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Fairy Lake

MU 1-3, Vancouver Island
48.5847° N, 124.3458° W

Map of Fairy Lake: the shoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, the roads round it from the BC Digital Road Atlas, the traced road in and the recreation site.124°21.8′W124°21.5′W124°21.2′W124°21′W124°20.8′W124°20.5′W48°35′N48°35.2′NFairy LakeFairy Lake Recreation Site (RSTBC)276 m to shore0125250 mNMap of Fairy Lake: the shoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, the roads round it from the BC Digital Road Atlas, the traced road in and the recreation site.124°21′W124°20.5′W48°34.8′N48°35′N48°35.2′NFairy LakeFairy Lake Recreation Site (RSTBC)276 m to shore0250 mN
WaterTraced road inRoadRough surface roadRec siteShoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, roads from the BC Digital Road Atlas, under the Open Government Licence, British Columbia. Rec site position from BC Recreation Sites and Trails, checked 11 September 2026. The lake's depth is not drawn on this map.
Surface area
32.3ha
Maximum depth
5m
16 ft
Elevation
30m

Located near Port Renfrew , 65 km (40 mi) west of Mill Bay via logging road from either Lake Cowichan or Port Renfrew.

Open Fairy Lake in the appThe 7-day forecast, max depth and wildfire smoke check, on the lake's own coordinate.

Fairy Lake at a glance

Region
Vancouver Island
Management unit
MU 1-3
Species
Dolly Varden (last recorded 1981), Coastal Cutthroat Trout (last recorded 1981), Sockeye Salmon, Steelhead (last recorded 1981), Coho Salmon (last recorded 1981), Threespine Stickleback (last recorded 1981), Sculpin (General) (last recorded 1961)The province's newest fish record here is from 1981.Species from the province's fish observation records and angling reports.
Lake size
Small Water (< 50 ha)
Ice fishing
Open to ice fishing, confirmed
Coordinates
48.5847, -124.3458

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Fish on record at Fairy Lake

Species in the Province's fish observation records
SpeciesFirst recordedLast recordedRecords
Dolly Varden198119811
Sockeye Salmon1
Steelhead198119812
Coho Salmon198119811
Threespine Stickleback198119811
Sculpin (General)196119611

A year is when the Province last recorded the fish here, not a statement that it is caught today.

How to fish Fairy Lake

Best times of year at Fairy Lake

  • May - June
  • September - October

Fairy Lake fishing regulations

Trout daily quota = 1 (none over 50 cm); bait ban, single barbless hook; engine power restriction - 7.5 kW (10 hp). Source: Province of British Columbia

Getting to Fairy Lake

A BCFS campground and recreation area and cartop boat launches are available

0.3 km of traced road to the campground. The road at the end is a paved surface. It stops 60 m short of the campground.

The road route traced to Campground at Fairy Lake, 0.3 km.Start of the traceCampground250 m
The route traced over the BC Digital Road Atlas. A trace is a line on a map, not a report on the road: check conditions before you drive it.

Coordinates: 48.5847, -124.3458

Camping and rec sites at Fairy Lake

  • Fairy Lake Recreation Site (RSTBC)
    To the shore
    276 m

    36 vehicle campsites, cartop boat launch, famous submerged bonsai fir tree
    Facilities: Cartop Launch, Pit Toilets, Fire Rings, Tables, Beach
    Access: From Port Renfrew, take the Pacific Circle Route north toward Lake Cowichan. At about 6.5 km the site is on the right.
    Coordinates: 48.58739, -124.353698

    The site on Recreation Sites and Trails BC

Depth chart for Fairy Lake

5 mdeepest2.3 mmean

Fairy Lake runs to 5 m (16 ft) at its deepest.

The mean of 2.3 m (8 ft) is read off the same chart, surveyed in September 1982.

The Province sounded Fairy Lake and published the depth chart surveyed in 1982.

The ice year at Fairy Lake, modelled

Modelled from air temperature, not an ice report. It says nothing about whether ice will hold you.

In the model Fairy Lake froze in only 11 of the 65 winters since 1960, too few to give it usual dates.

Fairy Lake is open to ice fishing under the regulations on file.

Whether a lake is open to ice fishing says nothing about whether its ice will hold you. Ice conditions vary year to year and across a single lake. Check locally before going out, every time.

Fairy Lake climate, 1960 to 2025

Averaged over a year, the air above Fairy Lake is 0.2 C warmer than it was in the 1960s. That is 66 years of daily readings, not a forecast.

  • +0.2 Csince the 1960s
  • 8.2 Caverage year now
  • 7.9 Caverage year then
  • -0 daysbelow freezing, change
Average year at Fairy Lakedegrees C, yearly mean
7 C8 C10 C1960198020002020

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

Days below freezingdays a year averaging under 0 C
-617411960198020002020

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

This week at Fairy Lake

The forecast on this lake's own coordinate, refreshed through the day. The app reads these seven days for fishing and scores each one.

DaySkyHigh / lowWindRainPressure
Tue 20 OctClear sky14° / 6°16 km/hdrySteady
Wed 21 OctOvercast15° / 10°10 km/hdryFalling (-4.6 hPa)
Thu 22 OctOvercast12° / 7°9 km/hdrySteady
Fri 23 OctOvercast13° / 6°8 km/hdryRising (+9.9 hPa)
Sat 24 OctOvercast14° / 7°7 km/h, gusts 12dryRising (+1.8 hPa)
Sun 25 OctOvercast16° / 8°7 km/h, gusts 16dryFalling (-1.7 hPa)
Mon 26 OctOvercast16° / 9°7 km/hdrySteady

Open Fairy Lake in the app

Fairy Lake, in brief

What fish are in Fairy Lake?

Dolly Varden (last recorded 1981), Coastal Cutthroat Trout (last recorded 1981), Sockeye Salmon, Steelhead (last recorded 1981), Coho Salmon (last recorded 1981). Species from the province's fish observation records and angling reports.

Which management unit is Fairy Lake in?

Fairy Lake is in MU 1-3, on Vancouver Island. The BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis is organised by management unit; check it before you go.

Trout lakes near Fairy Lake

All 193 lakes on Vancouver Island, with today's conditions on each.

Reading the water