Strathcona Provincial Park, designated in 1911, is the oldest provincial park in British Columbia. Located almost in the centre of Vancouver Island, Strathcona park is a rugged mountain wilderness comprising more than 250,000 hectares. Mountain peaks some perpetually mantled with snow dominate the park. Lakes and alpine tarns dot a landscape laced with rivers, creeks and streams. To see and enjoy much of the scenic splendour means lacing up your hiking boots to backpack through the dense forests, stunning sub-alpine and alpine regions. While the high mountain peaks and deep shaded valleys of Strathcona Park are dramatic, it is easy to forget that beneath your feet lays a history stretching back 380 million years. Two areas Buttle Lake and vicinity and Forbidden Plateau offer a variety of visitor-oriented developments. The rest of the park is largely undeveloped and appeals primarily to people seeking wilderness surroundings.