Parks

Mount Seymour Provincial Park

Mount Seymour Provincial Park is considered a mecca for mountain biking and hiking and is just 30 minutes from downtown Vancouver. The paved Seymour Valley Trailway stretches 10km/6.2mi through the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve. Watch for coyotes, deer, and Steller's jays (British Columbia's official bird). Mount Seymour is an affordable skiing destination for families in the winter.

Ambleside Park

Ambleside Park, a sandy beach adjacent to the Park Royal Shopping Centre, is one of West Vancouver's most popular places to chill out. Follow the 1.2km/0.8mi shoreline path to gaze across the water at passing cruise ships and Stanley Park. Green herons nest at the pond. There are basketball and tennis courts, a par-3 golf course, a skateboard park, and more.

Lighthouse Park

Lighthouse Park offers 75ha/185ac of old-growth cedar and fir trees, rock-climbing, and gentle trails leading to the 1912-built lighthouse at Point Atkinson. There are great views of sunsets and Bowen Island.

Horseshoe Bay Park

Next to the BC Ferries terminal, where ferries depart regularly for Vancouver Island, chill out in this 1ha/2.4ac waterfront park with a fountain, picnic tables, two totem poles, and a huge bronze propellor taken from a whaling ship.

Capilano River Regional Park

The biggest landmark at Capilano River Regional Park is the 1954-built Cleveland Dam, which helps contain Vancouver's main drinking water supply. Beneath soaring mountains, hike the nearby trails and visit the Capilano Salmon Hatchery. This park is located just off Capilano Road in nearby North Vancouver.

Lynn Canyon Park

Lynn Canyon Park (3663 Park Rd) attracts hikers with its famous suspension bridge 50m/164ft above the forest floor, but there's much more to see on the rugged trails of this 250ha/617ac park.

Wander through dense rainforest, admire the Twin Falls or stop in at the Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre. The east side of the suspension bridge offers trail access to the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve and Lynn Headwaters Park.

Nearby North Vancouver Parks

In Deep Cove, Cates Park is framed by lush rainforest and has a a picnicking area, boat launch, tennis courts, kayak rentals, playgrounds, washrooms, concessions, and sandy beaches for swimming. It's the biggest waterfront park in North Vancouver.

For kids and families, North Vancouver also boasts City Skate Park with ramps, walls, curbs and the “Wave,” a skateable work of public art (Trans-Canada Hwy and Lonsdale Ave); Mahon Spray Park with twenty-plus pieces of spray equipment (May – October at Jones Ave and West 18th St); Maplewood Farm with more than 200 animals to pet and feed, including goats, sheep, cows and ponies (open year-round at 405 Seymour River Pl). Shopping in Lonsdale Quay? Relax afterwards in Waterfront Park next to the Quay.

More Parks Information

For more information plus directions to these and other parks, pick up a copy of the West Shore Visitors' Guide, or contact the Visitor Centre (102-124 West 1st St). Another useful resource is the map-brochure entitled Parks of West Vancouver, published by the City of West Vancouver.

Read Less