About Vancouver Island
At 32,134 square kilometers (12,407 square miles), Vancouver Island is the largest island on the western side of the Americas and occupies an area about the size of Holland. The island is tucked against the mainland coast of British Columbia and the north shore of Washington State's Olympic Peninsula.

A mountainous spine runs the length of Vancouver Island, breaking into long mountain fjords on its west coast that cut deeply into the island. Much of the island is untamed wilderness - home to cougar, wolves, bear, deer, elk and eagles. The surrounding sea is known for its whales, dolphins, otters, seals and salmon.

Victoria (population 300,000) is the largest city on the island. Located in sub-Mediterranean zone, Victorians enjoy some of the most moderate weather in all of Canada -- boasting an average of 2,183 hours of sunshine yearly, and an eight-month frost-free season. Average annual rainfall is 26.2 inches (compared to over 50 inches in New York).

Victoria's latitude is about the same as Dijon, France; Zurich, Switzerland; Budapest, Hungary and Rostov, Russia in the northern hemisphere and the southern end of New Zealand in the southern hemisphere. There are 48 regional, provincial and federal parks in Greater Victoria, totaling more than 7,600 hectares (22,724 acres).