Powell River & Area

The historic Patricia Theatre

Map Showing Powell River's Location

Historic Powell River Townsite: Designated a National Historic District in 1995, Historic Townsite is one of only a few professionally planned, single-industry towns dating from the early modern period in Canadian town planning that has been caringly preserved and restored by its residents.

Powell River's Townsite is an exceptional example of a professionally planned, single-industry town dating from the early modern period in Canadian town planning. The oldest sector, began in 1910, focusing on the Powell River Company Mill, the first newsprint manufacturer in western Canada and the original residential core which marches up the hill in a compact gridiron pattern commonly used in early planned towns. The Neighbourhoods, which placed workers in the same occupation together, consist of groups of houses having a number of standardized designs. As the mill expanded, the original town plan was extended in the 1920s and additional housing of sympathetic design was constructed to the south along gentle crescents laid out on the heavily forested hillside.

Lund

A trip to the Sunshine Coast would not be complete without a visit to the Village of Lund at the end of the Pacific Coast Highway and the final destination point of Highway 101 (also named the Pan-American highway). The Pan-American highway is the world's longest highway, stretching from North to South along the coasts of North and South America.

Located approximately 28 kilometres North of Powell River, the drive to Lund is scenic and takes about 1/2 hour of easy driving. Along the trip you'll travel through the communities of the Historic Townsite, Wildwood Heights, and Sliammon First Nation and find many areas where you can stop and enjoy the views of Malaspina Strait and the Islands dotting the Coast.

Lund Harbour

One of Savary's renowned beaches

Beautiful Savary Island

Savary Island's beaches have drawn visitors since early 1900. Savary is almost completely surrounded by white sand beaches. The Island itself is largely composed of sand. The main exception to this is Mace Point, the rocky eastern tip of Savary which is about a mile off the coast of Lund. In addition, as Savary is about five miles long and averages half a mile wide, the ratio of beach to land mass is unusually high.

Savary and the waters around Savary are the warmest water north of Mexico. The tides moving from the north and south of Georgia Strait meet just north of Savary. The southern tide is warm and the waters move less resulting in generally warmer seas. Add in the water flowing over Savary's sun-baked sandy shelf and you get the warmest water north of Mexico. Incidentally, some marine mammals, such as killer whales, are territorial within the north and south tides and this area is a no-go border zone with a low incidence of sightings.

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The Village of Sliammon

The Coast Salish Village of Sliammon is located along Highway 101 approximately 10 kilometres north of Powell River and is home of the Sliammon First Nations people.

At the turn of the 20th century the Sliammon people lived along both shores of the Northern strait of Georgia, living off the land and animals that were abundant in the area and traveling through traditional territories known for thousands of years as home. The myriad of inlets, bays, river estuaries and sheltered coves along the coastline allowed the Sliammon people to build their villages as close as possible to the natural resources needed to support their communities. The main settlements were Theodosia, Desolation Sound, the Coastline of Malaspina Strait, Powell River, and numerous islands within the Strait of Georgia.

Texada Island sunset

Texada Island

Texada Island is largely a place where people come to to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Many visitors spend their vacations here, returning in later years to retire in this peaceful community. The area boasts many lakes and hiking trails and most are accessible by car or 4 wheel drive. There are many beaches accessible by land or water and beachfronts vary from large rocks to fine sand. You may also find a rock which can only be seen on Texada, 'the flower rock'. If you find one please enjoy its beauty but leave it behind for the next person.

Although much of the old logging roads have been reclaimed by nature you will still see signs of this history everywhere. Shelter Point, located on the west side of the islands, still displays the remains of a once thriving logging area and is now home to the Shelter Point Regional Park & Campground, a full facility campground which preserves the forest in it's natural setting and offers an ideal place to spend your summer vacation. There are 2 major population areas on the island, Van Anda on the east side and Gillies Bay on the west side with a population of about 1000 people. While not all services may be available on the island, most major amenities such as foodstuffs, hardware, gas and postal services can be purchased here.

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