I’ve Tried Thousands of Outdoor Adventures Near Vancouver. These Are My Top 10
After years of exploring BC—and recently writing the new guidebook, 100 Things to Do in Vancouver Before You Die—I’ve logged more muddy boots, soggy kayak trips and mountain views than I can count. For the book, I focused on adventures within Metro Vancouver. For this list, I’m stretching the boundaries a little to include a few favourites worthy of a daytrip.
1. A Surprise Showstopper
I knew UBC had a botanical garden, but I didn’t know it was hiding 10 suspension bridges tucked inside it. While Capilano and Lynn Canyon get most of the attention, the Greenheart TreeWalk feels like a secret adventure park hiding in plain sight.
That feeling hit as I climbed the metal stairs to the first platform, surrounded by towering trees. The bridges swayed more than I expected and I quickly learned this was a two-hands-on-the-railings kind of situation. With every wobbly step, I felt like a kid again, laughing as I tried to keep my balance high above the forest floor.
2. My Cliffside Climb Above Howe Sound
I love heights, but even I had a moment on the Squamish Via Ferrata when I looked down and felt my stomach drop. One minute, I was clipped into a fixed cable, following my guide through the trees. The next, I was climbing iron rungs bolted into the rock, rising higher above Howe Sound with every step.
I’ve been rock climbing before, but this was different. There was no wall, no gym mat, no tidy route marked in coloured tape—just granite, mountain air and the reminder not to overthink where my feet were going. By the time we reached the narrow bridge, I was equal parts thrilled and humbled, staring out at one of the best views in BC.
3. The One I’d Happily Do Every Weekend
The second I start biking the Stanley Park Seawall, I’m reminded that Vancouver really does have it all. One minute I’m pedalling beneath towering trees, the next I’m cruising beside the ocean with mountains, beaches, skyline views, Canada geese and the occasional raccoon all competing for my attention.
If I’m feeling zen, I’ll shortcut across to Third Beach, but if I want a dose of cardio, I’ll ride up to Prospect Point. For bragging rights of completing the world’s longest uninterrupted water pathway, cycle the entire 28 kilometre Seaside Greenway.
4. The Waterfall That Keeps Pulling Me Back
I’ve been visiting Cascade Falls Regional Park for as long as I can remember, and somehow, I still get excited every time I go back. Tucked just outside Mission, it has always felt like one of those classic BC places where summer days stretch out longer than planned. Which is easy to do when forest walks and dips in ice-cold creek water are involved.
I take in the 30-metre waterfall from the suspension bridge, where the spray sometimes reaches me before I’ve even pulled out my camera. Part nostalgia, part wild Fraser Valley beauty, Cascade Falls is one of those places I’ll always return to.
5. A True West Coast Sauna and Cold Plunge
After years of chasing outdoor adventures around Vancouver, I didn’t expect a floating sauna boat in Deep Cove to be the one that challenged me. After heating up inside the sauna, I climbed onto the roof, gazing at the mountains with the ocean waiting below. The dive into the water was over in seconds, but the shock of the chilly water stayed with me.
By the time I climbed back onboard, skin tingling and heart racing, I understood why people keep chasing that hot-cold rush. It wasn’t relaxing in the traditional sense, but it made me feel more alive than I had in weeks.
6. The Best Way to Show Off the City
I’m convinced the best way to show someone Vancouver isn’t from behind a car window, it’s from the water. With a day pass for the False Creek Ferries, I can turn the city into a choose-your-own-adventure, hopping between docks, neighbourhoods and snack stops with the skyline on one side and the mountains on the other.
It’s not the wildest adventure on this list, but it might be the most Vancouver: salt air, local food, wildlife sightings and a beach picnic stitched together by boat rides.
7. A Little Adrenaline and a Lot of Scenery
I expected the views on my Canadian Wilderness Adventures ATV tour to be good. I didn’t expect to spend three hours grinning through dust, mud and mountain air, wishing the ride would last longer.
In the Callaghan Valley, the scenery changes constantly: one minute I was bouncing through forest trails and over tangled roots, the next I was cruising beside a glassy lake with snow-capped peaks rising in the distance. It was loud, dirty, wildly scenic and exactly the kind of experience that reminds me why getting outside in BC never gets old.
8. An Upside-Down Flight Over Whistler
I love the rush of ziplining so much that I can’t ever just ride normally. The second I step off the platform and feel the forest drop away beneath me, I can’t stop smiling. Cold mountain air in my face, Whistler’s valley views rushing past and that weightless feeling that makes it so addictive.
Always looking to push the boundaries, when prompted by my guide, I didn’t hesitate to flip upside down. Last time, I did a trust fall, which is standing backwards on the platform and slowly falling back until my harness caught and whisked me away. Some adventures test your nerves; this one always reminds me how good it feels to let go and enjoy the ride.
9. A Tiny Island Escape Without Taking a Week Off
One of the best things about living in BC is how quickly a ferry ride can make a regular day feel like a proper escape. Bowen Island is where I go when I want that feeling. I’ve hiked forest trails, paddled along the shoreline, stretched out on the beach and somehow still made it back to Vancouver by evening, feeling like I’d been away for days. No matter what’s on the agenda, the second the ferry pulls away from Horseshoe Bay, I feel like I’ve crossed into a slower, wilder version of the West Coast.
10. Golden Hour on the Water
I’ve never regretted launching a kayak from Jericho Beach, but sunset time is when this paddle really gets me. The city starts to soften behind me, the mountains turn darker against the sky and the water takes on that glassy, golden-hour calm that makes me stop checking how far I’ve gone.
This isn’t the kind of adventure that leaves me breathless from effort. It’s the kind that makes me slow my strokes and scan the water for harbour seals surfacing nearby. By the time the sun drops behind the mountains, I’m usually floating more than paddling, reminded that not every great adventure needs to be hard-earned. Some just ask you to pay attention. It turns out the best adventures aren’t always the ones with the highest peaks, longest hikes, or biggest bragging rights. They’re the ones you’re still talking about years later. For more things to see and do, check out the guidebook 100 Things to Do in Vancouver Before You Die
