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Parks 101
The Rules
All wildlife in our parks is protected— this means no hunting.
Burning is not permitted in "fire season" when the forest is dangerously dry. Cutting trees isn't allowed but, in most parks, branches or driftwood can be collected for fires.
Plan Ahead
Potable water may not be available in some of the more isolated marine parks so plan ahead... you may want to stay a while.
Don't forget your camera, along with extra batteries and film or memory cards.
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Ambrose Lake Ecological Reserve
Recreational use is not permitted.
The Pender Harbour Wildlife Society manages this small ecological reserve near Earl's Cove. Access is restricted to non-invasive research and educational purposes, and requires a permit from BC Parks.
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Baker's Beach Park
This sheltered, sandy beach on a small bay, a favourite swimming spot for locals since the early days of Pender Harbour, was finally dedicated as a regional park in the mid-1990s. It's the site of the annual Go Green for St. Patrick's Day beach cleanup barbecue.
Access - Warnock Road, off Francis Peninsula Road in Madeira Park.
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Dan BOsch Park
With a sandy swimming beach on Ruby Lake, this summer, day-use (9 a.m.-9 p.m.) regional park features three picnic tables, public toilets, a trail and onsite caretaker.
Access - Hwy 101, about ten minutes south of the Earls Cove ferry terminal.
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Egmont Park
This small, level park in the centre of Egmont features a grassy field, tennis court and playground at the old Egmont School site. It's the site of most of the annual Egmont Day activities.
Access - Follow Egmont Road to the village centre.
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Francis Point Marine Park
The 81-hectare Francis Point Marine Park, noted for exceptional diving, was dedicated in 2001 along with an adjacent ecological reserve. It’s undeveloped, pit toilets only, but offers a trail to a panoramic ocean view at the top of Francis Peninsula in Madeira Park.
Access - Follow Francis Peninsula Road from Hwy. 101, turn left on Merrill Road and find the park entrance at the end.
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Garden Bay Marine Park
This day-use marine park, established in 1969 on the northern shore of Pender Harbour near Garden Bay, is 163 hectares in size with 200 metres of waterfront. It features a sheltered anchorage with floating dinghy dock and a picnic area with a water tap —boil water before consuming or cooking— and pit toilets. Activities include swimming, fishing, wildlife viewing, canoeing and kayaking. Park upland includes Mt. Daniel, where you’ll find Mt. Daniel Trail and a small Coast Salish cemetery.
Access - By land, about 2 km down Claydon Road from Garden Bay Road. Marine access is steep and rocky.
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Iris Griffith Wetlands
In downtown Madeira Park, this small wetland park features a boardwalk across a beaver dam, seating, interpretive signs, fish ladder for spawning salmon and variety of waterfowl including resident Great Blue herons. Once an inaccessible bog and fondly known as West Nile Pond, it was developed as a project of the Pender Harbour Growth & Development Partnership and named after longtime Egmont resident and devoted environmentalist, Iris Griffith.
Access - Madeira Park Road beside the Post Office, or from Lagoon Road behind the Pender Harbour Community Church.
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John Daly Park
This small park was named after an eccentric local commercial fisherman who married author Edith Iglauer. The book and subsequent movie, Fishing With John, was based on their meeting and early relationship.
The park features a salmon wintering pond, trail and a large grassy area suitable for picnics. At spawning time, late fall, you'll see dozens of eagles and maybe a bear or two.
Access - 1 km down Garden Bay Road from Hwy. 101, on your left. Watch out for goats on the road.
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Katherine Lake Park
604-883-3557
The picturesque 32-hectare Brightside Resort was purchased by the SCRD in 1990 to become Katherine Lake Park. On the shores of Katherine Lake, this popular spot for locals and visitors features a sandy beach, swimming, trails, wheelchair access, drinking water, picnic sites, campground, toilets, showers, and an onsite caretaker.
The campground operates from the May long weekend to the October long weekend. There are 21 serviced RV sites and ten tenting spots, and reservations are available.
Because of the lake’s small size and huge popularity, the Health Dept. may prohibit swimming because of high fecal coliform counts (this usually occurs mid to late summer). If there is a closure, it will be posted on the SCRD Parks Dept. web page (see Offsite Parks Links).
Boats powered by gasoline or diesel are not permitted on the lake.
Dogs must be leashed at all times in all areas and are not allowed on the beach.
For more information, call the SCRD Parks Dept. at 604-885-6802.
Access - Garden Bay Road, 5.5 km from Hwy. 101.
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Klein Lake Forest Recreation Site
This provincial forest recreation site, featuring 23 campsites and the Ruby-Klein Traverse hiking trail, is recommended for swimming and canoeing. Campsites are available on a first-come, first-serve basis and extended camping is permitted to a maximum of 14 days.
For more information, call the SCRD Parks Dept. at 604-885-6802.
Access 3.5 km down North Lake Road (off Egmont Road) and the unmarked, unpaved North Lake Forest Service Road # 8058.
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Lions Park
604-883-0432
This public park, built and maintained by the Pender Harbour Lions Club, features a hall, playground, trail, salmon hatchery, barbecue area and onsite caretaker. A popular spot for local weddings, family reunions, Lions Park is the home of the annual Bonfire Festival and Attack of Danger Bay campsite. Lions Park will be the location of a new community playing field, now under construction.
Access - Hwy. 101, just north of the Garden Bay Road turnoff.
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Pender Harbour Cultural Centre
This small regional park in downtown Madeira Park overlooks the inner harbour and community wharf. It is home to the Pender Harbour School of Music, Pender Harbour Reading Centre, Harbour Artists Gallery and Serendipity Preschool.
Access - From Madeira Park Road, or walk up the stairs from Seafarer's Park.
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Pender Hill Park
This undeveloped regional park in Irvine's Landing features a trail to one of the most spectacular panoramic views in the area.
Access - Follow Garden Bay Road from Hwy. 191 to the intersection on Garden Bay Lake. Take Irvine’s Landing Road, then turn right on Lee Bay Road. You’ll find the access about 1.1 km down Lee Bay Road.
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Ruby Lake Lagoon Nature Reserve
This 25-acre reserve by Ruby Lake features a fresh-water lagoon, forested area and the Iris Griffith Interpretive Centre, which opened in 2005.
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Seafarers (Millennium) Park
For years, first-time visitors to Madeira Park would ask, "But where's the park?" Locals would quip, "The whole area is like a park! What more do you want ?" Somebody finally decided that Madeira really did need a park. Seafarer's Millennium Park (bet you guessed it opened in 2000) is tiny, but still an impressive showcase for the work of volunteer gardeners, landscapers, rockworkers and wood carvers, built to answer that old park question.
Framing the Madeira Park public wharf and adjacent to the Pender Harbour Cultural Centre, it features a gazebo, picnic tables and benches. It's the site of our annual April Tools Boat Building Challenge, Hallowe'en Fireworks party, a great viewpoint to enjoy the Christmas Carol Ships Parade and a favourite meeting place for the Pender Harbour Digital Junkies camera club.
Access - Madeira Park Road.
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Skookumchuk Park
This 123-hectare wilderness park, established in 1957, has pit toilets, picnic sites and features a trail to the powerful Skookumchuk tidal rapids. The rapids are one of the most visited attractions in the area, site of the annual Skookumchuk Challenge kayak rodeo and a popular scuba dive site.
Access - Egmont Road between Waugh Lake and Egmont. Look for the large parking lot and sign to mark the entrance. Don’t tempt fate by leaving valuables in your vehicle, and please respect the privately-owned property adjacent to the entrance trail.
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Offsite Parks Links
Leave No Trace
SCRD Parks & Trails
BC Parks - Parks Canada
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