OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT Tourism and Recreation: opportunities and challenges AUTHOR Jennifer Chapman, Research Assistant, What is happening? Ocean Watch, Ocean Wise Research Institute The Lonely Planet travel guide refers to Sḵwx̱wú7mesh/Squamish, at the tip REVIEWER Bob Turner, Geoscientist and citizen of Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound, as “the perfect perennial play- scientist, Nex̱wlélex̱wem/Bowen Island, ground.”1 In fact the whole Sea to Sky corridor supports year-round ad- Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound ventures. As the area offers a diverse range of activities from hiking and mountain biking, kayaking, craft beer tasting, eagle viewing and sports fishing (see Sports Fishing, Ocean Watch Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound Edition [OWHS] 2020), plus other seasonal attractions, the number of visitors to the area increases year after year. Kayaker, Nex̱wlélex̱wem/Bowen Island. (Credit: Bob Turner) TOURISM AND Recreation | Page 328 OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT What is the current status? Between 2012 and 2014i, the number of overnight Squamish, in the Mamquam Blind Channel (See visitors to the Vancouver and Coastal Mountain re- Coastal Development, OWHS 2020). gion, which includes Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound, increased by 12.5%, from 8.2 million (see Recreational activities are supported by a number of Tourism and Recreation, OWHS 2017) to over 9.2 mil- provincial and regional parks within Átl’ḵa7tsem/Tx- lion.2 Accordingly, related spending also increased wnéwu7ts/Howe Sound. From the 2015/16 fiscal year, by 2.3%, from $4.7 billion in 2012 to $4.81 billion in to the 2017/18 fiscal year, recorded daily attendance to 2014.2 Similar growth trends have also been seen in parks within and around the Soundii has varied; how- transportation and park use and for some visitor at- ever, the overall trend indicates an increase in visitor tractions. numbers (Figure 2). Within Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound, move- ment of the many visitors and residents alike is sup- ported by BC Ferries. The departure point at Ch’ax̱áy/ Horseshoe Bay connects to the islands throughout the Sound, and to the Sunshine Coast (Figure 1). Growth has also been seen in the number of ferry passengers in Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound, with an in- crease of 4% from the 2015/16 fiscal year, to close to 7.5 million for the 2018/2019 fiscal year.3,4 Additional- ly, the number of vehicles transported on Átl’ḵa7tsem/ Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound ferry routes increased by 6.5% from 2.8 million to almost to 3 million.3,4 Additional access to the Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/ Howe Sound islands and waters is supported by mar- Paddleboarders taking advantage of calm waters in the Sound. (Credit: Aroha Miller) inas, which offer services such as moorage, boat rent- als and water taxis (see Table 2, Tourism and Recrea- tion, OWHS 2017). New marinas are proposed, one for Furry Creek, between Porteau Cove and Shishay̓u7ay̓/ Britannia Beach, and another two for Sḵwx̱wú7mesh/ i) 2012 to 2014 – most recent data available at the time of writing. ii) Visitor data was only available for the nine parks in Figure 2. TOURISM AND Recreation | Page 329 OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT ! Brackendale er Eagles PP Riv TOURISM AND Tantalus Garibaldi am PP r u e !Highlands mq v a i M RECREATION R h s ! i Community ÆQ m Marine trail campsite a u Jc ÆQ q Ferry terminal Campsite S Î Marina ÆQ Youth camp Squamish Skwelwil'em ! S Blue Heron ta Squamish Î w Î Public dock Estuary WMA am Î!(Squamish us Riv D Industry Stawamus er Chief PP (! Water taxi destinations Tiampo D PP Terminal Shannon BC Ferry routes Creek M ill Tantalus Cre ÆQ Squamish Squamish River watershed ek Landing Shannon Harbour Falls PP First Nation reserve WoodfibreD Depth zones (m) Woodfibre Creek D Watts Point nia Creek Britan 0 - 10 Murrin PP 10.1 - 30 !(! Î Britannia Protected areas Beach Furry Creek 30.1 - 50 P 50.1 - 100 ot lat ch Zorro Bay C re EllesmereÆQ 100.1 - 200 ek Creek ! Ph yl lis >200 C r ee Camp Islet View ! k M ER - Ecological Reserve cN Potlatch ÆQ Furry Creek a b ÆQ Defence C !(Potlatch MBS - Migratory Bird Sanctuary r Islands Porteau ee k Cove PP MPP - Marine Provincial Park R Rainy ive r MP - Municipal Park NR - Nature Reserve McNab Creek PP - Provincial Park !(! ÆQ Thornbrough Anvil RP - Regional Park Island WMA - Wildlife Management Area Thornbrough ¤£99 Channel Cypress Bain Creek Ekins Point Camp Daybreak PP Tetrahedron ÆQ Î ÆQ!( PP ÆQ!( ! Ramillies Montagu Douglas B!(ay Camp Douglas Channel Channel Latona Bay Christie Christie Islet Islet Brigade ÆQ MBS Port Mellon Bay Bluffs NR Brigade Braigyade BaPyam Rocks Port Mellon Gambier Long Bay !(! Lions Bay !(D Island Wetland NR McNair SeÆQa SRearnacnhch ! Camp ! Creek MP Woolridge Artaban !( Pete Shields Î!( Island Centre Bay Î!( Mount RP Dakota Î!( Artaban NR Estuary MP Thomas !( Lipton RP ÆQ ÆQ! Bowyer Long Bay (Halkett Bay re e k Island ¤£99 ta C Long MPP ko Twin Creeks West Bay ÆQ Da D ! Bay Î Halkett Î!( !( Bay New Camp Fircum Brighton Camp - ! e Sunset l Gambier Î!( Elphinstone a r Î!( d ie Cypress g Harbor ! Î! b ! ay ÆQ( n B PP a m e a Î! o L ( sh e Williamsons G e al ors ngd Hood Point Landing H - La Su n s h i n e Langdale Jc Hutt Heorseshoe West ! sho Whyte C o a s t Island rse en Bay MP Vancouver Î Ho ow Lake PP Hopkins Barnabas Î Crippen - B Î!(Jc Landing Shoal Landing RP Snug Cove Î! Horseshoe Channel Mount ! Soames Silver Collingwood Gardner Whytecliff Bay Cypress ¤£1 Plumper ÆQ!(Creek PP JcÎ!( Mount Hill RP Cove MPP Channel Î Whytecliff MP Falls PP D Elphinstone PP Keats Camp ÆQ No-take D Î Island Î Bow-Isle Î DDD Gibsons Eastbourne Brigade Bird Islet Eagle DD D D D D ! Bowen Bay Harbour D Roberts Creek Î!(ÆQ Island Grebe Islet DD DD Î!( Barfleur Bowen Apodaca D ! ¤£101 Keats PP D Passage Bowen Island ER DDDD Camp DDD ! Bay D DDDD Passage Lighthouse D Island PP Pasley ! Islands Turnstall Burrard Inlet !( Bay V D - 1:200,000 y Ba e ay o B sh re 0 2.5 5 10 e tu Metro Strait of Georgia rs ar Kilometers Ho p Vancouver De Figure 1. Map of Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound parks, camps, BC Ferries routes and terminals, and water taxi destinations.5 TOURISM AND Recreation | Page 330 OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT NUMBER OF VISITORS TO BC PARKS, 2014–2018 Stawamus Chief 47% 2014–2015 Provincial Park -4% 17% 2015–2016 2016–2017 Shannon Falls -2% 2017–2018 Provincial Park 18% 13% Porteau Cove 9% Provincial Park* 3% 4% Plumper Cove Marine -45% Provincial Park* -9% -23% e m a Murrin Lake 12% N Provincial Park -14% k r 54% a P Halkett Bay Marine 1636% Provincial Park* -36% -23% Garibaldi 14% Provincial Park 27% -1% Cypress 0% Provincial Park 84% 7% Alice Lake -3% Provincial Park 12% 14% 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 , , , , , , , , , , 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2 4 2 6 6 8 8 0 0 , , , , , , 1 1 1 1 1 2 Attendance (person-days) Figure 2. Both total attendance, and change in attendance, year over year, between the 2014-2015 and 2017-2018 year as a percentage (%) at parks throughout Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound. *Has a marine component. TOURISM AND Recreation | Page 331 OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT A wide range of recreational activities, ranging from port water activities (e.g., canoeing, scuba diving). scuba diving to snowshoeing, are available (Table 1, Additionally, the network of landings and campsites Figure 1). Six additional parks not included in OWHS jointly called the Sea to Sky Marine Trail allows kayak 2017 were included. Parks with marine aspects sup- and canoe trips through the length of the fjord.6 Table 1. BC parks and protected areas arranged in geographical order, from the mouth of the Sound moving north. MARINE NAME LOCATION COMPONENT? FACILITIES AND ACTIVITIES SIZE (HA) Lighthouse Park, Shoreline, West Yes 75 West Vancouver Vancouver Horseshoe Bay Park Shoreline, Yes 1 West Vancouver Whytecliffe Park, Shoreline, Yes 16 West Vancouver West Vancouver Cypress Provincial Parkiii Northeast of No 3,012 (includes Howe Horseshoe Bay Sound Crest Trail) Apodaca Provincial Parkiii Bowen Island Yes The park is largely undeveloped and primarily 12 serves to preserve unique plant communities. (8 hectares terrestrial Recreational use not encouraged. and 4 hectares marine) Bowen Island Ecological Bowen Island No Bowen Island Ecological Reserve was established 397 Reserveiii to preserve the dry subzone forest ecosystems in the Coastal Western Hemlock Zone at a location convenient for research. Recreational use not encouraged. Crippen Regional Park Bowen Island Yes 221 Plumper Cove Marine Provincial Keats Island Yes 66 Park Halkett Bay Marine Provincial Gambier Island Yes 309 Park Tetrahedron Parkiii Mainland, northwest No 6,000 of Gambier Island iii) Parks not previously included in OWHS 2017, with descriptions verbatim from BC Parks website (see Methods). TOURISM AND Recreation | Page 332 OCEAN WATCH | Átl’ḵa7tsem / Txwnéwu7ts / Howe Sound 2020 DEVELOPMENT MARINE NAME LOCATION COMPONENT? FACILITIES AND ACTIVITIES SIZE (HA) Porteau Cove Provincial Park Shoreline, Highway Yes 56 99 Murrin Lake Provincial Park Highway 99 near No 24 Britannia Shannon Falls Provincial Park Highway 99 near No 87 Squamish Stawamus Chief Provincial Park Highway 99 near No 530 Squamish Brackendale Eagles Provincial Squamish No 755 Park Garibaldi Provincial Parkiv Squamish No 194,676 Skwelwil’em Squamish Estuary Squamish Yes 673 Wildlife Management Area Alice Lake Provincial Parkiv Highway 99 near No 411 Squamish Baynes Island Ecological Squamish River, Yes Established to preserve floodplain cottonwood 71 Reserveiii 10 km north of stands for purposes of hybridization and stock Squamish improvement.