Discovery Islands
Archipelago in the Salish Sea, British Columbia, Canada
title: "Discovery Islands" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["discovery-islands", "south-coast-of-british-columbia", "central-coast-of-british-columbia", "archipelagoes-of-british-columbia", "archipelagoes-of-the-pacific-ocean"] description: "Archipelago in the Salish Sea, British Columbia, Canada" topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_Islands" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Archipelago in the Salish Sea, British Columbia, Canada ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox islands"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Discovery Islands |
| native_name | |
| sobriquet | |
| image_name | Discovery Islands 201807.jpg |
| image_caption | Aerial view of the Discovery Islands |
| image_map | Map of the Discovery Islands.svg |
| image_map_caption | Discovery Islands, between Vancouver Island and continental British Columbia, north of Strait of Georgia |
| pushpin_map | Vancouver Island#British Columbia |
| pushpin_relief | y |
| pushpin_map_caption | Location in British Columbia, Canada |
| coordinates | |
| location | Johnstone Strait and Salish Sea |
| grid_reference | |
| major_islands | 20 |
| area_km2 | |
| length_km | |
| width_km | |
| coastline_km | |
| country | Canada |
| country_admin_divisions_title | Province |
| country_admin_divisions | British Columbia |
| :: |
::callout[type=note] the archipelago near Campbell River, B.C. ::
| name = Discovery Islands | native_name = | native_name_link = | native_name_lang = | sobriquet = | image_name = Discovery Islands 201807.jpg | image_size = | image_caption = Aerial view of the Discovery Islands | image_alt = | image_map = Map of the Discovery Islands.svg | image_map_alt = | image_map_size = | image_map_caption = Discovery Islands, between Vancouver Island and continental British Columbia, north of Strait of Georgia | pushpin_map = Vancouver Island#British Columbia | pushpin_label = | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_relief = y | pushpin_map_caption = Location in British Columbia, Canada | coordinates = | etymology = | location = Johnstone Strait and Salish Sea | grid_reference = | archipelago = | waterbody = | total_islands = | major_islands = 20 | area_km2 = | area_footnotes = | rank = | length_km = | length_footnotes = | width_km = | width_footnotes = | coastline_km = | coastline_footnotes = | elevation_m = | elevation_footnotes = | highest_mount = | country = Canada | country_admin_divisions_title = Province | country_admin_divisions = British Columbia | country_admin_divisions_title_1 = | country_admin_divisions_1 = | country_admin_divisions_title_2 = | country_admin_divisions_2 = | country_capital_type = | country_capital = | country_largest_city_type = | country_largest_city = | country_capital_and_largest_city = | country_largest_city_population = | country_leader_title = | country_leader_name = | country_area_km2 = | demonym = | population = | population_as_of = | population_footnotes = | population_rank = | population_rank_max = | density_km2 = | density_rank = | density_footnotes = | languages = | ethnic_groups = | timezone1 = | utc_offset1 = | timezone1_DST = | utc_offset1_DST = | website = | additional_info = | footnotes = The Discovery Islands are a group of islands located at the northern end of the Salish Sea and the eastern end of Johnstone Strait, between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada.
Most of these islands have very few residents. Only Quadra Island and Cortes Island have ferry service. The remainder are served by private boat or float plane.
Geography
The area's complex geography can make it difficult to determine when travelling by boat whether a sighted coastline belongs to the mainland, Vancouver Island, or one of the Discovery Islands.
Major islands
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Cortes_Island_sunrise.jpg" caption="Cortes Island sunrise"] ::
The Discovery Islands are all located within the Strathcona Regional District, except for a few of the southernmost, such as Hernando Island and Savary Island, which are in the qathet Regional District. The larger islands within the Discovery Islands are:
- Cortes Island (west: Subtle Islands)
- Hardwicke Island (north: Poyntz, Seymour, Murray; west: Yorke; south: Helmcken)
- West Thurlow Island
- East Thurlow Island (west: Walkem Islands; south: Tum)
- Sonora Island (northwest: Hardinge, Block)
- Stuart Island
- Quadra Island (north: Okis Islands)
- Maurelle Island
- Mitlenatch Island
- Read Island (east: Hill Island, Penn Islands)
- Rendezvous Islands
- West Redonda Island (south: Mink, Kinghorn, and the Martin Islands; north: Elizabeth)
- East Redonda Island (south: Melville, Morgan, Eveleigh, Otter, and the William Islands; north: Double, Channel)
- Marina Island
- Twin Islands
Major waterways
The Discovery Passage starts where the Strait of Georgia narrows between Quadra Island and Vancouver Island and continues north to Chatham Point, where it meets the Nodales Channel and Johnstone Strait.
Tourism
The primary attraction for visitors are salmon fishing, sailing, kayaking, and hiking.
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::