Swap These Popular Adventure Spots for Lesser-Known Places



Rafting in Golden - popular adventure spot dupes
Dave Best/Tourism Golden photo

Algonquin. Gros Morne. Whistler. Wood Buffalo.

All these names stir up images of great places of epic adventure—and they are staggeringly popular, for good reason.

But there are alternatives, each with their own unique reasons to visit, often with fewer crowds and more campground availability. It’s always worth visiting these major adventure areas, but don’t pass over their lesser-known neighbours.

Here are 10 places in Canada that offer similar adventures—but are just a little different and much less full.

Swap the popular adventure spot with its dupe.

Instead of Gros Morne, Explore La Manche

La Manche - popular adventure spot dupes
Tourism Newfoundland Labrador

Gros Morne National Park is Newfoundland’s top bucket-list spot to visit; however, if your bucket handle doesn’t reach far enough to get to that corner of the province, visit La Manche Provincial Park, less than an hour’s drive from St. John’s.

The diverse habitats, landscapes and geology mean you’ll see different flora and fauna.

La Manche offers plenty of opportunities for hiking, paddling, bird and wildlife watching like Gros Morne and a few others. One of those is canoeing. While you can kayak in the northern park, kayaking and canoeing opportunities exist in La Manche, such as paddling along La Manche River and through marshy ponds in the river delta.

You won’t see any iconic seabirds in La Manche, but there are more forest bird species to see, including gems like the hairy woodpecker terra novae subspecies, which is endemic to the island.

There are two hiking trails in La Manche; one of them includes a 50-metre suspension bridge, which is part of the East Coast Trail.

Instead of Halifax, Enjoy Cape Breton Island

Skyline Trail - popular adventure spot dupes
John Geary

You can enjoy great coastal hiking in and around Halifax—but there are great hikes along the coast of Cape Breton, too. Cape Breton Highlands National Park offers almost 30 different day hikes, ranging from easy to difficult.

The Skyline Trail provides one of the park’s most beautiful panoramas, with a view of the Cabot Trail highway alongside the ocean. Lucky hikers might even see a coyote sneaking through the bushes along the trail.

Jackpine Trail, Cape Breton - popular adventure spot dupes
John Geary

If you combine that with a tramp along the Jack Pine Trail, you’ll get a view of the ocean on both coasts, as the park stretches right across the northern peninsula of Cape Breton.

Want to paddle? Head south to Bras d’Dors Lakes, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to dip a blade into its waters.

There’s also great fly-fishing on the island.

Instead of Gaspe, Birdwatch in Cap Tourmente, Quebec

Canyone Sainte-Ann - popular adventure spot dupes
John Geary

Quebec’s Gaspe region provides some amazing birdwatching opportunities. To really do it justice, you need at least a week. However, Cap Tourmente, a national wildlife area (different from a national park), sits a bit closer to Quebec, and you can easily experience it in a day or two—although once there, you may be inclined to stay longer.

The best time to go is spring or fall, when the snow geese migrate through. An internationally recognized Ramsar site (a wetland of international importance), it’s Canada’s most important sanctuary for these birds.

Snow geese in Quebec - popular adventure spots
John Geary

The interpretive centre provides visitors with plenty of information so you can thoroughly enjoy the trails.

Nearby and certainly worth a visit is Canyon Sainte-Anne, with trails surrounding the gorge that you can cross on three different suspension bridges. Along one side, a plaque commemorates a visit by Henry David Thoreau.

Instead of Algonquin, Canoe in Quetico

Quetico - popular adventure spots dupes
Zuzanna Radecki Ontario Parks

Algonquin Provincial Park has a well-earned reputation as a canoeing mecca. Many of us make our first multi-day canoe trips here. However, if you want something a little more remote, Quetico Provincial Park in northwestern Ontario begs you to paddling there.

Quetico provides solitude, seeing only about five per cent of overnight visits as Algonquin. While a highway cuts through Algonquin, there is no road through Quetico, a wilderness-class park.

You can enjoy day hikes from the park’s one front-country campsite, but it’s really made to canoe.

From Toronto, it’s a long drive. Quick alternative: fly into Thunder Bay; which is less than two hours. Flying means you can’t take your own canoe, but several outfitters service the park and can get you geared up and provide guided trips.

Don’t let the thought of portaging stop you: several paddling routes don’t involve carrying a canoe through the woods.

Instead of Wood Buffalo, See Bison in Elk Island National Park

Elk Island buffalo - popular adventure spots dupes
Parks Canada

Both these Alberta national parks have something many other parks do not: free-ranging bison. Great for those craving a (temporary) home where the “buffalo” roams.

Probably the biggest thing in Elk Island’s favour is its proximity to a major centre. From Edmonton, it’s only about a 45-minute drive. Wood Buffalo is about a 4.5-hour drive.

While the more northern park has roughly 3,000 bison, they are spread over 4.5 million hectares. The 700 bison in the more southern park are spread over 19,400 hectares, so given that population density, you have a better chance of spotting the big shaggy beasts in Elk Island. Sometimes even while driving the road to your campsite.

Elk Island also boasts both plains and wood bison; only the latter are found in Wood Buffalo. Just remember: do NOT try to pet the fluffy cows.

Along with bison viewing, there are numerous paddling and hiking opportunities.

Instead of Banff, Adventure in Golden, BC

Rafting in Golden - popular adventure spot dupes
Dave BestTourism Golden photo

The beauty of Banff makes it one of Canada’s most well-known national parks. It’s also Canada’s most visited park. But if you drive through Banff and keep heading west on the Trans Canada Highway, you’ll reach Golden, BC. Offering much of the same beauty but without the crowds, Golden sits at the heart of several Rocky Mountain national and provincial parks.

Golden always brings to mind my very first whitewater rafting experience, on the Kicking Horse River. There are a number of outfitters that supply rafting adventures to give you that on-water adrenaline rush. Some offer heli-rafting as well.

If you’re looking for a paddling adventure that’s a little more serene, the Columbia River and Wetlands, a world-renowned wetland, sits just outside of Golden. Several outfitters supply rental canoes, kayaks and guided trips.

Golden is a great place to try heli-hiking or heli-rafting.

Instead of Kelowna, Pedal Penticton

Mountain biking in Penticton - popular adventure spot dupes
Evan Wishloff Penticton Tourism

Both Okanagan communities offer great recreation opportunities. Kelowna provides amazing paddling and cycling adventures (which can sometimes be combined with winery tours). Penticton also has all those activities and a fairly new initiative that stresses sustainable tourism: their Fuel-free program.

To try to encourage people to park their cars, the city has established a series of road cycling and bike trails connecting many of the small city’s attractions. Ditto, a series of walking and hiking paths in and around the city; there’s even an itinerary to help you plan walks to and from any culinary adventure stops.

As for paddling, Penticton is one of only two cities in the world that sits between two lakes—Okanagan and Skaha Lakes—offering kayaking, SUP and canoeing opportunities. Other water-based activities, like sailing—or if you’re feeling particularly lazy, just floating down a river—are accessible in Penticton.

Instead of Victoria, Whale Watch in Comox

Humpback whale tail in Comox - popular adventure spots dupes
John Geary

Victoria provides some superb whale-watching opportunities, but so does Comox, just a three-hour drive up the Trans-Canada Highway. To save time and get a great view of the coast, you can also fly directly to Comox from Vancouver via Harbour Air.

The less-crowded waters around Comox gave me my fondest whale-watching experience: the only place I’ve ever seen a humpback whale breach completely. One of the Zodiacs got drenched. Of course, that all happened too fast to get a good shot; I had to content myself with shots of the tail flukes.

Whale watching in Comox - popular adventure spot dupes
John Geary

There are also plenty of orcas and many seals in the area. If you’re a birdwatcher, keep your eyes peeled for seabirds like pigeon guillemots, common murres or sooty shearwaters. You may also spot a lion’s mane jellyfish bobbing around in the water; interesting to look at—but don’t touch!

Instead of Whistler, Escape to the Sunshine Coast

Sunshine Coast - Popular adventure spots dupes
Alison Hodgins

Whistler’s world-famous coastal mountains provide a great getaway from Vancouver’s hustle and bustle. Just a short ferry ride from Horseshoe Bay, you’ll feel even farther away from the city buzz. The coast consists of stunning hikes with views of Caribbean-coloured waters, exciting wildlife sightings and the feeling of being on an island—along with frequent reminders that it is not, in fact, an island.

One must-do experience is night-time kayaking along the southern coast with Metta Eco Experiences. It’s pretty cool paddling on the ocean to watch the sun and moon swap places; it’s even cooler to see bioluminescence while paddling in the dark. During the day, experience the Chatterbox Falls boat tour into Princess Louisa Inlet. Stay at Backeddy Resort & Marina and enjoy a cold beer and crispy fish and chips on the pub’s patio overlooking the water.

Sunshine Coast - popular adventure spot dupes
Alison Hodgins

Up north, Desolation Sound is one of the best places for ocean kayaking. There are also a couple of renowned multi-day adventures to experience: hikers can walk the Sunshine Coast Trail, Canada’s longest hut-to-hut trail; canoeists can paddle the Powell River Canoe Route.

Heading North? Choose Dawson City Over Fairbanks, Alaska

Tombstone Mountains - Popular adventure spots dupes
John Geary

Fairbanks and Dawson City both played key roles in the Yukon gold rush in the late 1800s. But Dawson City lies on the banks of the Yukon River—the beginning and ending point for many Yukon adventures.

Some of us arrive by canoe, following multi-day trips on the Yukon River. You can book day trips with local paddling companies there.

For something different, try geocaching the historic sites. The walking trails around Dawson offer outstanding scenery.

Tombstone Mountains - popular adventure spot dupes
John Geary

Remote Tombstone Territorial Park offers hikers a chance to really stretch their legs. The park’s 220,000 hectares include rugged mountains reminiscent of a traverse through the mountains of Mordor. The interpretive centre is about a two-hour drive from Dawson.

For a quicker trip to the Tombstone Mountains, you can book a sight-seeing tour with Great River Air and zip over the peaks in a Cessna.

Whatever you do, don’t leave the city without having earned a membership in the SourToe Club.

Disclaimer: John Geary was hosted as media in Dawson City, St. John’s, Comox, Quebec City and Cape Breton.

READ MORE: , ,

Share

LEAVE A COMMENT


RECOMMENDED FOR YOU