VICTORIA AND VANCOUVER ISLAND - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 237

Park Fee
You're not charged a fee just to travel straight through the park to Tofino, but if you stop
anywhere en route, a strictly enforced charge applies. A one-day permit is adult $7.80, seni-
or $6.80, child $3.90.
Flora and Fauna
Like the entire west coast of Vancouver Island, Pacific Rim National Park is dominated
by littoral (coastal) rainforest. Closest to the ocean, clinging to the rocky shore, a narrow
windswept strip of Sitka spruce is covered by salty water year-round. These forests of
spruce are compact and low-growing, forming a natural windbreak for the old-growth
forests of western hemlock and western red cedar farther inland. The old-growth forests are
strewn with fallen trees and lushly carpeted with mosses, shrubs, and ferns.
The park's largest land mammal is the black bear, some of which occasionally wander
down to the beach in search of food. Also present are blacktail deer, raccoons, otters, and
mink. Bald eagles are year-round residents. Gray whales migrate up the coast each spring,
seals and porpoises inhabit the park's waters year-round, sea lions overwinter on rocky off-
shore outcrops, and salmon spawn in the larger creeks through late fall.
Long Beach
Ensconced between rocky headlands are more than 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) of hard-
packed white sand, covered in twisted driftwood, shells, and the occasional Japanese glass
fishing float. Dense rainforest and the high snowcapped peaks of the Mackenzie Range
form a beautiful backdrop, while offshore lie craggy surf-battered isles home to myriad
marine life.
You can access the beach at many places, but first stop at the renovated Kwisitis
Visitor Centre (Wickaninnish Rd., 250/726-4212, 10am-4:30pm daily mid-Mar.-mid-Oct.,
11am-3pm Thurs.-Sun. the rest of the year, free), which overlooks Long Beach from a pro-
tected southern cove near the south end of the park. This is the place to learn about the
natural and human history of both the park and the ocean through exhibits and spectacu-
lar hand-painted murals. From the Kwisitis Visitor Centre, Long Beach extends north for
around 11 kilometers (6.8 miles). With the ocean on one side and piles of driftwood pushed
up against lush rainforest on the other, you'll never tire of the scenery.
Camping
The park's one official campground fills up very fast every day through summer, because
it's in a marvelous location behind Long Beach (also known as Green Point Campground).