Crown Mountain
| Crown Mountain | Region | South Coast |
|---|---|---|
 South-east Aspect of Crown Mountain (main peak on the left) in Summer |
Elevation | 1504 m (4934 ft) |
| Coordinates |
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| Quick Info | This is an interesting, beautiful hike. There are many possibilities to go onto other short hikes such as Goat mountain, Little Goat mountain, and Dam mountain. If you have the chance to get picked up from a different location from where you started (or take public transit), then you can finish off your hike by going down into Hanes valley and out to the Lynn Headwaters Regional Park (the trail can also be started from Lynn park, but is about an additional 11km of flat trekking, and an extra. The view from the top is magnificent and in every direction. You get to see The Camel, Goat mountain and various other peaks and of ccourse the city of Vancouver. This trail is a great workout and a moderate dayhike if coming up to Grouse on the skyride, but if the Grouse Grind had been done just before, then altogether this would be a strenuous trail with a lot of elevation gain. |
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Route Info
There are two possible trailheads where you can start the hike from. The short approach is from the grouse mountain gondola via the upper part of the Hanes Valley Trail to Crown Pass. The long approach is from Lynn Valley via the Hanes Valley Trail to Crown Pass. Starting the hike from Lynn Valley and returning via grouse mountain make a nice loop.
Lynn Valley elevation: 200 meters
Crown Mountain elevation: 1501 meters
Grouse Mountain area kiosk: 1260 meters
Dam Mountain junction: 1300 meters, 0.6 km
Goat Mountain junction: 1280 meters, 1.8 km
Crown pass bottom elevation: ~ 1000 meters
Trail length: 3.8 km one way from Grouse Skyride
Time to complete: 5-6 hours
Difficulty: moderate
Technical difficulty: some narrow passages near the top, steep terrain, slippery at places
(This info is for those who take the skyride up to Grouse mountain and start the hike from there.)
Directions
Head north on Capilano Road to the Grouse Mountain Skyride. The Crown Mountain trail starts to the east at the top of the Skyride past the bear and wolf habitats at the top of Grouse mountain. The Grouse Grind starts just to the right of the Skyride and comes out by the Grouse mountain restaurants.
Trail Description
Head out of the Skyride towards where the Grouse Peak chairlift used to be and then stay left on the old service road. After a bit, you will reach the entrance to the Lynn Headwaters Regional Park, where ii is asked to leave your contact information before entering the park. Once that is done, follow the well marked trail (old road) to a small pass west of Grouse and then heading up to skirt Dam Mountain and over towards Little Goat mountain. You also have the option to go up to Goat Mountain before descending down to Crown pass. This is just a little bit of extra hiking, but well worthwhile and a great spot for a lunch break. From here the trail gets a bit rougher and slippery as you descend down to Crown Pass. At the lowest part of the pass, you will come to an intersection, you will need to take the left fork which will lead you to the top of Crown Mountain, the right fork will take you down to Lynn Park through Hanes Valley which is about 12km from here. For Crown it is uphill from here, 421 metres to be exact as you just lost about 300 meters after that descent. The trail is rooty and can be damp and has many bugs on a real warm day but persevere as soon you will be at the top. Watch your footing as the trail may be a bit slippery from remnant snow melting in the trees above. The trail ends at a rocky ridge, but an easy scramble will lead you to the top. Have a nice break here and enjoy the views because you summited a neat and moderately challenging peak away from the masses.
