Hike Here: The Ten Peaks of Diez Vista – Port Moody, BC
Living in Greater Vancouver, I am spoiled with the amount of outdoor activities I can do with a short venture out of the city. There are countless mountains for skiing, snowboarding and mountain biking all within a 45-minute drive.
One of my favourite local spots, the Diez Vista trail is nestled in Port Moody; a small city just outside of Vancouver. The trail offers ten beautiful peaks overlooking Vancouver Island, the city, as well as the North Shore mountains.
If you are brave and want to take on all ten peaks, you are looking at a five-hour hike. Doing just the first hike can have you back at your vehicle in roughly an hour, making the Diez Vista the perfect hike for the hiker who wants to spend the day on the mountain or for somebody who just wants a quick hike.
I recently picked up a pair of Keen Durand hiking boots and thought I would spent an hour hiking up to the first view point.
I had a few hours of down time so I thought I would head down to Buntzen lake and test out my new boots. I grabbed my Osprey camel back and drove down to Buntzen lake.
It was a little overcast, but it was fairly warm. I was alone, so my goal was to hike to the first viewpoint, and then head back. I parked in the overflow parking lot of Buntzen lake and headed to the trail. The first little bit of the trail is fairly flat, but after crossing the floating bridge it starts to pick up pretty quick.
After the bridge the hike got my blood moving but wasn’t too tough. After hiking for roughly 2.5KM the hike is broken up by power lines running down a beautiful grassy area; a great place you could take your family for a little picnic. Since I was more concerned about making good time, I wasted no time and trekked ahead.
The next portion of the hike is a little tougher. The natural terrain gets a little more intense and there are much more obstacles like roots and loose rocks ready to challenge your footing. This was actually a perfect test for my new Keen boots as I nearly slipped on a few different pieces of loose rock.
Continuing up the trail for another 10 minutes or so I encountered a number of switchbacks before finally hitting a fork that offers two different paths to the first viewpoint. One path offered a slightly more leisurely route up the mountain; the other was more intense with a much steeper incline and plenty of fun obstacles. Of course I had to challenge myself with the latter.
My heart was now thumping intensely and I had worked up a pretty good sweat. I had made it to the viewpoint, alone with the amazing view of the North Shore and the Islands. I sat down and enjoyed a protein bar, snapped a few pictures and headed back down the mountain to head home.
The Remaining Nine Peaks
If you decide to give this trail a try, I highly recommend setting aside the time to hike all ten viewpoints. Each one is amazing in it’s own right and is a great way to get outside, get some exercise and see some beautiful sites that most people never get to experience.
And if you were wondering how those new Keen’s panned out, they were amazing. What I really like about them is that they were so light for the size of the shoe. They had the weight of a very light running shoe with the support of a sturdy hiking boot. I have been using them for a few months now and they are standing up to my torture tests all the while staying just as comfortable as when I first got them.