Looking to vacation in Squamish, B.C.? Our West Coast editor, Alex Gill, gives you the rundown on what not to miss.
Go on any trips this summer? Yeah, I went to Squamish. Squamish?!? Hell, yeah. Squamish, B.C., the spectacular outdoor playground right under our noses.
Forty-four kilometers north of Vancouver, this once rugged lumber town has long been saddled with the reputation of being that place you stop for a coffee break on the way to Whistler.
I actually have an old friend from high school who paused long enough to raise a family. And for years, she’s been bugging me to come visit for longer than it takes to eat Thanksgiving dinner. The opportunity for a girls’ weekend recently arose when her husband and kids went out of town. For her, it was a staycation. For me, it was an eye-opener. We did it all: tourist trap, trail hike, secret swimming hole and rafts of tequila by the river.
Sea-to-Sky Gondola
As far as tourist traps go, this one’s pretty cool. A smooth 10-minute ride in a cozy cabin swoops us over thick forest, 885 metres above sea level. Drinking in a breathtaking view of Howe Sound and the surrounding mountains through floor-to-ceiling glass windows, I can almost understand why some tour buses are now skipping Whistler and short-stopping here instead.
At the summit, we nervously scamper across a narrow suspension bridge, clinging to each other for support. Then we backtrack to a trail that leads us the Chief Overlook Viewing Platform. It feels as if we’re walking a plank to the centre of heaven. I hope when my time comes, the path to the bright lights at the end of the tunnel are lined with fluffy clouds and hunky windsurfers like the ones we spy way down below.
From here, we could stay and go rock climbing, hike one of several backcountry trails or stop and have a beer. But we have other adventures in store. Besides, my girlfriend is boycotting the Summit Restaurant and Edge Bar. The locals are miffed because last summer’s casual weekend barbecues have been replaced with pricey, formal table service. “No one who lives around here is going to come up for a fancy dinner,” she gripes. And that is why it’s called a tourist trap.
Edith Lake
We were planning to go for a dip in Brohm Lake, right off the highway. But hundreds of other people obviously had the same idea. We couldn’t even squeeze into the parking lot. Alice Lake Provincial Park was just as busy. A traffic cop turned us back before we even reached the campground’s main driveway.
Ah, but that’s the advantage of a travelling with a local. They know all the secret back roads. Alice Lake is actually a collection of four lakes (Alice, Stump, Fawn and Edith), surrounded by forests and linked by trails. So we hightailed it back to the Garibaldi Highlands, where my girlfriend lives, parked at the end of Perth Drive, and set out on Mashiter Trail where she walks her dog every morning.
She usually hikes about 20 minutes in. We went twice as far, up a soft gravel incline and past several dried up creeks. We encountered a few friendly mountain bikers, a convoy of young campers with lice nets under their helmets and a few scary spiders. But none of the latter were quite as intimidating as the female bikers we met on The Tracks from Hell. (Yes, walkers are allowed on the short boardwalk through a patch of clear-cut forest; it’s not just for witches on wheels.)
We descended from the scorching hot meadow into a cool, dank forest where bright green moss dripped from tree limbs and sprouted from rocks. Around the corner was Edith Lake, just a small little fishing hole with hardly anybody there. An elderly fisherman and his wife kindly scooted us away from the first beach, but we soon found a nice, sandy spot on the other side. The water was clear and refreshing, but not glacially cold like so many swimming holes in B.C. We splashed, frolicked and floated on felled logs for over an hour.
The hike back to the car was exhausting. The round-trip was just over 10 km. I fell and scraped my knee. My friend got snappy with her dog. It was time for a drink.
WaterShed Bar & Grill
Forget the Sea-to-Sky’s fancy-pansy bar. This is a true local’s watering hole. It looks like an abandoned shack from the side of the back road. But once you climb the grassy bank, you practically stumble into the Squamish River racing past on swift currents in a swirl of Caribbean turquoise.
The bar itself feels like it was plucked off a Mexican beach. It’s all wooden rafters and wide-open walls with little white lights strung across the railings. Everyone chats with everyone and there is live music most nights. They even serve CoronRitas (lime margaritas with an upside-down Coronita floater).
Don’t order anything too elaborate. (Steamed mussels can overcook very quickly.) Stick to the burgers, dry ribs or chicken wings. Kick back, relax and wonder to yourself: Why did it take me so long to find this awesome place?
Related Link: Vancouver’s top 10 free food festivals
Did we miss any of the best things to do in Squamish, B.C.? Let Vv Magazine know in the comments below, or tweet us @ViewtheVibe.