About Salt Spring Island

"Just 20 miles northwest of Washington State's San Juans, Salt Spring is the largest and most accessible of British Columbia's Gulf Islands. . . the island enjoys the best weather in Canada, a microclimate fondly called the Banana Belt."

Excerpted from Island of Clear Appeal, by Carl Duncan, distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate.

 
"Last year 200,000 visitors arrived on the island. With daily float planes from Vancouver and Seattle into Ganges Harbor on the island’s east side, and convenient ferry service from Vancouver Island and the mainland, getting here has never been easier or quicker.

Long Canada's most famous artist haven (home to wildlife painter Robert Bateman among others), Salt Spring -- 18 miles long; population 10,000 -- also is becoming one of its most popular tourist destinations. People from all over the world are drawn by the island's idyllic countryside, its dramatic maritime scenery and refreshing rural pace. There's a multitude of studios and galleries, abundant outdoor activities, and accommodations with character (mainly B&Bs or cabins and cottages).

Salt Spring has the oldest farm in all of British Columbia. Much of the original farmstead, including four miles of shoreline, has been made into a 1,200-acre provincial park with first-come first-served walk-in campsites. Ruckle Park occupies a good chunk of land on Beaver Point, just beyond Fulford Harbor on the island's southeast corner. Every spring, during lambing and planting season, islanders and early-season visitors gather for Family Day, a free open-house on the farm and surrounding parklands. There's a lamb-petting pen for the kids, weaving and black smith demonstrations, a horse-drawn ploughing competition... and long lines at the barbecue grill (proceeds benefit the local Lions Club).

The original family home, built by Henry Ruckle in 1877, still proudly stands (among other heritage structures), near the apple orchard behind the barn.

Although Henry Ruckle was one of Salt Spring's early pioneers, he was not the first. The first were Americans who arrived 20 years earlier in 1857 -- nine slaves who had purchased their freedom and were looking to make a fresh start in a new land. A schooner from Victoria dropped them off in what is now called Vesuvius Bay on Salt Spring’s northwestern shore. The island was totally uninhabited. Native people used the beaches only for seasonal fishing and fowl hunts.

The early settlers also included Hawaiians (Kanakas as they proudly called themselves, Polynesian for "human being"). William Naukana, born in 1813, was the first Hawaiian to arrive. After years exploring in the north with the Hudson Bay Co., he eventually settled on Salt Spring, bringing other Hawaiians with him. Naukana's descendants (and those of other Kanaka families) still live here today. Hawaiian graves can be seen in the little cemetery at Fulford's St. Paul's Church, built in 1885. The island's first church, it is still in use.

By 1900, Salt Spring had 80 farms and its first traveler's inn. All this was not long ago. Many of the family names in the history books can be found in the phone book today. The west coast pioneer spirit is still here, too. With all its artiness, Salt Spring has not allowed itself to become gentrified. Lots of working farms produce the lamb and pork and organic vegetables found in local restaurants. In Ganges Village, gum boots and pick-up trucks are just as common as deck shoes and Volvos."

Excerpted with permission from Island of Clear Appeal, by Carl Duncan, distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate.