Vancouver's Best Cycling Routes
A curation of our favourite local rides, ranging in difficulty, for both road and gravel riding. Start and finish your ride at Enroute, and share your stories from the road with us over a coffee.
Indian River Rd. & Demo Forest
87km | 1,350m
Difficulty: Hard
Platform: Road
Sometime you forget you are just outside the heart of the city when doing this route. A bigger challenge than other's on the list, however well worth it for the scenery you get along the way. From the shop, head east out of the city and cross Ironworker's Bridge. Cruise along Dollarton Highway towards the base of Mount Seymour. Rather than climbing up Seymour, make a right on Indian River Drive. The road is an out-n-back, taking you up a few hundred meters, then down the winding hairpins towards the waters of the Indian Arm. Take a break at the dock and go for a swim, before climbing up the steep gradients (some pitches >20%) of Indian River Drive. Following IRD, ride to Lillooet Road and enter the Seymour Demonstration Forest. This section is closed to cars, and is truly the best Vancouver has to offer for road riding.
Horseshoe Bay
65km | 950hm
Difficulty: Moderate
Platform: Road
Take a tour through the beautiful scenery of West Vancouver. The route heads around Stanley Park and across Lion's Gate Bridge before arriving at Marine Drive. From here, the route poses a series of undulations in the road and some fun twist and turns along the northern side of Vancouver Harbour. Stay right out of the roundabout and hop on Old Highway 99 (Horseshoe Bay Rd.) towards the lookout, and enjoy one of the nicest stretches of road in the city. The route has an optional, but lovely, dip down towards Whytecliff Park before heading back along Marine Drive towards the shop.
University Loop
35km | 285m
Difficulty: Easy
Platform: Road
A Vancouver classic and one of our favourites for the Diversion group rides. Leave the shop and head West along the water, passing some of the city's most popular beaches. The route takes you up Spanish Banks and around the university. The route briefly goes through Pacific Spirit Regional Park before heading back along the beaches.
Pacific Spirit
28km | 285hm
Difficulty: Easy
Platform: Gravel
The go-to gravel route within the city. An easy, hour and a bit, route that goes west from the shop along Jericho and Spanish Banks beaches. Pop into the park up a steep and punchy trail that will connect you to the rest of the Pacific Spirit trail network. Some fun twists and turns loop you around the park and back out to the beach.
Triple Crown
120km | 2,750hm
Difficulty: Hard
Platform: Road
Vancouver's crown jewel. Conquer all three of the North Shore mountains in one epic ride. The route crosses Ironworker's Bridge and heads towards the base of Mount Seymour for the first of three big climbs on the day. After Seymour, cut up Lillooet Road and traverse along the top of North Vancouver. Most people stay low along the water, however we prefer to go across Braemer Road to Montroyal Road to avoid traffic and congestion. The second climb is Grouse Mountain, the smallest of the three, as the road only goes to the base of the tram. Enjoy a little bit of off-road after the Cleveland Dam as you head towards Cypress Mountain. Enjoy the views of Vancouver Harbour before ascending Cypress and completing Vancouver's most famous route.
Stanley Park
27km | 285hm
Difficulty: Easy
Platform: Road
An iconic Vancouver route, taking you around Stanley Park's perimeter for two laps. Enjoy great views of the city skyline, water, and urban landscapes are you loop around the park. The road is one-way, but be cautious of other cars and pedestrians along the way.