Songhees Walkway, Victoria : The Waterfront Secret

My affection for Victoria’s Songhees Walkway began in 2009, when I moored my boat at the Westbay Marine Village, one of Canada’s few urban harbour communities. Some homes have built-in boathouses or garages to park a boat in; others are float homes themselves. From my galley windows, I could see commuters striding to work. Dogs, straining at the lead, dry as they passed in one direction and trailing ocean water on the way back. One leashed cat, dragged along behind a nonchalant senior citizen. Couples walking, moms with strollers, park-bench meetings, wedding photos and children with fists full of shells. I can’t think of another location that offers such delightful people-watching. 

Songhees Walkway hugs the Victoria shoreline for three kilometres, interrupted occasionally by secluded pocket beaches. Westbay is on one end, in the township of Esquimalt; it hosts an annual celebration called Buccaneer Days where the dress code is “pirate.” (This somehow feels right, given that Esquimalt is also home to the Royal Canadian Navy’s western headquarters.) The other, more cosmopolitan end of the Walkway starts at what the locals affectionately call the Blue Bridge. This name is confusing because the bridge is white; its predecessor, a steel drawbridge painted robin’s-egg blue, was a landmark from 1924 to 2018, and the moniker stuck. The Blue Bridge leads directly onto Wharf Street in downtown Victoria, bustling with shops, restaurants and the famous Empress Hotel, which pours half a million cups of tea each year on china designed to replicate the original set gifted to the hotel by King George VI in 1939.

In a city with a growing network of multi-use pathways and dedicated bike lanes, Songhees Walkway is all about pedestrians. It’s easily accessible, fed by multiple side streets with lots of free parking. Picnic tables and benches punctuate the entire length of Songhees Walkway. One of my favourite spots is the 2.4-acre Matson Conservation Area, a sanctuary for birds like purple martins, ravens, barred owls, Cooper’s hawks and hummingbirds. It’s part of the community’s ongoing efforts to define and protect culturally significant spaces. This includes the establishment of Songhees Park, the ongoing pocket beach rehabilitation and permanent art installations by the Songhees and Esquimalt people. I especially like the large, carved spindle whorl. It’s one of seven placed around downtown Victoria and represents the tools historically used by Coast Salish women to spin wool.

A few steps away from the conservation area is Spinnakers, Canada’s oldest existing brewpub. It’s home to an on-site brewery and taproom, but I mainly go for the view of Lime Bay. The same goes for the patio at Boom + Batten, whose seasonal menu includes seafood from sustainable local suppliers and house-made pastas. It’s located at the sparkling new Victoria International Marina, which opened in 2019 and is the only purpose-built superyacht marina in the Pacific Northwest.

Come by foot, car, bike, boat or float plane. Stay for your lunch hour or for the weekend. Lean into history at Spinnakers, or sink into luxury at the Ocean Pointe Resort, steps from the Blue Bridge. Bring a friend, wander solo, snap photos, stop, sip, eat or power walk end to end. At Songhees Walkway, you’ll find a thoroughfare, a postcard, an invitation.