Vancouver is surrounded by seemingly endless hiking trails and mountains to explore. Massive parks line up one after another. Mount Seymour Provincial Park, Lynn Park, Grouse, Cypress and the enormous Garibaldi Provincial Park all contribute to Vancouver being a hiking paradise.
VancouverHikingMaps
There are plenty of moderately challenging Vancouver hiking trails to choose from. These are five trails that stand out from the rest. Not too difficult, yet all have sensational views. Hollyburn, Dog Mountain and Seymour are at the end of beautiful drives to reach the trailheads.
Deeks Peak is at the far north end of the beautiful Howe Sound Crest Trail which runs from Cypress Resort 29k away. The trailhead near Porteau Cove is the access point Deeks Peak and Deeks Lake. It is a steadily uphill hike as you gain 1615 metres in almost 8 kilometres. The trail is also very overgrown and strewn with fallen trees.
A multi-day hike in this area via the Howe Sound Crest Trail where you can hike a couple or all of the amazing peaks. Brunswick Mountain, Mt Hanover, Mt Harvey and The Lions stretch off into the distance eventually leading to Cypress Mountain 29k away. Backcountry camping is possible in innumerable phenomenal sites along the trail. None of them are sanctioned or maintained so don't expect any facilities but there are countless streams, waterfalls and lakes to put a tent by. There is quite an interesting hut at Lost Lake. Small and very rustic, yet every inch of it has been loved and abused. Depending on the weather outside the hut will probably colour your opinion of the inside. It's dirty, grungy, the walls are thin and metal. The ground is covered with debris, gravel and dirt. There are alcohol bottles lining almost every surface... and all partly full. The place is a mess, but a beautiful little mountain hut nonetheless. A pile of chopped wood lines one wall and possibly the most loved wood-stove in the history of the world sits in the middle. This beautiful stove makes this ugly little hut feel like paradise. If there is snow on the ground outside or you just braved a swim in the always icy Lost Lake, then you will quickly learn to cherish this wonderful hut. If you plan on parking overnight at the trailhead be careful about where to park. The parking lot has a no overnight parking sign, so you will have to park along the road near the parking lot. An alarmingly high number of reported car break-ins make this area of concern when parking. Be extremely careful that nothing of value is visible to passers by. If you are lucky and find the gate open at the start of the trail you can drive 3.5 kilometres up this fairly decent logging road and take about an hour off the start of your hike. This road is easily drivable with a high clearance 4x4, however, some deep waterbars will prevent lower clearance vehicles from getting through.
Deeks Peak is part of the amazing Howe Sound Crest Trail in Cypress Provincial Park and is one of the many beautiful peaks to be climbed if desired on the 29k trail. Among the hiker friendly mountains (in order from Cypress north) on the Howe Sound Crest Trail are: Mount Strachan, St Mark`s Summit, Unnecessary Mountain, The Lions, Mount Harvey, Mount Hanover, Brunswick Mountain and finally Deeks Peak. This amazing trail has one end here at Porteau Cove and the other end at Cypress Mountain. Everyone has a different opinion of the Deeks Lake and Deeks Peak trail. If you hike it on a hot, sunny day in July, August or September and manage to park at the end of the logging road, 3.5 from the gate, then you will find this trail amazing. On the other hand, if you hike earlier in the season, encounter snow on the trail and have to park at the lower parking lot due to the gate being locked, you will likely hate Deeks Peak. So keep that in mind. Try to hike the trail later than May/June or be prepared and comfortable hiking in snow. Try to get a 4x4 and hope for an unlocked gate and if not be super careful in securing your car and enjoy the easy, though boring, first 3.5k of trail/road.
Trailhead Directions to Deeks Peak
The trailhead is easy to find. 22k north of Horseshoe Bay take the Porteau Road exit and park in the large trailhead parking. The trail begins at the far end of the parking lot and follows an old dirt road. At the first fork take the road to the right. At 1k you will reach the trail junction, left for Deeks Peak or straight for Deeks Lake. The trail is very overgrown but well marked with flagging tape. With the arrival of spring, enthusiastic hikers rush up this trail, however, snow persists well into June(usually), making the trail brutal and at times, dangerous.
Stanley Park in downtown Vancouver is a beautiful and astoundingly huge network of hiking/walking/biking trails. An estimated 8 million hikers, walkers, rollerbladers and cyclists visit the park yearly. The ...
Everyone knows the Grouse Grind as the fantastically popular 2.9 kilometre workout in Vancouver. What is less known is that it is the gateway, or rather back door to some amazing hiking in the Lynn ...
Dog Mountain is a beautiful, short and fun hike (or snowshoe trek) close to Vancouver and starting from the parking lot of Mount Seymour Resort. Just 2.2 kilometres gets you from your car to breathtaking views of ...
Burnaby Lake Regional Park has a series of trails that add up to 9 kilometres if done in a circular route around the lake. There are in fact 19 kilometres of trails in the park. The various trails include ...
Alice Lake is a great place for camping swimming, fishing and hiking. Alice Lake Provincial Park is comprised of four lakes. Stump, Fawn and Edith Lake as well as the much larger Alice Lake. There is a nice ...
The wonderful Upper Shannon Falls trail is now also called the Sea to Summit trail, branches off from the chaotically popular Stawamus Chief trail. About 15 minutes along the Stawamus Chief trail you will ...
Shannon Falls towers above Howe Sound at 335 metres as the third tallest falls in BC. The wonderful, though very short trail winds through a beautiful old growth forest to get to the base of the falls. From ...
Levette Lake is a nice mountain lake located in the enormous Squamish Valley that drains Squamish River into Howe Sound. There are some nice views and minimal elevation gain along the trail. The amazing ...
Meager Hot Springs(aka: Meager Creek Hot Springs) is located 93 kilometres northwest of Whistler, was beautifully developed into gorgeous pools, with a caretaker and usage charge. At its height of ...
Alexander Falls is a very impressive 43 metre/141foot waterfall just 30 to 40 minutes south of Whistler in the Callaghan Valley. Open year-round and located just before Whistler Olympic Park where several of ...
Russet Lake is a surreal little paradise that lays at the base of The Fissile. The Fissile is the strikingly bronze mountain visible from Whistler Village. From the Village look into the distance at the Peak2Peak ...
Whistler has an absurd number of wonderful and free hiking trails and Parkhurst Ghost Town certainly ranks as one of the most unusual, exotic and interesting. Parkhurst was a little logging town perched on ...