Great Canadian Beach Thread

[lio45]

Originally Posted by sunsetmountainland

English Bay, Chesterman Beach make the Guardian's best beaches list


http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...rman-1.3452578

The big problem with those beaches is that the water is frigid (and yes, I've personally tried Tofino and English Bay, so I have witnessed that fact firsthand).

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by lio45

The big problem with those beaches is that the water is frigid (and yes, I've personally tried Tofino and English Bay, so I have witnessed that fact firsthand).

The Guardian are Brits: cold water at a beach doesn't faze them!

[Metro-One]

Ugh, not this argument again.

There is more way to enjoy a beach / measure it worth than just through the warmth of the water.

There are many ways to enjoy a beach and its surroundings. For example the beaches in Tofino are beach hot spots for tourists, beach bums, and surfers for their scenic beauty and amazing surf (internationally known within the surfing community. Fun trivia, even the end of Point Break (the first and only real one) was filmed there).

I have been to beaches in nearly every major climate zone / biome around the world, and they all have their own unique charm and beauty (and if you are someone who only cares for where the warmest water is, well, then I feel you are missing out).

As for English Bay, it is a really nice area to relax and have fun directly next to a major city with amazing sunsets, a great place IMO (the beach is always busy throughout much of the year, with people from all ethnicities and corners of the globe).

Obviously I don't expect everyone to love these places, (and if you don't, that's fine) but list after list and tourist after tourist has shown that enough do

[lio45]

I think for most people the factors are probably ranking approximately like this:

Important:

-- Sunny & warm (one should be perfectly fine wearing no more than a t-shirt or bathing suit)

-- Good water temp (and clean water)

-- Sand (not rocks)



Nice too but less important:

-- Nice waves

-- Nice scenery

[lio45]

There are pristine sand beaches on Quebec's North Shore but it's far away, the summers aren't even that hot, and the water (even in summer) isn't very warm. So these beaches, overall, don't score very highly.

My dad always joked that these exact same always 100% empty beaches, if you could wave a magic wand to give them the weather of the Caribbean, would instantly be super crowded (and super pricey).

[Acajack]

I'd say this is a pretty spectacular beach too:

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by lio45

I think for most people the factors are probably ranking approximately like this:

Important:

-- Sunny & warm (one should be perfectly fine wearing no more than a t-shirt or bathing suit)

-- Good water temp (and clean water)

-- Sand (not rocks)



Nice too but less important:

-- Nice waves

-- Nice scenery

Well, tell that to the thousands of people who enjoy English Bay daily (millions every year) and the countless tourists and surfers that flock to the Tofino / Uculet area.

Obviously there is something there that has made them more desirable and renowned than those beaches in northern Quebec you are mentioning. (and trust me, Tofino is out of the way to get to).

There are many beaches in Eastern Canada that are pretty spectacular and popular with international tourists as well (such as in PEI, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick), I guess under your criteria they don't count either

Same with the very famous beaches along the Oregon Coast which have the same water temp and nearly the same weather as Tofino.

So, it seems that may be more your personal criteria than one that covers all people.

Sometimes I go to a warm sandy beach for swimming, sometimes I go to a wild open beaches for the surf / scenery, and sometimes I go to the beach for the cultural activities and social scene.

I am sure the regular few forum members who agree with you will soon flock to this thread to give you support though, so don't worry.

[lio45]

Tofino makes sense for someone who's already in SW BC (like my sis and I were when we chose to do the little trip to Tofino), otherwise you'd have to be out of your mind to go there over tons of superior beach destinations.

If I'm going to fly several hours for a Pacific beach destination, it's going to be Pie de la Cuesta near Acapulco. I never found anywhere in California (or BC) that could match it. And I lived in California for 6 months, tried tons of different beaches during my time there.

Also, I don't need any "support from others".

BTW, we found Tofino to be really empty (compared to, say, Miami's beaches at the same time of year). If that's what you call full of tourists, then you must have your own very relative standards for that.

We don't have to discuss this anyway. I see my good friend sunsetmountainland bragging about things that I don't think deserve much bragging in the grand scheme of things, so I inject a little dose of reality. End of conversation.

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Well, tell that to the thousands of people who enjoy English Bay daily (millions every year) and the countless tourists and surfers that flock to the Tofino / Uculet area.

Obviously there is something there that has made them more desirable and renowned than those beaches in northern Quebec you are mentioning. (and trust me, Tofino is out of the way to get to).

There are many beaches in Eastern Canada that are pretty spectacular and popular with international tourists as well (such as in PEI, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick), I guess under your criteria they don't count either

Same with the very famous beaches along the Oregon Coast which have the same water temp and nearly the same weather as Tofino.

So, it seems that may be more your personal criteria than one that covers all people.

Sometimes I go to a warm sandy beach for swimming, sometimes I go to a wild open beaches for the surf / scenery, and sometimes I go to the beach for the cultural activities and social scene.

I am sure the regular few forum members who agree with you will soon flock to this thread to give you support though, so don't worry.

There are many exceptional things that pass by unnoticed to the masses. I do think English Bay is deserving to be on the list but, don't presume that makes it a shoe in as best beach in a country many believe snows all year round. There's too many for one lifetime. This is a popularity contest and no one goes to Quebec thinking about sitting on a beach. You can say the same with PEI.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

There are many exceptional things that pass by unnoticed to the masses. I do think English Bay is deserving to be on the list but, don't presume that makes it a shoe in as best beach in a country many believe snows all year round. There's too many for one lifetime. This is a popularity contest and no one goes to Quebec thinking about sitting on a beach. You can say the same with PEI.

Not sure if you are saying they don't but plenty of people do go to PEI with sitting on a beach being one of the main things they have in mind.

[logan5]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

There are many exceptional things that pass by unnoticed to the masses. I do think English Bay is deserving to be on the list but, don't presume that makes it a shoe in as best beach in a country many believe snows all year round. There's too many for one lifetime. This is a popularity contest and no one goes to Quebec thinking about sitting on a beach. You can say the same with PEI.

The category in The Guardian list was "Best City Beach". I'll go out on a limb and say that English Bay/Sunset Beach is easily the best city beach in the country. Kits is probly 2nd. Spanish Banks and Jericho are in a less urbanized area, but the view of the DT core give it an urban vibe, so 3rd place.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by logan5

The category in The Guardian list was "Best City Beach". I'll go out on a limb and say that English Bay/Sunset Beach is easily the best city beach in the country. Kits is probly 2nd. Spanish Banks and Jericho are in a less urbanized area, but the view of the DT core give it an urban vibe, so 3rd place.

That makes more sense to me. English Bay is lovely, but one of the worlds 50 best beaches (all sorts) it is not.

[Beedok]

I still prefer a swimming pool to any beach.

[hipster duck]

I'm torn by urban beaches - especially downtown beaches like English Bay. I think they're great public spaces, but they don't appeal to me in the slightest - and I'm a beach person.

They lack privacy, they're generally crowded, and they're just going to have more litter and dirtiness than a secluded beach. The changing facilities will also, as a rule, tend to attract vagrants or be much more heavily vandalized than any beach in a rural area. I'm not bothered by that kind of stuff in an urban environment when I have my clothes and shoes on, but when I go to the beach I have other ideas in mind.

[hipster duck]

In my experience, my favourite beach for swimming is Grand Bend, Ontario. Lake Huron gets warm enough and the sand is first rate. As a west-facing beach, you also can get spectacular sunsets, and Lake Huron really is large enough to give you the illusion that you're staring out into the ocean.

The town of Grand Bend is gross, though. Just a sprawling strip of douche bars in wooden shacks.

[Nicko999]

Just like weather, naming the best beach in Canada is like finding out the least crappiest one. No offense but what is the point of going to a beach if the water temperature is too cold for you to swim.
Anyway, I go to the beach when I'm not in Canada. Atlantic Ocean (Florida), Gulf of Mexico, Black Sea, Carribean you name it. Just somewhere that has water temps of at least 28C.

[Calgarian]

Originally Posted by Nicko999

Just like weather, naming the best beach in Canada is like finding out the least crappiest one. No offense but what is the point of going to a beach if the water temperature is too cold for you to swim.
Anyway, I go to the beach when I'm not in Canada. Atlantic Ocean (Florida), Gulf of Mexico, Black Sea, Carribean you name it. Just somewhere that has water temps of at least 28C.

Depends on the type of beach. The oceans are definitely very cold and not too many people do more than wade in. Lakes (not sure about the great lakes) tend to be much warmer and are easy to swim in. I think lake Osoyoos gets near 30 degrees by mid summer.

[sunsetmountainland]

Originally Posted by lio45

Tofino makes sense for someone who's already in SW BC (like my sis and I were when we chose to do the little trip to Tofino), otherwise you'd have to be out of your mind to go there over tons of superior beach destinations.

If I'm going to fly several hours for a Pacific beach destination, it's going to be Pie de la Cuesta near Acapulco. I never found anywhere in California (or BC) that could match it. And I lived in California for 6 months, tried tons of different beaches during my time there.

Also, I don't need any "support from others".

BTW, we found Tofino to be really empty (compared to, say, Miami's beaches at the same time of year). If that's what you call full of tourists, then you must have your own very relative standards for that.

We don't have to discuss this anyway. I see my good friend sunsetmountainland bragging about things that I don't think deserve much bragging in the grand scheme of things, so I inject a little dose of reality. End of conversation.

I am sorry Leo! I am certainly not here to make you upset! I would like to know how you claim that I was bragging? I posted a article about beaches in a Canadian beach thread!

I did not brag or make claims in any way whatsoever.

Anyways, like metro one stated there are more than one reason to enjoy a beach. The beaches near Tofino generate a lot of interest year round.
Storm watching in the winter is a huge tourist draw.

I know you have hard time understanding, because of your one dimensional views. That is why I enjoy this quote from you so much!

Also, I don't need any "support from others".

Maybe just maybe your wrong?

[jmt18325]

Originally Posted by Calgarian

Depends on the type of beach. The oceans are definitely very cold and not too many people do more than wade in. Lakes (not sure about the great lakes) tend to be much warmer and are easy to swim in. I think lake Osoyoos gets near 30 degrees by mid summer.

Lake Manitoba has beautiful water in the summer - plus, very little salt. Swimming in the ocean is better in theory than in reality.

[Nicko999]

Originally Posted by Calgarian

Depends on the type of beach. The oceans are definitely very cold and not too many people do more than wade in. Lakes (not sure about the great lakes) tend to be much warmer and are easy to swim in. I think lake Osoyoos gets near 30 degrees by mid summer.

Lake Osoyoos (and lakes in general) can warm up faster because it's a small body of water.
I'm just not a lake person. Need a bigger body of water and more sand (whiter if possible).