MacMillan Provincial Park

MacMillan Provincial Park on central Vancouver Island protects the Cameron River delta and is renowned for Cathedral Grove, a rare highway-accessible old-growth Douglas-fir forest in British Columbia. Its ancient trees, some more than 800 years old, stand within a transition zone between drier and wetter coastal forests, supporting a rich mix of plant and animal life. The area also has deep Indigenous history, with culturally modified western redcedars dated to AD 1137. After public pressure to prevent logging, H.R. MacMillan donated land in 1944, and the area became a Class A provincial park in 1947. Despite protection, storms, upstream logging, and heavy visitation have continued to threaten the grove.

British Columbia · Canada