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Making the best out of your trip to BC is a daunting itinerary when you seek adventure and scenery, all the while covering as much ground as possible in this beautiful vast landscape. We think we’ve found a solution that will not only let you accomplish the latter but has you doing it in a way that is in a classic and timeless style and true to the spirit of Adventure.
We’re talking about RVing in a classic Volkswagen Westfalia from The Honest Camper! Their Westies are maintained and kept to the roots of the original Westfalia experience. Add some K02 rugged terrain tires, and you’re all set to (as Honest Campers Slogan says)” Chose your own adventure.” Their vans are pet friendly and come prepared with everything you need to get camping from the moment you get off the plane at YVK airport. Items include:
- Mini fridge
- Propane cooktop
- Sink with water
- USB charging station
- Linen, pillows, and blankets
- Bluetooth speaker
- First aid kit
- Back Roads Map Book
- Rope
- Lanterns
- Bug spray
- and manual roll-down windows!
Consider stopping at a market or grocery store for supplies on your way to the first destination. RV parks and provincial campgrounds are easy to find, well priced, and usually nestled into a stunning rocky mountain backdrop. Check out their website to see the many options they provide with different vans and pre-planned routes.
The beauty and versatility of the VW Westfalia are that you can book either a drive-in tent campsite or an RV campsite with water and hydro because the van meets both of these criteria. This flexibility comes in real handy when trying to camp at busy camping destinations such as the Squamish or Chilliwack areas.
We started our trip at YVK international airport and got into our sweet Westfalia 30 mins after landing at the Park n Fly nearby. From here, it seemed, we had one obvious 1st destination; the scenic Sea to Sky highway out to the adventure capital of the world, Squamish BC. Our first stop had us visiting some family for the evening in the heart of Squamish to get some local travel tips for the week ahead of us; here’s what they had to say.
Local tips:
- The Squamish area is beautiful and popular for a reason, so make sure to book your campsites well in advance to ensure you don’t end up camping at the local Walmart for the night.
- Remote drive-in campsites are out towards the end of the Sea to Sky Hiway. Camp these on weekdays, and you’ll have a more private experience. We’ll leave specific campsite names out of this article and up to your adventurous spirit. But, we assure you, they’re not hard to find with a Back Roads Map Book or advice from a local guide.
- The Squamish area has a high density of bears, and packing out what you pack in is of the utmost importance! Approximately 3000 bears were killed last year due to the bears’ newfound reliance on irresponsible campers or property owners’ provision of easy leftovers and stinky garbage. Keep your sites clean and practice proper bear country ethics.
- It rains about 40% of the time near the coast, so don’t let the temperate rainforest’s moodiness bring you down. As the locals say in that neck of the woods, “there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.”
Tips from our experience:
- Do yourself a favour and dive into the ol’ Back Roads Map Book to take your adventure to the next level. Better yet, download their app and plan ahead.
- Download the GuidED mobile app and see what local guided experiences you can take part in to get away from the crowds and off the beaten path.
- Pick up a small to medium tarp as an extra covered shelter and use some standard tarp setup techniques to stay dry. The Honest Camper provides a good amount of rope in the van with a couple of bungees.
- Bring your rain jacket! It will serve as a lifesaver for rainy days and chilly mornings or evenings.
- Not all campsites provide grills, so pick up a cheap grill at a camp store or Candian Tire if you like cooking over a fire. If you forget, you’ll have to do what we did here.