By Indigenous Tourism British Columbia February 26, 2025
Freshwater flows westward from a dense network of interior wetlands, lakes, and rivers into the Pacific Ocean, lapping against the iconic coastline of British Columbia–a jagged outline of fjords, mountains, valleys, and small islands. With 400 rivers and 20,000 lakes, non-coastal waters in BC also provide food, transportation, clean water, habitat, and endless recreation.
Indigenous tourism hosts in BC offer an array of opportunities for fun and learning on rivers, lakes, and oceans, including eco-friendly bear, whale, and wildlife viewing tours, cultural excursions, catch-and-release and other sustainable fishing adventures, hot springs, jetboating and rafting, canoe and kayak tours and rentals, private beaches, and shoreside accommodations.
Great River Fishing Adventures Sidney Whale Watching The way we imagine the British Columbia coast is shaped by countless images of cloudbursts over turbid waters, fir trees drooping with heavy rains, intrepid ocean fishers and winter surfers, cresting whales, and ambling bears.
It lays the snow on our mountains, fills our orchards with juicy fruit, and carries food to our tables.
From the huge amount of rainfall it receives to the wealth of its marine economy, British Columbia is drenched in watery riches.
Summertime floats down the Somass River in Port Alberni, jetboat cruises and Fraser River adventures in the golden heart of Secwepemculecw, and seaside soaks in natural geothermal hot springs in Nuu-chah-nulth waters.
Find the favourite lakes of migrating pelicans, plumb the depths of waters harbouring ancient sturgeon, and explore North Vancouver with a fossil fuel-free tour of Indian Arm in a 35-foot traditional-style ocean-going canoe.
Coastal Rainforest Safaris Homalco Culture & Wildlife Tours Water is a navigable pathway, providing a transit system that links communities and provides access to resources. It is a map of trade routes, a showcase of marine wealth–a highly complex system with infinite variables that support endless fascinating life forms and respond to a constantly changing environment.
Water fills the shallows that fish stir in, flowing gently between the blades of eelgrass that form the salmon highway and gently parts for the cutting canoe as it moves across the lake. It drips from your paddle, the only sound as you glide through still morning waters on a paddleboard from the dock at the all-inclusive eco-resort Klahoose Wilderness Resort in Desolation Sound.
It is the spray on your skin as you trod softly oceanside, turning your face toward the wind and the infinite greys of the fall skyline. It is the buoyant curl that carries you to shore in the year-round surf at Tofino, the surfing capital of Canada.
Water is the glacial runoff that makes its way down mountainsides to fill basins and canyons with blues ranging from milky teals to shimmering turquoise and emerald gems that set the scene for lakeside antics and river cruising. It is the snow beneath your skis, the crystalline shimmer of frozen waterfalls, and a spiritual cure-all that shares its lessons of flow, flexibility, and strength.
Oceans, lakes, rivers, and estuaries in British Columbia are Mother Earth’s circulatory system.
From microscopic phytoplankton to the world’s largest mammal, the Great Blue Whale, Coastal BC supports the greatest biodiversity of the province, including more than 60% of all mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and freshwater fish. Old-growth coastal forests in BC, representing one-quarter of the world’s remaining coastal temperate rainforests, are home to grizzly bears, including the elusive all-white Spirit Bear.
Spirit Bear Hot Springs The collective observations and interactions of countless generations living in balance and reciprocity with nature inform Indigenous stewardship practices and economic development, balanced at the intersection of environment and economy.
Learn the principle of Yahguudang, or respect for all beings, from Haida hosts as they guide you through rare ecosystems and share stories of the care and protection of their lands and waters. This balance is the knowledge we all now seek and a commitment to the health of the water and its caretakers has rightfully become a priority we share.
Water is wealth–it is treasure upon treasure–and its ecology, or how we manage it, is the key to preserving the immeasurable return it provides when cared for. And having fun on it is the surest sign that its health and our own are connected.
Discover adventure in Clearwater, BC, the gateway to Wells Gray Provincial Park’s 520,000 hectares of pristine beauty. Interior Whitewater Expeditions offers rafting for all levels, from beginners to experts. Enjoy float tours and family adventures guided by experts with over 40 years of experience.
