| A stroll though colorful tree shaded gardens | | | | forest. |
| takes you to the canyon edge. You step onto | | | | |
| swaying planks and there you are, 230 feet | | | | The original Capilano Suspension Bridge was |
| above the floor of Capilano Canyon. Your | | | | built by George Grant Mackay in 1889 to |
| pulse quickens. Your hand finds the cool | | | | access prime forest lands that he purchased |
| steel cable and you breathe in the cedar | | | | and protected from logging. The bridge was |
| scented rainforest air. Each step creates a | | | | originally suspended on hemp rope. Todays |
| gentle wave on the bridge surface. You start | | | | bridge uses 2 foot steel cables capable of |
| across the 450 foot span. Somewhere, around | | | | supporting 2 fully loaded 747 airplanes. |
| the midpoint, you will be compelled to pause | | | | |
| and marvel at the view. Clear water rushes | | | | Millions of people have visited the bridge |
| far below, streams cascade down the canyon | | | | since it opened. And you can too if you pay |
| walls, gravity defying trees cling to | | | | the almost $30 admission charge. |
| vertical rosk. You climb the gently sloping | | | | |
| bridge to its far side and step into a forest | | | | The bridge is on Capilano Road, which is also |
| of cedar, Douglas fir and hemlock. There are | | | | the road you take to get to Grouse Mountain. |
| giants here. Trees that began their climb | | | | So it is possible to do both in one day. The |
| toward the sky before Europeans set foot on | | | | bridge is about 5-10 minutes away from the |
| North American shores. | | | | Grouse Mountain Tram which takes you to the |
| | | | top of the mountain. |
| Following the winding paths and elevated | | | | |
| timber from boardwalks to the Treetops | | | | If you take any tour of Vancouver from any of |
| Adventure. It will take you high above the | | | | the tour companies, it will almost always |
| forest floor for a squirrel-eye view of a | | | | include a stop at the Capilano Suspension |
| thriving coastal rainforest. This 650 foot | | | | Bridge. If you go on your own, be ready to |
| long rainforest canopy walk is made up of a | | | | see plenty of tour buses and tourists while |
| series of cable bridges suspended between | | | | you are there. |
| platforms that reach as high as 12 stories | | | | |
| and take you from the forest floor to the | | | | Go on a slow day and you can have the bridge |
| upper branches and from deep in the forest to | | | | almost to yourself. If you are afraid of |
| the edge of the canyon and back again. It is | | | | heights you might not want to look down. The |
| a unique encounter with the heart of the | | | | bridge does sway a little as you cross. |