The Smoke Bluffs Park and trail network is an awesome spot to explore in the heart of Squamish, BC. The Viewpoint trail rewards hikers with an unbelievable birds-eye view of Squamish, Howe Sound and the Stawamus Chief. It requires minimal effort and depending how you decide to conquer it, a very small time commitment. The park is most popular among rock climbers who enjoy the plethora of varied climbing routes up the monstrous granite walls scattered throughout the park. Other than the great view, my favourite part of the hike was looking at all of the insane climbing routes and all of the people scrambling their way up the rock walls.
Remember the Backcountry Basics
- Carry your Survival Kit & Essentials
- Let someone know where you’re going with a Trip Plan
- Know how to avoid negative wildlife encounters
- Practice Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness pristine
- Carry a Satellite Communicator like SPOT X
Table of Contents
The Breakdown
| Distance (Round Trip) | 2km |
| Elevation Gain | 158m |
| Time (Round Trip) | 1-2 hours |
| Dogs | Yes |
| Camping | No |
| Season | Year Round |
| Difficulty | Easy |
| Remoteness | Well Trafficked |
| Highest Point | 157m |
Directions:
Heading north on Hwy 99 take a right turn onto Loggers Lane. Follow Loggers Lane past the Squamish Adventure centre and take a right at the sign for Smoke Bluffs Park.
The Route:
Navigating around the park can be a little bit confusing because of all of the climbing trails scattered around the park. There are two different marked hiking routes in the park, the Viewpoint Trail and the Loop Trail. The viewpoint is the ‘money shot’ and highlight of the hike. If you want to extend the trail a bit further and observe rock climbers and the granite climbing routes then feel free to continue on the loop trail even further.
The trail begins on the far side of the parking lot by the wooden Smoke Bluffs sign. The sign goes into detail about the different climbing routes and trails in the park. Follow the sign pointing towards the trail for hikers and climbers only.
After 600m of walking you will arrive at the little smoke bluffs playground. Follow the signs left toward the viewpoint trail. You are going to gain some elevation for a short period and will arrive at a junction which you will follow right onto the viewpoint trail.
The viewpoint is unbeatable and it is hard to believe you can get such a great view for such little effort. There are loads of different vantage points you can check out while looping around the viewpoint trail, just be careful on the edges of the cliffs. This is one of my favourite spots to enjoy a coffee in Squamish!
Once you’ve had your fair share of views head back to the junction. From here you can choose to continue to the right up the loop trail or head back to the parking lot.
There are two options for hiking back to the parking lot. The first and easiest option is to follow your tracks back down to the playground, the other is to take a left on the loop trail and follow the more technical hikers trail down. The more technical trail isn’t too challenging and its quite fun as there are a few ladders and cool railings to help you climb down.
Have fun exploring Smoke Bluffs Park!
