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San Josef Bay named ‘best wilderness beach’ in Canada by Lonely Planet

You can camp right on the smooth sandy beach.
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Kevan Bodkin snapped a long exposure sunset over San Josef Bay on March 9 during a brief sunny break in the weather. (Bodkin’s Best Photography)

Lonely Planet has named San Josef Bay as the “best wilderness beach” in Canada.

RELATED: Bradshaw’s Photo Highlight: San Josef Bay

According to a March 30 article by Brendan Sainsbury on lonelyplanet.com, San Jo has a “reputation for tempestuous weather and tricky access” and the 1.6-mile (2.5km) trail that leads to the ocean “starts at the end of a 43-mile (70km) unpaved logging road from Port Hardy.”

The article goes into more detail on the area, noting that when the forest finally parts, “you’ll be delivered onto a windswept expanse of crashing surf and forested sea stacks where bushes and trees have been contorted by fierce Pacific storms,” adding, “Bring a tent and binoculars. You can camp right on the smooth sandy beach and the ‘bins’ will enhance your appreciation of the resident wildlife including eagles and ospreys.”

Two other B.C. beaches were named in the article, Chesterman Beach in Tofino was named “best for surfing” and Kitsilano earned the title of “best urban beach”.

Chesterman earned its award due to being “close enough to town to reach by bike (with your surfboard clipped to a special bike-rack) and firm enough to cycle on if you need some leg exercise before cresting the Pacific waves.”

Kits has “a sporty, laid-back vibe, especially in summer” and beach volleyball is “the game of choice although there are also enough grassy expanses to spread out and toss a frisbee or football.”

To see the full list of beaches named the best in Canada, check out Lonely Planet’s website.


@NIGazette
editor@northislandgazette.com

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Tyson Whitney

About the Author: Tyson Whitney

I have been working in the community newspaper business for nearly a decade, all of those years with Black Press Media.
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