Remote Nimmo Bay tops for heli-travel (4:05 p.m.)

New York-based Forbes Traveler ranks B.C.'s Nimmo Bay Resort as No. 1 in the world for helicopter tours into relatively inaccessible but visually stunning places.

"That's great news for British Columbia and great news for us," said Craig Murray, Nimmo Bay Resort founder and owner, who was unaware of the Forbes Traveler assessment when contacted today.

Forbes listed 10 locations for the road-weary adventurer who wants to visit hard-to-see areas that can best be reached and appreciated from a helicopter.

Nimmo Bay is located on the B.C. mainland at the head of McKenzie Sound about 320 kilometres northwest of Vancouver in a vast area of wilderness. The nearest large community is Port Hardy on the northeast coast of Vancouver Island.

Visitors to Nimmo Bay arrive at Port Hardy and are then helicoptered to Nimmo Bay where for $2,000 a day they stay at a lodge or in private, inter-tidal chalets. Once there, they can fish - it's catch and release - go whale watching, whitewater rafting, kayak, hike, and descend into caves.

"There's a whole range of adventures available to them across 30,000 square miles of pristine wilderness," said Murray who created the resort 27 years ago.

About 600 visitors a year arrive at the resort staying from three to seven days. The resort is only open from the middle of April to the end of October. Most of the visitors are from the U.S. or other parts of the world.

"We do have Canadian visitors but it's minimal. If Canadians want to spend a lot of dollars on vacations they like to do it outside the country, which is a pity because this area is so unique. We'd like more Canadians to come and see what's in their own backyard," he said.

The resort, which prides itself on being environmentally responsible, received the B.C. government's 1999 environmental award for industry, business and labour.

The other places making Forbes' list in descending order were: Rotorua, New Zealand; Iguazu Falls, Brazil; Great Barrier Reef, Australia; Juneau, Alaska; Victoria Falls, Zambia; parts of Hawaii; the Grand Canyon, Arizona; Sabah, Malaysia; and Montserrat, Spain.

Source ref: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/story.html?id=80a27153-e563-40f9-8c6b-88bf5cb12df6&k=23545