Port Alice, a quaint village nestled on Neroutsos Inlet, southwest of Port McNeill on Vancouver Island, is a hidden gem in British Columbia. With a population of approximately 739 as per the 2021 census, this community is renowned for its natural environment, pulp mill, and saltwater fishing. Originally built by Whalen Pulp and Paper Mills of Vancouver, Port Alice offers a unique blend of history and natural beauty.
Port Alice was named after Alice Whalen, the mother of the founders. The Whalen brothers began the construction of the mill at its current site in 1917, and the first pulp was produced in 1918. The mill at Swanson Bay, on the Inside Passage farther north, was also a Whalen operation.
Interestingly, Port Alice bears a resemblance to Port Annie, the fictional town described by Vancouver Island author Jack Hodgins in his novel "The Resurrection of Joseph Bourne". Adding to its charm, the new orchid hybrid "Port Alice" has been officially listed in the Royal Horticultural Society's "Book of Registered Orchid Hybrids" in London, England. This slipper-type flower is the result of crossing a complex hybrid Paphiopedilum "Western Sky" with a species Paphiopedilum appletonianum.
Port Alice is home to Devil’s Bath, a flooded sinkhole that is the largest cenote in Canada, measuring 359 meters in diameter and 44 meters in depth. The area also boasts a number of hiking destinations, including Devil’s Bath, Eternal Fountain, Vanishing River & Reappearing River. These are a series of ancient karst and limestone formations, accessible through dirt roads.
Port Alice enjoys an oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) and is one of the mildest and wettest places in Canada. It receives 3.4 metres (130 in) of actual rainfall per year and exceptionally little snow. This amounts to as much as 33 percent more rainfall than infamously wet Prince Rupert and only marginally less than Southeast Alaska’s wettest cities of Ketchikan and Yakutat, which each average around 3.8 metres (150 in) and receive much more snowfall.
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Port Alice had a population of 739 living in 415 of its 538 total private dwellings. This marked a change of 11.3% from its 2016 population of 664. With a land area of 7.03 km2 (2.71 sq mi), it had a population density of 105.1/km2 (272.3/sq mi) in 2021.
Whether you're a history buff, a nature lover, or a fan of fishing, Port Alice, British Columbia, has something to offer everyone. Come and discover the charm of this unique community.
