Vancouver Island North:  Escape Into Nature 
 
Vancouver Island North is a region of natural and cultural wealth.  It's where some of the world's greatest predators - cougars, wolves, bears and killer whales - maintain ecological balance in pristine waters and vast rainforests.  It's where First Nations people and their culture still thrive after 8,000 years.  You can see traditional big houses and the world's tallest totem poles here, watch native carvers at work and weave a cedar bracelet at a First Nations cultural gallery. It's where intrepid European settlers first began arriving in the 1800s, building fishing villages, clearing farmland and seeking to fulfil utopian dreams. 
 
The spectacular North Island area, under the jurisdiction of the Regional District of Mount Waddington, covers the northern third of Vancouver Island and large tracts of the adjacent mainland, where several remote luxury wilderness resorts can be reached by boat and floatplane. Ecoadventure in Vancouver Island's wild North is like nowhere else in the world.  You can kayak in waters abundant with sea life, including orcas and humpback whales, take a grizzly bear viewing expedition to the Great Bear Rainforest, fish for record-breaking salmon, ski the Island's deepest powder and hike the new North Coast Trail.  Friendly communities - including Port Hardy, Port McNeill, Port Alice, Alert Bay and Telegraph Cove - offer cafes and bistros, shopping, museums and art galleries, and  accommodation from waterfront hotels and cozy B&Bs to the latest in eco-lodging.   
 
Designation: Forest Capital of British Columbia 2010   
 
Population:  Approximately 12,000. Largest communities:  Port Hardy (3,800), Port McNeill (2,600) and Cormorant Island, including Alert Bay (1,300).  
  
Weather:  Vancouver Island North has a temperate coastal climate with a lush spring season that comes as early as the end of February and mild, dry summers with average temperatures in the 17C (63F) range.  Fall is crisp and cool, still ideal for outdoor activities, while winters are wet, but moderate, with seasonal temperature averaging 4C (39F).   
 
Economic Drivers:  Fishing, logging and mining have been the traditional mainstays of the Vancouver Island North economy. The region is among Canada's largest timber producers and is home to one of only a few specialty cellulose mills in North America. Other major industries include commercial fishing, aquaculture and tourism.  
  
Arts & Culture: 
First Nations art, culture and history flourish in the region.  Alert Bay on Cormorant Island is home of the outstanding Potlatch Collection at U'mista Cultural Centre and of Culture Shock, an interactive gallery and winner of a 2009 Aboriginal Tourism of BC (ATBC) award for its unique hands-on cultural experiences. At the Copper Maker Gallery on the Fort Rupert Reserve, First Nations carver Calvin Hunt has gained international fame. Port McNeill's Just Art Gallery specializes in fine Native American works by talented local First Nations artists.  
 
The Sointula Museum on Malcolm Island documents the early life of the idealistic Finns who settled here in the 19th century looking for a new socialist order. In Port Hardy, visitors can browse the West Coast Community Craft Shop, an expressive showcase for West Coast artisans. The Port Hardy Museum & Archives is a wonderful place to relive the colourful history of the early North Island settlers, including pioneering Danes who built dairy farms at rugged Cape Scott. The Port McNeill Heritage Museum, in a log house, pays tribute to the history of the local forestry industry.

