vancouver island climate

The Island has many distinct communities with microclimates. The annual hours of sunshine and precipitation can vary around the Island due to geography and rain shadows. As you will seen on the map below, Victoria to Duncan is in a rain shadow and annual precipitation and sunshine hours tends to be higher than other communities on the Island. You will find many of the inland valleys such as the Cowichan Valley especially near Lake Cowichan along with the Alberni Valley tend to receive more annual rainfall and less hours of sunshine per year. However, inland temperatures in these valleys tend to be higher in summer than you would find in coastal communities. 

Climate and weather can be an important decision maker when selecting a community to live in as health related issues such as arthritis can be impacted by weather. Our map below will give you a good idea of what you can expect in terms of annual rainfall and sunshine hours in several Island communities. Overall the Island offers one of the best climates in Canada and many Island residents will support this. If you have any questions on the climate or weather in a particular community on Vancouver Island, don't hesitate to ask us! We hope to see you soon in the place we call Paradise!