Forget the Grouse Grind, hike Lynn Peak

Are you one of those Vancouverites who considers the Grouse Grind your go-to hike?

I’ve got some advice for you: the next time the urge to hike hits, try Lynn Peak.

Whereas the Grind is nature’s crowded StairMaster, Lynn Peak offers a degree of solitude in a short and accessible outing.

The steep trail, located in North Vancouver’s Lynn Headwaters Regional Park, has a competitive elevation gain but involves a four-hour round trip.

Your destination: a lookout on a bluff with views—when it’s not clouded over—of Mount Seymour and the Seymour River valley.

Along the way, you’ll come across two other lookouts with similar views, as well as the so-called Enchanted Forest, with its old-growth trees.

(Last weekend, I encountered snow after the second lookout, but it didn’t present any difficulty.)

Of course, you’ll have to retrace your steps to get back to the trailhead, rather than taking the Skyride down.

But you will have worked up a sweat and actually spent some time alone in the woods—all without seeing anyone in high heels.

For transit riders, the start of the Lynn Peak trail can be reached by bus and a short walk.

You can follow Stephen Hui on Twitter at twitter.com/stephenhui.