The winter route up Mount Seymour to Brockton Point is a great hike day or night. With epic panoramic views, it’s stunning during the day as well it’s well-marked and a short distance making it a great route for a sunset or night hike too.
Trail Stats
Closest City: North Vancouver
Park: Mount Seymour Provincial Park
Permit Required: yes
Dogs Allowed: Yes
Transit-Accessible: No
Camping Allowed: No
4 X 4 Needed: No (winter tires required though)
Class: Short
Round Trip Trail Distance in KM: 4.3
Hiking Time in HR: 2
Average Grade %:
Elevation Gain in M: 295
Highest Point in M: 1,279
Map and Elevation Profile
Trail Location, Parking & Access
Located in the Mt. Seymour Resort downhill ski area in Mount Seymour Provincial Park in North Vancouver, the trailhead is only a 45-minute drive from downtown Vancouver. While it is not public transit-accessible, there is a shuttle that brings you up to Mount Seymour Resort for a fee.
Note that during the day on weekends especially it is very busy up there and the resort requires you to park your car in a lower lot (required for all overnight trips) at P1 or Lower P5 (see map), so be sure to plan for extra time to walk to the trailhead from your parking spot. If hiking in the evening though, you can usually snag a parking spot very close to the trailhead.
In the winter, the road up is often snowy and icy. Winter tires are required (not optional for good reason, don’t risk it!).
Permit Required
Since December 2021 free day-use vehicle passes are required to visit Mount Seymour Provincial Park. Visitors with a valid ski hill pass to Mount Seymour Resort do not need a BC Parks pass, as they will be directed to Mount Seymour Resort parking. Passes are available to book starting at 7:00am, two days in advance of your planned visit. Additional passes may be made available each morning at 7:00am. Learn more on the BC Parks website here.
Trail Directions
The trailhead is accessed from the farthest end of the Mount Seymour Ski Resort’s parking lot. Walk up towards the ski hill and the trailhead is on your left. There is a sign for Dog Mountain and the Mt Seymour trail (which takes you to Brockton Point).
The trail that leads left into the forest is for Dog Mountain, while the trail for Brockton Point continues straight uphill along the left side of the ski hill.
Follow the reflective orange trail markers on poles stuck in the snow. There are a couple of steep climbs before reaching the first viewpoint looking westwards over the mountains at about 1 km up.
Learn about more Snowshoe Trails Near Vancouver in this blog post
The trail then descends briefly before another two steep climbs before reaching the end of this hike (Brockton Point). There is a wooden post saying Brockton Point but it’s often covered in snow or poking up just by your feet so it’s easy to miss.
From the top here you have 360 degree panoramic views – north, east and west over some more mountains, and south over the city and the ski resort. There is a sign with the trail continuing on to access to Pump Peak and beyond to Second Pump (AKA Tim Jones Peak) and Mount Seymour. To get anywhere beyond Brockton point, you are traveling through unmonitored avalanche terrain so best to stop here unless you have avalanche training and gear. Learn more about avalanche safety at Avalanche Canada.
New to snowshoeing? Read “Shoeshoeing for Beginners“
Safety
Regardless of which hike you’re doing, what time of day it is, what time of year, the length or difficulty level of the hike, or even how familiar with the trail you are, you need to ALWAYS be prepared and leave trip plan before venturing into the great outdoors. Read our safety overview for more information like carrying the 10 essentials.
Learn about even more great trails by following us on Instagram @hikesnearvancouver!
One Comment
Comments are closed.