Brandywine Rock Climbing

From Vancouver

Drive north from Vancouver on Highway 99. Reset your odometer at Cleveland Avenue in Squamish and continue north towards Whistler. Turn left (west) off the highway, roughly 43 km past Cleveland Avenue, onto Callaghan Road. This road is 2.7 km north of Brandywine Falls Provincial Park and 1.5 km north of the bridge over Brandywine River.

Shortly after turning left on Callaghan Road, take another left onto the Brandywine Creek Forest Service Road, and reset your odometer here. You know you are on the right road when you see and smell the refuse station on your right. Continue down the road to the left of it. The road will open up to a large clearing. Keep on the road leading right of the clearing. Stay right on the road, which will turn into gravel, and you will start noticing yellow km markers. Between Km 3.1 and 3.5, there are two distinctive switchbacks, and the road becomes rougher. 

Ignore all the side roads and continue up the rocky gravel road that will begin to switchback and head up numerous steep hills. The gravel road is filled with pot holes and loose rocks; therefore, keep in mind your vehicle's clearance and ability to continue on this road. Do not hesitate to park on one of the pull-offs along the way if you feel the road becomes too demanding for your vehicle. At about Km  5.5, you will reach a fork with a sign pointing left for the 2WD lower parking lot and right for the 4WD upper parking lot. 

2WD Access

Continue left beyond the sign and ignore all the side roads heading left. The road is similar to the terrain you have experienced up to this point until reaching a long, steep hill full of loose rocks. Consider parking at the bottom of this hill; there are numerous pull-outs where you can park. The lower parking lot and trailhead begin at the top of this hill. The lower lot is at about Km 7.6 (50.07814, -123.18583, elevation about 925m), just before the bridge across Brandywine Creek. 

(I made it all the way before the last long steep hill leading to the lower parking lot with a 1998 Toyota Corolla. The only vehicle I've seen beyond this point was trucks.)

4WD Access

It is possible to take an alternate access route with a 4WD vehicle, where you can reach a parking lot, at Km 10.7, at an elevation of 1350 m. This access will reduce the hiking time by over an hour. At Km 5.5, take the marked route to the right and shortly after keep left. The road gets substantially rougher above this junction. Stay on the main road all the way to the parking at the end. The roughest spots on the road are arguably at Km 6.9, 7.8 and 8.7. At the Metal Dome trailhead, there is a small parking area with a spur road going uphill at roughly Km 9.1. There are some deep cross ditches beyond this. A small wheel base helps, and as of 2025, Subarus can still be seen beyond the Metal Dome parking. I wouldn't take mine up there. 

If you try to get to the upper lot, but then change your mind when you see the rough road at the 6.9 km switchback, it is best to drive back around to the lower lot. The hike is shorter and way more beautiful from there rather than hiking up the road.