Vancouver Island - On the Edge of the Pacific Rim Quiz

Answer: False

While you can visit the city of Victoria while on Vancouver Island, the city of Vancouver - one of Canada's largest - is located on the mainland. Vancouver Island is just under 20 kilometres (12 miles) from mainland British Columbia at its nearest point and a ferry trip between the cities of Vancouver and Victoria takes around one and a half hours. The two locations are separated by the Strait of Georgia, which forms part of the Salish Sea.

Victoria has been the provincial capital of British Columbia since the former colony became part of the Dominion of Canada in 1871.

This question was posed by Phoenix Rising's somewhat confused Fifiona81.

Answer: Limestone

These are breathtaking gardens, well worth the visit if you are in the vicinity. They are created around a series of 'rooms' (Japanese, Mediterranean, Italian, and roses - more than 580 varieties - along with several other styles) and the Ross Fountain is a focal point that should not be missed.

The limestone quarry, from which the gardens were created as the brainchild of Jennie Butchart, supplied the Canadian Pacific Railway with some of the raw materials when it was decided to replace their aging wooden bridges with something more durable. Jennie and her husband Robert gradually created the gardens, even sacrificing the tennis courts to the project. After their deaths the gardens fell into disrepair, but their grandson, Ian Ross, took up the challenge and repaired and developed them. It is after Ian that the fountain was named. The garden is still in the hands of the Butchart family.

This question was lovingly planted, tended and watered until it blossomed in the mind of Phoenix Rising member VegemiteKid.

Answer: West

The three regions of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve are Long Beach, the Broken Group Islands, and the West Coast Trail. It is a 511 sq km (197 sq mi) park that runs along the western coast of Vancouver Island. The area is covered with a temperate rainforest that features a wide variety of flora and fauna. Humpback whales are found off the coast and Vancouver Island wolves are found on land. Long Beach is known for surfing and windsurfing, the Broken Group for sea-kayaking, and West Coast Trail for hiking.

This question was entered into the quiz by Phoenix Rising member tazman6619 while he huddled under his umbrella on the West Coast Trail.

Answer: Trains

The Kinsol Trestle is a wooden bridge built for rail service. Construction began in 1911 and was completed in 1920. It was meant to connect Victoria on the southern part of the island to Nootka Sound on the west. The Kinsol Trestle measures 44 m (144 ft) in height and 188 m (617 ft) in length, ranking it among the highest railway trestles in the world. Its name was derived from the nearby Kinsol Station, which was named after a small copper and silver mine in the vicinity named King Solomon Mines.

The bridge was only in use for some sixty years before being abandoned in the 1980s. Since falling into disuse, the bridge deteriorated and became a structural hazard. Unwilling to let the bridge be torn down, some community groups raised money to rehabilitate the Kinsol Trestle for conservation. Following extensive renovation, the trestle was reopened to the public in 2011 for cyclists, hikers, as well as equestrians.

This question was constructed by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: The highest waterfall in Canada

There are sources aplenty that would have us believe Della Falls (440 m, 1440 ft) on Vancouver Island are the tallest falls in Canada. They are most certainly not. There are at least 15 taller Canadian falls (14 of them also in British Columbia), including another on Vancouver Island called Kiwi Falls (475 m, 1558 ft). James Bruce Falls, the tallest in Canada, are measured at 840 m, 2760 ft.

The two largest ski resorts on Vancouver Island are the popular Mount Washington Alpine Resort, which receives over 300,000 visits annually, and the more remote Mount Cain Alpine Park. UNESCO has designated over 700 biosphere reserves globally, at least 18 of which are in Canada. There are two in British Columbia, both of which are located on Vancouver Island - Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve on the west coast and Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region on the east coast. Victoria is home to one of the world's tallest free-standing totem poles. At almost 53 m, 173 ft tall, it is certainly taller than other poles, but its standing as the record holder is controversial given that it is two poles stacked atop each other. Apparently, for totem purists, that's one too many.

Phoenix Rising team member JCSon finds that sometimes a question just falls together.

Answer: Hub City

Nanaimo is the second largest city on Vancouver Island and is British Columbia's sixth largest city with a current population of approximately 100,000. At its heart is a beautiful, sheltered harbour that dominates views, hence its name. Previously it had been called the "Hub City" because the city's planning had its layout running from a central hub and radiating outward like the spokes on a wagon wheel.

Located on the east coast of south-central Vancouver Island, the city offers a variety of holiday opportunities from adventure trails with great hiking options to beach activities such as scuba diving, fishing and boating.

This question was presented by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 who doesn't mind taking centre stage.

Answer: Forbidden Plateau

The Forbidden Plateau can be found on the eastern edge of the Vancouver Island Ranges and is an area of relatively flat ground punctuated by lakes and small hills. It forms part of the Strathcona Provincial Park and, despite its unwelcoming name, is crossed by a network of hiking trails and is home to one of the park's visitor centres.

The Vancouver Island earthquake of 1946 is noted for being one of the strongest recorded in Canada and measured 7.3 on the Richter scale. Its epicentre is estimated to have been within the area of the Forbidden Plateau and occurred at a relatively shallow depth of around 15 kilometres (9 miles). The quake could be felt as far north as the city of Prince Rupert and as far south as Portland, Oregon. While it caused significant structural damage in the Vancouver area and northern Washington State, only two people were killed - largely due to the epicentre being in a sparsely populated region.

This question was shaken down and placed in the quiz by Phoenix Rising's Fifiona81.

Answer: Vancouver Island marmot

The Vancouver Island marmot's scientific name is Marmota vancouverensis. It is the only marmot species endemic to Vancouver Island. As it has been in danger of extinction, a recovery program was created and it has now been bred successfully in captivity in breeding centres on Vancouver Island and elsewhere in Canada.

Marmots are the largest members of the squirrel family. The Vancouver Island marmot has chocolate brown fur with white patches which makes it easily identifiable from other marmots. They are herbivores and typically live in burrows, where they hibernate during winter.

Phoenix Rising team member lg549 burrowed around and found this information.

Answer: Golden Hind

The Golden Hinde is made, predominantly, of basalt and is located (almost) in the geographic centre of the island. It wasn't officially named as such until 1938. The reference to Sir Francis Drake's (not quite a lame duck) ship as the name of the mount was located in an old fur-trappers diary who wrote that it (the mountain) reminded him of the ship when viewed at sunset. That was certainly a far better name than alpinists had pinned to it prior to that... The Rooster's Comb.

This question was extracted from the diary of Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 who still wonders why someone would name a ship after a deer.

Answer: Waterfall

There is a Comox Glacier, Comox Lake, town of Comox, Comox Valley, and Comox Peninsula but no Comox Waterfall.

Comox Glacier is one of the largest glaciers on Vancouver Island and dominates the local area. Its highest point is 1,960 m (6,430 ft) and is only known as the Comox Glacier Summit. The K'ómoks First Nation refer to this mountain as Kwénis, which means whale. According to tradition a whale was deposited on the mountain during the Great Flood.

Comox Lake is a fresh weather lake formed by runoff from the Glacier and is found in the Comox Valley. It is a reservoir for drinking water and hydroelectric power.

The town of Comox is on the southern coast of the Comox Peninsula and has a population of about 15,000. It has extensive farming, timber, and fishing industries because of the dry summers and mild winters, the fertile soil, and abundant sea life in the region.

This question was scaled into the quiz by Phoenix Rising member tazman6619 who in his younger days would have been game to climb the glacier.