British Columbia Geography…..• The westernmost of Canada's

provinces and is famed for its natural beauty.

• BC's capital is Victoria while the largest city is Vancouver, which is also Canada's third-largest metropolitan area

British Columbia long coastline supports a large shipping industry through ice-free, deepwater ports.

Geography cont……• The province has four basic

regions:• a northwesterly trending

mountain system on the coast,• a similar mountain system on

the east,• an extensive area of plateau

and mountain country between the two,

• and a lowland segment of the continent's Great Plains in the northeastern part of the province

British Columbia is….• Bordered by the Pacific Ocean on its west, by the American state of

Alaska on its northwest, and to the north by the Yukon and the Northwest Territories, on the east by the province of Alberta, and on the south by the U.S. states of Washington, Idaho, and Montana.

• About the size of France, Germany and the Netherlands combined.

• Seventy-five percent of the province is mountainous (more than 1,000 metres or 3,280 feet above sea level); 60% is forested; and only about 5% is arable.

• Covered by temperate rain forest in much of the western part of Vancouver Island and the rest of the coast as far north as the Alaska Panhandle and south from the Olympic Peninsula to northern California.

The First Nations population spread throughout the region, mostly on the coast, where aboriginals achieved the highest density of any place in Canada. At the time of European contact, nearly half the aboriginal people in present-day Canada, lived in BC.

Currently, the province is governed by the British Columbia Liberal Party under Premier Gordon Campbell.

$$$ Economy….• British Columbia has a resource dominated economy,

centered on the forestry industry, but also with increasing importance in mining.

• New jobs are mostly in the construction and retail/service sectors. Currently, the Vancouver region is the third-largest feature film production location in North America, after Los Angeles and New York.

The Queen Charlotte Islands• consist of about 150 islands the

two largest being Graham Island to the north and Moresby Island just south of it. The area is sometimes referred to as "Galapagos of the North" and is ideal for photography, boating, whale watching, wildlife watching, hiking, camping, birdwatching and exploring.

Cariboo Chilcotin Coast

Bordered by the wild Cariboo and Columbia mountains to the east and the forested fjords of the central coast to the west, it is here that the legendary Wild West lives on - complete with cowboys, cattle drives, a million fishin' holes and even a BC Gold Rush Trail.

The province's mainland away from coastal regions are not as moderated by the Pacific Ocean and range from desert and semi-arid plateau to the range and canyon districts of the interior plateau.

Thompson & OkanaganFrom lakeside to mountain peaks, the entire Thompson Okanagan is a year-round paradise for nature lovers, adventurers, and recreationalists. The uniquely varied landscape and moderate, sunny climate are natural ingredients for first class skiing, water sports, hiking, climbing, and of course golfing and fishing.

Vancouver Island

Known as Canada's Paradise on the Pacific, Vancouver Island, including Victoria and the tranquil Gulf Islands, is a vacation destination with something for everyone

Northern British Columbia

The vast wilderness area of Northern British Columbia is an unspoiled masterpiece of nature. The mountain ranges, which dominate the northern landscape, were shaped by volcanic fire; the rugged, heavily forested valleys between them were carved by glaciers which at one time covered most of the province.

The northern two-thirds of the province is largely unpopulated and undeveloped, and is mostly mountainous.

Kootenays & Rockies.

The Kootenays border on the Canadian Rocky Mountains, where you will find world class skiing areas, reconditioned gold mines, and hot mineral springs

Coast & Mountains

This region offers a diverse range of world class cultural, recreational, natural and wildlife attractions year-round. Our scenic location between ocean and mountains enables a spectacular range of visitor experiences. Enjoy internationally acclaimed entertainment and attractions in cosmopolitan Vancouver, then drive the Sea to Sky Country with its scenes of glacier carved peaks and waterfalls on your way to Whistler Resort.

**the Vancouver metro area now includes 52% of the Province's population.

Vancouver (and to a lesser extent some other parts of British Columbia) was a major destination for many of the emigrants from Hong Kong who left the former UK colony (either temporarily or permanently) in the years immediately prior to its handover to the People's Republic of China

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Hundreds of miles of shoreline have been degraded by clearcuts, which have turned some of the most beautiful cruising coastlines in the world into some of the most despoiled. Clear cutting of the ocean shore is a logging practice still approved under B.C.'s new Forest Practices Code