Bright Walk (White Rock Promenade)– Festive hike on Semiahmoo Bay
Quick Facts:
Location: White Rock BC
Distance: 4.4 km (2.7 miles) round trip
Elevation Gain: minimal
Contact: City of White Rock Recreation and Culture
Recommended Guidebook: Urban Trails Vancouver, BC (Mountaineers Books)
Notes: Bright Walk runs from late November until mid-January. Check city website for exact dates. Promenade open year round but note dogs prohibited from April 1 through Sept 30 and year round on pier.
Trailhead Directions: From Blaine WA follow BC 99 north to Exit 2. Then head west on 8 Ave (which becomes Marine Drive) for 2.1 km (1.3 miles) to promenade parking (fee required). Additional Parking can be found farther west along Marine Drive.
Good to Know: kid-friendly, dog-friendly, exceptional birdwatching, historic
Take a stroll on White Rock’s Promenade during the holiday season when it is transformed into the Bright Walk. Admire sculptures, historic sites and a row of trees decked in lights for the holidays. Be sure to amble out on the city pier, too. It’s the longest pier in Canada and it too will be sporting festive lights. White Rock’s Promenade makes for the perfect Christmas Day hiking destination!
The promenade runs for 2.2 km (1.4 miles) from East Beach to West Beach along White Rock’s busy commercial district of restaurants, ice cream parlors, bars, cafes and shops. I’s meant to be enjoyed slowly. Savor it sights, smells and sounds and delight in all of its charms; sculptures, displays, bird watching, people watching, and sunsets. And during Bright Walk, enjoy more than 50,000 lights, a Christmas Tree and beautiful LED tunnel.
The brick and paved path runs parallel to a busy rail line. It was this railroad line connecting Seattle to Vancouver that stimulated the growth of White Rock into a coastal retreat. Owing to its proximity to the international border, White Rock flourished during the American Prohibition Period with Yanks looking for some spirits to go along with their leisure. Semiahmoo Bay was also a hotbed of bootleggers during that time period. Enjoy the historic panels along the walk.
Walk west through the East Beach and come to Grand Chief Bernard Robert Charles Memorial Plaza with its totems. The plaza honors a long time respected leader of the Semiahmoo First Nation whose traditional lands included White Rock, Crescent Beach and Point Roberts, Birch Bay and Drayton Harbor in Washington.
Continue walking west coming to White Rock’s namesake, a large glacial erratic that was made white by seabird guano. Today the rock is covered in white paint to thwart graffiti attempts. Almost midway come to White Rock’s Pier which juts 470 m (1542 feet) into the bay. It’s definitely worth the side trip and it’s magical when it is lit up over the bay.
West of the pier the promenade crosses the tracks and comes to the heart of Bright Walk where most of the lights are on display and where most folks will be congregating. Stroll through the LED tunnel before coming to the historic train depot now a museum. The Promenade continues to West Beach terminating at Bayview Park.
For more details on this hike and 54 others in the Metro Vancouver Regional District, pick up a copy of my NEW Urban Trails Vancouver, BC (Mountaineers Books).
