Vargas Island Provincial Park is a

provincial park Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other countries. They are typically open to the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, comprising the west side of the island of the same name, which is located west of

Meares Island Meares Island is one of the many islands surrounding the Village of Tofino, British Columbia, Canada. Its name was given in 1862 by George Henry Richards, captain of , in honor of John Meares. The island is located in the Clayoquot Sound region and ...

and northwest of the resort community of

Tofino Tofino ( ) is a town of approximately 2,516 residents on the west coast of Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The District of Tofino is located at the western terminus of Highway 4 on the tip of the Esowista Penins ...

in the

Clayoquot Sound , image = Clayoquot Sound - Near Tofino - Vancouver Island BC - Canada - 08.jpg , image_size = 260px , alt = , caption = , image_bathymetry = Vancouver clayoquot sound de.png , alt_bathyme ...

region of the West Coast of

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

, Canada. The park was created as part of the

Clayoquot Land-Use Decision Clayoquot is an anglicization of the Nuu-chah-nulth language name "Tla-o-qui-aht", one of the indigenous tribes of the region so named. It may refer to: *Clayoquot, British Columbia, historically also known as Port Cox, a community on Stubbs Islan ...

on July 13, 1995 and contains , of it being upland and being foreshore. Also located on Vargas Island, on its north side, is

Epper Passage Provincial Park Epper Passage Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on the north side of Vargas Island in the Clayoquot Sound region of the West Coast of Vancouver Island. Also on Vargas Island is Vargas Island Provincial Park ...

. This island is home to the mammalian species of

black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...

, and

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...

. There is some concern about wolves in the parks becoming habituated, after two wolves had to be killed because of their attack on a male sleeping camper on July 2, 2000. For both human safety and the future of the wolf population in Clayoquot Sound, food must be stored out of reach of wildlife and animals must not be approached or fed by visitors. The island is apparently named for

Diego de Vargas Diego de Vargas Zapata y Luján Ponce de León y Contreras (1643–1704), commonly known as Don Diego de Vargas, was a Spanish Governor of the New Spain territory of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, to the US states of New Mexico and Arizona, titular ...

, who regained

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

for Spain in 1693–94.

References

* Clayoquot Sound region Provincial parks of British Columbia {{BritishColumbia-park-stub

See also

References