Photo: Hubert KangWest Vancouver, BC

Bowen Island Day Trip

A ride described at Gravel Buddies

How we describe routes →

Challenging Demanding on several fronts at once, or a lot of riding on busy roads.

Difficulty Our overall read of how demanding a route is. We score surface roughness, climbing, singletrack, and how far it runs from services. The route publisher's own rating, a lot of busy road riding, or sheer scale can push the tier up, never down.

Derived from OpenStreetMap. Good data, not perfect. Spot something wrong? Tell us.

How we describe routes →

Bowen Island is the easiest island escape from Vancouver, twenty ferry minutes from Horseshoe Bay, and this 28 km loop makes a full day of it. A mix of quiet paved roads and gravel, with about 600 m of climbing and some genuinely rough patches, plus coffee and lunch options in Snug Cove before the boat home.

Get the route on Gravel Buddies →Free route map on Ride with GPS ↗

Where this ride goes#

Approximate lineGet the real route ↗

Map key & layers

Show stops Mute other bike trails

Food & DrinkAttractionsSuppliesAccommodationBike Services

Dashed line = our rough sketch of where the ride goes. The rideable route lives at get the route from Gravel Buddies.

☕Stops worth stopping for50 along this route

Communities along this route#

Bowen Island 50

Bowen Island (50)

Bowen Island Historians Museum and ArchiveWelcoming· Museum / Gallery · Free

Bowen Island PubWelcoming· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Bowen Island Visitor Information CentreWelcoming· Visitor Centre · Free

Catching Stars GalleryWelcoming· Museum / Gallery

Doc Morgan'sWelcoming· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Doc Morgan's Pub & RestaurantWelcoming· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Alderwood FarmInfo· Resort · $$$$ · Upscale

Hummingbird Oceanside SuitesInfo· Resort · $$$$ · Upscale

Kitoki InnInfo· Resort · $$$$ · Upscale

Nectar Yoga RetreatInfo· Resort · $$$$ · Upscale

Plus the fast-food chains — High Tide Grill

+39 more in Bowen Island →

Slice and dice these stops in the directory →

These stops come from our directory of welcoming places across BC. Spot something wrong, missing, or closed? Tell us and we'll fix it.

⛴Getting here, bike and allBowen Island

Getting to this ride, bike and all#

Bowen Island is the handiest transit doorway for this ride. Ferries and buses will carry you and your bike there:

Gibsonsbest: ferry
Vancouverbest: bus + ferry
Nanaimobest: ferry
Victoriabest: bus + ferry

Or pick any two places on To & Fro →

🪶Traditional territories

This route travels through the traditional territories of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla, Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group, and Skwxwú7mesh-ulh Temíx̱w (Squamish).

Territory data from Native Land Digital, for educational purposes only.

Ready to ride it?

Get the route on Gravel Buddies →Free route map on Ride with GPS ↗Got the GPX? Add BC Bike Stops to it →