Whistler has beautiful and wonderfully hidden parks nearly everywhere you look. Almost all are located on the shores of beautiful mountain lakes or rivers, and all seem to have great mountain views. From Rainbow Park's terrific panorama of Wedge Mountain, Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain to Blueberry Park's panorama of Mount Sproatt and Rainbow Mountain.
Whistler & Garibaldi Hiking
Alexander Falls 
Ancient Cedars 
Black Tusk 
Blackcomb Mountain Brandywine Falls Brandywine Meadows Brew Lake Callaghan Lake Cheakamus Lake 
Cheakamus River 
Cirque Lake Flank Trail Garibaldi Lake Garibaldi Park Helm Creek Jane Lakes Joffre Lakes Keyhole Hot Springs Logger’s Lake Madeley Lake Meager Hot Springs Nairn Falls Newt Lake Panorama Ridge Parkhurst Ghost Town Rainbow Falls Rainbow Lake Ring Lake Russet Lake Sea to Sky Trail Skookumchuck Hot Springs Sloquet Hot Springs 
Sproatt East Sproatt West Taylor Meadows Train Wreck 
Wedgemount Lake Whistler Mountain
Whistler Parks & Lakes
Alpha Lake Park Alta Lake Park Blueberry Park Green Lake Park Lakeside Park Lost Lake Park Meadow Park Nita Lake Park Rainbow Park Wayside Park
Alta Lake has several parks along its shore. Rainbow Park and Blueberry Park are located on the north end of the lake, while Alta Lake Park, Wayside Park and Lakeside Park cover both sides of the south end of the lake. Wayside Park and Lakeside Park are quite popular all summer with their nice beaches, piers and close proximity to Whistler Village, while Alta Lake Park is comparatively secluded in its location on the far side of Alta Lake. What it lacks in a beach it makes up for with its huge pier. The largest pier on Alta Lake, and serenely quiet more often than not. Just south of Alta Lake are the much smaller lakes Alpha Lake and Nita Lake with parks as well. Nita Lake Park hugs the shore along the Valley Trail that connects all the parks of Whistler. Alpha Lake Park is a very nice, hidden feeling park with a great big grassy field, small sand beach, piers and a great kids playground. A nice trail runs through the forest on one side leading to quiet little trails along the forested shore of the lake. Lost Lake Park, one of Whistler's most popular parks is hidden in the forest at the edge of Whistler Village. A staggering array of hiking, biking, running trails surround the lake and despite its convenient location, somehow remains beautifully quiet most days. Green Lake Park and Meadow Park are found north of Whistler Village. Green Lake Park is a cute little park located directly across from Parkhurst Ghost Town and is an ideal place to launch a canoe to explore the lake. Meadow Park is a huge park with baseball diamonds, tennis courts, kids play park, ice rink, swimming pool and quite a lot more.
Rainbow Park - Best Whistler Parks
Rainbow Park is one of Whistler's most popular swimming beaches and for good reason. The beach is south facing so every morning the sun rises from behind Wedge Mountain and the whole park seems to glow. From the dazzling reflecting from the snow off of Wedge Mountain, Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain, to the amazing blue glow from Alta Lake. All this framed in the dazzling green of the forest all around. Though there are many great places to watch the sun rise in Whistler, Rainbow Park is one of the best. Rainbow Park gets its name from Rainbow Lodge, a popular stop along the train line from 1914 to 1974. It was a popular fishing and relaxing destination and easily accessible from Vancouver via the train route that still runs through the park. Run by Myrtle and Alex Philip, the original lodge burned down in 1977. Some of the remaining log houses have been restored into the outdoor museum of sorts you see there today. Interpretive panels with photos and descriptions of life in the area almost a century ago. These houses go mostly unnoticed as the main interpretive area is just off of the main beach across the Bridge of Sighs. Named by Alex Philip, the current bridge is a reconstruction of the original. There is a photo and description of the original that you can compare with the reconstruction. You will notice as you read the various panels how everything in Whistler now seems to be named after the people that once lived in and around the Rainbow Lodge community. Rainbow Park has a beautiful and very long pier that stretches far out on Alta Lake. Beyond the pier there are two swimming(island) platforms. Volleyball nets, a concession stand and washrooms sit further back from the beach. There is a large area of beach set aside as a dog park and several picnic tables. The popularity of Rainbow Park is largely due to the incredible setting. Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain look incredible. Wedge Mountain, the highest mountain in Garibaldi Provincial Park to the left of Blackcomb Mountain looks both enormous and definitely wedge shaped. Every direction you look you are captivated by the surroundings. Out on the pier you look left and right along the huge valley that contains Alta Lake and at the far end you trace Whistler Mountain from the water to the sky. You can see where the Peak Chair, or at least the alpine rock and snow where it sits on top of high up above the treeline. Rainbow Park sits on the far side of Alta Lake. From Whistler Village it is just over 3 kilometres and the entire route to walk there is scenic. Continued here...
A Quiet Fall Day at Rainbow Park
Lost Lake Park - Best Whistler Parks
Lost Lake is a tranquil and secluded lake that hides in the forest extending from Whistler Village. Just a 20 minute, leisurely walk or 5 minute bike ride along the well signed Valley Trail will lead you to this beautiful little lake. The wide and paved Valley Trail turns into a wide and gravel trail as you enter Lost Lake Park and. Trails circle the lake and extend in all directions. The main trail around the lake is a popular running route from Whistler Village as roundtrip from the Village, around Lost Lake and back to the Village is just 6 kilometres. There are plenty of nice viewpoints along the main trail as well as quite a few short trails that lead to several access points to the lake, some with great places to sit and relax in the sun and take in the view. Lost Lake has a very popular beach at one end and in the height of summer can get busy as it is the most convenient beach from Whistler Village. There are several swimming platforms out in the lake as well as a wonderful and huge pier along the right hand side of the lake. An amazing place to catch the sunsets over Whistler Mountain. In the winter months when there is snow in Whistler, Lost Lake becomes a cross country and snowshoeing area and there is a charge to access the main trails around the lake. Usually from mid December to early April. If there is snow on the ground in Whistler Village, you will likely find the park gated for admission only snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. Continued here...
The Wonderful Lost Lake Pier
Green Lake Park - Best Whistler Parks
Green Lake is stunning, vivid turquoise coloured lake just north of Whistler Village. The Sea to Sky Highway runs along the edge of the lake for most of its length, giving you excellent view of its stunning colour surrounded by thick forests rising up to mountains. Along the highway there is a nice pull-out viewpoint that gives you a fantastic view of Green Lake, Wedge Mountain, Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain beyond. There is a small neighbourhood with houses lining the shore of Green Lake near the highway. Tucked into this neighbourhood is a very small, easy to miss park right on the waterfront. Green Lake Park is a small section of land along the shore of this beautiful lake. Squeezed between two houses, the park looks like a vacant lot where a house would have been built. Instead of a house there is a small building with washrooms and a nice little forest with picnic tables. The rocky shore is perfect for launching a canoe and there is a public storage area for canoes and kayaks. Green Lake Park is directly across from Parkhurst Ghost Town, a derelict old logging town long abandoned. The ghost town is easy to spot with its abandoned log loader perched on the edge of the lake, almost directly across from the park. This huge, very solid metal machine that looks somewhat like a tractor has been sitting there for several decades. Looking like a museum piece, this beautiful piece of history marks the entrance to Parkhurst if you are arriving by boat. A trail cuts through the bushes, crosses the train tracks, then ascends up a short hill into the forest where you will find many collapsed houses, one still standing and dozens of interesting curiosities. There is a hiking and biking trail to Parkhurst, but paddling across the Green Lake from Green Lake Park is the easiest and nicest way to get there. Continued here...
The Green Lake Boat Launch Pier
Alpha Lake Park - Best Whistler Parks
Alpha Lake Park is a beautiful little park on the shores of Alpha Lake in Creekside, just 5 kilometres south of Whistler Village. Located partway along Lake Placid Road just past the Husky gas station and Nita Lake Lodge. This quiet residential street leads to this park that is home to tennis courts, a basketball court, a huge waterfront dog park, an elaborate kids play park, a floating dock, two piers and biking/walking/running trails everywhere you look. Alpha Lake Park has a much more local feel to it than other Whistler parks such as the popular Rainbow Park, Lakeside Park and Lost Lake Park. The abundance of trees and the irregular shoreline make the relatively small size of Alpha Lake seem quite a bit bigger than it is. Trails run around both sides of Alpha Lake. The wide and paved Valley Trail runs along the shore on the near side and a gravel trail runs along the far side. This gravel trail, squeezed between the train tracks and the lake takes you to Pine Point Park, a nice rocky outcrop in the top-middle of the lake. Here the trails zig-zag through the forest to several hidden vantage points over the lake. These spots are always facing the sun and amazing on a sunny day. Continued here...
Alta Lake Park - Best Whistler Parks
Alta Lake Park is one of several scenic parks on Alta Lake. Lakeside Park, Blueberry Park, Rainbow Park and Wayside Park are also along the shore of this huge lake that covers much of the valley edged by Whistler Village. These parks, all on Whistler's beautiful Valley Trail system, ensure that you are never far from one of several spectacular vantage points over Alta Lake. Alta Lake Park is on the far side of Alta Lake, just 4 kilometres from Whistler Village. It is just an hours walk or 10 minute bike ride away on the Valley Trail. The Valley Trail is a huge spider web network of paved walking, biking and running trails that connect Whistler Village to dozens of beautiful parks and sights. Over 40 kilometres of trails throughout Whistler, with direction signs at every junction make the Valley Trail much more than just a transportation network. It's an interpretive tour of the area, where you can wander on foot or by bike and use the signs at each junction to choose your route Located on the opposite shore to Wayside Park, Alta Lake Park is unlike all the other parks around this huge lake. It is secluded feeling where the others are often crowded and chaotic. The two Alta Lake Park piers are far more serene and the views of Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb Mountain are excellent. One of the piers is quite old and sits directly across from the Wayside Park pier. Continued here...
Blueberry Park - Best Whistler Parks
Blueberry Park is a very scenic park on Alta Lake that most Whistler locals don't even know about. If you have been to Rainbow Park you would have noticed three piers across Alta Lake surrounded by forest. These public piers sit at the edge of Blueberry Park, with the Blueberry Trail running from one side of the forest to the other. The park covers most of the hill beyond these piers and stretches between and connects the neighbourhoods of Whistler Cay and Alta Vista. The beautiful, deep forest trail runs from the shores of Alta Lake in Alta Vista, up and across Blueberry Hill and descends again to reach Whistler Cay. Along the trail there are several beautiful viewpoints of Alta Lake in the foreground and the enormous Mount Sproatt beyond. For most of the trail, however, it is steep, rocky, wild and natural looking. The forest is deep and dark. Massive tree roots criss-cross the trail and fallen trees and boulders are strewn everywhere. It has a wonderful remote and natural feeling to the forest that make you forget that you are so close to civilization. Continued here...
Lakeside Park - Best Whistler Parks
Lakeside Park on the shore of Alta Lake in Whistler is a beautiful beach park just a short distance from Whistler Village. Located on the Valley Trail, it is just 2 kilometres or a 30 minute walk, or 10 minute bike ride away. Similar to the popular Rainbow Park across the lake, Lakeside Park has a concession stand for food and drinks, picnic tables, BBQ stands, canoe and kayak rentals a huge grass field, pier, a sandy beach and an elaborate little kids play are. Swimming and relaxing are the main draws to Lakeside Park, but fishing off the piers is a common sight as well. The Lakeside Park pier is just one of many places on the lake good for fishing, but generally fishing on Alta Lake is best done by boat. There is a proper boat launch on Lakeside Drive just a couple hundred metres north of the beach. Alta Lake is catch and release only as is the nearby Green Lake, and there is a bait ban on the lake. The two small lakes adjacent to Alta Lake, Alpha Lake and Nita Lake you can keep what you catch and they are stocked with hundreds of fish every June. Lost Lake on the other side of Whistler Village, you can keep what you catch as well as at Logger’s Lake near Cheakamus Crossing. The beach at Lakeside Park is south facing making it a fantastic place to watch the sun set over the towering Mount Sproatt across the lake. If you are looking for a quiet place to relax the main beach may be too chaotic for you, however there is a beautiful place to escape the noise just a 5 minute walk away. To the left of the beach, cross the small bridge, follow the Valley Trail and keep your eyes out on the right for a trail veering off the main trail into the trees. Continued here...
Meadow Park - Best Whistler Parks
Meadow Park is a huge recreation area in Whistler that has a hockey rink, huge gym, swimming pool, squash courts, baseball diamonds, tennis courts, basketball courts, ball hockey court and a wonderfully elaborate kids play park. Meadow Park is wonderfully located along the River of Golden Dreams, a cute little, slow, winding river that connects Alta Lake and Green Lake. Along the River of Golden Dreams you will find impossibly idyllic picnic tables and park benches. Wedge Mountain, Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain are stretched out before you with the serene river flowing past. The kids play park has a variety of the usual slides and swings, but also a fun water park activated by a hidden button on a metal, ride on blue whale. The button activated two opposing water guns, a little water slide and several fountains. Surrounding the water park are lovely, grass areas for the parents to lay in the sun. There are also several picnic tables between the water park and the rest of the kids area with slides and climbing walls. Adjacent to the kids park is a ball hockey court that doubles as two basketball courts. Next to that are some very nice tennis courts. Continued here...
Nita Lake Park - Best Whistler Parks
Nita Lake is a tranquil little lake located in Creekside, just 4 kilometres south of Whistler Village. Whistler's beautiful Valley Trail runs right along the edge of Nita Lake and continues past the beautiful Nita Lake Lodge. A small gravel beach with a creek flowing through it gives the park consistently good fishing. Two picnic tables sit in a forest clearing next to the creek. At the end of the lake there are two piers. One is a public pier and the other is for Nita Lake Lodge guests. Nita Lake is comparatively quiet as compared to other Whistler lakes and parks. The main reason is that it lacks a sizable beach and facilities to go along with it. Though this may seem like a drawback, it is also an attraction. On a busy summer day you may find hundreds of people in and around the neighbouring Alpha Lake, yet less than a dozen on Nita Lake. It is relaxing and serene when everywhere else is not. Nita Lake Park is just 4 kilometres from Whistler Village along the Valley Trail and walking, running or biking there is a great option. From the Village the Valley Trail takes you along the edge of Whistler Golf Course, then past Blueberry Park, Lakeside Park and Wayside Park. Blueberry Park is a wonderful, deep forest and secluded feeling park on the edge of Alta Lake. Lakeside Park is a big, lively and fun park on Alta Lake with boat rentals, concession stand, piers and a sandy beach. Wayside Park is similar to Lakeside Park, though a bit smaller, and is near the end of Alta Lake. Alta Lake and Nita Lake are separated by just a few dozen metres and the Valley Trail branches in three directions here. Nita Lake to the south and to the north the Valley Trail goes on either side of Alta Lake. Continued here...
Wayside Park - Best Whistler Parks
Wayside Park in Whistler is one of several idyllic parks along the shore of Alta Lake. Rainbow Park, Lakeside Park and Blueberry Park are also along the shore of this huge lake that covers much of the valley edged by Whistler Village. These four parks, all on Whistler's beautiful Valley Trail system, ensure that you are never far from one of several amazing vantage points over Alta Lake. Wayside Park sits near the bottom end of Alta Lake and at just 3 kilometres from Whistler Village is just an hours walk or 10 minute bike ride away. The Valley Trail is a huge spider web network of paved walking/biking/running trails that connect Whistler Village to dozens of beautiful parks and sights. Over 40 kilometres of trails throughout Whistler, with directions at every junction make the Valley Trail much more than just a transportation network. It's an interpretive tour of the area, where you can wander on foot or by bike and use the signs at each junction to choose your route. Whistler's Valley Trail is in fact, now part of the 180 kilometre Sea to Sky Trail that runs from Squamish to D'Arcy. In the summer months, swimming and relaxing in the sun are the main attractions to Wayside Park. The piers are a fantastic way to view Alta Lake as it stretches north, edged by forest, hills and mountains in the distance. Canoeing, kayaking and paddleboarding are all popular from Wayside Park and Whistler Eco Tours has a popular rental area here in the summertime. They also do canoe rentals where you can start canoeing at Wayside Park and finish at Green Lake. This 7 kilometre route takes you the length of Alta Lake then down the River of Golden Dreams to Green Lake. The current moves with you the entire journey making it a very relaxing route to paddle. Continued here...
Best Whistler Parks!
Whistler's Best Hiking Trails!
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