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Vancouver Island: Your BC Off Road 4x4 Adventure Destination
If you're searching for a good BC off road 4x4 adventure, the Island is just a great choice for this adventure! With plenty of hidden away, rugged and challenging logging roads, our Island 4x4ing roads plunge you into some of the most majestic wilderness scenery you'll ever see.
Looking for good ATV riding trails? The Island's got some awesome trails for this too. Of all the BC off road 4x4ing, we like the diversity of the Island - challenging roads that end up in some pretty breathtaking places! We've done a bit of off roading together, but Graeme's the one who’s really passionate about this adventure (and he’s done A LOT of it)! So I’m going to let him tell you all about it...
What Kind Of Trails You'll FindHi. Graeme here. I'll tell you about Island off road trails.The Island is criss-crossed all over with active and decommissioned logging roads and ATV-and-4x4 trails. These roads and trails access some of the best outdoor adventure areas on the island!
For those who really want to test their skills, there’s a wide variety of challenging, technical trails which often require an extensively modified vehicle. Basically, you can expect tight trails that twist through the forest, many rock-crawling opportunities and, of course, m-u-d!
If your goal is just to access some of the remote lakes, trails and peaks on the Island, there are lots of opportunities available for stock four-wheel-drive vehicles and drivers with limited experience.
Unless you're a seasoned off-road veteran, I recommend that you stick to the primary and secondary logging roads, as well as forest service roads, for your off roading 4x4 adventures. There’s an extensive network of these types of roads here, and they greatly open up the opportunities for outdoor adventure! A WORD OF CAUTION:
Since there's a very active logging industry on the Island, you must use caution when driving these roads. Always be aware that a logging truck can appear at any time and these vehicles have right-of-way over public traffic. When logging in a particular area is active, the affected roads may be closed to the public. Signs (and sometimes security guards) are frequently used to warn adventurers of restricted areas. Pay attention to them.
Before Your Off Road Adventure
Finding the primary access roads is as easy as picking up a good map. The Vancouver Island map published by International Travel Maps provides a decent high-level overview of the major routes on the Island. For really detailed information, I highly recommend the Vancouver Island Backroad Mapbook published by Mussio Ventures. This book has very detailed topographical maps of the island with all of the logging roads, ATV trails, hiking trails, rivers and lakes recorded. Road names and branch numbers are identified as well. The Backroad Mapbook also has other useful information on where to find some of the remote areas to camp, hike, fish, mountain climb and view wildlife – extremely useful if you’ll be on an off road adventure overnight. Click Here to order the Backroad Mapbook . For serious off road adventure trails, you pretty much have to get in touch with some locals for assistance. WHY? There’s a general consensus that directions to these trails should not be published on the web to prevent them from becoming over used. To meet up with some local Islanders for a 4x4 off roading trip to the backcountry, I highly recommend you register at this web site: www.island4x4.com . Introduce yourself and try meeting up with some local enthusiasts for a trip! If you’re driving a rented four wheel drive, keep in mind that you may be held responsible for any off-pavement damage, regardless of whether or not you have purchased the liability waiver from the rental car company. Always a good idea to check with your rental company for details before you head out!
Some Of My Favourite Choices For Off Road Adventures
I have to say that Vancouver Island has some of the best off roading adventures I’ve experienced (and here I am with my Tracker on a trip to Gold River, March, 2006).
So if you’re planning your first BC off road adventure here on the Island, Click Here to find out my favourite 4x4 trails that I'd highly recommend you try out!
Vancouver Island Adventures / BC Off Road
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