accessible to all ages and abilities, even wheelchairs in certain areas. No bikes, horses or motorized vehicles are permitted on the park’s beaches or trails. The hiking trails are designed to let visitors experience the shoreline while preventing damage to the fragile environment. Various marine tours are available including sea kayaking, canoeing in the inlet, whale and wildlife watching. There has been an ongoing interest in sport fishing out of Ucluelet and there are many chartered sports fishing options in town. Surfing has become a popular activity among tourists and locals alike. In the summer months, surfers gather along Florencia Bay, Wickaninnish Beach and Long Beach in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. In 2012, the catch-and-release public Ucluelet Aquarium moved into its new building on Main Street by the Ferry Ramp, displaying the local marine biodiversity with a wide variety of fish and invertebrates. Mt. Ozzard, which hosts the Coast Guard Marine Communication and Traffic Services (MCTS) surveillance radar dome and various other communications towers, has a service road that is gated at the bottom. Despite the gate, the road to the summit is accessible to hikers and all-terrain vehicles. The MCTS centre at Amphitrite Point was closed in May 2015 and its services relocated to Prince Rupert. Festivals and events Every March, the Pacific Rim Whale Festival is a week of events hosted by Ucluelet, Tofino and the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. With a strong focus on marine life protection education, the event celebrates the annual return of migrating Pacific Grey Whales from their breeding and calving grounds along the Baja Peninsula of Mexico. Community events within the festival include gala dinners, children’s activities, workshops and live entertainment. Every odd year, Ucluelet hosts a leg of the Van Isle 360. It is a point-to-point race circumnavigating Vancouver Island, sailed in 10 legs. While the participants are in Ucluelet, the community hosts a special salmon barbecue with live music and a send-off event. In mid-June, there is the Annual Edge to Edge Marathon. Every year participants from within the community and beyond race from Tofino through the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve to Ucluelet. The Pacific Rim Summer Festival is held in early July with two weeks of music, word and multi-cultural concerts featuring national and international performers. Nightly concerts are performed at venues in Ucluelet, Tofino and the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. The end of July