Fulford
Burgoyne Valley and Fulford Harbour,
seen from Mount Maxwell
If you arrive on Salt Spring Island from Swartz Bay/Victoria on Vancouver Island, the pretty little hamlet of Fulford Harbour is the first place you see. Restaurants, galleries, a marina, a general store and a cluster of houses surround the harbour where the ferry docks. Some delightful galleries, shops and cafes are located in Fulford village, and there's a pub just half a mile away from the harbour.
St. Paul's Church is a Fulford landmark that can be spotted from the ferry as it approaches the harbour. The church was built in the 1880s and could be considered one of the island's first recycling projects; it was made in part with materials from a Cowichan Bay church transported by boat to Salt Spring Island. Drummond Park, on the other side of the harbour from the ferry terminal and accessed by Isabella Point Road, is a great place for families to hang out on a sunny day.
Stowe Lake is about a kilometre away from Fulford Harbour, off Beaver Point Road, and is a popular spot for trout anglers and freshwater swimmers. More swimming and fishing await at Weston Lake, a larger lake farther along the same road. If you carry on a little farther yet, you'll arrive at the largest park on the island, Ruckle Provincial Park at Beaver Point, which offers camping, hiking trails and beaches that are perfect for afternoon strolls. The parklands were donated to the province by the Ruckle family, and the original homestead and a small sheep farm are located within park boundaries, near the entrance.