Kitsilano Beach Park to Spanish Banks Beach Park

• Author: WantsToTravelMore
• Accommodation: Vancouver Accommodations

This is possibly one of the easiest and most scenic bike rides in Vancouver.

It was a hot summer day when my daughter and I set out on the 5.7 km (each way) bicycle ride from Kits Beach. We wanted to try the relatively new (18 months old) bike path along Point Grey Road and see how it connects to Jericho, Locarno and Spanish Banks beaches.

This was the view from where we started.

As you ride west, following the markings for bikes, you then follow a short stretch of Point Grey Road, which then turns back to where Cornwall Street ends and Point Grey Road starts again. The intersecting street is Trafalgar. There’s a tiny park there offering this view.

From there you follow the obvious bike that follows Point Grey Road, nicely segregated. At MacDonald Street, bikes can continue west on Point Grey Road and the traffic is directed south on Macdonald. It was very odd feeling to be cycling in the middle of a road that 18 months ago I was driving too fast on when I used it and never rode my bike on because there just wasn’t enough space.

As you follow this mixed use road (note that cars can still use the road, but it’s meant for residents) you will eventually hit a path that leads you to Jericho Beach Park. The view from there looks like this:

At this point there were two things we noticed. The Vancouver Folk Fest was on and a lot of Jericho Beach Park, excluding the actual water front, was fenced off for the festival, and it was super busy. Another thing we noticed was that it was a super low tide. In some spots on our ride it looked like you could walk halfway across the water to the North Shore.

As we worked our way along the gravel path, which was sometimes mixed pedestrian and bike traffic and sometimes not — and sometimes bikes and pedestrians ignored the signage, we passed the Jericho Sailing Centre, and reached Locarno Beach, leaving the Folk Fest behind us. Another stunning view greeted us.

Still heading along the gravel path, we started to feel further from the mainstream of Vancouver and came upon Spanish Banks Beach Park, which has an east and west sections. I knew from past experience that we would come suddenly to where our biking levels ended. There’s a giant hill that takes you through Pacific Spirit Park and lands you at UBC (University of British Columbia). We decided to enjoy the views below and head back. Perhaps another day when it was cooler and we had stronger legs, we’d try that one!