Chilliwack is a well-known hiking destination. It boasts some of BC's most challenging routes. One of the area's most popular, Elk-Thurston Trail, is a strenuous hike that features great views and, in July, meadows blanketed in wildflowers. The view from the top of the 2,104-m (6,903-ft) Cheam Peak Trail is well worth the ascent, which is open-air all the way up. There are overnight wilderness backpacking opportunities around Lindeman and Greendrop Lakes in Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park. Easier hikes and walks include the Teapot Hill Trail in Cultus Lake Provincial Park and the Rotary Trail, which runs alongside the Vedder River. You can access the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve from this trail.
RVers and campers love Chilliwack. There are RV parks just about everywhere: along the Fraser and Vedder Rivers, at Cultus Lake, at or near golf courses, in the backwoods and at various locations in the city. Cultus Lake Provincial Park's campgrounds are particularly popular with families. There are also campgrounds at Chilliwack Lake, Skagit Valley and Sasquatch Provincial Park, all good base camps for fishing and hiking in the rugged backcountry.
Chilliwack's dyke system, accessible from many points in the city, provides kilometre after kilometre of level, scenic cycling. The Rotary Trail is another good choice if you're seeking an easy, picturesque ride. If you prefer the challenge of mountain biking, local bike shops can direct you to a trail that is suitable for your skill level.
Paragliders flock to Chilliwack to experience some of the best paragliding conditions anywhere in the world, while horseback riders come for the rolling hills, spectacular views and many guided trails.
To best explore the history of the Chilliwack area, pick up a "Drive Through History Tour" brochure at the Chilliwack Visitor Info Centre, then spend a couple of days touring the sites on its map. The Kilby Historic Site features live farm animals and a 1906 General Store filled with real grocery items from the 1920s and 1930s. Xá:ytem Longhouse Interpretive Centre near Mission is a National Historic Site that contains archaeological evidence of a 9,000-year-old First Nations village as well as an intact First Nations dwelling dating back some 6,000 years. The Chilliwack Museum has one floor of exhibits dedicated to the Sto:lo First Nation and one floor of changing exhibits that focus on various aspects of the community's past.
Chilliwack has lots of attractions geared to family fun. There are 11 themed gardens to enjoy at Minter Gardens as well as many agri-tourism attractions that include beekeeping and alpaca farms, an award-winning dried-flower operation and a corn maze. Take a step back in time at the Kilby Historic Site with its live farm animals and 1906 General Store. Xá:ytem, a longhouse interpretive centre, features a large rock representing three Sto:lo chiefs said to have been turned into stone. If you have young children you'll want to visit Dinotown, a dinosaur-themed amusement park, as well as the waterslides at Cultus Lake and Bridal Falls.
Entertainment options in Chilliwack include concerts, plays and musicals presented by the local college. Junior "A" Hockey games are held in Prospera Centre from September to March. The nightlife is a lively mix of lounges, sports bars, pubs and night clubs.
There's some beautiful country around Chilliwack. Forty km (25 mi) of trails wind past pristine lakes, through old-growth forest as well as along sub-alpine and alpine ridges in Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park, an excellent area for canoeing, kayaking, boating, swimming and fishing. You can also swim, picnic and river fish in Skagit Valley Provincial Park, just over an hour's drive east from the city.
One of the prettiest sights in the area is the 122-m (400-ft) waterfall in Bridal Falls Provincial Park. The best, year-round wildlife viewing is in Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve. Go in March or April to see more than 100 active heron nests. In the fall, the area's rivers and creeks are full of spawning salmon that attract a number of predator birds, including bald eagles. Another good way to view wildlife, such as river otters and eagles, is to take a guided tour by riverboat.
Chilliwack is just 35 minutes away from
Harrison Hot Springs, an indoor-outdoor resort built around a mineral hot spring. Many believe that hot springs bring relief to rheumatism and arthritis sufferers and promote the elimination of impurities. If intense relaxation is your goal, you might also try booking a spa treatment at the resort's Healing Springs Spa.
Chilliwack is a major kayaking and river-rafting destination. Conditions on the fast-flowing Chilliwack River are so good that the Canadian National Kayak Team uses it for training. Anglers favour Chilliwack in large part because it sits on the bank of one of the last, great salmon rivers on earth, the mighty Fraser River. Salmon and sturgeon, as well as trout, are plentiful in the Harrison River, while the Chilliwack/Vedder River is a good place to catch salmon and steelhead. If you're into swimming, boating or Jet Skiing®, head for Cultus Lake. Harrison Lake has the area's best conditions for windsurfing. After an exhilarating day out on the water, don't pass up the chance to soak your tired muscles in the natural mineral hot spring in Harrison, just 35 minutes from town.
The Hemlock Valley Ski Resort is a family-friendly ski hill just over an hour from Chilliwack that offers downhill skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and snow tubing. It has 35 runs, a vertical drop of 397 m (1,300 ft) and ski-in/ski out accommodations. It's also very close to
Harrison Hot Springs, so you can ski by day and soak your tired muscles in soothing, natural mineral pools in the evening. Manning Park Resort is less than two hours from Chilliwack. It boasts one of southwestern BC's premier cross-country ski areas in addition to excellent downhill ski slopes.