Plan Sooke Potholes Park with day-use river viewing, glacial rock pools, salmon spawning, old-growth Douglas-fir, leash rules, parking, and no park facilities.
Sooke Potholes Park is near Sooke on southern Vancouver Island, accessed by Sooke River Road five kilometres north of West Coast Highway 14. BC Parks describes deep, naturally carved and polished rock pools beside the adjacent Sooke River.
The park is day-use only and has no facilities within the provincial park.
Why Visit Sooke Potholes Park
Sooke Potholes is a popular regional day-use destination because of its dramatic river landscape. BC Parks explains that glacial action about 15,000 years ago stripped bedrock, while boulders swirled by the rushing river carved the potholes visible today.
The nearby Sooke River, outside the park, is an important coho and chinook salmon spawning river, and the park is an ideal place to view the annual salmon spawning run. The park also protects remnant old-growth Douglas fir, sensitive plant communities, and habitat along the Sooke River corridor.
Things To Do
View the rock pools, watch for salmon spawning in season, observe wildlife along the river corridor, photograph the polished bedrock, and use adjacent District of Sooke facilities for parking, toilets, and garbage cans.
Planning Notes
There are no provincial park facilities. The District of Sooke provides facilities on adjacent land. Pets must be leashed and kept out of beach areas and buildings. Respect day-use rules, avoid damaging sensitive riverbank plants, and stay back from slippery rock, fast current, and changing river levels. Pack out anything not accepted by adjacent facilities. Salmon viewing is best treated as quiet observation, not river access. Expect crowded summer periods and plan parking accordingly.