5 Great Things To Do At Green Lake, Whistler

Green Lake is one of the five easily accessible lakes around Whistler. It’s named after its vivid, fabulous turquoise hues, and it’s right by the Sea to Sky Highway, so it’s impossible not to notice. The highway runs along the lake, so you get pretty views even from the road, but it makes for a rewarding stop, as well.

There are great things to do at Green Lake in every season – that’s what the rest of this post is about, so keep on reading!

Why is Green Lake so green? Is it so all year?

Whistler’s Green Lake in winter

Unlike the alpine lakes at high elevations, Green Lake at 633 meters is accessible (and easily so) all year, though you can’t see its color when it’s frozen over (roughly from November to May). It’s fed by Fitzsimmons Creek and The River of Golden Dreams (this is a real name, yes), and you can probably tell by its color that it’s a glacial lake.

The River of Golden Dreams is a slow river coming from Alta Lake. Fitzsimmons Creek on the other hand is fast and powerful, coming from Fitzsimmons Glacier. So Fitzsimmons Creek carries rock flour to the lake from the glacier, and the tiny particles remain suspended in the water, reflecting light and causing those dazzling blue colors.

Best things to do at Green Lake in Whistler

Stop at the Green Lake Lookout along the Sea to Sky Highway

Green Lake appears along the road on your right as you drive past the village of Whistler on the Sea to Sky Highway. There’s a paved pull-out viewpoint, the Green Lake Lookout, where you can enjoy the view of the lake, with Wedge Mountain, Blackcomb Mountain and Whistler Mountain in the background.

There are better Green Lake parking options if you plan to do hiking, fishing or boating, but this roadside stop is excellent for a quick stopover.

Walk on the Valley Trail along the shore of Green Lake

The Valley Trail is one of the coolest outdoor attractions in Whistler all year. It’s a car-free, paved trail that connects Whistler’s neighborhoods, lakes and viewpoints, and you can choose to walk, bike, run, skate or rollerblade the 46 km network of trails. Certain sections of it are maintained for walking, cross country skiing and fat biking in the winter months. And our favorite section of the Valley Trail is the Green Lake walk, a piece that runs along the southern shore of Green Lake.

It’s only 1.3 km long, and the Valley Trail leaves Green Lake after the seaplane port, heading towards Lost Lake. However, you can continue walking to the sandy beach where Fitzsimmons Creek flows into Green Lake. Don’t let the word “beach” misguide you though, it’s a glacial lake, hence very cold! Green Lake Beach is not equal to “a swimming beach”, but it’s nice to walk there. You can see the walking route we recommend on this map. This is a walk we’ve done and loved in every season, and we can’t decide which is the best: the colorful summer version or the magical snowy winter version of it.

We recommend this walk instead of the official Green Lake loop trail, which is a much longer loop south of Green Lake. Unlike its name suggests, it doesn’t run along the lakeshore or around the lake, and you won’t get much lake views along the way either. Its southern trailhead is near the Fitzsimmons River Lost Lake Bridge, and the northern trailhead is near Wedge Creek bridge – both access points are hard to find and not marked. The Green Lake Trail runs parallel with the Parkhurst Trail for a while though, and that section is fun to do – read on to learn more about it.

The Green Lake walk is doable in any season

Summer brings out the brilliant turquoise hues of Green Lake. Fall comes with frosty days and a decorative blanket of snow on the surrounding mountain peaks. In winter the lake is frozen and covered by snow, and it doesn’t fully thaw until mid-spring or late spring. The lakeshore is walkable in any season, you share it with bikers in summer and cross country skiers in winter.

Even though you can’t see the color of the lake in the cold months, early sunsets bring magical colors instead:

You need to wait until late for summer sunsets though. Sunset is around 9:30 in July.

To access this walking route directly, you can park in the small parking lot at Golden Bear Place. It has room for about 10-15 cars, but we’ve never found it too busy.

Arrive to Green Lake by seaplane

There’s a small seaplane harbor on Green Lake, and seaplanes land there regularly in the summer months. If you want to take a unique route to Whistler, book a seaplane ride from Vancouver. Longer tours give you time to look around the lake or even go for a hike (there are many, as you might have already guessed).

Launch your canoe from Green Lake Park, Whistler

One of the small Whistler neighborhoods lies on the shore of Green Lake near the highway. Cute little houses line the lakeshore, and a small park is tucked between them: Green Lake Park. It’s a waterfront park, with boat access to Green Lake, but it’s easy to miss if you’re not actively looking for it.

Green Lake Park doesn’t have much: a washroom building, a tiny forest with picnic tables and the rocky lakeshore with the views. The views – they are the best! If you bring a canoe, you can paddle around Green Lake from here.

Parking is limited at the Green Lake boat launch, but there’s room for a few cars just off Lakeshore Drive.

Explore the trail to Parkhurst Ghost Town

A worthwhile, short and relatively easy Green Lake hike is the Parkhurst Trail. Parkhurst Ghost Town is directly across Green Lake Park. It was an old logging town between the 1920s and 1950s (before Whistler existed), then it was abandoned.

It’s a popular, quirky attraction these days. You can access it either from the water or on several hiking trails, which can get confusing without a map. But the good news is that any of these trails are great any time of the year. We found it especially magical in winter, with the lake, the collapsed houses and abandoned, wrecked trucks under a pretty white blanket of snow.

Read this, too: 10 Best Hiking Leggings & Yoga Pants For Women

How to access Parkhurst Ghost Town from the water?

Just look for the small pier right across Green Lake Park, dock your canoe and walk around to explore the abandoned structures.

How to access Parkhurst Ghost Town on hiking trails?

There are quite a few trails around Parkhurst, and it can be confusing, because you rarely see trail signs, and some trails overlap. On the bright side: you’ll likely end up in Parkhurst. 🙂 But you want to do so on the most scenic trail.

So what are the choices? The Parkhurst Ghost Town Trail (also called Parkhurst Ridge Trail) has pretty good views, and the Parkhurst Loop at the end is the most special. The Green Lake Loop has some nice sections, and part of the Sea to Sky Trail also takes you there, but it doesn’t offer much scenery (uhm… it’s a gravel road mostly, with power lines above you; not exactly a nice hike). The old road once ran along the southern lakeshore, this is how Parkhurst could have been accessed, but these days the road was turned into a trail.

We did the Parkhurst Ghost Town Trail, and we did it in winter, with microspikes.

Read this, too: Which Are The Best Microspikes For Hiking?

It’s a well-beaten track, because it’s one of the easiest winter hiking trails in Whistler, and it was quite obvious to follow for the same reason. (Following others’ footsteps sometimes works. Not always though.)

Parkhurst Ghost Town hiking essentials:

• Trailhead: bridge over Green River, just off the Sea to Sky Highway (Wedgemount Lake turnoff)
• Parking: before or after the bridge leading to Riverside Drive (you probably won’t be able to cross the bridge in winter)
• Length: 3.7 km one-way
• Difficulty: easy
• See the trail map here!

Where to park at Green Lake, Whistler?

For a quick stopover, you can park at the Green Lake Lookout along the Sea-to-Sky Highway. 

Parking at Green Lake so that you can join the Valley Trail and stroll along the lakeshore is possible in the small parking lot at Golden Bear Place. This Green Lake parking lot has room for about 10-15 cars, and it’s located in a quiet residential neighborhood – please respect that when you visit.

Green Lake Park parking is very limited, it means a few car spaces just off Lakeshore Drive.

Green Lake in the summer

Whistler Green Lake FAQ

How to get to Green Lake, Whistler?

Green Lake directions from Vancouver are very simple: head north and drive on British Columbia 99, the highway which serves the Squamish–Lillooet corridor. It’s a paved road, but winter tires are required from October 1 to March 31. It means either having the three-peaked mountain and snowflake symbol or the M + S (mud and snow) symbol on the tires. Also, check road conditions in the winter, because heavy snowstorms might mean road closures or challenging driving conditions.

Can you swim in Green Lake in the summer?

Green Lake beach

I mean, it’s not forbidden, but I doubt you really want it. It’s a large lake, and it’s fed by a glacier. The result: Green Lake doesn’t warm up much in the summer. If you want to swim, visit any of the other Whistler lakes which are much more suitable as swimming lakes: Lost Lake, Alta Lake, Alpha Lake and Nita Lake. Alta Lake is known to be the warmest.

How cold is Green Lake?

Green Lake is fed by glacial streams running straight from the high alpine. I couldn’t find exact numbers, but it’s the coldest body of water in Whistler, and that number likely lingers around 1-5°C.

Can you walk around Green Lake?

There’s no loop trail around Green Lake. There’s tiny Green Lake Park, and there’s a short section of the Valley Trail that runs on the lakeshore – they both offer stunning views, but they are not hikes, not even long walks.

There’s Green Lake Loop which might sound like a loop around the lake, but it’s not. It’s a loop south of the lake, and it offers some lake views, but it’s not a lakeshore trail. Part of the Parkhurst Ghost Town Trail also has views of Green Lake and access to the shore.

But there’s no hiking trail all around Green Lake. You can paddle around it. 🙂