Prince Rupert

Charles Melville Hays planned Prince Rupert as the Pacific terminus of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway and expected it to rival Vancouver; he died on the Titanic in 1912 returning from raising money for it, and the city never grew as intended. It rains here about two hundred and forty days a year, among the wettest places in Canada. The North Pacific Cannery at Port Edward, built in 1889, is the oldest intact cannery village on the coast, with boardwalks, bunkhouses and the canning line preserved. The Museum of Northern British Columbia holds Ts'msyen work, and the harbour has one of the highest densities of totem poles in the region.

What you actually see

• The North Pacific Cannery - an 1889 cannery village with boardwalks intact.
• The Museum of Northern BC - Ts'msyen art and coastal history in a longhouse-style building.
• The rain - a genuinely wet climate that shapes the place.
• The ferry terminal - sailings to Haida Gwaii, Vancouver Island and Alaska.

When to go

June to September for the least rain and full opening; the cannery closes in winter. Ferries run year-round with reduced winter service. Rain gear is essential in any season.

Honest expectations

It rains most days, and visitors expecting sun are disappointed. The city is small and industrial. Ferry connections are infrequent and shape any itinerary.

Nearby

The Khutzeymateen lies north; Haida Gwaii is a ferry away.