For novices and hiking keeners, trails like Brothers Creek and High Falls deliver pleasure with the pain

Good things come in threes—like July, August, and September—and hiking is no exception. Consider setting the bar higher one hike at a time if you're not quite in shape for your gold medal outing of the year.

Remember, one person's ramble is another's forced march. Much depends on your age. Most youngsters don't warm to the concept of putting one foot in front of the other for hours at a stretch until their bodies finally twig to the fact that strenuous exertion hurts, but it's a good hurt.

Start on West Vancouver's Brothers Creek Trail, which traces a five-kilometre roundtrip loop starting from Millstream Road at the top of the British Properties and culminates at a cloistered pair of mountain ponds, Blue Gentian and Lost lakes. Not enough time to do the whole length? No problem. This trail is easily split into one-, two-, and three-hour increments. Icing on the cake: towering old-growth timbers line the route, guaranteed to take your mind off your burning quads. Bonus: you can get to the trailhead by taking the number 254 bus from Park Royal. For a preview, visit www.westvancouver.net/Level3.aspx?id=1258. Ability level: novice. Dogs allowed on-leash.

Given a lingering low snowline that may well persist into August, we'd best save high-alpine jaunts for later in the summer. In the meantime, check out routes that are long on distance and have a limited elevation gain. One option that always fits the bill is a network of paths running through Lynn Headwaters Regional Park in North Vancouver. Interwoven with the Cedars Mill Trail are the Switchback, Lynn Loop, and Headwaters trails. Together, the paths bob and weave for seven forested kilometres beside rocky Lynn Creek as well as on the terraced hillside above, eventually delivering you to a stunning viewpoint at the base of Norvan Falls. Cartoonish cedar stumps, elaborate wooden staircases, and bracing swimming holes act as salves to the pain that is but sharp sauce to the dish of pleasure. At least that's what trail runners say. Full details are posted at www.metrovancouver.org/services/parks_lscr/regionalparks/Pages/LynnHeadwaters.aspx. Ability level: intermediate. Dogs allowed on-leash.

Hiking and rushing water go hand in glove. Choose an ascent bordering on a tumbling creek and you'll feel as impelled to reach the top as a salmon leaping home to spawn. High Falls Trail satisfies on all counts. Be prepared to feel the earth tremble as you scramble across outcroppings on the steepest stretches of this six-kilometre rock-and-roots trail. The higher you go, the more sublime the views across the Squamish Valley to the wall of Tantalus Range peaks, from which waterfalls spill like shoelaces. From downtown Squamish, head north on Highway 99, turn onto Squamish Valley Road, and follow it for 25 kilometres. The well-marked trailhead lies just past a B.C. Hydro powerhouse. Ability level: intermediate/advanced. Dogs not recommended.