The Largest Provincial Park In British Columbia Is Canada's Remote Recreation Haven Filled With Wildlife

Nature lovers could do a whole lot worse than a vacation to British Columbia. Canada's most westerly province is a wild, open place. The moment you ditch the big city of Vancouver, the population density dips, and the landscapes are taken over by rainforests and twisted mountains and remote backcountry trodden by grizzlies. Talking of remote backcountry, the largest provincial park in the region is filled with precisely that. Cue the unbusy Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park, a nearly 1-million-acre preserve that oozes outdoor fun.

It's pretty far out there, though. Tweedsmuir occupies the very heart of south-central B.C., bounded by the 1,000-mile chain of the Coast Mountains on one side and the boreal spruce woods of the Nechako Plateau on the other. Getting here is something of a journey in and of itself, since you'll need to drive a long section of Highway 20 where all towns are replaced by rushing riverways and endless forest. Overall, it can take over 10 hours to get there from Vancouver. That said, it's also possible to fly directly into the town of Bella Coola in under two hours, which cuts drive times from the airport to the park to a mere 30 minutes.

When you finally do arrive, you can expect a real mosaic of natural wonders. Tweedsmuir South's vast territory expands across lush green hills, great sweeps of pine and fir forest, massive waterfalls, and flower-filled valleys, all watched over by mountains capped with ice. Of course, that means ample adventure opportunities, from hiking to camping to canoeing. Plus, there are stacks of wildlife — the park is a known mecca for bear watching!

The drive from Vancouver is a long one. It takes you through the busy ski resort of Whistler, and if you want some civilization on your vacation, make sure to stop there. Tweedsmuir trades tourist amenities for boundless outdoor recreation. "Many hikes to choose from. Just nature at its best." So reads the Tripadvisor review of one past visitor to the Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, where you'll find everything from short waterfall hikes to epic long-distance traverses across the whole wilderness. The folks over at BellaCoola.ca, a travel guide website all about the Bella Coola region, pick out the trail to Hunlen Falls as one of the most popular in the area.

The path is 32 miles in total, rated as strenuous on AllTrails, and usually involves one night spent backcountry camping at a lake along the way. The payoff will be a front-on view of the third-highest waterfall in Canada as it crashes over huge cliffs between thick forests. Meanwhile, the 5-mile Rainbow Range Trail is an easier day-hike option that weaves through springtime wildflower meadows, offering views of strangely colored mountain peaks.

Hiking boots aren't the only gear you might want to bring along, either. Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park also happens to be a haven for fishing, because multiple rivers run through its expanse, each packed with trout and chinook salmon. And there are some unique canoeing adventures available, such as the Turner Canoe Chain, a boating adventure through a chain of lakes overshadowed by jagged peaks. It can take up to five days and means staying in remote waterside camps along the way.

Keen to see a grizzly? Sure, you could head down to the Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary, Canada's first and only grizzly sanctuary. Or, you could drop by Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park during peak bear season, because it just so happens that this slice of British Columbia is hailed as a fine place to see the great beasts in the wild. In fact, Tweedsmuir South is famed as one of the top entry points to a vast region of western Canada known as the Great Bear Rainforest, a colossal dash of woods that boasts one of the healthiest bear populations in the country.

One of the most popular locations for bear spotting is the official park viewing platform in the Belarko Wildlife Viewing Area. Perched above the Atnarko River, it's only open for a brief month during the annual salmon run in September, is ringed by protective fences, and is totally free to enter. Meanwhile, the Tweedsmuir Park Lodge, rated a 4.8 out of 5 on Google, is a collection of chalets, suites, and bungalows along Highway 20. The lodge offers guided grizzly safaris in the fall that take you out along the local riverways to view bears in the water. Think of it as something like Canada's answer to those U.S. national parks where you're almost guaranteed to see a bear.

There's other fauna, too, of course. Huge caribou herds exist in these parts and roam freely between Tweedsmuir and adjoining preserves. There's birding aplenty. The global bird database eBird lists everything from hummingbirds to golden eagles as being present within the park. And you might just spot black bears and moose alongside those grizzlies to boot.