Cypress Provincial Park

Located on the North Shore in West Vancouver, Cypress Provincial Park is home to Cypress Ski Hill as well as both summer and winter recreational activities.

Cypress Provincial Park

Famous for the Cypress Mountain ski resort, the park is way more than just a ski hill. Cypress Park attracts hikers, backpackers and backcountry campers during the warmer months. There are a variety of trails that go through the park including Howe Sound Crest Trail and a section of the Baden-Powell Trail.

Cypress Provincial Park covers 30 kilometres of land in West Vancouver. The park became world famous as one of the sites that hosted the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The road up to the park is accessed from Highway 1, which is also known as the Trans-Canada Highway or Upper Levels Highway.

The main Cypress Bowl area is made up of three mountains: Mt. Strachan, Black Mountain and Hollyburn Mountain. These mountains make up the ski area in the wintertime and also feature many hiking trails in the spring, summer and fall.

Cypress Mountain is also accessible through the ParkBus system. ParkBus runs bus lines from downtown Vancouver to many nearby provincial parks.

Barrett’s View Lookout

About a third of the way up Cypress Bowl Road you come to a parking area on the right called Barrett’s View or Highview Lookout. This spot affords amazing views of the entire Lower Mainland.

Barrett’s view is about six kilometres up the road from the highway, just before a large hairpin turn. A short stop at the lookout area is highly recommended if driving up the hill on a sunny day. Some people drive up just for the view and don’t do anything else at the park. It’s that beautiful there!

Barrett's View on Cypress — Barrett’s View Lookout

Cypress Mountain in Summer

Cypress Park is a great place to be in the summertime. The area directly beside the main parking lot at the top of the mountain has picnic tables and washrooms. The Crazy Raven Restaurant is open as well.

Popular activities at Cypress Park in the summer include hiking, wildlife viewing and backcountry hiking and camping.

In addition to hiking trails, there are also many biking trails that are used by mountain bikers on the winter ski routes. These bike trials are renowned for being some of the most dangerous to ride!

Hiking at Cypress Mountain

One of the main activities to do in the summer at Cypress Park is hiking. There is a multitude of trails for folks of all fitness levels. Some of the most popular include the Cabin Lake Trail, Bowen Lookout and St. Marks Summit.

Howe Sound Crest Trail and the Baden-Powell Trail are popular hiking routes to tackle at Cypress Mountain Park during the summer. There are also smaller trails for less serious hikers.

View from St. Mark's Summit — View from St. Mark’s Summit Trail

Wildlife Viewing at Cypress

Wildlife viewing is another popular activity to do when visiting Cypress Park. One of the best places to do this is on Yew Lake Trail, which is mostly flat-packed gravel. It leads through the forests and around a lake in the middle of the Cypress Bowl area. The trail starts from just outside the Crazy Raven restaurant and is less than two kilometres long.

Backcountry Hiking and Camping

There are opportunities for backcountry/wilderness hiking and camping outside of the Cypress Bowl area. Along the Howe Sound Crest Trail are three preferred backcountry camping sites:

Magnesia Meadows (14.5 kilometres from Cypress Mountain Resort)
Brunswick Lake (19 kilometres from Cypress Mountain Resort)
Deeks Lake (22 kilometres from Cypress Mountain Resort)

Backpackers are allowed to camp in the backcountry year-round. However, those looking to camp should be experienced backcountry campers as the terrain can be rugged and the weather can change unexpectedly.

At Cypress – as well as at other similar parks – backpackers are expected to bring everything out that they take in, also known as “leaving no trace camping.” Fires are also not allowed in the park, so leave the s’mores supplies at home for another time.

Cypress Chairlift Silhouettes — Skiing at Cypress in Winter

Winter Activities at Cypress Mountain

Cypress Mountain is home to a variety of winter activities. The mountain is home to Vancouver’s largest ski hill as well as a Nordic area for snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and snow tubing. Parts of the Cypress Mountain backcountry are also accessible in the wintertime for backcountry snowshoeing and camping.

The park typically gets a fair amount of snow in the winter (especially in the mountains), making the ski resort a popular spot to visit. As well as the 53 ski runs, there is also an abundance of cross-country ski trails.

The three mountains that are used for skiing are Hollyburn Mountain, Black Mountain and Mount Strachan. Black Mountain and Mount Strachan are the primary places to downhill ski whereas Hollyburn Mountain is the place to go cross country skiing, snowshoeing and tubing.

Skiing & Snowboarding at Cypress

Cypress Mountain is the largest ski hill in Metro Vancouver with the most vertical drop, terrain and lifts. The mountain consists of six chairlifts connecting to more than 50 runs.

Check out our article about Cypress Mountain Ski Hill for more details.

Snowshoeing & Cross-Country Skiing

Cypress offers a wide variety of snowshoeing and cross-country skiing trails in the winter. The trails are located in the Nordic area, which is separate from the downhill ski and snowboard area.

For more information click Snowshoeing at Cypress Mountain.

Cross-Country Skier at Cypress — Cross-Country Skiing at Cypress

Tubing at Cypress

Gnarly’s Snow Tube Park is Cypress Mountain’s snow tubing and sliding park. The attractions is located in the Nordic area, close to the snowshoeing and cross-country skiing areas. Sessions are just under two hours long and must be pre-booked online.

Backcountry Hiking and Camping

To use the backcountry trails at Cypress Park during the wintertime, visitors must get a Backcountry Access Tag (BAC) from the backcountry kiosk. Be very careful, though when venturing into the backcountry as these trails are outside the area maintained by the Cypress Mountain Resort and there can be avalanches.

There are three main winter backcountry trails in Cypress Park: Hollyburn Peak, Black Mountain Plateau and Bowen Lookout. Winter camping is allowed about one kilometre past the boundaries of the Alpine and Nordic Ski areas.

Tips & Advice

Below are some suggestions and advice to help you make the most of your visit to Cypress Provincial Park.

TIP #1: Be bear aware when hiking in the forest, especially during the warmer months when black bears are active. Cypress Mountain is rugged backcountry terrain and home to a variety of wildlife. Keep your food locked up if you can and watch out for warnings and signs.

TIP #2: When hiking and camping, practice the leave-no-trace policy. Don’t litter and don’t leave anything behind. This not only helps keep bears and other wildlife away but it also keeps the environment clean.

TIP #3: A fun activity for families in warmer months is to bring bicycles and drive up to the top of the hill. Everyone but the driver can then ride their bikes back down the hill. It’s tons of fun! You have to ride carefully though as the road is steep. Ensure your brakes are in good working order and make sure kids ride safely.

TIP #4: Cypress Ski Resort has snowshoeing trails that you have to pay to use. Some of the hiking trails at Cypress Provincial Park make good snowshoeing routes in winter too and they are free! These include the trails to Hollyburn Mountain, Black Mountain Plateau and the Bowen Lookout. These are all backcountry trails which means they aren’t patrolled or maintained. If you don’t know what you’re doing or you aren’t properly prepared, stick with the ticketed routes at the resort.

TIP #5: Got friends from out of town? Take them up to the Barrett’s View Lookout for one of the best views of the entire Lower Mainland. It’s both free and beautiful. And don’t forget your binoculars!