Sum­mer is here and that means it’s time to check your tires, get an oil change, and hit the open road. While fly­ing by the seat of your pants with the wind as your guide sounds idyl­lic, a lit­tle prepa­ra­tion will send you on the best road trips that will not disappoint.

Sea-to-Sky Adven­ture (Van­cou­ver — Squamish)

Upon leav­ing Van­cou­ver, a city that has per­fect­ed the mar­riage of city and nature, you cross a stun­ning bridge to North Van­cou­ver (a sleepy ver­sion of Van­cou­ver prop­er with nature tip­ping the scales). The high­way twists and weaves around the mas­sive North Shore Moun­tain Range replac­ing the city lights with pris­tine islands scat­tered across Howe Sound.

Stops:

• Lions Bay, a sleepy and post­card per­fect town that will charm the city off of you.
• Porteau Cove Provin­cial Park is a per­fect pic­nic loca­tion to enjoy a pur­ple sunset.
• Shan­non Falls Provin­cial Park is home to the mas­sive 1,100-foot water­fall that can be eas­i­ly appre­ci­at­ed with just a 2‑minute paved walk from the car.
• Sea-to-Sky Gon­do­la is a great end to a fairy­tale day. Ride a gon­do­la 2,788 feet straight up with a stun­ning view of Howe Sound and the sur­round­ing moun­tains. At the top enjoy a glass of wine or a burg­er then set out for a hike that includes a sus­pen­sion bridge and two over­hang­ing viewpoints.

 

Banff Nation­al Park

Words can’t do jus­tice when it comes to describ­ing the dra­mat­ic moun­tain-scape and the sur­re­al blues and greens that nat­u­ral­ly occur in Banff’s crater lakes.

Stops:

• Lake Louise
• Emer­ald Lake
• Takakkaw Falls
• Vic­to­ria Glacier

 

Crater Lake

There is no deep­er sap­phire than that of the majes­tic Crater Lake. The indige­nous believed it was a place of pow­er and dan­ger, renowned as a spir­it quest site, yet also feared for the dan­ger­ous beings resid­ing in the lake. Your first view will sure­ly take your breath away and leave you in silent admiration.
Cir­cum­nav­i­gate the lake slow­ly with camp­ing chairs and/or a ham­mock in tow. Enjoy a pic­nic and a few refresh­ments along the way.

 

Red­wood Nation­al & State Parks

The mighty Red­wood trees demand atten­tion. Their puz­zling red bark and feath­er-like canopy cre­ate a gor­geous back­drop to the con­stant blan­ket of fog that vis­its the giants.

Stops:

• Jede­di­ah Smith Red­woods State Park loop from Cres­cent City
• DeMartin Beach Pic­nic Area
• Fern Canyon
• Kla­math Tour Thru Tree