Discover 100 amazing places to swim outdoors in the Lower Mainland and on the Gulf Islands, Sunshine Coast, and South-central Vancouver Island.

Here is a guide for everyone who loves to swim, from waders to long-distance swimmers, cold-water dippers, and beach or dock loungers. Alex McKeen and George Harwood Smith literally dove into their research, swimming in lakes, rivers, creeks, ponds, and the Pacific Ocean to curate this list of 100 top-notch places to splash, swim, and soak in southwestern British Columbia.

From Pemberton to White Rock and out to Chilliwack with stops on Galiano and Saltspring Islands, all along the Sunshine Coast, across to Courtenay/Comox, inland to Strathcona Park and Port Alberni, and down to Victoria and Sooke, the swims in this book provide something for every type of swimmer. There are rocky and sandy beaches accessible by public transit, clear cool ponds reached after a forest walk (or a hardcore hike), roadside lakes where you can cool off on a long car trip, and gently flowing rivers with picnic areas, campgrounds, and even play structures nearby. Seek out a swim where you can see seals, jump from a rope swing, dry off on a floating dock, or bare it all.

This full-color guide features:

• a description of each location, including the type of swim, water depth, level of difficulty, and distance to the swim, as well as the features and amenities found there
• directions via car, public transport, bike, and/or foot
• trail maps to the harder-to-locate spots and photos of each swim to whet (ahem!) your appetite
• information on swimming safety and socially and environmentally responsible swimming
• facts about the social, cultural, and natural history of each swim area

Designed to appeal to swimmers of all ages, fitness levels, and incomes, Swimming Holes and Beaches of Southwestern British Columbia is the perfect guide for road trips, summer weekends, and armchair travel.

Alex McKeen's profile page

George Harwood Smith's profile page

Alex McKeen is an award-winning journalist whose work for Canada's largest circulation newspaper, the Toronto Star, has taken her across North America. Before beginning her career in journalism, she studied music and the social sciences at the University of Toronto. While she doesn't swim competitively, she has taken particular delight in teaching swimming to kids and adults of all ages and abilities for more than a decade. She loves how bodies of water as small as backyard pools and as expansive as the Pacific Ocean have the power of pulling people together. She lives in Esquimalt with her partner and an extremely fluffy cat.

George Harwood Smith is the Curator at East Quay, an award-winning arts center in Somerset, UK. Before this, he curated exhibitions at North Van Arts in North Vancouver, where he fell in love with the many swimming spots on Vancouver’s North Shore. When not working, George regularly takes personal pilgrimages to swim spots in Canada, Europe, and his native UK, finding the best places to immerse himself in the water. A keen photographer, he feels at home in rivers, lakes, or the ocean and believes swimming is one of the best ways to connect with nature. George currently divides his time between Somerset and London, UK, but retains close ties with British Columbia, his home away from home.