If you live on Vancouver Island, you are blessed with an abundance of places to experience the raw and rugged beauty of the salty waters surrounding us. While the west coast has gained attention as a storm-watching destination, the east coast has unique offerings of its own. Twenty minutes north of Campbell River, Brown’s Bay Resort provides a new way to get acquainted with the diversity of coastal waters.
You may or may not be familiar with the term “glamping,” which is simply a combination of glamour and camping. This is a style of camping that is gaining popularity as a way to immerse yourself in an overnight, outdoor experience while still enjoying many of the comforts of an indoor stay. I suggest you do yourself a favour and spend time at one of the four rustic glamping tents in the forest, or the two luxury waterfront glamping tents situated on the edge of the resort’s RV Park.
I’m going to gush about the luxury tents. They are spectacular! The inside of the tents are spacious and cozy, and I could barely contain my excitement when I rolled back the doors that face the water. Perched over the ocean, the balcony lends itself to long, leisurely hours spent simply enjoying where you are. The two luxury tents sleep up to four people and have indoor plumbing, so you can shower and use the facilities all without stepping foot outside of your tent. Hot water showers and flush toilets are less than one minute away from the cliffside tents, which offer a slightly more rustic experience. They share a forest neighbourhood with eight unserviced tent sites, allowing you to feel remote but not secluded.
If you want to be closer to the marina, you can stay in one of the the floating lodge suites, situated at the heart of the Bay’s marine activities. The view from these rooms allow guests to watch who comes and goes, what fish are brought in, and how skilled (or unskilled) people are at launching their boats at high and low tides. It’s also a great place to view the aquatic creatures that call Brown’s Bay home.
One of the bonuses to guests of Brown’s Bay Resort is that you can stay in a glamping tent while your friends enjoy their own RV on the property’s full-service RV site. And if you want to add in a family that needs a full kitchen and their own space in more traditional accommodations, they can stay in a cabin or floating suite. The variety lends itself to gatherings of many sizes and needs.
In addition, the view is constantly changing. All marine traffic that travels up the east coast of the Island passes through the channel that separates Vancouver Island from Quadra Island just north of Seymour Narrows. And by traffic, I mean cruise ships, barges, tugboats, whales (Orcas and Humpbacks), private and commercial fishing boats, Pacific white-sided dolphins, and pleasure boats (and this is just what’s visible above the water). The diversity of life that passes by Brown’s Bay Resort is fascinating and speaks to how dependent we are on having healthy ocean systems.
We are blessed to live where we live; getting out and experiencing places like Brown’s Bay allows us to learn more about our neighbouring communities and foster a deeper appreciation for home.
