9 Spring Hikes near Vancouver

April 30, 2025April 29, 2025 / Maria / 1 Comment

Spring is one of the most challenging seasons in the backcountry. It gets really nice in the city, which can trick hikers into thinking that it’s a good time to return to the mountains. Any time is a good time to be in the mountains, but you have to manage the risk accordingly. Snow will not melt at high elevations and in the alpine until the end of June and sometimes even as late as mid July. Spring is particularly dangerous because the rapid melt can create unseen hazards under the snow. What looks like a flat snowy trail may have creeks hidden under thin layers of snow that can easily collapse under your weight. So the safest approach is generally to stick to lower elevation hikes. Fortunately, there’s lots of those available in BC as well! Here’s a few of my favourites within close driving distance of the lower mainland.

Jug Island/Admiralty Point Trail

A photo of a yellow kayak resting on the beach in front of Jug Island on a sunny, blue sky day in Belcarra, BC.

Belcarra is a gorgeous coastal location for Spring hiking. If you park at the lot in Belcarra Regional Park, you can do a short, but scenic hike along either end of the peninsula. If you head south from the parking lot, you’ll follow the Admiralty Point Trail along the water, with lots of little viewpoints along the way. If you head north, you’ll hike inland along the Jug Island trail to a beach viewpoint. Both trails are approximately 5.5km long round trip, but Jug Island is more challenging because it hikes up over the headland and then down to the beach. Both trails can usually be hiked year-round.

Hunter Road

Hunter Road is an easy trail in Mission that can be done during most of the year. The trail starts from the end of Roach Street and is an easy hike along an old forestry road (Hunter Road). Eventually the trail loops back around on itself to climb up to the summit of a small overlook where you can enjoy views of Stave Lake and the surrounding backcountry. It’s a there and back trail, approximately 7.5km in length, 250m in elevation gain.

High Falls Creek

A female hiker nears and smiles at the camera from the High Creek Falls Trail with a view of the snow capped mountain peaks and forest of the Squamish Valley in the background, near Squamish, BC.

High Falls Creek is one of two hikes on this list that can be found along the Squamish River. It’s a more challenging hike than some of the others, but is great for Spring when the rivers are flowing at high capacity. The trailhead is located approximately 26km up Squamish Valley Road. The hike can be done as an out and back, but if you want to make it a bit longer, you can turn it into a loop hike by continuing up to Branch 200 FSR and hiking back along the road. The trail to High Falls is a bit technical, with some scrambling over rocky sections, so make sure to go on a dry day. It’s 1km each way to High Falls Creek, but if you do the loop, it’s 9km with 500m of elevation gain.

Crooked Falls

Crooked Falls is the second hike along the Squamish River. It’s a similar distance from Squamish, but you take a left turn over the bridge off Squamish Valley Road and onto the Ashlu River FSR to get to the trailhead. The hike to Crooked Falls is approximately 5km round trip, with 400m of elevation rain. The waterfall is especially impressive in the Spring and makes for a fun day trip. If you want to extend the hike, you can continue along the Sigurd Creek trail to a small outcrop with a gorgeous view of the area. This hike is much harder and is approximately 12km round trip, with 900m of elevation gain. It may not be totally snow free in the Spring.

Woodland Walk/Sawblade Falls

A photo of a forested trail in Pinecone Burke Provincial Park on a sunny day near Coquitlam, BC.

Woodland Walk and Sawblade Falls are two lesser known hikes in Pinecone Burke Provincial Park. They’re super easy to access from Harper Road in Coquitlam and I think they’re very underrated for how close they are to the city. Woodland Walk is a leisurely 7km loop walk through the woods and is great for a rainy day. It only has 200m of elevation gain and makes for a fun forest adventure. It’s easy to extend the loop to also include Sawblade Falls, which is approximately 9km in length. My advice is to be familiar with using GPS maps if you explore this park. There are so many trails through the forest, I usually go and just make my own adventure.

Big Cedar and Kennedy Falls

Two hikers flex their muscles in front of the big cedar tree on the Kennedy Falls trail in North Vancouver, BC.

It’s been a long time since I did this hike, but it sticks out in my mind as a great Spring hike on the North Shore. It’s a bit on the longer side at 10km, and it climbs up and down, so it has a surprising amount of elevation gain (500m). The trail leaves from the Mount Fromme trailhead and is great for variety as it hikes through the forest to a large big cedar tree, and then on to scenic Kennedy Falls. The trail is more technical, with lots of climbing over tree roots, so it’s a good option for more advanced hikers.

Norvan Falls

Another option on the North Shore – Norvan Falls is a classic Vancouver hike. The trail leaves from the end of Lynn Valley Road and is the longest trail on the list at 15km round trip. The trail hikes along Lynn Creek and then through the forest along the Hanes Valley Trail to Norvan Falls. There’s 600m of elevation gain along the trail, but there is an option to do a little loop through the forest along the way to make the hike more interesting. This is a great option in the Spring when the rivers are running full. The waterfall drops to a trickle in the summer and can be less impressive after the Spring snowmelt.

Stawamus Chief

Two female hikers lie back and relax and smile from the top of the bare rock of The Chief's second peak, with Howe Sound and the Tantalus Mountain Range in the background near Squamish, British Columbia, Canada.

I’d be remiss if I left the Stawamus Chief off this list. The Chief was the first trail I ever hiked after moving to Vancouver and it draws crowds at any time of year. It’s a challenging trail, as it’s mostly a stairmaster to the top, with lots of sketchy sections with ropes, ladders, and scrambling. The full trail is 11km, but it consists of 3 peaks, so people rarely hike all 3 at once. I’ve done the first and second peak, but I still have yet to return for the third peak. I recommend the first peak, because it’s the easier option and has incredible views of Howe Sound. This is a real bucket list hike that is worth the hype, but don’t do it on a rainy day or if you’re afraid of heights.

Widgeon Falls

A hiker stands on the edge of a rock next to Widgeon Creek with the forest and mountains in the background on a sunny day

This hike is a little trickier because it includes paddling, but it’s such a fun adventure, I wanted to include it! In the Spring and Summer, you can rent canoes or kayaks to cross the Pitt River and paddle up Widgeon Creek to the Widgeon Falls trailhead. It takes approximately 1.5 hours each way to paddle to the trailhead at the Widgeon Creek Campsite. From there, you can do a 5km loop trail through the forest up to Widgeon Falls. It’s a beautiful trail and makes for a really unique experience. That said, navigating the Pitt River can be a challenge depending on wind and current conditions, so don’t attempt this adventure without the proper research and experience. I have a full blog post on my experience if you’re looking for more information.

Favourite Hikes in Southwestern BC Part III

July 19, 2023August 13, 2024 / Maria / 4 Comments

I moved to BC in 2014. In late 2016, I wrote a post sharing my top 10 favourite hiking trails in Southwest BC, which I followed up with Part II in late 2018 with 10 more of my favourite trails. I’ve been wanting to write a follow up post for a while, but I’ve hiked well over 100 more trails since my last post in 2018, so it’s a lot a trails to choose from! I decided to break it into two more posts. Part III will cover another 10 of my favourite trails that I hiked between 2019 and 2020, while Part IV will cover 2021 to 2022. Is this a bit excessive? Maybe… but my blog, my rules! I like the symmetry of a top 10 post for every 2 years I’ve been here, so I guess you’ll get Part V at the end of 2024!

Without further ado, here’s a few of my favourite hikes from the 2019-2020 era!

#10 High Falls Creek – Squamish has a few hidden gems and in my opinion, this is one of them. It’s located about 30 minutes out on Squamish Valley Road and after a quick ascent, boasts beautiful views of both High Falls Creek and the Squamish River. It’s a bit of a scramble on the way up, so I would save it for a fair weather day. The waterfall is the main highlight, but my favourite part is the viewpoint after the waterfall and the peaceful forest walking. Turn this into a loop by walking back the Forest Service Road, which has more incredible views of the Valley! (10km, 500m elevation gain, 4 hours)

#9 Mount Norman – I stumbled upon this short little hike when I kayaked around Pender Island. The formal hike starts just past the bridge to the South Island and it’s a short uphill hike to a viewpoint over Bedwell Harbour and the surrounding Gulf Islands. It’s only 3km round trip, but if you’d like to extend it, take the left branch before you get back to the road and hike down to the Beaumont Campground, which has gorgeous views out over the bluff and along Bedwell Harbour. (3-6km, 300m elevation gain, 1-2 hours)

#8 Viewpoint Beach – This hike is located in Golden Ears Park and has been gaining a lot of popularity since the pandemic as a good beginner backpacking trail. Because of it’s low elevation, it’s snow free in the Spring and is an easy 8km round trip hike along Gold Creek to Viewpoint Beach. It makes for a great day trip, or an overnight trip, though it can get busy. I’d recommend hiking in Friday night or early Saturday morning. The trail continues on to Half Moon Beach if you’d like to extend the trip, but it’s not well maintained, so be prepared for a bit of route finding. (8km, 200m elevation gain, 3 hours)

#7 Zoa Peak – I’ve attepted Zoa Peak twice now, once in the Fall (where I got smoked out by wildfires) and once in the Winter. For this reason, I’ve never made it past the sub-peak, but I still recommend it as a good all year hike. I think the Coquihalla Summit Rec Area is vastly underrated and Zoa makes for a scenic hike in the summer and a relatively safe snowshoe in the winter. Don’t go past the sub-peak in the winter without your Avalanche Safety Training, but it’s a popular area for ski touring in the winter! (10km, 700m elevation gain, 5 hours)

#6 Elk/Thurston Mountain – Elk Mountain is a popular hike in the summer and especially in the Fall when it gets a pop of colour. There’s a lot of elevation gain, but it’s a relatively simple trail until close to the top, when you pop into the woods for a steeper ascent to the summit. It’s 8km round trip to the Elk Mountain Summit, but 800m in elevation gain, so don’t underestimate it! If you have the time, I recommend continuing on another ~2km as the hike continues along the ridgeline to Thurston Peak. It’s an 16km round trip to go all the way to Thurston, but there’s no view from Thurston Peak, so if you’d like to save yourself a bit of time, just enjoy the ridge walk for a few kilometers and then turn around. From Elk Mountain onwards are beautiful views of Chilliwack Valley and Mount Baker. (8-16km, 800-1000m elevation gain, 4-8 hours)

#5 Pinecone Burke Provincial Park – Pinecone Burke was one of my best pandemic discoveries. When we weren’t allowed to leave our neighbourhood in 2020, I spent a lot of time hiking around Eagle Mountain, Minnekhada, and Pinecone Burke. Pinecone Burke is located right on the northern edge of Coquitlam (in the Burke Mountain area) and it’s BC Parks least funded park. As a result, it has no infrastructure (not even a toilet) and gets few visitors. It’s mostly frequented by mountain bikers, but there are some truly lovely trails in this park! My personal favourite is to extend the Woodland Walk up to Sawblade Falls, but the Coquitlam Lakeview Trail is also reasonably popular. The park is primarily forest views, so it’s a perfect rainy day or Spring hike. You can hike the Woodland Walk year round, but the Lakeview Trail usually has snow until June. (8-14km, up to 700m elevation gain, 2-6 hours)

#4 Brew Lake – Brew Lake is another relatively unknown trail off the Sea to Sky Highway, just before Whistler. Even I discovered this trail by accident when the Rainbow Lake trailhead was closed due to an aggressive bear. We decided to hike to Brew Lake instead and spend the night in early Fall and were rewarded with beautiful lake views and an empty trail. We didn’t know what condition the road was in, so we parked at the Whistler RV Park and hiked the full 17km round-trip trail. But if you have the proper vehicle, you can considerably shorten the trail along forestry roads. If you have time, extend the hike a little further to Brew Hut, which I still have to return for. (17km, 900m elevation gain, 9 hours)

#3 Minnekhada Regional Park – Minnekhada Park was my other pandemic discovery and remains one of my favourite places near the city for a leisurely hike. The highlight of the park is High Knoll, which is known as the “Quarry Rock of Coquitlam” and has beautiful views down to the Pitt River and Pitt-Addington Marsh. Part of the park burned down in 2022, but it recently re-opened and is great for bird watching along the lakes. (5-8km, 200m elevation gain, 2-3 hours)

#2 Cape Scott and the North Coast Trail – This is where I stretch the boundary of “Southwestern BC” just a little bit. Cape Scott and the NCT are at the far northern tip of Vancouver Island, but I feel this was one of the defining hikes I did between 2018 and 2020. We hadn’t planned to do this hike, but when our Assiniboine trip got cancelled during the pandemic, we decided to hike 85km along this intense and remote coastal trail instead. This trail is a real challenge and is not for the faint of heart. Be prepared for an incredibly slow pace and knee high mud, but boy is it a rewarding hike. One of my most memorable. (85km, 5-7 days)

#1 Howe Sound Crest Trail – This is another incredibly challenging trail that tested my endurance when I did it in 30 degree weather, but it’s a trail I think about often. It was on my bucket list for 3 years before I finally did it over the course of 2 nights and was able to soak in every inch of this scenic trail. The trail provides the opportunity to summit the West Lion, Mount Harvey, and Mount Brunswick. I didn’t summit any of them, but I camped beneath the Lions and lounged in vibrant Brunswick Lake instead. I’d like to return one day for each of these summits, but this was a trail where it was more about the journey than the summits. (30km, 1500m elevation gain, 2-3 days)

Continue to Part IV.

Hiking High Falls Creek

November 25, 2020November 26, 2020 / Maria / 3 Comments

The Fall hiking season seems to be almost certainly behind us at this point, but Brandon and I were lucky enough to end off the season with a beautiful hike up to High Falls Creek outside Squamish.

High Falls Creek is one of several trails located along the Squamish River going up the valley. I’ve heard about the river being popular for fishing and camping along the banks, and I once went white water rafting down it with Seth, but otherwise I haven’t explored this area at all. There were a few people still out enjoying the last few nice days of the season, but you do have to be careful camping along the river as it does frequently flood.

High Falls Creek was basically empty when we arrived though. It’s an extremely steep trail that climbs up the cliffside, providing several glimpses of the waterfall cascading down through the trees. The waterfall is only about 1km in the trail, but it’s so steep that it feels like a lot longer. I’d debating bringing Sadie, but ended up leaving her home because I’d read it isn’t a dog friendly trail. I didn’t regret it because there’s a lot of climbing and rope sections.

We passed two couples who had gone up to the waterfall, but decided to hike back down rather than do the rest of the trail. I understand why they did this, it’s a 9km loop to do the whole trail, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s a loop trail for a reason and I don’t envy them climbing back down all those rope sections. Otherwise, we didn’t see a single other person on the trail!

As far as waterfalls go, it’s a bit hard to see this one. There’s no real good viewpoints from the trail, though there is a branch that goes down to the top of the falls, which is pretty neat. But I still loved the trail because it has gorgeous views all along looking out at the surrounding mountains and down into the valley. The trail continues up and up after the falls with a total of 500m of elevation gain in under 3km. It took us about 2.5 hours to do the 3km, but after that you pop out on the forestry road and it’s just a leisurely 6km walk back around to the car.

We were hoping to catch the end of the leaves changing colour, but sadly we were too late. However, there were a lot of bare trees, so I could see this being a great Fall hike earlier in the season and I’d definitely like to return next year. Even though it’s not as rugged, I liked the forestry road because it still had some awesome views down into the valley.

The last part of the road goes along the river, so we kept our eyes open for good river camping sites for another year. It was a gorgeous sunny day, but we could tell the area had recently flooded. We continued our tour of the valley when we got back to the car and drove around to check out a few of the rec sites, enjoying the last bit of sun before the rain moved in to stay.