Mount Hanover is another amazing and accessible peak in the North Shore mountains. Located in the beautiful Cypress Provincial Park, Mount Hanover is among several other prominent summits on the amazing Howe Sound Crest Trail. You can reach Mount Hanover from the Howe Sound Crest Trail if you begin your hike from the Cypress Mountain Resort, however reaching it from the trailhead in Lions Bay is much shorter.
Off the Howe Sound Crest TrailVery challenging & rewarding hikeStunning views from the summitLikely have the mountain to yourselfBrunswick Lake is fairly closeCamping is free & amazingThe HSCT is dog friendly
Too challenging for most hikersParking is hopelessly inadequatePoor weather makes it dangerous
Black Mountain 
Brunswick Mountain 
Burnaby Lake 
Burnaby Mountain Coliseum Mountain Crown Mountain Cypress Falls Deeks Peak Deep Cove Deer Lake Dog Mountain 
Goat Mountain Goldie Lake 
Grouse Hollyburn Mountain Kitsilano Beaches Lighthouse Park Lynn Canyon Lynn Peak Mt Elsay Mt Fromme 
Mt Hanover Mt Harvey Mt Seymour Mt Strachan Mystery Lake Pacific Spirit 
Rice Lake St Mark's Stanley Park The Lions Unnecessary
This trailhead is also used to reach The Lions, Mount Harvey and Brunswick Mountain. There is no established route to Hanover after you leave the Howe Sound Crest Trail. Fortunately Hanover towers visibly in the distance at all times, so the best method to reach the summit is to route find your way as you go. This of course makes Mount Hanover a potentially dangerous hike if you are unprepared or unlucky with the weather. Be sure to have a GPS and topo map with you and know what you are doing. The route to the Howe Sound Crest Trail from the Lions Bay trailhead(Lions Binkert trailhead) is the same as the route you would take to Brunswick Mountain so it is well marked with flagging tape though there are few written signs. The trail is challenging as you gain considerable elevation in a short distance, 1550 metres in just 7.3 kilometres. The first half of the trail is fairly easy as you follow first a disused logging road for about 15 minutes (bear right at a fork), then a wide and fairly straight trail for another 20 minutes until you reach another junction. Take the trail (overgrown logging road) to the left which is well marked with flagging tape. You will shortly cross Magnesia Creek and the trail steepens as the logging road/trail becomes a trail and soon you will see a fork.
Take the fork to the right and soon you will come to the Howe Sound Crest Trail. From here you must route find your way to the very visible Mount Hanover. Mount Hanover 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 29 kilometre 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.
The trailhead to reach Mount Hanover is the same for The Lions, Mount Harvey and Brunswick Mountain and can be tricky to find. It is located town of Lions Bay which is about an hours drive from downtown Vancouver or a half hour south of Squamish. From either direction on the Sea to Sky Highway, take the Lions Bay exit onto Oceanview Road (the 2nd Lions bay exit from either direction), then immediately turn left onto Cross Creek Road, then right onto Centre Road, then left onto Bayview Road, then left onto Mountain Drive, left again onto Sunset Road and park near the black gate at the dead end. Be sure to park legally as they actively tow illegally parked cars. More parking is available at the school 1 kilometre from here. Arrive early to ensure convenient parking.
