Squamish sits in the midst of some amazing places to hike. Garibaldi Provincial Park sprawls from Squamish up and beyond Whistler. Tantalus Provincial Park lays across the valley to the west and the beautiful and desolate, by comparison, Callaghan Valley to the north.
GaribaldiProvincialPark
Garibaldi Provincial Park wraps around Squamish and is home to some amazing hiking trails. Garibaldi Lake, Panorama Ridge, Black Tusk and Elfin Lakes are all wonderful hiking destinations in this extraordinary Provincial Park so close to Squamish.
Crown Mountain, visible from downtown Vancouver, towers behind Grouse Mountain. It was appropriately named due to its crown shape over 150 years ago by an English captain charting the area. This very challenging hike offers some phenomenal views from its summit, deep in the North Shore Mountains. There are three main ways to reach the amazing Crown Mountain.
As it is located near Grouse Mountain, the most direct way to reach it is via Grouse Mountain. You can either hike the Grouse Grind for free or take the SkyRide for about $50 (return). From the Grouse Mountain Chalet the hike to Crown Mountain is 9.4k return and should take about 5 or 6 hours to complete. If you hike/run the Grouse Grind as well then add 2.9 kilometres to the journey there and 3.5 kilometres to the return (via the BCMC trail adjacent to the Grouse Grind) to get back to your car. The third and most challenging way to access Crown Mountain is by beginning and ending at the Lynn Headwaters Regional Park trailhead. This is a tough, but amazing 20k (one way) route to Crown Mountain through the amazing Lynn Valley. This access route to Crown Mountain often opens in late June or even July, Check at the trailhead before you head out on the trail make sure that the trail past Norvan Falls is open. From the Grouse Chalet on Grouse Mountain follow the path under the Peak Chair until you reach the trailhead and hiker check-in station. From here you follow the marked trail to Crown Mountain. You can either hike via Dam Mountain, or take the easier Alpine Trail. Both are roughly the same distance, but the Alpine Trail is a bit easier.
The trail then leads to Little Goat Mountain the descends into Crown Pass. There are several chain assisted sections here and some tricky scrambling, however, nothing too technical. Goat Mountain is just .7k from the main trail to Crown Mountain and well worth the look if you have the energy. There are few creeks along the Crown Mountain hike so ensure that you bring lots of water.
Explore Vancouver Hiking Trails!
Unnecessary Mountain gets its peculiar name from the fact it once was part of the route to reach The Lions whereas now the route avoids it. This now, unnecessary mountain, no longer needs to be climbed to ...
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 ...
Deer Lake is a relaxing 5 kilometre walk around a cute urban lake just 30 minutes from Vancouver. The route around the lake is good any time of year and is very popular with dog walkers in and around ...
At the far end of the Baden Powell Trail, in the cute town of Deep Cove is home to the fantastic Deep Cove Lookout trail. Also known as Quarry Rock and the Grey Rock Trail, the Deep Cove Lookout trail is ...
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 ...
The trail to Whistler Train Wreck is an easy, yet varied route through deep forest, across a great suspension bridge over Cheakamus River, to a stunning array of wrecked train cars. The trail from your car ...
Blackcomb Mountain holds an impressive and ever growing array of hiking trails. From the moment you step off the Blackcomb Gondola and you arrive at the Rendezvous Lodge, you see hiking trails ascend into ...
The Sea to Sky Trail is a 180 kilometre multi-use trail that runs from Squamish to D'Arcy. The trail is still under construction in many parts, however, the amazing route through Whistler is finally in ...
Whistler is an amazing place to hike. Looking at a map of Whistler you see an extraordinary spider web of hiking trails. Easy trails, moderate trails and challenging hiking trails are all available. Another marvellous thing about Whistler is that Garibaldi Provincial ...
Squamish sits in the midst of some amazing places to hike. Garibaldi Park sprawls from Squamish up and beyond Whistler. Tantalus Provincial Park lays across the valley to the west and the beautiful and desolate, by comparison, Callaghan Valley to the north. Add to ...
Clayoquot Sound has a staggering array of hiking trails within it. Between Tofino and Ucluelet, Pacific Rim Park has several wilderness and beach trails, each one radically different from the last. The islands in the area are often Provincial parks on their own with ...
Victoria has a seemingly endless number of amazing hiking trails. Most take you to wild and beautiful Pacific Ocean views and others take you to tranquil lakes in beautiful BC Coastal Rainforest wilderness. Regional Parks and Provincial Parks are everywhere you turn ...
The West Coast Trail was created after decades of brutal and costly shipwrecks occurred along the West Coast of Vancouver Island. One shipwreck in particular was so horrific, tragic and unbelievable that it forced the creation of a trail along the coast, which ...