If you’re looking for perspective, connection with nature, and space to roam, look to our province’s vast and wild northern reaches. Discover glacial valleys, soaring mountain peaks, and wildlife parks – the kind of sweeping landscapes that adventurers aspire to witness.
Regardless of how far from home or enormous these parts may appear, the wilderness in BC’s north is as inviting as it is untamed. You’ll feel right at home when you arrive, and will leave with a new understanding of just how deep BC’s beautiful backyard goes.
Ways to Explore the Vast, Wild North
Tour by car or RV along key corridors like the scenic Route 16 through Smithers and Terrace, forest-lined Highway 37, or the historic Alaska Highway. Or, link them all for the ultimate northern circle route.
Edged by jaw-dropping scenery, Prince George is a great place to stay a few days and get a taste of life in the north. Meet the locals and enjoy a glass of fruit wine at BC’s northernmost winery; walk amongst 300-year-old black cottonwoods and view tree bark carvings in Cottonwood Island Park. Discover secluded waterways of the Omineca with a guided fishing charter.
For a more direct route from the south, fly direct to Terrace or Prince George.
Enjoy Heart-Pumping Adventures Along Route 16
Give your northern adventure a theme and go on a fishing, rafting, mountain biking, or hiking road trip along Route 16. Head west from Prince George and spend a few days in towns like Terrace, BC’s up-and-coming mountain biking hotspot. Set up a home base in Burns Lake or Smithers and explore the dozens of lakes and rivers in the area – full of healthy populations of rainbow trout and char, so don’t forget your fishing licence! Visit the Hazeltons and the ‘Ksan Historical Village, Campground and Museum to honour generations, past and present, and immerse yourself in 8,000-year-old Indigenous history.
Explore northern BC’s majestic vistas, like Monkman Provincial Park. Mike Seehagel photo.
Explore Big Nature East of the Rockies in “The Peace”
Carved by water and wind over thousands of years, mountain ranges give way to valleys and prairie skies east of the Rockies along the Alaska Highway (Highway 97) – an area affectionately dubbed “The Peace” by locals.
This historic route leads you to old settlements like Fort St. John and “Mile 0” of the Alaska Highway at Dawson Creek. Tumbler Ridge, one of only three Global Geoparks in North America, is another must-visit; see dinosaur trackways and fossils and appreciate just how far travel in BC can take us, in both space and through time. Continue onward to Fort Nelson and explore Stone Mountain and Northern Rocky Mountains provincial parks and make a stop at the picturesque Muncho Lake.
Start planning your summer travel today at ExploreBC.com.
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