Canada Guide
Vancouver Island
The Southern Gulf Islands
Scattered between Vancouver Island and the mainland lie several hundred tiny islands, most no more than lumps of rock, a few large enough to hold permanent populations and warrant a regular ferry service. Two main clusters are accessible from Victoria: the Southern Gulf Islands and the San Juan Islands, both part of the same archipelago, except that the San Juan group is in the United States.
The coastline makes for superb sailing, and an armada of small boats crisscrosses between the islands for most of the year. Hikers and campers are also well served, and fishing, too, is good, with some of the world's biggest salmon having met their doom in the surrounding waters. The climate is mild, though hardly "Mediterranean" as claimed in the tourist blurbs, and the vegetation is particularly lush. There's also an abundance of marine wildlife (sea lions, orcas, seals, bald eagles, herons, cormorants).