Description of Ucluelet
Ucluelet (pop. 1652) is situated on the south end of Pacific Rim National Park at the south terminus of Pacific Rim Highway. In its sheltered inner harbour, seals, sea lions and otters pay little heed to the commercial- and charter-fishing vessels that perpetually come and go.
Much of the landscape around Ucluelet consists of temperate rainforest, while some of BC's largest stands of old-growth red edar are to be found here. The area is also famous for its miles of wide, sandy beaches. A number of our kayak tours of the Broken Island Group depart Ucluelet by shuttle for Toquart Bay.
The name Ucluelet (pronounced you-clue-let) is derived from a Nuu-chah-nulth word meaning a place of safe harbour. The Nuu-chah-nulth are a group of first nations whose traditional home is in the Pacific Northwest on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Archaeological evidence has dated their presence in the area has to at least 4300 years.
Until the early 1870s, Ucluelet was a First Nation village with the main reservation at the entrance of the Inlet on the east side, just as it is today. The first settlers were fur sealers who established a trading post at Spring Cove and then a whaling station. The town remained fairly isolated until 1959 when the road from Port Alberni was opened. Now a logging, fishing and tourist village, Ucluelet is a base for commercial and sport fishing, as well as wildlife excursions and kayak tours.
