Outdoor sights in Canada
- Sort by:
- Popular
-
Piper's Lagoon Park
In a city filled with parks, waterfront treat Piper's Lagoon Park is a winner. It's a great spot for an afternoon picnic; you can check out the birds hanging around the lagoon, take a short hike through the gnarly Garry oak forest, sit on a beached log and watch the cruise ships slip by or give the climbing wall your best shot. Then head to Shack Island. It houses a straggle of storied old fishermen's sheds that are kept as unserviced cottages for those traveling with their own sleeping bags.
reviewed
-
Banff & Jasper National Parks
It all seems almost too surreal to be true, so picture perfect you'll think you're dreaming. Mountains scrape the sky - a jumble of colours and shapes. Cerulean blue meets snowcapped majesty. The sparkling lakes are emerald-green or milky-turquoise - you may have to blink a few times before your eyes can absorb their gloriously intense colours.
The glaciers cling to rugged precipices, intense ice blue merges with slate gray. Rivers rush by, fed on melted snow and spring rains. Lush forests and high alpine meadows explode in a kaleidoscope of colours when the wildflowers bloom. A grizzly bear ambles past, swinging his head from side to side, searching for food. A moose…
reviewed
-
A
Parc Nature du Cap-St-Jacques
Arguably the most diverse of Montréal’s nature parks, Cap-St-Jacques has a huge beach, 27km of trails for hiking and skiing, a farm and even a summer camp. The maple and mixed deciduous forest in the interior is a great patch for a ramble, and in spring a horse-drawn carriage brings visitors to a sugar shack to watch the maple sap boil. On the north shore there’s the Eco-Farm, a working farm with two barns and horses, pigs and chickens, as well as a large greenhouse for viewing. Picnic tables abound and a restaurant serves the farm’s produce. The beach is a comfortably wide stretch of fine white sand, and the shallow water is wonderful for splashing with kids, but…
reviewed
-
B
Carré St-Louis
This lovely green space with a three-tiered fountain is flanked by beautiful rows of Second Empire homes. In the 19th century a reservoir here was filled, and a neighborhood emerged for well-to-do French families. Artists and poets gathered in the area back then, and creative types like filmmakers and fashion designers now occupy houses in the streets nearby. The café, which opens in the summer, is a good spot for a pick-me-up, with occasional musicians creating the soundtrack for the square. Nearby students and local residents take in precious rays, while others linger puffing on strange smokes. Carré St-Louis feeds west into Rue Prince-Arthur, a former slice of 1960s…
reviewed
-
Mt Maxwell Provincial Park
Mt Maxwell Provincial Park offers accessible and quite captivating vistas. The dirt road is steep, so a 4WD is recommended if you're driving. The 588m Baynes Peak climbs far above sea level here, making the Strait of Georgia seem like a bathtub dotted with tiny, green islands. It's a great spot to watch a panoramic sunset.
reviewed
-
C
Petroglyph Provincial Park
Petroglyph Provincial Park is seldom visited, despite some neat old First Nations sandstone carvings that depict everything from mystical wolf-like creatures to fish and human figures. Sadly, the petroglyphs are fading fast and most are barely visible, but kids like making rubbings from the re-created castings.
reviewed
-
Newcastle Island Marine Provincial Park
Offering picnicking, cycling, hiking and beaches, Newcastle Island Marine Provincial Park is one of Nanaimo's favorite parks. Walks or hikes range from 1km strolls to the 7.5km perimeter trek. A serviced campground (www.newcastleisland.ca) is available.
reviewed
-
D
World Heritage Park
World Heritage Park houses displays about Unesco. It is also a good place to pause for air while negotiating Banff's main drag: Banff Ave. There are plenty of cafes nearby if the mountain air makes you hungry.
reviewed
-
E
Central Park
Toward the south end of Banff Ave is Central Park where you can stroll along the mellow Bow River. From here you can follow the signed nature path north along the river.
reviewed
-
F
Parks Canada
This office has info on Tuktut Nogait, Ivvavik and Aulavik National Parks, as well as the Pingo Canadian Landmark. Park visitors must register and de-register here.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
G
Bear Creek Provincial Park
Bear Creek Provincial Park offers opportunities for hiking as well as windsurfing, fishing, swimming and wilderness camping.
reviewed