Ruckle Provincial Park is one of the most beautiful parks in the southern Gulf Islands. Pitch your tent in the grassy meadow overlooking Swanson Channel then lie back and relax, watching pleasure boats and ferries sail by in a stately and colourful parade.

With its 7 kilometres of shoreline, rocky headlands and tiny coves and bays, Ruckle Park provides hours or even days of enjoyable exploration. A mixture of forest, field and shore habitats makes it one of the most productive wildlife viewing areas on Salt Spring Island. Watch for sea lions and killer whales out in the sea, and mink and river otter cavorting along the shoreline. Tidal pools are filled with a brightly-coloured world of crab, mussel, limpet, oyster, sculpin, starfish and more.

Scuba divers frequent the waters off Ruckle Park, drifting among the castle-like caves or floating above the bountiful ocean floor, where they will find a profusion of Plumose anemones, sponges, nudibranchs, octopuses, seastars and giant barnacles. On shore, birdwatchers can often catch sight of cormorants, grebes, guillemots, eagles, grouse or quail.

In addition to its natural beauty, Ruckle Park is an area rich in cultural history. Irish emigrant Henry Ruckle first homesteaded here in 1872, marrying Ella Anna Christensen in 1877. Their descendants have farmed the Salt Spring property for more than a century. The Ruckle family donated their land to BC Parks in 1972 for the creation of Ruckle Provincial Park. The family still operates the Active Farm area of Ruckle Park and maintains several residences through a Life Tenancy Agreement established with BC Parks at the time of the donation.

Date Established: June 18, 1974
Provincial Park Size: 529 hectares