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.
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 reach The Lions. Unnecessary Mountain 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 (from Cypress north) on the Howe Sound Crest Trail are: Mount Strachan, St Mark's Summit, Unnecessary Mountain, The Lions, Mt Harvey, Mount Hanover, Unnecessary Mountain and finally Deeks Peak. As Unnecessary Mountain lays in the middle of the Howe Sound Crest Trail, it has its own trail from Lions Bay which makes it a manageable day-trip. The trail is well marked but very steep and overgrown. It is sometimes compared, as so many other North Shore trails often are, to the Grouse Grind. Harder, better views and no people, is the usual description. Unnecessary Mountain is comprised of three summits, all three are reachable without technical skill. The summit furthest north is where the original trail to The Lions is located. The Howe Sound Crest Trail now goes around the east side of Unnecessary Mountain. The trailhead to Unnecessary Mountain is in the cute little town of Lions Bay. From downtown Vancouver the drive takes 35 minutes with light traffic and can take an an hour with busy traffic. From Vancouver head north on Highway 99 towards Lions Bay and take the Oceanview Road exit (2nd Lions Bay exit you will see). Follow Oceanview Road until it ends at a gate near a water tower. There is a small parking area here. Walk past the gate up the old road that curves to the left. Look for the trail on your right, that is the Unnecessary Mountain trail that rises steeply.
Everyone knows the Grouse Grind as the fantastically popular 2.9 kilometre workout in Vancouver. What is less known is that Grouse Mountain is the gateway, or rather back door to some amazing hiking in the ...
St Mark's Summit is a relatively easy way to get hiking deep into Vancouver's amazing mountains. Starting this hike at Cypress means you drive most of the elevation. Even though you still have another ...
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 ...
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 Peak. It is a ...
Panorama Ridge is easily one of the most amazing hikes in Garibaldi Provincial Park. The 15 kilometre(9.3 mile) hike from the trailhead at Rubble Creek to Panorama Ridge takes you through beautiful and deep ...
Taylor Meadows is a beautiful campsite and alternative to the much busier and more well known, Garibaldi Lake campsite. Located in between Garibaldi Lake and Black Tusk itself. It is reached from the same ...
Ring Lake is a fantastically beautiful and wonderfully remote lake similar to Cirque Lake but considerably farther to hike to reach it. The 10 kilometre hike takes you through a tranquil forest, then to a ...
Brandywine Falls is one of the must see sights on the drive to or from Whistler, and arguably the nicest of Whistler’s numerous beautiful waterfalls. Located about halfway between Squamish and Whistler, the ...