Breathtaking British Columbia — hikes near Squamish & Whistler

With its ten provinces and three territories spanning over 6 million square miles (almost 10 million sq km) where do you start when planning a trip from the UK to Canada? Do you head for Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon, the Northwest Territories or Nunavut?

Well, with my boyfriend James, I took my first trip from the UK to Canada in September 2022 and we took a punt on an area of British Columbia, which is considered to be a hub for adventure seekers like us. We based ourselves in Squamish: the 'Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada'.

While there are an abundance of opportunities to enjoy mountain biking (600 trails!), river rafting, paddling, horseback riding, bungee jumping – plus skiing, snowshoeing and dogsledding in the winter months – we focused our trip on hiking. In this Collection, you'll find my handy selection of beautiful and varied walks, ranging from easy to challenging, in the area off Highway 99 between Squamish and neighbouring Whistler.

Accessing these incredible trails was easy enough. We flew into Vancouver International Airport from London Heathrow, hired a car and just an hour and half later we arrived in Squamish. We stayed in an Airbnb for nine nights and headed out every day in search of adventure.

The Sea to Sky Highway is a spectacular road that winds up from Vancouver to Pemberton via Squamish and Whistler. All of the walks we undertook during our trip involved driving on this road and branching off to one of many provincial parks, including the turquoise lakes of Garibaldi, the granite monoliths of Stawamus Chief, the shady forests of Alice Lakes and the spectacular waterfall at Brandywine Falls.

From ambles that were less than a mile in length to 18-mile (29 km) epics, you'll find a great selection of walks that you too can use to plan your own unforgettable hiking adventure in the Pacific North West.

When you're not hiking, be sure to learn about the indigenous people of the Squamish area (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw) who descend from the Coast Salish Aboriginal people and have lived in this area since before records began – more than a thousand years ago. I also recommend that you enjoy poutine at the Copper Coil Still & Grill and treat yourself to brunch at Fergie's Café - you won't regret it!

Don’t forget to be bear safe! As there are grizzly bears in this area, we chose to carry bear spray, which is a pepper spray that can be used as protection against an aggressive bear. Thankfully we did not need to use it but it was a comfort to carry it. When we did encounter a bear, albeit a black bear, we talked loudly to it, backtracked slowly and gave it time to cross the trail and carry on eating berries far away from us. Happy bear and happy Nic!