Hesquiat Peninsula Park

Hesquiat Peninsula Park is situated on the west coast of Vancouver Island and occupies most of the eastern shore of Nootka Sound. This park is a significant tourism corridor for rugged coastal hiking, boating and sea kayaking.

Adjacent to the park is home to the heritage attraction known as Cougar Annie’s Garden. In 1915, the pioneer settler known as Cougar Annie arrived on the west coast in Hesquiat Harbour and homesteaded on this wilderness property. She bore eight of her 11 children here, outlasted four husbands and carved a magnificent, magical garden out of five acres of this thick and foreboding rainforest. This garden is now one of British Columbia’s premier heritage gardens and tours can be arranged at Boat Basin.

This prominent low-elevation peninsula is a significant wilderness area protecting heritage sites, representative old-growth forest stands of Sitka spruce, lodgepole pine, white pine and yellow-cedar and a freshwater lake. The park also encompasses a variety of coastal ecosystems including extensive off-shore reefs, boulder, cobble and sand beaches, sea caves, sheltered bays, kelp beds and mudflats.

This wilderness park has numerous hazards and is in a remote area of the coast. Kayaking and hiking along the shores of the Hesquiat Peninsula is recommended for experienced paddlers and hikers only. This undeveloped wilderness park has no facilities, however backcountry camping is allowed.