Sea to Sea Regional Park

For those with a day or two to explore, whether by foot, mountain bike or horseback, the Sea to Sea Regional Park trail system has you covered!  This is an area with designated multi-use, shared use, or specific trails to coordinate the different user groups within the park, whether you are looking for a peak to hike or to test your two-wheel skills. 

Located at the end of Harbourview Road, just off Sooke Road (Hwy 14), outdoor enthusiasts will discover the main access point for the Mount Manuel Quimper portion of the Sea to Sea Regional Park. The park is also accessible from the Galloping Goose Regional Trail, near the 41km marker, at Harbourview Road. For equestrians, the parking area has dedicated vehicle with trailer parking spots available and a water spigot. A bike wash area is also located near the toilets.

Encompassing 4,000 hectares (almost 10,000 acres) the Sea to Sea Park, just minutes from the Sooke town core, is a well-maintained network of hiking, equestrian and mountain biking trails complete with stunning views.

At 546m (1,791 ft) rising directly up from sea level, the jewel in the crown is the recently refurbished 1950's fire lookout structure at the summit of Mt Manuel Quimper – or Big Mountain as it has been known by the T'Sou-ke First Nation for generations. This publicly accessible structure offers commanding views of the area including the vast forests to the north, Sooke Harbour and Basin, Victoria, and across to Washington States' Olympic National Park and Mt Baker.

It is also the starting point for some of the steepest, most technical, sanctioned mountain bike trails on the Southern Island; the hike or bike “push up” to the summit is well worth the effort for experienced, skilled riders. Hikers have access trail via the Quimper Summit trail, while bikers can access via Juniper or the push up trail near the northern park boundary.

The mountain bike descents from here will challenge even the most confident rider! Arbutus, Raven, and Manzinata are dedicated down only mountain bike trails that will test even the most confident rider with steep rocky sections, drops (most have ride arounds), and occasional gaps. You will want to allow time to run them again or pre inspect the more challenging lines (full body armour and full-face helmets recommended). Even the “not-so-wild” Juniper needs skill and confidence as you negotiate areas of steep tight technical and rocky sections, especially near the summit, before reaching the more family friendly Kinnikinnick and Willow trails.

If you only have limited time, the views from Mt Brule are spectacular. The Rocky Ridge descent leading to Stonecrop 2 and 3, or Bracken are lower down, shorter trails with more flow (excluding Rocky Ridge) and will return you back to the parking area.

For more family friendly biking trails, the lower sections offer easy, or moderate to challenging trails, albeit with some initial climbing to access. Allow up to 20-30 minutes of uphill climbing, so a moderate level of fitness is required for the area, as all trails do climb in elevation immediately from the parking area.

The Sea to Sea Regional Park is one of the largest CRD regional parks. It includes vast areas of wilderness with tranquil lakes, mountain top peaks and trails connecting individual parks such as the Sooke Potholes Regional Park, Sooke Mountain Provincial Park, and the Sooke Hills Wilderness Regional Park. Many of the trails within the network were once old fire or skid roads left over from previous activities, now long abandoned, and most reduced to back country trails, with spurs darting off leading to vistas and viewpoints. All of the connected parks, with the exception of Sooke Mountain Provincial Park, have their own access points with parking lots.

All of this is of course a haven for hikers, whether on a short hike to the Mt Brule viewpoint, the Quimper fire lookout, one of the several lakes within the parks or Empress Mountain and beyond you will need more than an afternoon to fully appreciate the area.

Please note: there is no overnight camping within the park.

If heading into the back country, please adhere to all safety/fire regulations and be prepared. Once the main areas are behind you, other visitors are few and far between or non-existent - especially outside the main summer months. Wildlife here is everywhere, bears, cougars and wolves and their prey such as deer and elk share this area. Leave a route plan with someone you trust will follow it up. Cell service can be extremely limited to non-existent.

Wildfires can take hold quickly and are very difficult to access and extinguish – please check and adhere to fire bans – essentially every and all summer to fall a total fire ban is in effect.

Written by: Allen Krutz