Relocating to Vancouver Island with small children- lots of questions!! (apartment, rentals)

[mikeyyc]

Port Hardy or Port McNeill are the only two centers. Nanaimo is about four hours away with the new highway between Nanaimo and Campbell River.

Port Hardy is nice, but isolated. They have everything you'd expect in a town of about 4X the size in the US. A couple of grocery stores (brace yourself), multiple gas stations (brace yourself more), car dealers, hotels, a hospital, schools, the whole lot. Very nice small town. The weather is great by Canadian standards, if a bit wet. Fantastic fishing, some of the best scuba diving on earth, and a very good sense of community. You should enjoy it, although airfare from there to anywhere is staggeringly expensive.

[jambo101]

The place looks like paradise to me but then i'm into hunting ,fishing and backwoods camping.

[Luhts]

Being such a small town, you probably won't find many people on here with personal experience with the region.

School District No. 85 - Bringing Learning to Life
Compare academic rankings and ratings of British Columbia schools
This doesn't look good, but the school rating says nothing about the demographics of the school. One problem I found with remote areas in BC is that it is hard for them to get good teachers. How long do you plan to be there? What ages are your children? If they are very young and this is a short-term thing, just look at it as an adventure! If you are concerned about their education you could do some home schooling.
http://www.city-data.com/canada/Port...icipality.html

How much do you want to spend on real estate? If short term, perhaps rent? Resale might not be good.
Another thought to consider: when we were living in a remote town in BC, when it was time for my dh to move on to his next job they had a really hard time finding someone who was willing to go there to replace him.

Other sources of information for you:
Vancouver Island Mommies conversations - Circle of Moms
About | Mommy Swap

[Cold MN]

Wow, thanks!! I was having troubles finding info on Port Hardy and was getting nervous there was NOTHING there! Like i said, we are from the country and live 20 minutes to the nearest town with only a gas station and school (1200 people maybe?) currently in Minnesota! The nearest hospital to us and stores like Target,Walmart is 30 minutes so we are used to living out in the middle of no where! I was thinking 3 hrs to the nearest place! Thanks for the info! Cant wait to come see for myself what the island has to offer! Drastic change for our family but, think it will be an adventure!

[mikeyyc]

porthardy.ca is the local website. It's an amazing area if you love the outdoors. A 4X4 is a near requirement, the road to Cape Scott is amazing. You could kayak/boat your heart's content in Coal Harbour. The fishing/seafood/whale watching is beyond reproach, and the community spirit is great. I'm sure if you take it as an adventure, you'll have a wonderful time. It's definitely a change from MN. There's still lots of hockey too, just don't forget your Canucks jersey, or the Kings, as Willie Mitchell is from Port McNeill.

[dougie86]

Highway 19 has a speed limit of 110km/hr. This "Distance Chart" is easy to read.
Distance Charts - Find mileage between any BC communities.

Port Hardy Map, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada


More on Port Hardy on YouTube:

YVR Community Showcase - Port Hardy - YouTube

Driving Around Port Hardy BC, The Black Bear Capitol of the WORLD!!! - YouTube

Port Hardy Halibut - YouTube

[jambo101]

You'll either love it or hate it so renting might be a better option until you discover what you think of the place.

[lucknow]

Get ready for the adventure of your life. Where you are going is like a completely different world from where you are. I love Vancouver island so much. It's so beautiful in so many ways. The marine life is awesome, The way everything grows is amazing. The birds and animals are just so great. The native culture is rich and interesting. Two new years day ago I was in Tofino. Some rose bushes still had blooms on them. Lots of people were surfing down on the beach and I was just wandering around in a virgin Cedar forest lost in the rapture of it's awesomeness.

I have one of those Aussi outback oilskin coats. It comes down to about mid calf. It's the perfect garment for Vancouver island winter. It's completely waterproof and with a sweater on underneath it's toasty warm. I've spent whole days outside hiking in the rain in complete comfort in that coat. It also always brings back memories of my childhood camping in a canvas tent. It has that unique smell that takes me back.........

[adventuregurl]

Originally Posted by lucknow

I have one of those Aussi outback oilskin coats. It comes down to about mid calf. It's the perfect garment for Vancouver island winter. It's completely waterproof and with a sweater on underneath it's toasty warm. I've spent whole days outside hiking in the rain in complete comfort in that coat.

Agreed, when I lived on Vancouver Island my biggest complaint was that my legs were always wet as my coat didn't come down long enough in the rain.

To the OP, get great rain gear for the whole family and you will be so much happier, Vancouver Island is a rainforest.

[Cold MN]

I cant thank all of your responses enough! We are starting our housing/rental search in Port Hardy. Looks like a challenge to find something for rent but, Im sure we will find something!