Free camping and cell signal in Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands

Where Crown land camping is allowed in Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands, where you'll still have signal to work or call for help, and what's on the road in: logging, surface and parking. One map, saved to your phone for use with no signal.

Open Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands in the map

195recreation sites, 1,471 campsites

141remote spots with signal

6,084licensed cell sites

2,696cut blocks with active logging

Can you camp on Crown land in Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands?

Yes, on most of it. Provincial Crown land in BC allows free camping for up to 14 days in one spot, as long as you leave no permanent structures and follow posted closures and fire bans. In Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands the map shows which land is Crown, which is private (including private forest land), and which is park, First Nation or municipal land, so you can tell a legal pull-off from someone's property before you drive in. Parks and protected areas here include CORMORANT CHANNEL MARINE PARK, RENDEZVOUS ISLAND SOUTH PARK, SMUGGLER COVE MARINE PARK, ALICE LAKE PARK, AMBROSE LAKE ECOLOGICAL RESERVE and more; camp only in their designated sites.

Where will I have cell signal?

Coverage in the backcountry follows the valleys and the highways. Using every licensed cell site and a terrain model of where each one can reach, the map estimates that a clear line of sight to a site covers about 11% of Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands for Telus and Bell, 10% for Rogers and Fido and 4% for Freedom. Telus / Bell reaches the most of this region. The region has 4,524 Telus/Bell, 1,211 Rogers/Fido and 349 Freedom cell sites. Speed tests from other campers show where it's good enough to work from.

Remote spots with signal in Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands

Ranked by distance from town and signal. Tap one to open it on the map.

Crown land near Mount Davies · gravel road · 12.8 km from False Bay · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Noyse Creek · gravel road · 12.5 km from Port Renfrew · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Gain Creek · gravel road · 12.8 km from River Jordan · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Noyse Creek · gravel road · 15.1 km from River Jordan · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Rosseau Lake · gravel road · 13.5 km from Bamfield · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Consinka Creek · gravel road · 16.7 km from Bamfield · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Spencer Creek · gravel road · 21.9 km from Bamfield · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Stuart Island · hike-in · 22.5 km from Phillips Arm · line of sight to Telus / Bell
Crown land near Mount Davies · gravel road · 12.5 km from False Bay · line of sight to Rogers / Fido
Crown land near Newmarch Creek · unpaved track · 13 km from River Jordan · line of sight to Rogers / Fido

Logging and road access

2,696 cut blocks in Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands have harvesting under way according to Province records. The map marks them so you can avoid log-truck roads and fresh clearcuts, and shows which roads are paved, gravel, rough or unpaved tracks, plus parking lots and trailheads.