Darlington Lake is one of two lakes that are just past the Franklin River shop on the way to Bamfield, Vancouver Island. The other lake is Francis Lake. Darlington Lake is only 13 hectares in size. It’s a nice little lake though. About mid down the lake, just off the road, is a very rough campsite. There is a place to launch a car-top here and right next to it, is a fast-running creek with very cold, fresh water. Bottom fishing out from this creek is pretty productive and there is a good night bite just before dusk. It has a good fishery for rainbows, and you can catch a fair size dolly once in a while. The lake is quite deep and you can troll for the big ones here. The best fishing is in the spring or fall.
The scenery around the lake is awesome and there is wildlife everywhere you look. You can see black bears, deer, elk, many kinds of birds, and lots of smaller animals like raccoons and otters.
Bring your camera and prepare to be amazed at the beauty that surrounds you, there is an awesome variety of wildflowers around this lake. The road from Port Alberni will take you past this lake and not much further down the road, you will come to a crossroads of sorts, from there you can head over to Cowichan Lake or Bamfield, or you can head to Nitinat Lake and Carmanah Valley with its giant trees.
The Cheewhat cedar is down this way, just a few miles past the village of Ditidaht, it’s the biggest Red Cedar in the World, and it is truly a sight to see. The trail is pretty rough, but it’s worth the hike. When you are at Ditidaht, you can drive through the village to get to a beautiful lakeside campground with 53 individual sites for your use, there is a fee to camp here.