Willows Beach, Victoria is a beachfront neighbourhood in the Municipality of Oak Bay, in Victoria, British Columbia. It takes its name from the Willows Fairground built in 1891[1] and which remained Greater Victoria's main horse-racing venue during the early years of the twentieth century. The Willows Racetrack was situated nearly a kilometre inland from the beach, so named because of the willow trees that grew there. To the north Willows Beach is bordered by the Uplands, to the west by Cadboro Bay Road and to the south by Cranmore Road. The Estevan area forms the northwestern corner of Willows Beach, centred around a small shopping area on Estevan Avenue. Willows School, a public elementary school, is located in the middle of the neighbourhood. Along the Willows Beach waterfront is Willows Park, where a tea-room is run by the Kiwanis Club in spring and summer.
Willows Beach is a very actively used beach and park in Victoria. On summer days the public areas are usually packed with people. Various clubs and organizations often hold gatherings in Willows Park, including rallies, club meetings, poetry readings, barbecues and family gatherings.
There are areas where the public can set up volleyball courts and often on the weekend the spaces are filled quickly.
Willows Beach is also the location of the annual Oak Bay Tea Party, in which people from all over Victoria participate, enjoying the rides, shows, games, and the parade which runs all around Oak Bay.
To the very north of the beach, there is a part of Uplands Park that is directly above the rocks (also connected to Cattle Point). There are a quite a few trails in this area.
Skimboarders frequent the beach in the spring and summer. A webcam of the middle part of the beach is available at Big Wave Dave to check the tide level and conditions. The webcam watches the middle of the beach, but the north and south ends are shallower, which are more ideal for skimboarding.
|
||||||||||||||