Cathedral Grove, located in MacMillan Provincial Park, is one of the most accessible stands of giant Douglas fir trees on Vancouver Island. Stroll through a network of trails under ancient Douglas-fir trees– some more than 800 years old. There are trails on either side of the highway—on the south side you’ll find the largest Douglas firs (one more than nine metres in circumference) and on the north side you’ll find ancient Western red cedars that shadow nearby Cameron Lake.
Since a windstorm swept through the park in January 1997, damaging several sections of the park, the trails have been undergoing restoration. Protests by environmental groups have unfortunately failed to stop logging companies from clearcutting trees right up to the park boundaries, which they feel is necessary to prevent future
blowdowns.
Many species of wildlife use the old-growth forest including several types of woodpeckers, owls, insects, reptiles, amphibians, deer, elk, black bear and cougar. The Cameron River, which flows through the park, supports rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout.
Getting to
Cathedral Grove
MacMillan
Park (Cathedral Grove) is located in central
Vancouver Island, 25km west of Qualicum Beach
and 16km east of Port Alberni on Highway 4,
which runs right through the park. From Highway
19 and Highway 19A, take the exit to head west
on Highway 4 toward Port Alberni.
If you would like to stay near the park, nearby communities are Port
Alberni, Coombs, Qualicum Beach and Parksville.
Park Facilities
Cathedral Park is a day use only park, but it does offer bathrooms and a small concession for visitors.
Registered travel agent #27979 General Enquiries
Tel: 1-866-595-8989
Platinum Vacation Group
British Columbia, Canada
The information contained on this web site is provided by the property owners. While Gulf Island Vacation Rentals Inc. inspects all of our houses we cannot
guarantee the accuracy of listings at your time of visit.
