With recent upgrades to the trails of
Rainbow Lake, Sproatt Mountain and
Train Wreck, runners and bikers have an
expanded playground to explore. With so
many trails to choose from, any list of local
running “favourites” is purely subjective —
when asked to comment on this writer’s
list, Titus offered a few of his own. Trail
runners, of course, come in all shapes and
abilities, as one’s pleasant experience might
be another’s gruelling nightmare. Here’s a
brief list of trails, broken down into Nice
(easy), Nasty (intermediate) and Gnarly
(more difficult).
Nice
• Valley Trail — No matter where you
are in the resort, you are probably not
far from a segment of the 40-kilometre-
long, mostly paved Valley Trail. It links
Whistler Village and Creekside with lakes,
parks and neighbourhoods and is used by
those commuting to work as well as those
out for a pleasant walk. Wayfinding signs
make it easy to head out for a run and find
your way back.
• Lost Lake Trails — Not far from
the Village, the trails in Lost Lake
Park encompass both doubletrack
paths (Panorama and Centennial) and
singletrack (Tin Pants, Molly Hogan
and Old Mill Road). For a slightly hilly
singletrack running experience almost
devoid of rocks and roots, start at the
PassivHaus near Whistler Village and
head up the wide path toward Lost Lake.
Look left for the sign to Tin Pants, a
twisty, up-and-down and nicely gravelled
path that leads to other, similar trails.
Nasty
• A River Runs Through It — One of the
signature Whistler singletrack trails, it has
been upgraded several times over the years.
The elevation gain is minimal but includes
enough twists, turns, planks, logs and
bridges to keep your interest. Most people
start the 4.3-kilometre, out-and-back
trail from Rainbow Park. Allow 30 to 40
minutes in each direction, or you can loop
back via Alta Lake Road or Bob’s Rebob/
Whip Me Snip Me on the north side of
the road.
• High Note — For a run or hike with
amazing alpine vistas, it is hard to beat this
one. Purchase a ticket for the Whistler
Village Gondola, then take the Peak
Chair to the summit for the start of the
9.5-kilometre route that loops back to the
Roundhouse Lodge. “High Note is nice
because you’re starting and finishing in
the alpine; so it’s beautiful, for sure,” Titus
said. Before you go, be sure to find out
whether the trail is snow-free and bring
sunscreen and an extra layer along as it can
be chilly even on sunny days. You’ll have
to pick your way down a few switchbacks
near the start, but there are some great
run-able sections and incredible views of
Cheakamus Lake and Black Tusk.
TRAVELLER I ADVENTURE
FINDING THE PERFECT GRIP
Josh Barringer, a technical writer for
Arc’teryx, is a passionate long distance
mountain runner, working with the
footwear design team testing the
company’s new shoes in the mountains
throughout the Sea to Sky Corridor.
Available at Arc’teryx Whistler, “the Norvan
VT strikes a balance between comfort and
confidence when navigating alpine terrain.
Running through Brandywine Meadows
up to Brandywine Mountain shows the
Norvan VT grip excel from trail to
rock and the absence of a rockplate
maintains the necessary nimbleness for
scrambling,” Josh said. (Image on page 28)
“There’s just such a great
variety of trails, and
certainly WORCA has been