Exploring Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver

 by Keith and Heather Nicol

    On Easter Sunday (April 5) we decided to take advantage of the sunny, warm weather and head to Lighthouse Park which is located on a scenic point of land at the northwest entrance to Burrard Inlet. There are numerous hiking trails which wind through the 65 hectare park and we sampled some near the Point Atkinson Lighthouse. We were joined by our daughter Kristie and her boyfriend Eric who had been to the park last summer but we hadn't visited for many years. The park is easy to get to either from Marine Drive or the Upper Levels highway if you are traveling from Vancouver but note that the parking area is small and we were lucky to get a place on this Sunday morning. We picked up a copy of a handy trail map which identifies the hiking trails, picnic sites, washrooms and viewpoints. We walked directly down to the Lighthouse area on the main Beacon Lane trail which is in good shape and suited to walkers of all ages. This trail is about 2 km long and from there we walked to Arbutus Knoll where we had lunch on a sunny picnic table overlooking Burrard Inlet. 

We enjoyed lunch over looking Burrard Inlet

  After lunch we headed to the lighthouse viewpoint and then on to the West Beach Trail. This trail is well worth doing since it brings you down to the ocean. There is not really much of a beach but the surrounding wave washed granite shoreline is ideal for scrambling around on. From this vantage point we could see back to the Point Atkinson Lighthouse as well as into Howe Sound. On our next visit we want to check out some of the other shoreline trails like the East Beach Trail and the Starboat Cove Trail. For more information on this gem of a park see: http://westvancouver.ca/parks-recreation/parks/lighthouse-park

Take the West Beach Trail and  explore the wave washed granite shore