My husband and I are going to Whistler in July with three other couples for a hiking vacation. We will be staying at Edgewater Lodge. We are looking for a special place we might be able to hike to, have dinner and hike back out. Any suggestions? Linda Bowen, Whistler Al...are you out there?

Hi,
I answered this question in another post last month.
If you are talking about dining at a restaurant, then your best bet is to hike the Lost lake trails into the village,have dinner, and then you can hike back via the valley trail along Whistler golf course, through Meadow Park. It is about a one hour hike each way. If the mountain is serving dinner at the top, you may be able to hike up the mountain , and then take the gondola back down after dinner.Let me know if you need help deciding on a restaurant. Cheers, Al

Thanks, Al. I think I have some problems with access to the message board. I tried running your name on a word search before I asked this question. Your posts are uniformly helpful. I appreciate you taking the time to answer again and apologize for being a nusiance.

linda,
I am planning a 50th b-day surprise hiking trip for my husband in july also. just now deciding on hotel in whistler area. what made you choose the edgewater?
we are in whistler july 10-14.
did you consider vancouver island at all?

Hi
I have read three or four books on the area and looked at tons of websites. We are eight middle aged people who love to eat, hike and drink a few beers. We don't want to be in a glitzy sort of place, we like to kick back at the end of the day and have a pretty view. We also wanted a rather small property. Edgewater seemed to fit the bill. Check out their website. We will be there July 10-17.
We did Vancouver Island last year. We loved it, very pretty and interesting. We stayed in the Tofino area. Several years ago we stayed in Victoria, so it was on to something new.

Good choice,cmc, The views from the lodge are gorgeous, and you can hike, canoe, or fish from the lodge. The patio at Nicklaus North golf course( 10 minute walk from the lodge) is a great place for a few beers in the afternoon. You should plan a canoe trip down the River of Golden Dreams, as it ends right at the lodge.It is a slow pleasant drift, that takes 2 to 3 hours. The Meadow Park rec centre, with gym, squash,pool, and ice rink is right across the highway from the lodge too.There is a 4 to 5 hour return hike to Parkhurst ghost town , that is very nice, coupled with a picnic lunch, and you should definitely take the gondola to the top, and hike into Singing Pass. It is spectacular. Have a great trip. Cheers, Al

I guess I better start making ressies if you folks are taking up most of th edgewater that week! we plan to stay in vancouver city for a couple of days for urban hiking. trying to decide whether to exit YVR and head right up to whistler or go to town for beginning of our vacation. guess it depends on availability at the edgewater. thanks whistler al and linda for the info! perhaps we will see you during that week.

Thanks, Whistler Al. You are full of great suggestions. Anything else that comes to mind, send it on!
Rutheye, As to YVR we are looking at O Canada House for our Vancouver night. The other option we are considering is the Fairmont Airport (if our flights are at 0600...which is a distinct possibility). I found this past summer that the Fairmont frequently runs some excellent last minute rates.

cmc,
we are trying priceline for our last night (also 6 am flight)at the fairmont airport hotel. figure we have 5 months to procure.

for downtown: tentatively the marriott pinnacle ...we have marriott rewards ressie booked with them but may try priceline and cancel if we get it at a bargain price! want water views and walkability to major downtown stuff.
called edgewater and they are open all week except for july 16th. so we would have to head from YVR right up to whistler on the 10th. flight gets in at 2:30 pm but if I am not mistaken, sun sets late in BC?

my question is: will we need a car up in whistler? or just take local hikes from the hotel?

plan to do the city 'carless'.

Ruth, my guess is Whistler Al is a better resource than I am on the car issue. We are renting one.
One of the couples is coming in a day later than the other three. Is there a good public transportation option from the airport to Whistler?

there is a bus that goes from the airport up to the village. perhaps you could retrieve them from that locale.

Thanks, Rutheye.