BY CAROLYN B. HELLER
Five local strolls, ambles and meanders to get you through the winter.
On the best winter days, Victoria might lure you outdoors with misty mornings or crisp, clear afternoons. But even the darkness and drizzle that can descend on Vancouver Island isn’t a reason to stay indoors. Take advantage of the serene winter season to wander through the city on foot.
A good raincoat and waterproof walking shoes or boots are the basic gear you need for comfortable winter strolling. Add rain pants, a rain hat or umbrella, as well as water-resistant mittens or gloves for damper days. Layers will help you adjust to changeable weather — just add a sweater when the wind kicks in or shed a layer as you warm up while walking. And don’t forget your water bottle. Even on cold days, it’s important to stay hydrated.
Now let’s go for a walk.
Perambulate Through the Park
In the summer, Beacon Hill Park bustles with families petting the goats at the Beacon Hill Children’s Farm, tourists snapping selfies at the Trans-Canada Highway’s “Mile 0” and urbanites sheltering from the sun beneath the cedars and Douglas firs. But in winter, a walk through Victoria’s central park can be a scenic escape, especially if a dusting of snow has settled on the evergreens.
Enter the park from Douglas Street (where you will also find the iconic Beacon Drive In) and circle Good Acre Lake. Look for the Moss Lady, an 11-metre-long sculpture reclining behind the Cameron Bandshell. If it’s a clear day without too much wind, climb the path behind the children’s farm to the park’s summit, where the views across the water extend to Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. From this viewpoint, head down the trails toward Dallas Road — take care if the paths are slippery — and continue your walk in either direction along the Dallas Road Waterfront Trail, where you can dream about sunny days by the sea.
Take an Indigenous Art Walk
Victoria sits on the territory of the lək̓wəŋən (Lekwungen) people of the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations. Take an art walk through the city’s downtown to find the “Signs of Lekwungen,” seven sculptures marking places that are culturally significant to these two nations. Coast Salish artist Clarence “Butch” Dick created these 2.5-metre-tall artworks, bronze casts of cedar carvings, each in the shape of a spindle whorl, which Coast Salish women traditionally used to spin wool.
Start at Songhees Point on the west shore, in the waterfront park behind the Delta Victoria Ocean Pointe Resort, to see the first of these sculptures. Another is outside Victoria City Hall, while a third is on the former site of Fort Victoria, overlooking the water on Wharf Street at Broughton. The sculpture on the Inner Harbour’s Lower Causeway opposite the Fairmont Empress Hotel marks the “place of mud,” former tidal mudflats where First Nations people once dug for clams. Other artworks along this sculpture trail are located outside the Royal BC Museum, in Laurel Point Park and at the lookout in Beacon Hill Park, a point that the First Nations called MEE-qan, meaning “warmed by the sun.”
Saunter and Sip
Don’t let a little rain — or a powerful thirst — keep you from your winter walks. Plan your stroll around stops at the city’s craft breweries, where you can duck inside for a drink along the way.
Begin at Whistle Buoy Brewing in Market Square, kicking off your walk with Coastality, their signature North American pale ale, or with the nuttier Stouty McStoutface. Continue up Douglas Street to Phillips Brewing for non-alcoholic options like their iOTA line, which comes in pilsner, cerveza, pale ale, hazy IPA and blackberry lemon ale varieties, or the Spitfire Ginger Ale or Dare Devil Orange Cream, made by their sibling craft beverage company, Phillips Soda Works.
Take a left on Bay Street and walk to Moon Under Water, where you might pair your drinks with a chicken and brie burger, a tofu and veggie bowl, or an order of masala cheese fries. Continue your stroll down Bay to Songhees Walkway and Spinnakers, one of the first brew pubs in Canada. Alternatively, retrace your steps on Bay, then go north on Bridge Street to Hoyne Brewing Company, known for brews like Dark Matter or Helios Dortmunder, a malt-forward golden lager. Keep walking north to Île Sauvage Brewing, where you might wrap up your walk with their unique Yuzu NPA, a hoppy non-alcoholic blend of Genmaicha (green tea) and yuzu juice, before making your way back downtown.
Ramble Along a Rail Trail
The 29-kilometre-long Lochside Regional Trail runs from central Victoria to the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal. While this multi-use pathway along a former train line is popular with cyclists, you can follow the path on foot, too.
Cross the Johnson Street Bridge to the Galloping Goose Trail, which intersects the Lochside at the Switch Bridge. Take the Lochside northeast, passing placid Swan Lake and crossing the Swan Lake trestle bridge. After about three kilometres, the Lochside meets Blenkinsop Greenway, which leads east to Babe’s Honey Farm. Duck into their tasting room (call first to confirm their winter hours) to sample their Sparkling Bee Line, a fermented kombucha-like beverage made from honey. The Earl Grey tea will warm you with its bergamot and vanilla flavours, while ginger lovers should make a beeline for the Ginger Splash.
Follow the Flight Path
Dreaming of a winter getaway? A walk on the Flight Path, which loops around Victoria International Airport in the centre of the Saanich Peninsula, won’t get you to a tropical destination, but it might help spur your fantasies of flight, watching the airplanes take off as you follow this paved, multi-use trail.
Part of the nine-kilometre-long route passes Patricia Bay Park on the waterfront, while another section takes you beside warehouses, garages and electrical supply stores through the peninsula’s industrial heart. On the path’s north side, detour for a hot drink and a decadently rich salted caramel pecan brownie at the Fickle Fig Farm Market. Or duck into the BC Aviation Museum for a look at the heritage aircraft.
You can pick up the trail near Sidney or at the airport itself, both transit-accessible from downtown. The Flight Path isn’t shaded or sheltered, so it’s best to follow on a clear, mild day. Just watch for icy spots when the temperatures drop.
If you’re walking the Flight Path when winter has eased into spring, take a break amid the wildflowers in the YYJ pollinator garden. You can sit and spot the planes, or simply pause to be grateful that you’ve walked your way through another winter.
