SOUTH BEACH PARK
PACIFIC RIM NATIONAL PARK (Long Beach
section)
The beauty about South Beach
is that it is accessed by, either, a short well groomed walking
trail or by a longer rainforest boardwalk hike over some headlands.
This beach reward takes some exercise.
The sandy beach is backed by thick
rainforest while fronted by spectacular marine views. The fine
sand attracts people of all ages for relaxation and activity
including building sand castles, swimming, beach exploring,
frisbee, bocce ball and everything else that you can have fun
with while on a sandy beach. South Beach holds its own very
well when it comes to beautiful, secluded sandy beaches.
At high tide, especially in storm
watching season, the ocean waves erupt and transform into crashing
forces of nature, sometimes throwing logs and developing into
crazy tidal currents. It is always good to be aware of your
ocean tides when exploring the Pacific Rim National Park.
The peak seasons, especially low
tides, bring many people to this sandy piece of paradise.. which
seems so far from civilization, but yet it is so close. When
conditions are right, the repetitive waves also play by rolling
rocks up and down creating music.
South Beach is one of our favorite
destinations because of the 2.5 kilometre Nuu-chah-nulth
rainforest hiking boardwalk trail over Quisitis Point linking
Florencia Bay to South
Beach and Wickaninnish Beach.
All visitors to the park must have
a Park Use Permit.
How to get to South Beach
from Wickaninnish Beach: From the Pacific Rim Hwy look
for the road signs indicating the Wickaninnish Interpretive
Centre. Turn on Wickaninnish Road towards the centre. Pass the
centre and continue to the very end. Turn left and park. A short
1 kilometre well groomed trail leads to some stairs down to
South Beach.
How to get to South Beach
from Florencia Bay Beach: From the Pacific Rim Hwy
look for the road signs indicating the Wickaninnish Interpretive
Centre. Turn on Wickaninnish Road towards the centre. On your
left will be a sign indicating the parking lot for Florencia
Beach. Follow the 2.5 kilometre well groomed, mostly boardwalk,
Nuu-chah-nulth Trail through wilderness rainforests and explore
the interpretive signs outlining some of the local First Nation
People history. The trail eventually hooks into the short South
Beach Walking Trail leading to some stairs down to South Beach.