The mountain, water and city views from high atop Burnaby Mountain make this a popular destination for locals and visitors alike. The lush-green hillside offers the perfect place to throw around a Frisbee or fly a kite. A network of trails also offers a variety of hiking, walking and jogging options. For children, a playground is tucked into the upper hillside.
The Centennial Pavilion area features the resplendent Rose Garden, with its vibrant colours, heady scents and great variety of roses. Towering over the distant city are the tall Kamui Mintara (Playground of the Gods) sculptures. The Kamui Mintara comprises more than a dozen carved poles created by Japanese sculptors Nuburi Toko and his son, Shusei.
This 1,423 acre park has many significant ecological assets, including a mixed deciduous/coniferous forest, diverse wildlife—such as blacktail deer, bald eagles and many perching birds—and creeks that provide critical habitats for fish and wildlife. The park area, with its many trails, provides untold opportunities for outdoor recreation, nature interpretation and education in Burnaby.
Playground of the Gods at Burnaby Mountain
While on Burnaby Mountain, visit the astonishing Playground of the Gods, a home away from home for 50 or so totem poles carved by Japanese artist Nuburi Toko and his son, Shushei. The Tokos are members of the Ainu culture, Japan's first inhabitants. Installed on the top of an open slope looking west over Coal Harbour, the poles honour the ties between Burnaby and its Japanese sister city, Kushiro. The spectacular setting inspired Toko to imagine it as Kamui Mintara, or Playground of the Gods. The poles represent the story of the gods who descended to earth to give birth to the Ainu. Animal spirits such as whale, bear, and owl adorn the tops of the slender poles that are clustered together in groups of twos and threes. A killer whale and a brooding raven stand apart from the rest, looking west across the Strait of Georgia towards Vancouver Island (and Japan). A stunningly beautiful setting, this is one of the best examples of art in a public place in the Lower Mainland.
Centennial Rose Garden at Burnaby Mountain
Stop and smell the roses at the Centennial Rose Garden, featuring more than 900 bushes of modern Hybrid Teas and Floribundas. For those wanting to develop their green thumbs, free advice and practical demonstrations on rose culture are available every Saturday from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon.
