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Vancouver Seawall
4. LUMBERMAN'S ARCH
At Lumberman's Arch, about Km 3, grassy slopes overlook a water park for children. This was once a site of a Squamish native village and tons of seashells from the midden were used to surface the first road in the park in 1888. It is a short cycle off the seawall to the aquarium and zoo. Fishermen wait hopefully beside the huge pillars that support the Lions Gate Bridge, which stands 80m above the water and spans 170m.
5. PROSPECT POINT
Prospect Point, perched on a cliff, is the highest point in the park, where a cairn commemorates the SS Beaver, the pioneer steamship of the Pacific which sank near by in 1888.
6. SIWASH ROCK
on Siwash Rock juts defiantly skyward from the sea. Often a grey gull clings to the small tree on top of a tuft of green on the 15m high column of grey rock. The rock is the subject of an Indian legend. Millennia ago a handsome young chief plunged into the waters to cleanse himself to ensure a spotless life for their newborn son, a canoe containing four giants demanded that the chief go ashore. He refused, and they were so impressed by his devotion to the child, that they transformed him into Siwash Rock, to stand forever as a monument to Clean Fatherhood. The legend was a princess Pauline Johnson, who is buried in a leafy glade near by. A stone monument marks her grave.
7. SECOND BEACH
Second Beach has a popular children's playground and a sandy beach, ideal for sunbathing and watching the sun set. On summer evenings, dancers take over the paved patio near by. The cycle trail crosses the main road through the park, and passes a Japanese-style bridge crossing a willow-banked stream. In the surrounding meadow, Canada geese graze for grain. Beyond are a pitch-and-putt golf course, lawn bowling, tennis courts and a fine Mediterranean-style restaurant. The trail continues over a humped bridge and follow the southern shore along Lost Lagoon to the start of the tour.
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