The Beaver Pond Trail is a super short walk that is great for hot days or in the evening, when you might even see a beaver! There are loads of fun, epic hikes in E.C Manning Provincial Park, in BC (Canada) but sometimes you fancy a mini walk to finish off your afternoon. On occasions like that (or if you are just driving through,) it’s always good to know about teeny adventures.

We did this walk one afternoon as we were staying at Manning Park Lodge. It was very hot and we’d already finished a longer walk that afternoon, so we wandered over to Beaver Pond mostly because it was easy and short.

Beaver Pond trail map

Beaver Pond trail – the basics

Distance: 5km
Elevation Gain: minimal -90m
Time: 1-1.5 hours
What to bring:
The 10 essentials, plus bug spray and bear spray
Facilities: There is a loo at the car park by Beaver Lake
Dogs: Yep, dog friendly but keep them on a leash
How hard is it? Super easy
Extra notes: You’re most likely to see beavers at dawn or dusk.

Beaver Pond – Getting started

We started at the Manning Park lodge. The trail starts behind the swimming pool. You need to cross Gibson Pass Road, then you’ll find the Beaver Pond trail once you reach the Similkameen river. The trail goes right through the Manning Park Horse Camp.

Once you’ve found the main trail it is pretty simple. Keep following it the whole way to Beaver Lake. There are a few places where there are huge puddles.

Kid friendly trail

The trail is wide, grassy and surrounded by super tall trees. This would be a perfect trail for bringing children along. It’s pretty flat, cooled by the river that runs alongside it, and there is are frogs in the puddles along the way.

Beaver Pond

There is a sign once you reach the pond, next to a spacious car park with a rustic loo. If you don’t fancy walking the entire 5km, you can drive to this car park and take a peek at the pond without any walking at all.

The pond area is a pretty wetland with great views up to Windy Joe.

We have seen a beaver in Manning Park before, but it was a bit too hot on this occasion, so we didn’t see any. If you don’t mind braving the bugs, it may be best to visit at dusk when the beavers are most active.

Gorgeous wildflowers

Manning Park seems to have incredible wild flowers along all its trails. Beaver Pond was no exception. I especially loved these tiger lilies and wild roses, but the alpine lupines and the wetland flowers were all gorgeous too.

If you’ve tired out your legs from a long hike and are looking for something easy, visit this pond. Or, if you are driving through Manning Park and fancy a quick stop off. The trail to Beaver Pond may not be a long hike, but it was perfect for a mini adventure. Click on the pins below to save it for later.