Plan Strathcona Park with Buttle Lake camping, Forbidden Plateau hiking, Della Falls, alpine backpacking, paddling, fishing, snow conditions, and fire rules.
Strathcona Park was designated in 1911 and is British Columbia’s oldest park. BC Parks describes more than 250,000 hectares of rugged mountain wilderness near the centre of Vancouver Island, with snowy peaks, lakes, alpine tarns, rivers, creeks, and streams.
The main visitor areas are Buttle Lake and Forbidden Plateau.
Why Visit Strathcona Park
Strathcona is Vancouver Island’s major alpine wilderness park. Buttle Lake offers campgrounds, cold-water swimming, paddling, fishing, and access to mountain scenery by Highway 28. Forbidden Plateau and Paradise Meadows provide hiking access from the Mount Washington area, including an accessible subalpine trail.
The rest of the park is largely undeveloped and attracts hikers, backpackers, and mountaineers. BC Parks highlights Della Falls in the southern remote section, with a 440-metre drop over three cascades, and Golden Hinde, Vancouver Island’s highest point at 2,200 metres.
Things To Do
Camp, hike short trails or multi-day routes, backpack, swim in designated areas and most backcountry lakes except Kwai Lake, canoe, kayak, stand-up paddleboard, fish with the proper licence, attend seasonal programs, and plan winter travel where conditions allow.
Planning Notes
High mountains, glaciers, snowfields, and remote valleys require self-sufficiency away from maintained trails. Tell a responsible person your route and timing before overnight or extended hikes. Snow can cover many trails from late October or November until June, and higher routes often hold snow into mid-July. Fires are allowed only in authorized BC Parks steel fire rings; open fires are not allowed in the backcountry. Snowmobiles and internal combustion engines are prohibited in backcountry areas.