Rainforest and open coast within an hour of a Victoria hotel
Sooke is where Victoria's suburbs give up and the coast begins: a harbour town with a working fishing fleet, a basin sheltered from the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and East Sooke Regional Park's coastal trail on the far side of the water. The Sooke Potholes, a chain of river pools and canyons, are the summer swimming hole; the zipline course above the town and the sailing trips from the harbour are the bookable side.
West of Sooke the road becomes the West Coast Road, and it strings together the Juan de Fuca beaches — French Beach, China Beach, Sombrio — and the trailheads of the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail on the way to Port Renfrew, two hours from Victoria. Port Renfrew is a village with a pub, a couple of lodges and Botanical Beach's tide pools, the start of the West Coast Trail, and the closest a Victoria day trip comes to the open Pacific.
Guided hikes from Victoria cover East Sooke and the Sooke-to-Port Renfrew drive; the multi-day guided circuits often start this way. It is the section of coast to choose if Tofino is too far.
Getting there
Highway 14 (Sooke Road, then the West Coast Road) from Victoria's western suburbs. BC Transit reaches Sooke; beyond it you need a car or a tour. The Pacific Marine Circle Route continues from Port Renfrew to Lake Cowichan and back to Victoria via the Malahat.
What departs from here
Sailing trips leave from Sooke Harbour; the zipline and the East Sooke coastal hikes meet at their own sites; Sooke-to-Port Renfrew day tours pick up in Victoria. No transit reaches the trailheads.
Staying
A day trip for most Victoria visitors; one or two nights for hikers or for the oceanfront lodges on the West Coast Road, which are the point of a stay here.
Season
Coastal trails are open year-round and best in dry weather from May to September; winter storms on the Juan de Fuca beaches are worth the drive. The potholes are a July-and-August swim.
Know before you go
Highway 14 beyond Sooke is slow, with no fuel until Port Renfrew. Trails are muddy and roots are slick most of the year. Cell coverage fades west of Jordan River.
