Hiking Lynn Canyon in North Vancouver
Contents
Lynn Canyon Hike Information
Difficulty: Easy
Distance: 4Km
Elevation Gain: 170m
Highest Elevation: 200m
Average Gradient: 8.50%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Low / Low
Time Needed:
– Slow: 2 – 3 Hours
– Moderate: 1.5 – 2 Hours
– Fast: 1 – 1.5 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Lynn Canyon Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 49°20’35.8″N 123°01’05.7″W
Lynn Canyon Overview
Lynn Canyon Park is a very popular destination in North Vancouver for locals and tourists alike. The park forms a short section of the Baden Powell trail that runs from Horseshoe Bay to Deep Cove, with the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge one of the top tourist destinations in the city.
Combined with the Lynn Canyon Cafe, an Ecology Center and an abundance of trails weaving along Lynn Creek, Lynn Canyon is a year-round destination that makes for a nice outing rain or shine. The park is also very family and pet friendly, with stairs and boardwalks throughout much of it. It’s also one of few hikes that is easily accessible on transit.
With an abundance of connecting trails in the area it’s possible to hike for as long or as short as you choose, but the trail covered here is the most common route and covers all of the attractions in the park itself.
Thanks to its dense forest cover Lynn Canyon makes for a great option on a rainy day, but with the ability to dip your feet, or even swim in the creek, it’s also a great sunny day option, though you can be sure it’ll be very busy on a sunny summer day.
Unfortunately Lynn Canyon has also developed a bit of a reputation for attracting cliff jumpers thanks to the many cliffs overlooking Lynn Creek. Over the years numerous people have been injured, and many have even died, after jumping into the creek only to be swept away or trapped underwater. There are many signs throughout the park warning of the dangers, as well as continuous fencing throughout to dissuade any would-be cliff jumpers. Sadly people continue to ignore the warnings and incidents remain fairly common.
Thankfully there is a safe and refreshing spot to go for a swim in the creek at the 30 Foot Pool, and on a hot day you can be sure this area will be filled with families and pets alike.
Overall Lynn Canyon is so popular, accessible and manicured that it has almost moved beyond a place to go for a hike and has become more of a tourist destination. If you prefer to keep things quiet it’s strongly advised to avoid a sunny summer day.
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Is Lynn Canyon worthwhile?
Lynn Canyon is undoubtedly a nice place to go for a short hike, the forest alone is stunning and the creek provides frequent views along the way. If you are looking for a quick, easy stroll with some pleasant views this fits the bill nicely. As noted though, this park has become so popular and so well groomed it’s essentially a tourist destination over a hiking spot, and as such it loses some allure. The majority of people frequenting the park are families with children, dog walkers, tourists and trail runners, rather than hikers.
How difficult is the hike to Lynn Canyon?
Lynn Canyon Park is a very straightforward place to hike. There are some steep sections at times, but they are all on staircases so are mostly straightforward and pretty brief. The rest of the trails are undulating.At just 4km and 170m elevation gain this is certainly an easy hike.
Technically this is as simple as it gets, with most of the trail on boardwalks and the rest on the usual dirt / rock trails.
Lynn Canyon Route Information
The trailhead for Lynn Canyon is at the end of Peters Road in Lynn Valley. Pay parking is in effect for popular times of the year and fills up extremely fast on a sunny weekend, so get there early. There are several parking lots after the entrance, so after parking find your way to the Lynn Canyon Cafe where the trail begins.
The trail begins by immediately passing over Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge, which was built in 1912 and stands 50m above Lynn Creek below. The bridge is quite short and very safe, but it does swing and sway with people walking across it, and many people linger around to take photos and enjoy the views. If you really don’t want to cross the bridge you can instead take the Twin Falls bridge over the creek, which is a solid construction bridge that you’ll be crossing later (in the opposite direction) anyway.
Once on the other side of the bridge you’ll join a boardwalk where you’ll want to turn left. The trail will now follow Lynn Creek and at first will be high above the creek but in no time you’ll be at the water’s edge. There will be fencing along the cliffs the entire time to deter potential cliff jumpers, with frequent signage warning of the risk.
After just a few hundred meters of following Lynn Creek you’ll reach the very popular 30 Foot Pool. This is a popular swimming spot as the water here is still, so many families and dog walkers relax in this area, especially on a sunny day, as their children/pets frolic in the pool. Do note that the creek is fast flowing beyond the pool, so don’t go any further.
After relaxing at 30 Foot Pool for a while, you’ll continue along the trail where you will immediately hit a very steep set of stairs climbing away from the creek. After the first set of stairs the trail will fork and you’ll want to keep right, leading up another set of stairs. You’ll soon come out to a wide open gravel trail where going left will lead towards Rice Lake, but you’ll be going right, back towards the suspension bridge.
Almost immediately you’ll pass by a parking lot, with the trail now descending back towards the creek. In a few hundred meters you’ll pass by the suspension bridge once again, but this time you won’t be taking it. Continuing past the bridge the trail now enters the dense forest, again becoming a smooth boardwalk.
The trail will continue winding through the forest for a few hundred meters, continuing to descend towards the creek, until you’ll come out at another bridge over Lynn Creek, the Twin Falls bridge. This is a solid construction, wide bridge so don’t worry about heights. From the bridge you will be able to see Twin Falls and the roaring creek below.
On the other side of the bridge you’ll immediately reach another steep set of wooden stairs winding up the side of the canyon before coming out onto the Centennial Trail, where you’ll want to turn right, leading back towards the parking lot. The trial now continues to climb alongside the creek before eventually reaching the Lynn Canyon Cafe once again, thus finishing this hike.
When should I hike Lynn Canyon?
Lynn Canyon is a year-round park so you’re able to go at any time. If you tend to prefer a quiet hike like me, you’ll want to avoid Lynn Canyon in the summer, especially on a sunny day. Almost all of the hike is in the tree canopy so I personally find this a good hike to do on a cloudy or even rainy day in the off season. This way it’ll be far quieter and you’ll get to enjoy the views in more solitude.
Top Tip
There are multiple ways to extend or shorten this hike however you please, as there are trails throughout the area. Many people like to continue on to Rice Lake, which is another very popular trail in the area that can be combined with Lynn Canyon. Since the Baden Powell trail runs through the park you can feasibly go as far as Deep Cove or Horseshoe Bay.
Even though this is an easy hike overall due to its short distance, there are some very steep staircases at times that will leave even the fittest person out of breath. I do recommend decent footwear, but many people go here in just sneakers and manage fine.
