Vancouver #Microadventure: Capilano Suspension Bridge Park
If you’ve ever considered life as an Ewok, this place is for you. However, if you are afraid of heights or have a low bullshit tolerance for people who insist on rocking Ferris Wheel buckets and ski lift benches, this probably isn’t the place for you. Maybe you should head to the aquarium instead.
From Downtown Vancouver, we jumped on a free bus to the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. The buses and bus stops are branded so you can’t miss it. Check with the Vancouver Visitor Center or visit the park’s website for shuttle times and pickup locations. Our bus driver gave a mini-tour of the city as we drove to the other pick up locations and continued telling us about the area as we cross the lion bridge and entered North Vancouver.
As soon as you get off of the bus and into the park, there are stories about first nation communities, more totem poles, and signs pointing to the different attractions. The biggest draw is obviously the large suspension bridge spanning the canyon. The river was raging through the canyon the day we visited and we saw whitewater kayakers braving the rapids below us. Once you cross the bridge, you can access a boardwalk with information about the local flora and fauna and the treetops area (hence Ewoks) that includes 7 more suspension bridges that take you from tree to tree. You’ll need to cross back over the large suspension bridge to access the very narrow but equally impressive (edge walk?) that takes you into the canyon a bit to learn more about how the river shaped the canyon walls and how the trees battle for sunlight. This area was not heavily traveled the day we were in the park and the quiet was very welcome. There are two lookout points that take you over the water a bit so you look down for a very different perspective.
There are a few places within the park with warm drinks, more educational spots, and of course a gift shop. The gift shop has a counter in the back where you can get free samples of the amazing fudge they make on-site. We tried maple, triple chocolate, and regular. We bought the peanut butter fudge and quickly realized we should’ve purchased more than one block…it was so delicious!
This is the kind of attraction that should be on your radar if you have 3 hours to spare (this includes the bus ride and spending quite a bit of time in the park enjoying yourself) and it’s great that you don’t need a car to access it!
Tips for your visit to Capilano Suspension Bridge Park:
- Wear good shoes, this place is slippery! You’re going to want more than flip flops and something safer than heels (yes, we saw both on our visit)
- Get discount tickets at the Vancouver Visitor Center near Canada Place…
- …and ask them to direct you to the nearest shuttle stop. Take the shuttle. It’s free and the driver may give you a mini-tour of the city as you stop at a handful of other pickup locations!
- Try the fudge. Seriously
- Hang onto your phone/camera. People don’t joke around when they make the bridges sway and it would be terrible for you to lose your phone or camera in the process
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