DESTINATION: Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC

At 1,001 acres, Stanley Park in Vancouver BC is larger than Central Park in New York City and is one of the largest city maintained parks in North America- so when I went to Vancouver for a computer security conference, Stanley Park was on my list of MUST SEE landmarks.  You wouldn't camp in this park- I'm pretty certain it isn't even allowed... but it makes for a great day hike.  I'll show you the path I chose and then some points along the way.


As shown on the map below, I started my walk at the Sheraton One Wall Center, walked almost straight to the seawall trail, followed the trail around the edge to the north shore by Burrard Inlet, then cut back through the forest to make my way past Beaver Lake, and the Lost Lagoon and then back to the hotel.  Unfortunately, I didn't have my GPS or pedometer so I can't say exactly how far I walked but it took me about 4 hours with all my stops and observations.

The start of the trail is like most parks... except the scenery is much more

breathtaking to a guy that lives in Texas.

You don't walk far before you see a large stone Inuksuk... although not ancient, it was still cool to see. 

As you go farther north, the crowd starts to thin out rapidly and development fades away...

but the path is still fantastically maintained:

After crossing underneath Lion's Gate Bridge, I stopped following the trail along

the shoreline and decided to cut through the forest.  Although the pavement ended
the paths were wide, smooth, and well cared for.

I really enjoyed seeing the large redwood trees...

and the lost lagoon was simply beautiful on it's own.

Bottom line conclusion: I see now why the park has a ranking of 16th best park in the world (or 8th best in North America).  It really was a fantastic, well maintained, beautiful park.  I'll make a point of revisiting if I every make it back to Vancouver.