This is a great hike that is every bit as good a cardio workout as the Grouse Grind, but far more scenic (and less crowded). I can?t figure out why more people don't do it.
To get to the trail-head, take the Lynn Canyon exit just off the Upper Levels Highway in North Vancouver. Then you take Lynn Valley Road past the turn-off to Lynn Canyon Park (you have to go past it). Follow the GVRD signs into Lynn Headwaters Regional Park, turning east into Peters Rd, off Lynn Valley Rd. Once you walk into the park, there should be a board with trail maps and any park warnings in effect.
Walk a little further and cross the wooden bridge off to the right (be sure to check out how clean and refreshing that raging water looks!). Then, follow the Lynn Loop trail (you have to walk up a gravel road for a short way first) and a little while later the Lynn Peak Trail will bear off to the right (there is a little bit of climbing involved before you get there). For the first 45 minutes to an hour it's pretty steep going. The first lookout offers a great view of Seymour Mountain.
Once you have reached the first lookout, the really hard work is done (but not completely). From that point, you head into some fantastic old growth forest (I believe it's even called the Enchanted Forest). It is simply breathtaking and the terrain rises and falls quite gently (so your heart can slow down a bit from the big climb you just did!). This part of the hike is really fun as terrain varies quite a bit from the previous part. The trail is really well maintained and marked so it?s pretty tough to get lost.
There are a few more nice lookouts along the way, but once you actually get to Lynn Peak, the view is breathtaking (Burrard Inlet and the Seymour Demonstration Forest). At this point you have worked hard to get here so take a load off and have some lunch (you deserve it) - plus this just happens to be a great place for lunch. Total elevation at the top is about 930 meters.
To get back, just re-trace your steps back down the trail - and watch those knees coming down! Round trip takes about 3 - 3.5 hours (including a break at the top).
ByPosted By: trailrunner
- Fri Sep 04 23:17:38 EDT 2009
Upside Very easy access from residential area. Far less people than near-by city parks etc during the weekday afternoons, yet you get to taste a bit of high elevation forest. Nice city view from the top. Reasonable incline for continued uphill running. It makes a good quick pre-dinner work out run instead of pavement road work. Wide very visible trail. Clear signs & markers.
Downside There is a considerable amount of various sized loose round-ish rocks on the trail, notably at the mid elevation of the trail. Although there is a â??narrow solid rock-free path within the trailâ??, you will need to step aside when you pass people. When you are taking running downhill amount of rocks makes it difficult to speed up.
Comment (Lynn Headwaters parking gate to Lynn peak 45mins, return trip 32mins. Total time took to go & return 77mins, excluding 5mins rest at the top. Fast technically superior runner should be able to do 35mins uphill, 25mins down hill)
You cross the bridge immediately after the parking gate and turn right. There are some other trails to divert but all marked clearly. The wide car road like trail turns into rooty path in few minutes, then after turning into Lynn peak trail you will encounter increasing amount of loose tennis ball to volleyball sized roundish rocks on the path. They look as if someone placed the trail and you cannot pick up a speed on uphill. By the time you hit the first ridge and mini view then there would be less of rock problems. Incline gets sometimes gentler and nice flat sections appear from time to time.
Soon you will see a yellow tag with 840m written on it and you know the peak is almost there. The peak rather suddenly â??appearsâ?? and surprise you with a view of the city, pretty much like that of from Grouse mtn. There are three or four sections where you get the view along the way, otherwise you are under somewhat dense mostly second growth forest.
Down hill is straight forward except you cannot pick up a pace unless you are technically skilled trail runner because of loose rocks despite the fact it is almost all downhill.
ByPosted By: jeffvm
- Sat Jun 13 20:39:31 EDT 2009
UpsideEnough cardio for a week. Closer and less busier than the Chief in Squamish. I suppose there is a nice view at the top, but it was fogged in when I was there.
DownsideWhen I want a mountain vista, I'd rather it not be overlooking a city. That said, it was foggy, so I saw nothing. But I knew what was out there ;)
CommentThe Lynn Headwaters trail map marks the first quarter of the trail as 'intermediate', and the remainder 'challenging'. If you reversed those designations, I'd agree. The first quarter is a heart-pounding climb up the ridge in what amounts to a dry creekbed. It's steep and unrelenting, but it will end. This section puts you on top of the ridge. After that, the trail has some flat spots (thankfully), but will also have some short, steep climbs in between. A few remnants of snow at the peak on June 6, but it'll be gone in no time. Pesky bugs at the peak. The peak was fogged in, but the clouds were visibly blowing through the forest, which was pretty neat.
Going down can be tricky. Rough on the ankles and knees.
The hike took 2.5 hours. I was hauling ass though. Posted time says 4.5 hours.
ByPosted By: annewalk
- Tue Oct 14 16:11:41 EDT 2008
Not Rated
UpsideNice view up top
DownsideThe rocks and the bugs
CommentThis trail was a tough one for me but I had a lovely sense of accomplishment once I reached the top!
The rocks were harder to deal with going down than up and I slid a couple of times in them. The bugs at the top were relentless!
Good workout and easy to get to made this trail a good pick for me. A few more hikes like this one and I'll be ready to try out a big summit!
ByPosted By: Rambo
- Fri Apr 11 16:47:51 EDT 2008
UpsideGood training for harder trails. Challenging. Lonely.
DownsideIn the winter in the middle of the mountain it was pure ice, but got to the top in pure snow and in one piece. Fell on my ass couple of times climbing down, or should i say sliding down. But man it was challenging !!
CommentIf you want real hiking and you are allergic to gravel roads, that's a good start. Keeps your blood pumping.
ByPosted By: ChrisO
- Tue Sep 25 03:11:46 EDT 2007
Upsidegood cardio work out. No bugs in mid-september
Downsidenot sure I would call the views killer, or the forest that enchanted. A few big trees, but they are more the exception than the rule.
CommentThis is a good work out, as you can see from the other reviews, and if that is all you're looking for, you will be well rewarded. However, if you're looking for truly spectacular views, I would recommend you try Mount Unnecessary, the Lion Heads, Crown Mountain or Colosseum mountain before this one. There are a few very large trees on this hike that are worth mentioning, and whilst this hike is far less crowded than most in the Lynn valley, you are unlikely to be alone on this ridge. A rough flagged trail continues on past the first Lynn Peak, passing numerous other small viewless Lynn peaks towards the needles. This trail is very overgrown, and whilst clearly flagged, it should only be attempted by the most stubborn and more seasoned hikers. Inked on flagging tape early on are the words "hellish trail". Though it wasn't nearly that bad, it is still hard to recommend it.
ByPosted By: Prospero
- Tue Jul 24 14:46:32 EDT 2007
Not Rated
UpsideDog Friendly, not crowded, good cardio, gorgeous old growth forest
DownsideLoose rocks
CommentCan't comment on the view as we were all fogged in. Worth doing again on a clear day to check out the view.
ByPosted By: evgenykravchenko
- Sat Jul 21 23:56:02 EDT 2007
Upsidenot as crowded, good cardio, ok views, well marked
Downsidehard on the knees when coming down
CommentAverage hike. A hike that you would do once and never again, ok views of the city.
ByPosted By: mattntia
- Thu Dec 28 21:43:15 EST 2006
Not Rated
Upsidedog friendly, great view from the top, not busy, well marked
Downsideloose rocks
Commenta great walk if you have a few spare hours. good for the dogs as well. view from the top was incredible.
ByPosted By: michaelyblam
- Tue Aug 29 13:03:49 EDT 2006
UpsideRelatively accessible, less traffic than the Grind.
DownsideLess cardio demand than the Grind. Loose rocks, not too interesting forest and restricted views from view points!
CommentDefinitely not as rewarding as I thought. Just a one dimensional view point at the top.
ByPosted By: Elly
- Mon May 15 12:48:38 EDT 2006
UpsideNot too difficult - much easier than the grind! The view at the top is quite nice too. Can see Mt Baker.
DownsideSlippery stones coming down. A bit hard on the old knees.
CommentEasily accessible, but don't know if I'd do it again, it wasn't THAT spectacular.
ByPosted By: arsenalfanbc
- Mon Nov 28 23:00:44 EST 2005
UpsideA good workout when higher longer trails are still snowed in, of training for a big hike, close to vancouver
DownsideNothing spectacular to see. forest is unremarkable, views are ho-hum and the "summit" is just mearly a ledge with an average view
CommentThose who want a far superior view, hike to mt seymour. it is only an hour longer and provides a nice 360 deg. view. with this trail there simply was nothing worthwhile to see. if you want stunning view try almost any other northshore peak, better yet try garibadi
ByPosted By: vpigeon
- Mon Oct 24 22:05:33 EDT 2005
UpsideViewpoints, good cardio workout
DownsideA twisted or broken ankle waiting to happen
CommentHiked this again on Sat Oct 22, 2005. Part way up, my wife (who suggested we do this hike again) remarked as to why she didn't like this trail: too many rocks and roots. It does however have its very nice stretches, and 3 good viewpoints. Just be prepared for the very rocky parts.
ByPosted By: opus
- Mon Oct 03 01:27:15 EDT 2005
UpsideA few nice viewpoints and a forests to stroll through. Good cardio workout similar to the Grind.
DownsideThe grunt up at the beginning is loose and slippery.
CommentToo much concentration is needed going up and down on watching your footing that I really didn't get to lift my head up. Although the views are nice (aren't all of them from the NS Mtns), they aren't that spectacular. Effort vs. reward trade-off on this hike is not as high as many others on the NS.
ByPosted By: mike_joyce89
- Sat Jul 09 00:55:31 EDT 2005
Upside5 minute walk from my house!
DownsideAll mountains have a downside, tee hee.
CommentYeah I live in Timber Ridge, that group of houses above Lynn Headwaters, so it takes me 5 minutes to walk to this trail. Fairly remote too. It's nice.
ByPosted By: dogbreathcanada
- Thu Jun 09 23:09:32 EDT 2005
UpsideFairly nice view and lunch spot at the top.
DownsideFar too rocky and loose. It's an ankle injury waiting to happen.
CommentCan't see myself hiking this one again ... unless for geocaching reasons.
ByPosted By: mountaingirl
- Wed Jun 01 17:13:51 EDT 2005
Upsideeasy access. good workout.
Downsidetotally boring trail. annoying ankle twisting footing. boring forest trail. the view is average at best.
CommentSorry to be a downer but if you think this is a great trail with spectacular views you really need to get out more. Better than the grind but unless you just want a workout, go to Seymour. WAY nicer.
ByPosted By: skirly
- Mon Apr 04 19:13:32 EDT 2005
Upsidenice varied terrain, lots of fun running back down on the flatter (not rocky) parts.
Downsidesnow on the last 1/4 in early april (which also is very beautiful) and saw some large animal prints on the trail.
Commentgreat short hike, close to the city.
ByPosted By: fandabidozi
- Mon Jul 19 12:47:26 EDT 2004
UpsideExcellent views and its not very crowded
DownsideA bit rocky coming down, the misses slipped over about four times (lol)
CommentThe trek was much harder than we expected but rewarding given the view from the top. We went yeaterday which was a hot afternoon and really didn't take enough water with us. That said there was a park warden checking to see if people were OK throughout the trail
ByPosted By: cate
- Fri May 30 18:26:10 EDT 2003
Upsidethe cardio, if you can call that an upside, not crowded and lovely lovely views once the top is reached
DownsideBUGS!!!!!!!!!!!
Commentenjoyed this very much, is a goooooood workout.
ByPosted By: Marco in BC
- Sat Nov 30 19:38:32 EST 2002
UpsideThe viewpoints at the top are really, really worth it. There is also a little bit of probably old growth forest, some really nice trees
Downside*lots* of rocks (towards the bottom) & roots (towards the top)
CommentJust back from this hike, actually, it was a lot of fun, and definitely not crowded as some others. The first half is a bit 'boring', but things really pick up in the second, with big trees galore and some killer viewpoints. Highly recommended, and beware the loose rocks coming down!
ByPosted By: alexk
- Tue Jun 04 13:04:35 EDT 2002
UpsideViewpoints
CommentI havn't been on this one for a few years, but I remember it being more interesting than Grouse. It is a relatively short hike, and therefore is good for a workout. But my preference of the warm-out before the big hikes still goes to Bowen Island
Posted By: trailrunner
Posted By: annewalk
Posted By: Rambo
Posted By: ChrisO
Posted By: Prospero
Posted By: mountaingirl
