Stanley Park

Vancouver's best-loved green space is a forested peninsula pushed out into the water at the edge of downtown. Stanley Park covers about 405 hectares, opened in 1888, and was named for Lord Stanley, Canada's Governor General at the time. Its edges are bounded by Burrard Inlet and English Bay, and the Lions Gate Bridge leaps over the First Narrows from the park's northern tip toward the North Shore Mountains. It is a heavily visited place, but it is large enough that the forest interior can feel remarkably quiet.

The park sits on lands long used by the Coast Salish peoples, including the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh, and traces of that history remain in names and sites. The forest holds big Douglas fir, Western red cedar and hemlock, many of them centuries old, though a storm in 2006 flattened large sections and parts of the woods are still regrowing. More than 25 kilometres of trails thread through the trees.

The Seawall is the park's best-known route, a paved path of roughly nine kilometres that follows the shoreline all the way round and keeps walkers and cyclists in separate lanes. Along it you pass Siwash Rock, a sea stack tied to Squamish legend, the viewpoint at Prospect Point, and the Girl in a Wet Suit sculpture. The Brockton Point totem poles are among the most visited cultural sites in the region, and the Nine O'Clock Gun still fires there each evening. The Vancouver Aquarium sits inside the park, and the Rose Garden, Lost Lagoon and Beaver Lake offer calmer stops, with herons and waterfowl on the water.

Getting around is easy. A summer shuttle links major stops, and bicycles can be rented near the entrance at Denman Street. The route is flat apart from short rises around Prospect Point, so most people can do part of it.

Visitors seeking quiet should come on weekday mornings, since summer afternoons bring crowds to the beaches and the Seawall. The park suits families, runners, cyclists and anyone who wants a long, easy walk with water and mountains in the picture. Check the park's website for any trail closures after storms.