Gonzales Hill Regional Park is the smallest of all the Regional Parks in Victoria BC at just 2 hectares in size. It’s easy for people who are living in Victoria to access, perching close to town in the beautiful municipality of Oak Bay.
The Gonzales Observatory is one of the main features of this little park. Built in 1914, the Observatory served as a weather station for 75 years and has been designated a heritage building.
From the top of the hill you can take in unobstructed stunning views of Victoria and beyond, including the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Sooke Hills and the Olympic Mountains. If you visit during spring you can see beautiful and rare wildflowers blooming under the Garry Oak trees and later in the summer you may see a family of California Quail skitter across your path and into the underbrush.
How to Get to Gonzales Hill Regional Park
Take Fairfield Road from Victoria, it will turn into Beach Drive as you enter Oak Bay. Take a right onto Denison Road, which will take you to the park entrance on the right. It takes only about10 minutes to drive from downtown Victoria. How fortunate we are to have such beautiful places to visit so close to the city!
