Trip 039 - May 18, 2011 (Wednesday)

Minter Gardens Visit

Rosedale (near Chilliwack) BC Canada

Please, note: Minter Gardens is now permanently closed.

Distance From Vancouver: 115 km via Highway 1 East.

Liked: The landscaping, the plants, and the statues.

Of note: Constant noise from nearby Highway 1.

A Visit to a Much Bigger (and currently open) Similar Gardens near Victoria: Trip 297 - Butchart Gardens.

Other Trips in Chilliwack Area: Flora Lake Trail, Williams Ridge Trail, Mount Thom Lookout Loop Trail, Vedder Rotary Loop Trail, Teapot Hill Trail Hike, Chilliwack Dyke Trail, Greendrop Lake Trail, Mount Cheam Peak Trail, Ling Lake Trail Hike (off Chilliwack Foley FSR), Chilliwack Foley FSR, Chilliwack Bench FSR, Elk-Thurston Trail, Slesse Memorial Trail, Downtown Chilliwack BC Visit, Chilliwack Lake FSR, Radium Lake Trail, Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park, Minter Gardens, Town of Agassiz BC, Bridal Veil Falls Provincial Park.

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Minter Gardens was Metro Vancouver's answer to Victoria's Butchart Gardens. Not as large or as colourful, but, still, quite a well-landscaped garden it was. And there was no need to take a ferry - just drive from Vancouver on Highway 1 for about 1.5 hours, and there you were. Many interesting plants and fine landscaping attracted numerous visitors to Minter Gardens. Alas, the Gardens closed for good on October 14, 2013.

1. To get to Minter Gardens from Vancouver, you would have needed to take Highway 1 East for 115 kilometers to Exit 135. Here we are on Highway 1 East, and look at this small plane heading our way. We thought for a moment it was going to land on the highway, but, instead, it landed at the nearby Chilliwack Airport.

TransCanada Highway 1 East near Chilliwack BC Canada

2. After you'd take Exit 135, you would have followed the signs to BC Highway 9 (to Agassiz and Harrison Hot Springs).

TransCanada Highway 1 Exit 135 to Bridal Veil Falls, Agassiz, Harrison Hot Springs, Minter Gardens

3. Several minutes later, you would have arrived at a roundabout, where you would have needed to go West to reach Minter Gardens. The green sign on the right side was pointing to that direction.

BC Route 9 Near Rosedale BC and Minter Gardens

4. Once you started heading West, you would be getting ready to turn left onto Bunker Road in less than a minute. Another green sign was there to guide you.

5. A short while later, you were entering a very spacious and picturesque Minter Gardens parking lot. The exact address was 52892 Bunker Road, Rosedale BC, V0X 1X0.

Photo of Minter Gardens Parking Lot

6. Before you approached the cashier, you could have observed the impressive landscaping near the Trillium Restaurant.

Picture of Trillium Restaurant at Minter Gardens near Chilliwack British Columbia Canada

7. And here was the entrance. The admission prices were as follows: Adult (19-64) $17, Senior (65+) $15, Youth (13-18) $9.50, Child (6-12) $6.50, Tot (under 6) - free, Family (2 adults and up to 4 dependent youths under 18) - $38. There was a large gift shop in this building as well.

Entrance to Minter Gardens

8. The view of Minter Gardens right after you'd go past the entrance gate.

Minter Gardens

9. The cashier would give you a map of the place. The easiest course of action was to start on the right side and walk a loop.

Map of Minter Gardens

10. A visual representation of the beginning and end of the loop.

Start and Finish of the Minter Gardens Walking Loop

11. Once you'd start walking up the path, the name of the place appeared on the left side.

Minter Gardens Rosedale BC Canada

12. So, we took the path seen on the right side of the photo #10, and went slightly uphill. Highway 1 was running along the upper (North) side of the Gardens, and the traffic noise grew louder the higher we went. There was also an occasional noise from mini-tractors used by the landscaping crew. Our first featured attraction was a peacock with a flower tail.