Vancouver to Whistler: A British Columbia Adventure

The Trip

The outing will begin at a waterfront hotel in the magnificent city of Vancouver. We will spend most of our first day exploring fabulous Stanley Park in Vancouver, before setting off for our lodge in a small town in the Whistler area of British Columbia, about two hours north of Vancouver. We will check into our lodge in the late afternoon and enjoy dinner at the locally famous restaurant on site.

The inspiration for the name of Whistler Mountain came from the whistling sound made by the hoary marmot, a large rodent of the area, which is also often called “the whistler." However, Whistler is certainly most famous for its hosting of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The Whistler Hiking Guide says that “Whistler’s scenic beauty is breathtaking and, for mountain recreation, it’s one of North America’s premier destinations.” In addition to world-class skiing opportunities, the Whistler area and nearby Garibaldi Provincial Park offer wonderful hiking trails that wind through “broad forested valleys punctuated by aquamarine lakes and dramatic snowcapped peaks.” This Sierra Club trip will offer a selection of moderate day-hikes to alpine lakes and glaciers, plus a ride on the Sea to Sky Gondola to a mountain summit where we can access peak trails. Also available at the gondola summit is a 360-degree viewing deck and the thrilling “Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge."

On our last full day, we will check out of our lodge immediately after breakfast and head back to Vancouver for another partial day exploring that city and one more night in the waterfront hotel.

The following itinerary is a tentative schedule for this outing and may have to be changed due to weather conditions or other factors.

Day 1: The leaders will make one pick up at the Vancouver airport, the timing of which will depend on the arrival times of the the majority of the participants. We will check into our hotel in Vancouver in the mid afternoon. Following a short orientation meeting, we will have dinner at a local restaurant. 

Day 2: After breakfast we will head over to one of Vancouver’s most famous sites, Stanley Park, where we will spend the better part of the day. Activity options here include hiking the easy to moderate trails, taking a horse-drawn carriage ride around the park, visiting the Vancouver Aquarium, renting bicycles to ride the bike paths, or just relaxing in one of the many beautiful gardens. The costs of the horse-drawn carriage ride, bicycle rentals, and the aquarium are not covered by the trip price. In the late afternoon, we will head up to our main lodge in a small town about two hours north of Vancouver, where we will settle into our cottages and enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.

Day 3: The leaders will have lunch-making items laid out from 7:30-7:50 a.m. Please be sure to make your sack lunches during this time period. We will head out for breakfast promptly at 8:00 a.m. and be ready to leave for the day following breakfast. The featured hike for today will be to Checkamus Lake, which is an out-and-back trail of minimal elevation gain. The Whistler Hiking Guide describes this trail as “truly a special place”: the “trail leads past granite outcrops and humbling stands of massive ancient cedars and Douglas fir.” The western edge of the lake is visible after 3 km (1.95 miles), but the trail continues on alongthe lake for another 4 km (2.6 miles). Total round-trip distance can vary from 6 km (3.9 miles) to 14 km (9.1 miles) depending on where the group decides to turn around to head back. There are several small beaches along the lakeshore where we can have lunch. On our way back to our lodge, we will stop at Brandywine Falls, which has a very short walk to the magnificent falls. Dinner will be at a local restaurant.

Day 4: Again, the leaders will have lunch-making items laid out from 7:30-7:50 am. Please be sure to make your sack lunches during this time period. We will head out for breakfast promptly at 8:00 a.m. and be ready to leave for the day following breakfast. We will start the day with a visit to Brandywine Falls Provinciual Park, where we will view the falls and hike the 5-mile loop trail. In the afternoon, we will visit Whistler Village, where we will have a tour at the Aboriginal Culture Center. The remainder of the day will be on your own in Whistler, including dinner.

Day 5: The leaders will have lunch-making items laid out from 7:30-7:50 a.m. Please be sure to make your sack lunches during this time period. We will head out for breakfast promptly at 8:00 a.m. and be ready to leave for the day following breakfast. Today we will ride the gondola in Squamish up to a peak in the Chief Stawamus Mountain Range, where we can access several mountain peak trails in Chief Stawamus Provincial Park. (The cost of the gondola is covered by the trip price). Also available at the summit is a viewing deck for fabulous vistas of the surrounding terrain and the “Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge” for those wishing an extra thrill. After descending from the summit in the gondola, we will visit 1,000-foot Shannon Falls. Dinner will be in a local restaurant.

Day 6: The leaders will have lunch-making items laid out from 7:30-7:50 a.m. Please be sure to make your sack lunches during this time period. We will head out for breakfast promptly at 8:00 a.m. and be ready to leave for the day following breakfast. We will head back to Vancouver, where we will spend another day exploring this wonderful city and spend another night in our waterfront hotel. Farewell dinner will be at a local restaurant.

Day 7: The trip ends after breakfast.

Getting There

Fly into Vancouver International airport. The leaders will schedule ONE pickup from the airport to take you to our hotel. You can also fly into Seattle and take a shuttle to the Vancouver airport, or take a bus or train from Seattle into downtown Vancouver and then a cab to the hotel.

Please do not make non-refundable travel arrangements until notified to do so by the trip leader.

Accommodations and Food

We will be staying in a lovely waterfront hotel in Vancouver on the first and last nights of the trip. The trip price is based on double occupancy at the hotel. Two single supplement rooms are available at the hotel for those who wish a single room. The single supplement cost for the two nights in the hotel will be supplied upon request.

We will then move to our riverside lodge in a small town near Squamish, British Columbia. Squamish is approximately 20 minutes by car from Whistler Village. At this lodge, each single participant, and each couple traveling together, will have their own cottage complete with a double bed, couch, and ensuite bathroom. Single participants will not be sharing a cottage with another single as each cottage has only one bed. The cottages also have kitchen facilities within. 

Breakfasts will be eaten in a local restaurant. Participants will make their own sack lunches before breakfast each day from lunch items provided by the leaders. Most dinners are included in the trip price and will be eaten in restaurants chosen by the leaders. The exception is the free choice day where participants may choose their own restaurants and pay their own tab.

Trip Difficulty

All the trails listed in the itinerary are rated “Easy to Moderate” by the Whistler Hiking Guide or other resources. See the itinerary for specific details about the hikes.

Equipment and Clothing

Approved participants will be sent a detailed list of suggested equipment and clothing to bring on the trip.

References

• Finestone, Brian and Hodder, Kevin, Whistler Hiking Guide. Quickdraw Publications, 2009. Squamish, BC, Canada V8B0C2.
• “Garibalid Park British Columbia, Canada Southwestern Portion." Topo/Graphic Map Series Sheet 102. Clark Geomatics Corp, 2012. North Vancouver, Canada V7R2V1.
• “Hiking GuideMaps Whistler.” Yellow Duck Publications, 2013. whistlerhiatus.com

Conservation

Sierra Club outings emphasize local environmental issues. Conservation issues in British Columbia focus largely on the impacts of logging, fish farming, oil and gas exploration, and transportation and hydroelectric power generation. Logging effects include clear cutting and siltation of salmon streams. Hydropower generation has impacted salmon spawning runs as dams interfere with salmon swimming upstream in rivers to spawn. Transportation of oil, gas and coal via pipelines through British Columbia has resulted in spills and threatens to degrade coastal lands with development of export ports. Two pipeline projects, in particular, are being protested by environmental groups: the Northern Gateway pipeline and the Trans Mountain pipeline which would transport bituminous coal to coastal British Columbia. Fish farming causes pollution of coastal waters.