Courtenay is the larger of the two and hosts the Travel Infocenter . Miracle Beach Provincial Park has hiking trails a campground and a long sandy beach. The largest park on the Island, Campbell River is the main access point. Basically a wilderness area, there are hiking trails, trout fishing, skiing in winter, hiking, horse riding and mountain biking in summer. The highest waterfall in North America, Della Falls is in the park, but is a tough 2-3 day walk, but great for scenery.
Black bears can be seen here, but no grizzly bears, there are none on the island.
Mt Washington Ski Resort Situated just outside Strathcona , it boasts 5 ski lifts, lots of runs and approx. 50km of cross-country ski trails. In summer you can hike horse-ride and cycle. One of the best examples of boardwalk villages, it was built before the First World War as a terminus of a telegraph line strung from tree to tree along the island's coastline. It is now a major destination for Whale watchers.