Peninsula or Cape Scott is only for those whose mettle has been tested by repeated exposure to the bellows and blast-furnace of nature in the raw.

Gentler conditions prevail in the sheltered waters of Queen Charlotte Strait and Johnstone Strait, where the Kwakwaka'wakw First Nations are the traditional gatekeepers. To experience a tranquillity that passes all description, paddle these waters where whales rub and salmon run in summer months.

Port Hardy is the largest community of the North Island, with many facilities. Visitors can enjoy a wide variety of outdoor activities, as well as shopping and exploring the local arts and culture scene. The top half of 280-mile-long Vancouver Island is served by a maze of logging roads and Highway 19, which links Campbell River with Port McNeill and Port Hardy.

Population: 4,585

Location: Highway 19, the main highway serving Vancouver Island, links Port Hardy with Victoria and all other major centres on the island. Other communities in the North Island, including Coal Harbour, Holberg and Port Alice, are connected to Port Hardy by well-maintained highways. Port Hardy is the closest commercial Airport providing flights to Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo and many coastal communities.

• Stroll or jog along the seawall to the bustling harbour, where fishing boats, sail boats and float planes always seem to be coming or going. Follow the seawall to Carrot Park and view the war memorial, next come to Tsulquate Park. The next park along this scenic seawall is the Kinsmen Park and pavilion, a great place for a picnic or barbecue. Follow Market Street to Fishermens Wharf, alive with seiners, gillnetters, trollers, sailboats, and sport fishing boats in summer and fall.

• Port Hardy is rich in Native culture, and Native Art shops and galleries offer arts and crafts produced by local Native artisans. Several artists invite you to watch a work in progress from the comfort of their workshops. Various aboriginal tours are available, offering an insight into Native history and culture.

• Port Hardy Museum

  The Port Hardy Museum is open year round exhibiting a small collection of native Indian artifacts, local history items, natural history materials, and local archives. Open year-round, except two weeks starting on Christmas Day.

• A sign near the waterfront advertises fresh shrimp for sale at the town dock. You can cook them up at a pleasant picnic site on Hardy Bay next to the ferry.

• The Quatse River Hatchery is one of four operated by the North Vancouver Island Salmonid Enhancement Agency, which works with local resources in the recovery of the salmonid stocks in North Island streams. The hatchery offers tours of its salmon incubation facilities, troughs and tanks with young fish, and is open Monday to Friday from 8 am to 4:00 pm. The best fish viewing occurs in October when salmon enter the river to spawn. The peak spawning period for Pink Salmon is early to mid October and mid to late October for Coho Salmon.

• Keep your camera handy, as the rugged northern coast of Vancouver Island is a remarkable area teeming with wildlife. Be your own guide, or benefit from the local knowledge of land-based and water-based tour operators who will guide you to the natural habitat of black bears, cougars, black tailed deer, Roosevelt elk, timber wolves, and a large variety of birds and eagles. Organized grizzly bear viewing trips are available to nearby Knight Inlet and other locations on the BC mainland.

• Hardy Bay and the Quatse River Estuary are visited by a wide range of wildlife. Bald Eagles and Great Blue Heron are common throughout the year. Scan the exposed mud flats during low tides for many species of shorebirds. During fall and winter waterfowl are found, including Canada Geese, American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Bufflehead and mergansers. Cormorants and many seabird species are also seen. During the fall, salmon travel through the bay and enter the Quatse River, attracting wildlife that feeds on the dead and dying fish.

• Whale Watching is a must on a trip to Port hardy, where viewing possibilities include killer whales, Grey Whales, Humpback whales, and Minke whales. Other marine life viewed on whale watching trips might include sea lions and harbour seals.

• An active recreational centre, Port Hardy is a year-round gateway for wilderness explorers seeking adventure in the vast wonders of North Vancouver Island.

• The waters off northern Vancouver Island are amongst the finest in the world for diving, known for their profusion of invertebrate life, curious wolfeels, walls studded with colonies of pink soft coral, colourful anemones a variety of sponges and starfish - sighting killer whales from the surface in Johnstone and Queen Charlotte Straits is a common occurrence.

• Good kayaking is found in the protected waters of the east coast of the island. There are several staging areas, including Beaver Harbour south of Port Hardy, allowing you to kayak or canoe to spectacular locations - canoe and kayaks can be rented by the day or week. Many parts of the Discovery Coast to the north of Port Hardy are relatively unknown to kayakers. This region will appeal to resourceful paddlers who seek a sense of pioneering, which includes laying some groundwork, discovering new fishing spots, wildlife watching, dealing with unknown tidal currents, and finding new campsites. Guided and self-guided day tours and two to seven day trips are available, with or without mother ships.

• A network of publicly accessible logging roads has opened up wilderness areas on the west coast of the island, providing access to Winter Harbour, Cape Scott and Raft Cove Provincial Parks. Hiking routes vary from short trails to an 8-hour trek to the tip of Cape Scott Provincial Park (see Trails section). The Tex Lyon Trail offers a rugged 5-hour trek along the coastline to Dillon Point. San Jose Bay and Raft Cove also offer spectacular beaches. The new North Coast Trail, a 130-km hike along the east coast of Northern Vancouver Island, is now in the active planning stage.

• In the summer, an additional B.C. Ferry service enables visitors to reach Bella Coola via the Discovery Coast Passage. The voyage takes 33 hours and stopovers include Klemtu, Ocean Falls, and Shearwater. Cabins are not available, however, there are showers and reclining seats, reservations are highly recommended.

• Explore the stunning beauty and enjoy the scenic grandeur on one of the world's most awe-inspiring voyages - take the 15-hour BC Ferries trip from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert through the Inside Passage. Reserve accommodation in Port Hardy ahead in summer; motels are usually packed the night before the Prince Rupert boat leaves and the night after it arrives.

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