This has been a dream in the making for a few years. With both kids being able to bike now, it was time for Mama to get a bike. It took a lot to get us here. So many headaches with bike racks and hitches to get over, not to mention the troubles of using a bike rack with smaller kid-bike frames. I'm getting better at the jigsaw puzzle that is involved in loading our three bikes onto the bike rack and we've since had some fun trying to find our "go-to" location for biking.
Here are some of our findings on a few different biking routes in the Lower Mainland.
Seymour Conservation Forest
The pathway here is paved and smooth making for a nice comfortable ride. The tall trees are also great for avoiding the heat, not to mention it's a beautiful place to ride. The downfall is that it is hilly. When we first took Ethan here in the spring, we learned the hard way that learning to go down hills is one of those skills that also need to be explicitly taught. Good thing Josh can run REALLY fast. Even though both kids are now able to go down hills safely, their bikes do not have any gears so going up hills are still hard and we find ourselves having to dismount and walk up.
Barnston Island (Surrey)
My friend Yvette told me about this ride and I also found it on
this website. It's a fun little out trip because it involves a short ferry ride to the island. The ferry ride took no longer than 5 mins, but it was still a fun little adventure. To bike the around the whole island is about 10km. (I'd say that right now, we are about 1.5hrs/10km). You can also get off the ferry and head to the left and from there it's about a 1.8km to a little lookout/place to picnic. This island is great for biking with kids because it is completely flat and the roadway is nice and wide. There are very few cars because only people who live there bring their cars. (There is no public parking available anywhere on the island) It was serene and quiet. Unfortunately for us, it was super hot the day we went out. Due to getting lost in the morning, we were biking in the noon day sun. I had to promise a certain biker to "never-ever take her to this place again" in order to make it back to the ferry. Did I say it was 1.5 hours? Felt like 3 hours. (We've since talked it over and agreed to keep the option open but only for overcast days)
Richmond Dyke
This might be our golden ticket. (At least for now) We started at the parking lot by Terra Nova Park. From there it is a 5 km bike to Steveston/ Garry Point Park. I liked this ride because it was flat, being close to the water, there was a nice breeze the whole time and it didn't feel as secluded as Barnston Island. (There were a few times that I felt a little too alone on the island, but that's just my brain working overtime.) The pathway is rocky, so it's a bumpier ride, but nothing that would stop you from going. For new bikers who still swerve all over the place, this ride could be a good middle ground from Stanley Park/Seawall congestion to Barnston Island.
Central Park
Closer to home, we are lucky to have a great easy park to go biking in. Usually when I take the kids here, I run because it's also a great shady place to beat the heat. There are different play areas/playgrounds to bike to along the way. If you are looking for a longer ride, I suppose you could also head out of the park and along the path way under the skytrain.
That's it for now. I hope to go to a few more locations around the Lower Mainland and I'd love to hear of more if anyone has any suggestions.
