It’s been a month since BC Parks closed all provincial parks in British Columbia, and those who are missing the great outdoors can’t wait to start exploring them again.
B.C. Premier John Horgan made the long awaited announcement on Wednesday to partially reopen some provincial parks, coinciding with the provincial government releasing a new set of guidelines and implementation details for a re-opening plan.
The overall plan includes increasing social interactions and restarting some economic activity in a safe manner during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most provincial parks will open for day use only on May 14th and most campgrounds and backcountry camping will open on June 1.
See also:
- B.C. economy, social interactions will partly resume mid-May with new guidelines in place
- What’s NOT reopening in B.C. this summer (and some questions left unanswered)
Discover Camping reservation system will be back online on May 25 at 7 a.m. PT to accept camping reservations.
“We’ll do everything we can to ensure parks are safe, but visitors are reminded they are responsible for their own safety and to practice physical distancing by giving extra space when passing people on trails and in parking lots and practicing appropriate hygiene,” BC Parks said in a statement.
“In keeping with public health guidelines around non-essential travel, people are urged to only visit a park close to their home and avoid travelling to small communities. Some parks will remain closed at this time.”
Vancouver Island provincial parks reopening on May 14th:
- Bamberton Provincial Park
- Big Bunsby Marine Provincial Park
- Bligh Island Marine Provincial Park
- Bodega Ridge Provincial Park
- Brooks Peninsula Park (a.k.a. Mquqᵂin Park)
- Burgoyne Bay Provincial Park
- Cape Scott Provincial Park
- Catala Island Marine Provincial Park
- Chemainus River Provincial Park
- Clanninick Creek Ecological Reserve
- Claud Elliot Creek Ecological Reserve/Provincial Park
- Comox Lake Bluffs Ecological Reserve
- Cowichan River Provincial Park
- Dawley Passage Provincial Park
- Elk Falls Provincial Park
- Englishman River Falls Provincial Park
- Epper Passage Provincial Park
- Eves Provincial Park
- Forward Harbour/ƛəx̌əᵂəyəm Conservancy
- Fossli Provincial Park
- French Beach Provincial Park
- Gerald Island Park
- God’s Pocket Marine Provincial Park
- Gold Muchalat Provincial Park
- Goldstream Provincial Park
- Gordon Bay Provincial Park
- Gowlland Tod Provincial Park
- Hənʎəmdᶻi Məkola/Yorke Island Conservancy
- Haley Lake Ecological Reserve
- Hemer Provincial Park
- Honeymoon Bay Ecological Reserve
- John Dean Provincial Park
- Kennedy River Bog Provincial Park
- Klanawa River Ecological Reserve
- Klaskish River Ecological Reserve
- Koksilah River Provincial Park
- Lawn Point Provincial Park
- Little Qualicum Falls Provincial Park
- Lower Nimpkish Provincial Park
- Lower Tsitika River Provincial Park
- Marble River Provincial Park
- Megin River Ecological Reserve
- Memory Island Provincial Park
- Miracle Beach Provincial Park
- Morden Colliery Historic Provincial Park
- Mount Derby Ecological Reserve
- Mount Tzouhalem Ecological Reserve
- Nimpkish Lake Provincial Park
- Nimpkish River Ecological Reserve
- Nitinat Lake Ecological Reserve
- Petroglyph Provincial Park
- Power River Watershed Protected Area
- Quatsino Provincial Park
- Raft Cove Provincial Park
- Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park
- Roberts Memorial Provincial Park
- Rock Bay Marine Provincial Park
- Rosewall Creek Provincial Park
- Rugged Point Marine Provincial Park
- San Juan Ridge Ecological Reserve
- San Juan River Estuary Ecological Reserve
- Sooke Potholes Provincial Park
- Spectacle Lake Provincial Park
- Spider Lake Provincial Park
- Sproat Lake Provincial Park
- Stamp River Provincial Park
- Strathcona Megan/Talbot
- Strathcona Provincial Park
- Strathcona-Westmin Provincial Park
- Sulphur Passage Provincial Park
- Sutton Pass Ecological Reserve
- Sydney Inlet Provincial Park
- Tahsish River Ecological Reserve
- Tahsish-Kwois Provincial Park
- Ten Mile Point Ecological Reserve
- Tranquil Creek Provincial Park
- Tsitika Mountain Ecological Reserve
- West Shawnigan Lake Provincial Park
- Weymer Creek Provincial Park
- White Ridge Provincial Park
- White River Provincial Park
- Woss Lake Provincial Park
- Yellowpoint Bog Ecological Reserve
You can double check reopening dates for these and other provincial parks across B.C. by looking it up here.
