Cape Scott Provincial Park

Cape Scott Provincial Park is a truly magnificent area of rugged coastal wilderness that is located at the northwestern tip of Vancouver Island, 563 kilometres from Victoria.

Established in 1973 and named after the site of a lighthouse that has guided mariners since 1960, Cape Scott is characterized by more than 115 kilometres of scenic ocean frontage, including about 30 kilometres of spectacular remote beaches.

The park stretches from Shushartie Bay in the east, then westward around Cape Scott and south to San Josef Bay. Rocky promontories, salt marshes and jagged headlands punctuate the fine-textured, white-sand beaches. The most impressive of these beaches, Nels Bight, stretches more than 2,400 metres long and 210 metres wide at low tide, and is one of the park’s most popular camping destinations. Other significant beaches include San Josef Bay, Guise Bay, Experiment Bight, Lowrie Bay and Nissen Bight.

Visitors can choose between a day hike or a backpacking excursion to explore the sandy beaches, rainforests, and lowland bogs and muskeg of this wilderness park.

Cape Scott is a hike-in park, located at the northwestern tip of Vancouver Island. The only parking lot within the park, located near the southeast corner, provides easy access to the Cape Scott and San Josef Bay Trailhead. The lot, which is located 64 kilometres west of Port Hardy, can be reached by driving on a combination of public highways and private, active logging roads.

Port Hardy is the northern terminus of Highway 19, which connects with Vancouver Island communities south to Victoria; it is also the southern terminus of the British Columbia Ferries service to Prince Rupert. Port Hardy is also served by regularly scheduled air and bus lines. The community of Winter Harbour is another settlement southwest of the park that offers tourist amenities, RV campsites, fuel and a general store.