The largest island on the West Coast, Vancouver Island stretches from the urbanity of
Victoria at its southern tip to Cape Scott at the northeast extreme. Most of the west coast is lightly populated, with good highway connections only available to
Ucluelet and
Tofino. The Island Highway follows the eastern shoreline of the island from Victoria through
Nanaimo and
Courtenay to
Campbell River, where it heads inland through rugged mountains.
BC Ferries runs a several ferry connections to the mainland, leaving from Victoria to Tsawassen, Nanaimo to Horseshoe Bay, and Comox (near Courtney) to Powell River and the Sunshine Coast.
