Why limit your enjoyment of a taste of Salt Spring to the busy season? Every year there is more and more to draw you here during the secret season. Of course there are Christmas crafts fairs, music and ongoing theater. But how about kayaking, sailing, hiking, cycling, fishing, golfing (even at Christmas and New Year’s), disc golf, tennis? These and the list that follows are ongoing opportunities well into the secret season.

  • ArtSpring  features a jazz series and great performers throughout the fall and winter.
  • You never know when locals like Randy Bachman, Valdy, Bill Henderson or other well known musicians will perform at Moby’s or ArtSpring or the monthly Folk Club and its wrap-up Gumboot Gala.
  • Take time to chat with local artists and artisans — many studios on the Salt Spring Island Studio Tour are open year round. Others just require a phone call ahead of time to open their doors to you. The group offers a free map that helps you locate each studio/gallery, describes each one and lists the open hours. You do need a car, Salt Spring is a big island!
  • June through September, the Salt Spring Arts Council plays host to “ ArtCraft ” a cooperative gallery that makes use of one of the best preserved old time halls on   the Island at Mahon Hall. The beautiful heritage- yellow structure with its mini park is well worth the stop!
  • Year round on Sunday nights, Moby’s Waterfront Pub features dinner jazz (no cover charge).
  • Once a month, enjoy well-known folk musicians wrap-up or kick-off cross-country tours at the Salt Spring Folk Club.
  • You'll also want to take a stroll among the many galleries (listed on this site) with gift-shops and other shopping possibilities in-between — often at significantly reduced prices. It’s a wonderful time to search for bargains at  the well known Jill Louise Campbell Art Gallery  for  limited edition prints and giclées
  • Join the Island Trail and Nature club for a hike or pick up a map at your B&B or visitor info centre and go solo.
  • Enjoy beachcombing along one of Salt Spring Island's beaches where you might likely find a beach to yourself.
  • Treat yourself to a wine tasting at the Salt Spring Vineyards or the Garry Oaks Winery.
  • Stop at David Wood's Salt Spring Island Cheese Company, a wonderful farm, and enjoy local chevre samples in the cheese tasting room (including those from Moonstruck).
  • Island Gourmet Safaris  offers culinary tours of Salt Spring Island’s locally produced food, wine, beer and restaurants. 
  • And finally, when you feel the need for a little extra pampering in the area of body-mind-spirit health, you'll find an absolute abundance of skilled practitioners to cater to your every need.

Farms and Nurseries of Salt Spring Island Paint the Landscape

When visiting Salt Spring, there are many varieties of farms that range from organic fruit and vegetables to nurseries with unusual varieties of trees, shrubs, bamboo, medicinal herb gardens and exotic plants. If animals are your interest, there are many breeds that produce fiber, including sheep, angora goats, alpacas and llamas. The products from their fiber is available for sale.

Farms 

  • Apples Luscious Organic Orchards : Luscious apples
  • Everlasting Summer:  Medicinal herb gardens, dried flowers   250-653-9418  
  • North End Farm
  • Bullock Lake Farm:  goats, llamas, ducks, rovings, yarn, and knitted garments
  • Willowcrest Farm:  border Leicester sheep, wool, rovings, paintings
  • Sunset Farm:  Romney sheep, wool, knitted products 250-537-2082  
  • Gulf Islands Spinning Mill: Tours by appointment and donation.

SALT SPRING SATURDAY MARKET

If you have a chance to go to Salt Spring - try to time your visit there so you can get up early on Saturday Morning and go into the town of Ganges and visit their Saturday market.  There are arts, crafts from local artisans - lots of local food and produce - especially good are the local cheeses!  It generally runs from about Easter weekend through the end of October.  It gets pretty crowded in Ganges on Saturdays during market time - so if you are bringing a car over - - you will need to find a place to park and walk over to the market.

Great Local Wild Salmon

If you are staying in your own boat, RV or at a place that has a kitchen - -make sure to stop in Ganges and visit The Fishery.  It is a small local fish shop where a local fisherman - Arnie  - - sells all the local wild salmon and crab he personally catches along with some other local seafood items.  He also has his wild  salmon smoked and canned if you just want to take some home with you.  In his freezer you can find a treat   - - wild salmon candy - - it is really a form of sweet jerky made from dried salmon - - really worth trying.  He can also arrange to ship items to you at home if you don't want to carry all that stuff with you. The outside fof his store is very funky and a great place to take a vacation picture as well - his shop overlooks the Ganges harbor - - so you shouldn't have trouble finding it!

 Go Wild with Outdoor Visions-Whale watching/marine wildlife tours and charters on our zodiac vessel!

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