On a clear day, the Comox Valley is laid out below the mountain: farms, towns, the shoreline of the strait, and the Beaufort Range across the way. The view is one of the reasons people drive up the Strathcona Parkway, and it sits at the edge of Strathcona Provincial Park, B.C.’s oldest park, designated in 1911.
Mount Washington Alpine Resort is adjacent to the park, not inside it. BC Parks describes the resort as offering extensive alpine and Nordic skiing, and a variety of winter and summer recreation facilities, and notes that it often boasts one of the highest snowfalls of any ski resort in North America. More than half of the Nordic trails set by the resort, the park page says, are within Strathcona Park, in the Paradise Meadows area.
How the valley meets the mountain
The main public access route from Courtenay and Campbell River is the same one used for Paradise Meadows: from Highway 19, follow signs via exit 130, the Strathcona Parkway, for 20 kilometres. From there, the Nordic Lodge road leads 1.5 kilometres to the Paradise Meadows parking lot, at the park trailhead beside Raven Lodge. The developed ski facilities themselves are at the resort, adjacent to the park. Anyone leaving maintained trails and developed areas, BC Parks says, should be entirely self-sufficient, properly equipped and experienced.
Most trails in the park are snow-covered from late October or November until at least June, and often until mid-July at higher elevations. Check avalanche reports before heading into snow, and look at the seasonal parking restrictions at Paradise Meadows. Snowmobiles are not permitted in Strathcona Park; BC Parks notes that snowmobiling opportunities are available at the resort. Fires in the park are allowed only in authorized steel fire rings.
The view does not require a summit attempt. On a clear day, even the drive and a short walk near the developed area are enough to see why the valley looks the way it does from above. Check the BC Parks park page, and the resort’s own information for facility hours and conditions, before you go.
Good to know
- Mount Washington is adjacent to Strathcona Park, reached from Highway 19 at exit 130 via the Strathcona Parkway.
- Paradise Meadows, 1.5 kilometres off the parkway on the Nordic Lodge road, is the main park trailhead on this side.
- Snow cover on park trails typically lasts from late fall until at least June.
- Snowmobiles are prohibited inside the park. Stay on official trails and check current conditions.
Photo: Masterhatch, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
