Road Trip Strathcona Park – Buttle Lake, Mount Washington
Campbell River
Buttle Lake
95
km
1h42
drive
All seasons
season
The Itinerary
Strathcona Provincial Park, BC's oldest provincial park (1911), occupies the mountainous heart of Vancouver Island. 250,000 hectares of glaciated ranges including Golden Hinde (2,200 m, the island's highest), alpine lakes and Della Falls — Canada's tallest waterfall (440 m).
From Campbell River, Highway 28 runs 65 km west to the Westmin Mine near Buttle Lake. The 30 km lake offers canoeing, kayaking, trout fishing and swimming. Several day trails leave the lake: Lupin Falls, Karst Creek, Lady Falls. For Della Falls, take a water taxi south then hike 16 km (multi-day).
Mount Washington Alpine Resort, 1 hour south, is the island's signature ski hill — known for record snowfall (up to 11 m/year). In summer, the chairlift reaches 1,590 m for panoramas over the Strait of Georgia. Forbidden Plateau, a ski centre abandoned in the 1990s, is now a prized wild hiking and snowshoe destination.
From Campbell River, Highway 28 runs 65 km west to the Westmin Mine near Buttle Lake. The 30 km lake offers canoeing, kayaking, trout fishing and swimming. Several day trails leave the lake: Lupin Falls, Karst Creek, Lady Falls. For Della Falls, take a water taxi south then hike 16 km (multi-day).
Mount Washington Alpine Resort, 1 hour south, is the island's signature ski hill — known for record snowfall (up to 11 m/year). In summer, the chairlift reaches 1,590 m for panoramas over the Strait of Georgia. Forbidden Plateau, a ski centre abandoned in the 1990s, is now a prized wild hiking and snowshoe destination.
Points of Interest
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Della FallsCanada's tallest waterfall (440 m), water-taxi access.
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Buttle Lake30 km long, canoe, kayak, trout fishing.
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Mount WashingtonIsland's signature ski hill, up to 11 m of snow.
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Forbidden PlateauFormer ski centre, wild hiking and snowshoe paradise.
Protected areas along the route
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BEAVER LODGE TRAILS
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ELK FALLS PARK
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REBECCA SPIT MARINE PARK
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JOHN HART LAKE
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Breton Island
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WOOD MOUNTAIN SKI PARK
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Big Bay
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LOWER QUINSAM LAKE
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MAUD ISLAND
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Shellalligan Bay
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NYMPHE COVE REC.SITE
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LOVELAND BAY PARK
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Take this route offline
Cell coverage thins out fast once you leave Campbell River. Export the map as a geo-referenced PDF before you go and open it in BorealMaps — your GPS position shows on the map with no signal at all.
Try PDF Export How geo-referenced PDF maps workPractical info
- Departure Campbell River
- Destination Buttle Lake
- Distance 95 km
- Duration 1h42
- Category Short (< 100 km)
- Best season All seasons
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