The past week we all stayed at home due to the poor air quality from all that forest fire going on. So when the air finally cleared today, my boys absolutely can’t wait to go out. We decided to visit one of our most frequented parks, Deer Lake Park in Burnaby. My good friend Amy came along and we had a nice stroller play date while completing this small loop trail.

Trail Condition

Starting from the beach area, we took the 3.5 km Deer Lake Loop. This is currently a one way loop, with very flat gravel paved trails and sections of boardwalk. There are not much bumps along the way; thus is stroller friendly.

Junior started cycling right away, and even conquered a small uphill on his bike. One interesting thing about this trail is that unlike many trails part of the path is in a residential area but also still in the park. You will be walking on a short section of driveway, only open for the small number of residents in the park, so there are rarely car traffic here. Some houses are situated right by the lake, while others are nestled in a small forested area.

You can see the lake from many sections of the trail. On the boardwalk, there are lookout points with benches for you to relax and enjoy the view. We had fun trying to spot Billy paddleboarding on the lily covered lake.

After walking through a tree covered green arched walkway, the trail soon opens up to a field that leads to the Shadbolt Centre of Performing Arts. This is where they hold several arts and music classes for children and adults.

After passing the Hart House restaurant, a popular venue for weddings, the trail loops back through another section of boardwalk, which leads back to the beach area. The Deer Lake loop is the longest one way loop trail in the Park at the moment. Other one way routes spans about 1-2 km. Amy suggested the Hart House mini route (1.2 km) for a quick evening stroll if we are ever back here for another go.

Activities

Other than walking the trail and biking, you can also do different paddling sports on the lake. You can check out Billy’s post on paddle boarding here. There is a boat rental space here, where you can rent canoes, kayaks, rowboats, and pedal boats.

Picnic on the grassy field is also a very popular activity here. There are limited numbers of picnic tables, so it’s best to bring a mat. A popular restaurant, Hart House, is also here if you prefer to dine in.

Burnaby Village Museum is also here which displays the 1920s village with actual houses and little artifacts inside. This is a popular place for kids especially during Christmas, as there are lots of Christina’s lights here and photos with Santa opportunity.

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The big field by Shadbolt Centre is also famous for its annual Vancouver Symphony Orchestra summer outdoor concert. However, due to COVID-19, the event is canceled this year.

In the Fall, the maple leaves are also great here.

Traffic

This is a heavily trafficked trail where there are constantly people in front and behind you. I’m glad about the one way route, or else it would be hard to keep 2 m apart from others.

Pets

Dogs must be leashed at all times here.

Washroom

There is a flush toilet washroom by the beach area.

Breastfeeding

There are several benches along the trail.

Parking

There are several free parking spaces by the beach area parking lot. However, this lot does get busy fast. You can also park by the parking lots in front of the Burnaby Village Museum, or by Shadbolt Centre.

This has been one of our most frequented parks and we will come back again, since it’s one of the closest lakes to home. Junior had lots of fun cycling here and seem to want more cycling time after we reached our destination.

• Difficulty: Very easy
• Facilities: excellent
• Pedestrian Traffic: heavy
• Pet traffic: moderate
• View: mediocre
• Overall score: 6/10