Cox Bay on Vancouver Island offers prime surfing opportunities and plenty of beach to spread out .
fish-and-chips , you ’ ll find paddle boards and kayaks for rent . In August , theatrical productions are brought to life in the open-air Beach House Theatre overlooking the water .
McDiarmid is an avid surfer ; hence his love of Pacific breakers . For those who prefer water-skiing and warmer water , the Thompson Okanagan region ’ s many lakes are summer-vacation heaven . Seymour Arm , part of Shuswap Lake with its 1,000-kilometre ( 621-mile ) shoreline , features waterfalls that cascade through a spectacular series of pools behind Albas Beach in Shuswap Lake Marine Provincial Park . It ’ s a remote place , not easily accessible — after a two-hour boat trip from Sicamous ( or a three-hour forestry-road drive from Salmon Arm ), a three-kilometre ( 1.8-mile ) loop trail leads to sandy Albas Beach , where a waterfall-cooled plunge awaits you .
For a more laid-back , warm-water playground , it doesn ’ t get better than Osoyoos Lake , Canada ’ s warmest fresh-water lake . Bathed in sunshine among the cactus , sagebrush and vineyards , the lake is located near the town of Osoyoos in Canada ’ s only true desert . At the Watermark Beach Resort , the whole family can have fun with everything from kayaks to stand up paddleboards .
In southcentral BC , the Kootenay Rockies offer lakes with beaches that boast mountain views . Pitch a tent alongside the sand at Kokanee Creek Provincial Park and finish up the day with a soak at Ainsworth Hot Springs , a 20-minute drive away . To the southwest , Christina Lake Provincial Park ’ s beach is summer-central for water sports , fishing and golf amid classic cottage country . It ’ s right on the nation-wide Trans Canada Trail , and boasts some of the province ’ s warmest waters .
For people like McDiarmid , though , the ultimate BC beach is a sandy shoreline with a rainforest backdrop of giant Sitka spruce and cedars . There are kilometres of such untouched beaches in the remote Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve on Northern BC ’ s Haida Gwaii islands . North Beach , at the northern tip of the archipelago , draws surfers and kite-surfers from around the world each November for the annual Expression Session surf competition .
If you prefer a mellower experience , you can beachcomb for rare Japanese glass floats , watch soaring bald eagles or walk or drive for miles along the beach . “ There ’ s nothing like experiencing raw nature on a wild stretch of beach ,” says McDiarmid .
Maybe , but if you have a different picture of the perfect beach , you ’ ll find it in this extraordinarily diverse province . kenmoreair . com
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