Lafarge Lake.

Lafarge Lake is what happens when a city turns an old gravel pit into its living room. The lake sits in Town Centre Park, surrounded by Coquitlam’s civic buildings, Douglas College and a cluster of sports fields, and it is encircled by a paved path that is just over a kilometre long. It is flat, it is lit, it is right beside a SkyTrain station, and in October it is lined with trees that turn every shade of orange.

The loop takes about twenty minutes, so most people do it twice. Walk it in the late afternoon and the low light catches the fountain in the middle of the lake and the maples and poplars on the west shore; walk it in the morning and the water is usually calm enough to mirror the whole scene, with the Coast Mountains rising behind Burke Mountain to the north. A wooden viewing platform on the south side and the small amphitheatre lawn on the east are the two best places to stop.

Families love it because there is nothing to worry about: no mud, no hills, no traffic, and a playground, spray park and washrooms within sight of the water. The Evergreen Cultural Centre and the city library are on the park edge if you want a cultural stop, and Coquitlam Centre mall is a short walk south for lunch.

The honest caveat is that this is a busy urban park, not a wilderness escape; expect runners, cyclists and, from late November, the installation of the winter lights display that briefly closes sections of the path. Check the City of Coquitlam page for event and parking notices, and consider taking the Evergreen Extension to Lafarge Lake–Douglas Station rather than driving.