Cowichan Valley

Cowichan Lake is a large freshwater lake located on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is located along the Cowichan Valley in the Cowichan Valley Regional District, with its eastern shore about 28 km (17 mi) west of Duncan, British Columbia. Cowichan Lake is about 30 km (19 mi) in length, running mostly from west to east, and is about 4 km (2.5 mi) wide at its widest point. The lake is also the source of the Cowichan River. Cowichan Lake has several communities along its shores. The town of Lake Cowichan is located at the east end of the lake, at the start of the Cowichan River, and is the largest community. Along the south side of the lake are the communities of Mesachie Lake and Honeymoon Bay, and also Gordon Bay Provincial Park. On the north shore is the community of Youbou. The Cowichan Valley was once a thriving lumber centre in British Columbia. In the past, two major railroads had spur lines to and around parts of the lake. With the change in the logging industry, these rail lines have now been abandoned by the railroads and are now part of a major public trail system which leads eastward toward the lower end of the Cowichan Valley. The lake area is largely undeveloped because of the extensive logging by timber companies holding the land surrounding the lake. Currently there are several development projects at new locations around the lake.

CICV-FM was a community radio station that broadcasts on the frequency 98.7 FM in Lake Cowichan, British Columbia, Canada. Owned by Cowichan Valley Community Radio Society, the station was licensed by the CRTC on April 15, 2009.The station signed on in August 2009. On August 9, 2012, Cowichan Valley Community Radio Society received an approval from the CRTC to operate a new low-power FM radio station at Lake Cowichan. The new station would operate at 97.5 MHz with 5 watts. On December 31, 2017, CICV-FM closed its doors due to financial hardship and lack of volunteer support in the community.

Lake Cowichan (Nitinaht: ʕaʔk̓ʷaq c̓uubaʕsaʔtx̣) (pop. 2,974) is a town located on the east end of Cowichan Lake and, by highway, is 27 kilometres (17 mi) west of Duncan, British Columbia. The town of Lake Cowichan was incorporated in 1944. The Cowichan River flows through the middle of the town. Cowichan River is designated as a Heritage River.Lake Cowichan is at the western end of the Trans Canada Trail, which, when completed, will be one of the longest trail networks in the world, almost 24,000 kilometres (15,000 mi) long. Youbou, with a population of about 1,000 people; Mesachie Lake, with a population of about 800 people; and Honeymoon Bay with a population of about 600 people, are nearby communities.

Nanaimo—Cowichan is a former federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, which was represented in the House of Commons of Canada between 1988 and 2015. It was located on Vancouver Island.

Skutz Falls is a waterfall on the Cowichan River on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is located just above Marie Canyon. The name was originally Skwets or Squitz, meaning "waterfall" in the Cowichan dialect of Halkomelem. When salmon are spawning, people come to the falls to see them climb up the fish ladders that were built beside the falls. Prior to the building of the fish ladder, the falls, which resemble steep rapids dropping about 20 feet, were a barrier for all fish. In the summer, the river is very calm below the falls and people visit the area to swim or inner tube below the falls. There is also a campground nearby.

Mesachie Lake is an unincorporated community in the Cowichan Valley region of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It lies on the south shore of Cowichan Lake, British Columbia. The name is from the Chinook Jargon for "bad, evil, naughty". It was founded in 1942 by the Hillcrest Lumber Company, which built houses for its workers and their families. This company also planted many non-native fruit and shade trees which have since been given heritage status. In 1942, houses from Sahtlam were cut into pieces and shipped via rail cars and then reassembled in Mesachie Lake with most houses there today having at least part of the original houses still being used. The mill was completely new in design, with more efficient modern equipment. The powerhouse was completed and the generators installed. The powerhouse was able to produce enough power not only for the mill and the community, but on occasion supplied the village of Lake Cowichan when its own plant was overloaded or broken down. In 1982, Camp Imadene bought the old Hillcrest site and moved their camp in a decade later. Mesachie Lake is still a vibrant community, although the school and church have been moved to Lake Cowichan. The Mesachie Skydome is home to many ball tournaments. The community hall hosts various events throughout the year. The town has its own post office and public boat launch. The original Hillcrest Lumber Company office is now a private residence, along with all of the houses once owned by workers at the mill. Mesachie Lake is also one of several towns in the Cowichan Valley with significant South Asian Canadian (primarily Sikh-Canadian) community history for over 130 years, gaining notoriety in the forestry industry at local sawmills from the early 20th century until the 1980s.

Marie Canyon is a canyon on the Cowichan River, just below Skutz Falls, on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The canyon is named for Marie Adelaide, Viscountess Willingdon, C.I., G.B.E. (wife of the then-Governor-General of Canada), commemorating her canoe trip from Cowichan Lake down the Cowichan River to Duncan on April 7, 1930.

Cowichan River Provincial Park is a provincial park on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It includes the Cowichan River in a 750-hectare area stretching almost 20 kilometres, from the village of Lake Cowichan to Glenora, just south of Duncan. Its paths are part of the Trans Canada Trail

Paldi is a former South Asian settlement and mill town near Duncan, on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. It is significant as a town founded by Sikh Canadians, and its early exemplification of multiculturalism.

Chemainus River Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada.

The Harris Creek Sitka Spruce is a large Sitka spruce tree, about 4 metres (13 ft) in diameter, near the creek bed of Harris Creek, off the Pacific Marine Road between Port Renfrew, BC and Honeymoon Bay, BC on Vancouver Island, in British Columbia. Although it is not the largest sitka spruce on Vancouver Island, it is easily accessible and has become a famous tree along the Pacific Marine Loop going from Victoria, BC, through Port Renfrew, Lake Cowichan, and Duncan, BC and returning to Victoria over the Malahat Drive (a portion of the Trans-Canada Highway). It is approximately 80 metres (260 ft) tall. The Pacific Marine Road runs along Harris Creek for part of its way between Port Renfrew and Honeymoon Bay. There is a small sign for the tree on the right-hand side of the road, when driving northeast, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Port Renfrew, or 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Lizard lake. There is enough area to pull over and park, and a short, wheelchair-accessible path leads to the tree. The tree is easily accessible due to the paving a logging road (now part of Pacific Marine Road). It has become well-known: hikers going by on the Harris Creek Main trail are recommended by trail guide books to make a short detour to visit it. The tree is in a second growth forest and is much taller than the surrounding trees. The original old-growth forest was first logged in the 1893, yet this individual tree was spared. The tree is very large at the base as it flares out above ground into the root system. Many of its branches are covered in moss. The tree is surrounded by a fence to protect its root system from excessive trampling. Logging in this area was permanently restricted by a 2012 vote. Two groves of large, gnarly western red cedar trees, known as the Avatar Grove, are also nearby, closer to Port Renfrew.

The San Juan Spruce is a Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) tree located in the San Juan Valley of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Until July 2016 it was the second largest known Sitka spruce tree by volume, surpassed only by the Queets Spruce in Washington, United States.