#whistler #easy #whistler-easy
The Emerald Forest is a small area west of our place (so, across the highway). It's about 30 minutes on foot to get there, or 5m by car (parking is relatively easy). Being a bit further from the village, it's typically less crowded. There's a lot of foliage, which means that it's a good trail for rainy days. There are a few good views, and the nature is beautiful as always. It's a nice little trail to do if you have 1 or 2h before lunch, or you stayed indoor because of the weather, and you want to go outdoors. You can also bike it, it's a blue-rated cross-country trail with a few features. You should plan around 45 minutes to complete the loop.
When at the parking lot, go across the bridge above the river of Golden Dreams. After crossing the rails, keep left and go up under the power line, towards the forest. Entry is onto your left as soon as you're up there.
The Emerald Forest is a trail system, and you can tailor your walk a bit as you want. However there's no signage, so be sure to have a phone or GPS to navigate. There's a loop you can follow, though. If you're biking, make sure to do it clockwise to get the features in the right direction.
There are a couple of interesting things to see along the trail. There are a couple of interesting rock features that offer views, and a view on a bog in the middle of the forest, where trees don't grow:
You can also take some time to observe the nature. For example, learn to differentiate cedars and firs. The forest is mainly cedars:
Later in the trail, you will encounter a view point that offers a different view on Blackcomb (to your left) and Whistler (to your right). You can see the peak to peak in spanning between the two. Behind the peak to peak is a pointy mountain called the Fissile.
And find a downhill with rocks.
Carry on down that path, until you find the valley trail, and go right, back to the parking lot. Alternatively, you can take a right not far after the bottom of those rocks, and complete your loop in the forest.