The Two Oasis of Vancouver

VanDusen Botanical Display Gardens and Queen Elizabeth Park dazzle visitors every year with their natural splendor and array of outdoor activity.

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Words by Dennis Begin

Scattered throughout the City of Vancouver are 240 municipal parks that are administrated by the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation Department. VanDusen Botanical Display Gardens and Queen Elizabeth Park are just two of the many picturesque parks near the center of the city. Both parks can be labeled as an ‘Oasis in the Heart of Vancouver.’

VanDusen Botanical Display Gardens

Locals often associate VanDusen Gardens with the Annual April Plant Sale or the Christmas Festival of Lights with its one million colourful lights. There is, however, much more to this 55-acre park. It’s located at the corner of Oak Street and 37th Avenue with free parking available.

Operated by the City of Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation with the Vancouver Botanical Gardens Association (VBGA) , VanDusen was once the Shaughnessy Golf Course before being converted into a recreation area between 1970 and 1975. The name VanDusen comes from William L. VanDusen, the President of the Vancouver Foundation that helped fund the park.

To explore the park, start a walking tour by downloading a trail map as there are plenty of trails and ponds to admire. To describe VanDusen as ‘beautiful’ is an understatement. With 7,500 plant species from around the world, along with the native pines, the park is a collage of plants and colour.

With 50 individual gardens, which include the Korean Pavilion and its unique Asian plant varieties, VanDusen encompasses paved paths, sculptures, ponds and pedestrian bridges. Mix in the sounds of birds, fountains, waterfalls and the fragrance of flowers and you pretty much have an oasis. Guided tours are also available that provide detailed information about the various plants.

One of my favourite sites is the Elizabethan Hedge Maze, a favourite among kids and adults alike who enjoy getting lost among 3,000 pyramidal cedars. Added to the ambiance are local wildlife, including owls, Canada geese, ducks, hummingbirds and turtles.

The facilities are fully accessible by wheelchairs, scooters and walkers. Other attractions include the award-winning LEED Platinum-rated Visitors Centre, garden-themed gift shop and the Shaughnessy Restaurant and Truffles Café. There are also classes and lectures available on photography, gardening, landscaping and general horticulture.

Upon entering the park, Livingstone Lake [pond] and fountain initially attracts your attention, but a feeling of tranquility remains when you leave.

Queen Elizabeth Park

This Vancouver park is affectingly known as ‘Little Mountain,’ a moniker created by being at the highest elevation in Vancouver at 500 feet (152 m) above sea level. Originally a gravel pit, the crushed rock was used to line Vancouver streets. In 1929, the city had alternate plans for Little Mountain with the digging of two reservoirs that provided the drinking water. The site is now called the Grace McCarthy Plaza, with the reservoirs now underground. Public pressure and the B.C. Tulip Association finally convinced the city to turn the rock quarries into sunken gardens.

When Queen Elizabeth and King George VI visited Vancouver in 1939, the Queen’s name was added to the park. Over the decades, the 130-acre park continued to evolve, taking 31 years to complete. One of the first developments in 1949 was the Arboretum, where trees and shrubs from around the world were planted for scientific and educational purposes.

The two quarries were finally converted into manicured sunken gardens with walking trails, flower beds, shrubs, ponds and pedestrian bridges. Responsible for the architectural design of the park was Bill Livingstone, Deputy Park Board Superintendent.

Since the 1960s, Queen Elizabeth Park has become a multi-purpose recreational area with facilities for many sports. Some of the facilities include the Vancouver Racquet and Lawn Bowling Clubs, Pitch and Putt Golf Course, disc golf, tennis, roller hockey, basketball and even a dog park. At the northern part of the park is the Hillcrest Aquatic Center, the Vancouver Curling Club and Nat Bailey Stadium, home to the Vancouver Canadians Professional ‘A’ Baseball team.

With thousands of tourists visiting the park annually, a family photo with the bronze statutes at Photo Viewpoint is customary. The panorama view includes downtown Vancouver, Burrard Inlet and the Northshore Mountains. Other popular artistic attractions include the Lions Clock, Rose Garden, Celebration Pavilion [weddings], the Dancing Fountain and many sculptures such as ‘Knife Edge-Two Pieces’ by artist Henry Moore.

Queen Elizabeth Park is located at 33rd Avenue and Cambie Street with the most prominent building being the Bloedel Floral Conservatory. This is a fibreglass triodetic geodesic dome that spans 43 m (140 ft) in diameter, 15 m (50 ft) high and has 4,700 m (15,386 ft) of display space. Philanthropists Virginia and Prentice Bloedel in 1969 donated $1.25 million to build the dome. The conservatory recently celebrated its 50th anniversary.

The original objective of the dome was to “…appreciate and understand the world of plants,” from tropical, subtropical and desert species. The conservatory displays 500 tropical plants such as orchids, plumeria and bromeliads. Along with the tropical plants are 150 exotic birds, such as the macaws, finches, cockatoos and numerous parrots. It was only a few years ago that 17,000 people showed up to see and smell a rare Indonesian plant called the ‘corpse flower [Titan arum].’

Queen Elizabeth Park is free, including most parking, but not the Bloedel Conservatory. The only restaurant on site is the ‘Seasons in the Park,’ but picnics are permitted.

Queen Elizabeth Park is also jointly operated by the Vancouver Park Board and the Vancouver Botanical Garden Association VBGA and also involved in this partnership is the VanDusen Botanical Gardens.

Take a day off, climb a mountain and enjoy the beauty of nature right near the centre of Vancouver.