Beacon Hill Park in Victoria - Vancouver Island, BC, Canada

Verdant and lush Beacon Hill Park is only two blocks from downtown Victoria and the Inner Harbour on the southern tip of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.

My mother, niece and I spent three wonderful days on Vancouver Island and this merely gave us an overview.

One cannot begin to see everything this wonderful island has to offer in that limited amount of time. Suffice it to say, we would happily go back and enjoy exploring more of this part of the world.

We had already spent five glorious days in Vancouver and I have written a number of hubs regarding our experiences there.

(c) Peggy Woods - All Rights Reserved

Our first day on Vancouver Island after disembarking from our ship, we toured Butchart Gardens.

It is world renowned and was engineered, built and designed to fit into an old depleted limestone quarry. We toured it for many hours as it sits on 55 acres of land and then went back to the gardens at night to see the entertainment culminating with a fireworks display that lit up the sky.

This second full day on the island, we had taken a double-decker Grayline bus tour of the island and were introduced to Beacon Hill Park among many other sights.

The park was close to our hotel (the Royal Scot) which was our home away from home for our short stay on Vancouver Island. So after we had finished the tour, we decided to walk back to the park and spend more time there.

We liked what we had seen on the bus tour and wanted to see more of Beacon Hill Park in a more leisurely manner.

Average daily summer temperatures in Victoria are between 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. It is similar to a Northern Mediterranean climate. We particularly were loving it as it is very hot and humid during normal Houston summers from where we had come. So this respite from the heat was being relished by us.

We found out that Beacon Hill Park became a municipal park in Victoria in the year 1882. It consists of over 200 acres and is the largest park on the southern tip of Vancouver Island.

Unlike Butchart Gardens, this garden overlooks the waterfront and one can see views of Juan de Fuca Strait.

In addition, the Olympic Mountains in the State of Washington rise above the water and offer a nice and scenic if somewhat distant backdrop.

Much of Beacon Hill Park is landscaped with colorful displays of blooming plants and shrubs, but an even larger part is kept in a more natural state.

There are lovely water views inside the park in addition to the shoreline. This is due to Goodacre and Fountain and Arbour lake which add additional beauty as well as being a draw for many birds to those fresh water aquatic areas. One can spot many ducks swimming about and waiting for some crumbs to be thrown their way from people in the park. Also to be seen are swans, turtles, Canada geese and blue herons among other avian wildlife.

This lovely park is meant for meandering and slowly taking in the nature scenes which is exactly what the three of us did.

It has paved paths both along the shoreline and also the interior of the park and the latter is where we chose to spend most of our time.

Amenities such as sports fields, a petting zoo, a playground for children including a wading pool, a putting green, and an outdoor band-shell are provided.

We did not get to take in a concert due to timing, but apparently all during the spring, summer and fall of the year these can be enjoyed by people coming to Beacon Hill Park. We did see and photograph the band-shell where these festivities would take place.

Some Cricket was being played on one of the sports fields and were told that one of the teams was from America.

A horse drawn carriage was photographed taking people through the park. It is probably a very nice way to see more of the park without expending much energy.

While on the bus tour we were informed that the Hudson Bay Company had donated some land for the park with the stipulation that there was never to be any commercial development within the confines of the Beacon Hill Park. Water is available but true to the agreement, no vendors selling ice cream cones, soft drinks, trinkets or anything else is to be seen.

Thus, the park is pristine and nature is the prime focus.

One of the statues I photographed sits on top of a monument dedicated to Robert Burns. Here is what was inscribed:

"Burns

To the memory of Scotia's Immortal Bard, Born 1759.

Erected by His Admirers 1900

J. Mortimer"

Also inscribed was the following:

"The golden hours, on angel wings flew oer me and my dearie; for dear to me as light and life was my sweet highland Mary."

Lovely green trees of various types lent their beauty to the woodland spaces as well as punctuating the lawns and the perimeter of the lakes. Some of these tree specimens include the Geary Oaks (which are the only native trees to Victoria as we were informed on our tour); the noble Douglas fir trees; Western Red Cedar trees; Weeping willow trees and others.

Much of the native flora inside the park was preserved and kept in a natural state.

There are the rose gardens and other mass plantings, but what we particularly loved about this large and less populated park (compared to our experience at Butchart Gardens) was the peace and serenity that exists here.

This is a park that one who lived nearby would never tire of strolling through and discovering the nooks and crannies being shared with squirrels, racoons, cute chipmonks and other critters.

A change in seasons would be a delight to experience in Beacon Hill Park.

One thing of interest is the 4th largest totem pole in the world which is located here. It is the First Nations Native Totem Pole erected in 1956. It is 128 feet high or 38.9 meters.

Mile 0 of the Trans-Canada Highway also originates here.

Hopefully these many photographs will enable you to enjoy a bit of the verdant greenery and peaceful solitude that we felt while strolling through the portion of the park that we got to enjoy. It is a place to slow down and let the cares of a day wash from your shoulders.

In my opinion there is nothing more peaceful than to walk through an uncrowded large and beautiful park like Beacon Hill with the wind blowing through the leaves of the trees; watching the ripples of the water in the lakes; and enjoying the wildlife who obviously like calling this gorgeous park home.

The three of us wished that we had such an unspoiled and natural beauty of a park nearby in our own home territory.

Beacon Hill Park is well worth a visit if you plan a trip to Victoria located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Experience this verdant green space for yourself. Few parks have everything this one has to offer with no commericalism of any type involved. We absolutely loved Beacon Hill Park!!!