Island View Beach is located on the Eastern Cordova shore of the Saanich Peninsula, near Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. A real treasure for people who like quiet nature settings, with views of Mount Baker, and Islands of the Gulf Island National Park Reserve. Families and Nature Enthusiasts will enjoy walking the many meadow trails, to learn about the various plant and animal species.. There is several kilometers of shoreline for walking, with excellent shorebird viewing, and millions of interesting rocks along the way.
Much of the southern part of the foreshore make up the public Island View Beach Regional Park. Long inhabited by the native , the Tsawout First Nation has a reservation fronting much of the northern end of the beach. The Tsawout have been living and gathering seafood from the ocean and well as gathering local medicinal plants, as part of the culture for thousands of years. The first known European visitors were James Douglas and first mate Scott M. Jenkin in the latter half of the 18th century. Located southwest of James Island, to locals it is known as the "Beach of Destiny". Located at Homathko and Puckle Road, public parking. There is a public campground which is open for the summer season from the Victoria Day long weekend in May to the Labour Day long weekend in September. Visitors should be aware there is off leash dog restrictions from June 1 to September 15. Dogs should be kept on leash in beach and picnic areas and are not allowed to stay overnight. Island View Beach Regional Park is a BC Regional Park, therefore facilities are located for those who are in need of garbage cans and or washrooms. Island View Beach has a boat launch for access to Haro Strait and the Cordova Channel. Visitors and Nature Photographers are treated in the spring and fall, to view migratory birds that stop here to rest and feed. Presently there is concern in conservation of the Beach, Sand Dune, and Salt Marsh that support a vast eco system, within the Island View Beach area. An outdated park plan exists, which is presently under review, and will be updated to reflect conservation strategies. The Island View Beach terrain consists of beach, dune, and marshland, that supports a wide range of local wild animal and plant species. Due to human activity over the last century this ecological area has placed local wild animal and plant species to possible risk, and endangerment. Possible species at risk have been identified as: Contorted Pod Evening Primrose, Sand Verbena moth, Common Night Hawk, Bank Swallow, Barn Swallow, Marbled Murrelet, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Peregrine Falcon, Horned Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Short-eared Owl, Long-billed Curlew, Western Grebe, Ancient Murrelet, Band-tailed Pigeon, Georgia Basin Bog Spider, Common Murre, Brandt's Cormorant, Brant, Cackling Goose, Long-tailed Duck, California Gull, Surf Scoter, Red-necked Phalarope, Purple Martin, Yellow Sand-verbena, Beach Bindweed, American Glehnia, Fleshy Jaumea, Black Knotweed, Double-crested Cormorant, Snowy Owl, Caspian Tern
