Lighthouse Park

The forest at Point Atkinson was never logged, and the reason is bureaucratic: in 1881 the government reserved seventy-five hectares around the lighthouse so the dark timber would stand as a backdrop making the light easier to identify from the water. The trees stayed, and Lighthouse Park now holds some of the last old-growth Douglas fir in the Vancouver area, some of it around five hundred years old. The present hexagonal concrete lighthouse dates from 1912 and still operates. Trails run through the forest to granite bluffs at the water's edge with the city, the freighters at anchor and Vancouver Island across the strait.

What you actually see

• The old-growth firs - unlogged trees preserved as a lighthouse backdrop.
• The 1912 lighthouse - a hexagonal concrete tower at Point Atkinson.
• The granite bluffs - open rock at the shore with strait views.
• The freighter anchorage - ships waiting in English Bay and the strait.

When to go

Year-round; the forest suits rain and the bluffs suit clear days. Winter storms are dramatic from the rock. Parking fills on fine weekends.

Honest expectations

The lighthouse itself is fenced and not open to the public. Trails are rooted and rocky with some steep sections. Parking is limited with no overflow.

Nearby

Horseshoe Bay lies northwest; Vancouver is southeast.