An indoor pool with mineral-rich water, bathing areas along the lakeshore and an art gallery open year-round give Harrison Hot Springs several different sides. There are also walking and hiking trails, as well as cultural events that take place each year. When planning your trip, it’s worth first choosing your main focus: water, outdoor activity, or art and culture.
Lakeshore and Harrison Lake
The lakeshore in Harrison Hot Springs has sandy beaches, parks, bathing areas and playgrounds. Harrison Lake is on a different scale from these individual waterfront areas: the lake is accessible from Harrison Hot Springs, is fed by glaciers and is approximately 60 kilometres long. At its widest point, it measures about 9 kilometres. These approximate measurements convey its size, while the facilities along the village waterfront offer a practical connection to a stay in Harrison Hot Springs.
Sailing, boating, windsurfing, kayaking and fishing are all possible on Harrison Lake. This offers several ways to spend time on the water. A public boat launch in Harrison Hot Springs belongs to the Village and is operated by the Fraser Valley Regional District; a fee is charged for its use. If you’re planning to use a boat launch, be sure to account for the applicable fees.
Trails and a place to take a break
Harrison Hot Springs has well-maintained walking and hiking trails, including the Miami River Greenway. Another specific destination is the recreation area on McCombs Drive near McPherson Road. It includes the Spirit Trail, picnic tables, a washroom facility, a parking lot and interpretive signage. This means trails and a recreation area with several on-site facilities can be considered as different ways to spend time outdoors.
Harrison Lake and the trails appeal to different interests: water sports and fishing are among the activities mentioned for the lake, while hiking and walking trails are available on land. The choice therefore depends less on a single major attraction and more on the kind of activity you’d like to include in your stay.
Art, museum and events
The Harrison Festival of the Arts is a ten-day event held every July on the lakeshore. The program includes concerts, an artisan market, visual art exhibitions and interactive workshops. If the festival is the reason for your trip, check the specific event dates when planning. Independently of the festival, the Ranger Station Art Gallery is a public art gallery in Harrison Hot Springs that is open year-round.
Another cultural stop is the Harrison Sasquatch Museum at 499 Hot Springs Road. Its exhibits include “Land of the Giants” and the Sts’ailes Longhouse Room, as well as carvings and interactive displays. Admission to the museum is free. If you’d like to discover Sasquatch carvings and statues around the village, you can also include the Sasquatch Trail in your plans.
Sasquatch Days is held each year jointly by the Village of Harrison Hot Springs and the Nation of Sts’ailes. Activities include war canoe races and Medicine Walks along the shores of Harrison Lake, in the traditional territory of the Sts’ailes People at the old village site of Qwólts. The event therefore combines activities on the lake with a specific cultural and local connection.
Mineral water and cultural significance
The mineral waters of Harrison Hot Springs have been revered as a “healing place” by the local Sts’ailes First Nations for thousands of years. The Harrison Mineral Baths offer a distinct water experience from the lakeshore: they are an indoor pool centrally located in the Village, with the water kept at 38 °C (100 °F). Lakeshore bathing areas and an indoor pool with a stated water temperature are therefore two different aspects of a stay.
When choosing a hotel in Harrison Hot Springs, you can start by considering which of these aspects of the village you’d like to shape your stay. The annual festival offers a reason to plan around specific dates in July; the gallery, open year-round, is independent of it. Trails, water activities and cultural destinations round out the options, without prescribing a set itinerary for your trip.
Discover more destinations: Mission, Kent, Hope, Fraser Valley A, Chilliwack, Agassiz, Yale, Abbotsford.
For the broader travel overview: Fraser Valley.
