The Sea to Sky Highway to Whistler with Limited Mobility
Our next stop on our Grand Western Canada Road trip was Whistler, British Columbia via one of the most beautiful roads in the world, the Sea to Sky Highway. The drive is truly breathtaking, with views of Howe Sound on your left and the Canadian Cascades to your right. Even if you don’t have time to stay in Whistler, we highly recommend making the drive.
If you make this drive, we recommend bringing your handicapped placard, if you have one, as there are many places in Canada where you will have options for preferred parking with a placard. We left ours at home, and it was a real mistake.
Take your time to do this drive. There’s no rush, and so much to see. The stops are worth it, and this is truly a beautiful place to explore.
GuideAlong
Again, we used the previously downloaded Canadian Rockies + Vancouver bundle from GuideAlong to guide us on this drive. As mentioned in our previous blog post about Vancouver, GuideAlong (formerly known as GyPSy Guide) uses GPS tracking via your cell phone and provides audio narration for nearby landmarks, attractions, or even just local history. Just download the app and tour content before you hit the road, and you can access the tour even offline. By the end of the trip, we were calling our GuideAlong “virtual guide” our dude friend and were always so happy to hear him chime in to give us information. As in Vancouver, the virtual guide was very helpful on our drive to Whistler.
Lions Gate Bridge
As we left Vancouver and head towards Whistler, we crossed the Lions Gate Bridge, named after a pair of mountain peaks north of Vancouver. You will pass a pair of cast concrete lions on the south approach to the bridge. The bridge was built by the Guinness family (of Guinness beer fame) and was sold to the province of British Columbia in 1955 for the cost of construction.
Shannon Falls
Our first stop along the Sea to Sky Highway was at Shannon Falls. If you are making this stop, be patient. There is limited parking and the wait can be long. There is no parking fee. We almost turned around due to the wait for parking, but in the end, we were glad we stuck it out. There are accessible toilets near the parking area. Additional accessibility information on the park is available.
We ate lunch at one of the picnic tables here. The walk to the viewpoint is about 350 m on a gentle gravel path. This walk was too much for Peggy, but Dave had no problems with his wheelchair.
If you are going to the Sea to Sky Gondola next, there is a walking path between the two, and it might be easier for those without mobility restrictions to walk rather than wait for parking at Shannon Falls. You also can catch partial views of Shannon Falls from the Gondola, but the view isn’t nearly as spectacular as from the viewing platform.
Sea to Sky Gondola
Our second stop on the drive was at the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish. The gondola is fully wheelchair accessible, and the staff really seemed to know what they were doing to support people with limited mobility like Dave and Peggy. The Gondola takes you to near the summit of Mount Habrich. If going in the summer, like we did, you can grab a meal at the Sky Pilot Smokehouse or take a walk across the Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge. The bridge gets crowded. While Dave’s wheelchair probably would have fit, it would have been a real challenge as no one would have been able to fit past him. Both Dave and my 78-year-old father, Ken, enjoyed walking across the bridge. Peggy watched from a safe distance at the café.
During the summer, if you have more mobility, there are several options for hiking trails and even an option for a Via Ferrata, but those things were well beyond Dave and Peggy’s capabilities. If you visit in the winter, there are also options for tubing, Nordic skiing, ski touring, and winter hiking.
At the time we visited, prepaid tickets cost $67.95 for an adult and $64.95 for a senior; however, prices may vary by date.
Brandywine Falls
Our third stop along the Sea to Sky Highway was at Brandywine Falls. Again, here there is limited parking, but we didn’t find the wait to be as bad as Shannon Falls. There is no parking fee. There are accessible toilets near the parking area. Additional accessibility information on the park is available.
The walk from the parking lot to the falls is about 500 meters, or about 10 to 15 minutes, and is on a flat gravel trail. The walk was a little too long for Peggy so she waited for us at a picnic table. Dave’s wheelchair could generally handle the trail; however, there was a bump when entering and exiting the bridge over the river that was too much for his wheelchair to handle so he had to stand up to get past that bump. There is a viewing platform that should be accessible but may have a slight lip. Brandywine Falls are really beautiful, and we were glad we made the stop.
Remainder of the Drive to Whistler
Along the Sea to Sky Highway, there are a number of good pullouts with views across Howe Sound and the Tantalus Range. You can also stop in the town of Squamish. In the winter, this might be a good place to spot bald eagles, as they are known to spend their winter here, feeding on salmon.
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