Nanoose Bay: Coastal Parks and Nature Experiences

Nanoose Bay offers a variety of ways to spend time outdoors: coastal parks with hiking trails, paths through mossy landscapes, and opportunities for horseback riding, golf, and diving. Cultural discoveries are part of the experience, too. When choosing your vacation rental, consider which of these experiences you want to shape your stay—nature by the water, getting active on the trails, or a particular activity.

Coastal Parks and Tides

Moorecroft Regional Park is a 35-hectare oceanside park managed under a conservation covenant. Its hiking trails offer a way to experience the coastal landscape on foot. If you’d like to include a park with hiking trails in your vacation plans, you’ll find a different scale here than at Beachcomber Regional Park, which covers one hectare and is located at the end of Nanoose’s Beachcomber Peninsula.

At Beachcomber Regional Park, short trails through a forest of arbutus trees, Douglas firs, and Garry oaks offer a nature experience among the trees. At low tide, you can also explore tide pools. The combination of forest trails and views of the pools makes the park a distinctive option for anyone who would like to combine a seaside stay with a closer look at the coastal environment. The low tide conditions are the specific point of reference for this exploration.

Trails and Nature Around Nanoose Bay

The Nanoose Bay Recreational Shellfish Reserve covers about 23 hectares. The main shellfish species there include Manila clams, littleneck clams, cockles, and oysters. The reserve is accessible via Arlington Road and Nanoose Beach Road; from there, a walking trail of about 1.5 kilometers follows the south shore to the reserve. You can take this distance into account when planning your day.

For a short hike, a trail leads up Notch Hill from Powder Point Road. Another option is the area around Enos Lake, where more than five kilometers of natural, mossy trails wind through the landscape. If you like the idea of a hike with a specific destination, Notch Hill may suit you; if you’d rather explore trails around a lake, consider Enos Lake. The more than five kilometers refers to the trail network around the lake, not to one specific, set route.

Horseback Riding, Golf, and Diving

Paradise Acres Ranch offers bookable trail rides and riding lessons. You can choose between a trail ride and a riding lesson as different ways to enjoy a riding experience. When planning your accommodations, it may help to consider whether horseback riding is an important part of your stay.

Fairwinds Golf Club is a year-round 18-hole golf course on a scenic peninsula on the east coast of Vancouver Island. In addition to golf, it offers lessons, camps, and clinics for all skill levels. This makes both a round of golf and opportunities to learn or practice potential interests for a trip to Nanoose Bay.

Madrona Point is a shore-entry dive site with several dive plans. For divers, it’s another activity that makes Nanoose Bay a distinctive destination.

Art and Vacation Interests That Suit You

The Marketplace at Nanoose Bay Cafe features Vancouver Island artists year-round. If you’d like to include art in your trip alongside nature and outdoor activities, you can consider this spot as a cultural destination. The year-round exhibitions complement the range of recreational opportunities with a glimpse of artistic works from the island.

Ultimately, the right vacation rental depends on which experiences interest you most during your stay. Coastal parks, a trail along the south shore to the Shellfish Reserve, golf, horseback riding, and the dive site all suit different vacation interests.

Explore More Places

If you’d like to expand your search to other places: Bowser, Gabriola, Parksville, Nanaimo, Cassidy and Qualicum Beach.

Back to the main travel guide: Nanaimo.