Old buses parked in the Kootenay ghost town of Sandon, BC. Right: An abandoned train wreck in a forest in Whistler, BC.
If you're planning a road trip this spring or summer and don't spook easily, you may want to check out some of B.C.'s abandoned towns and places.
Canada's West Coast is filled with abandoned structures and eerie ghost towns and many of them are just a short trip from Vancouver.
From a former psychiatric asylum to what was once Canada's richest silver mining community, here are six abandoned places near Vancouver you can check out.
Sandon
Address: The foothills of the Selkirk Mountains
Why You Should Go: Sandon, located in B.C.'s West Kootenay region, was once the capital of the Silvery Slocan.
In the 1890s, Sandon was Canada's richest silver mining community with about 5,000 residents, 85 brothels, 29 hotels, 28 saloons, banks, breweries, two railways and dozens of stores and businesses.
A series of labour issues, a devastating fire, declining metal prices and the exhaustion of several mines caused the town's demise, beginning in 1899.
You can still visit this abandoned B.C. town today where you'll find the original city hall, historic homes, the Silversmith Generating Station, the Steam Train Exhibit and the Sandon Museum.
Parkhurst
Address: Whistler, BC
Why You Should Go: You'll find Parkhurst, an abandoned logging settlement, nestled in the woods above Whistler.
The former mill town dates back to 1926. The mill closed in 1956 and the home and buildings then became a "sanctuary for ski bums."
A few of the structures remain at Parkhurst to this day. You'll find old trucks, cars and tractors as well as three abandoned buildings, and remnants of fallen buildings.
One of the most photographed structures is a building with a graffitied image of a blue face.
Kitsault
Address: North Coast of B.C., at the mouth of the Kitsault River
Why You Should Go: Kitsault is a former mining town in northwestern B.C. that housed approximately 1,200 residents in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
According to the Vernon Morning Star, the town was inhabited for a brief time. When the price of silvery-white metal crashed, the mine shut down and all of its residents left.
The town now stands as a time capsule, with many buildings still standing in good condition like a school, homes, a mall and a pool.
In 2005, a businessman, Krishnan Suthanthiran, bought the town for around $6 million and renamed the community Chandra Krishnan Kitsault, after his late mother. He planned to revive the town, but those plans have not materialized.
You can still visit the town today, which is maintained by caretakers.
Riverview Hospital
Address: Pine Terrace, Coquitlam, BC
Why You Should Go: The Riverview Hospital is a big part of Coquitlam's history, according to the Coquitlam website.
The mental health hospital opened in 1913 as the Essondale Branch of the Provincial Hospital for the Insane.
The hospital grew from a single asylum structure to dozens of buildings that housed thousands of patients.
The site was renamed the Riverview Hospital in 1965 and closed in 2012.
Today, some of the structures are used for Hollywood productions. Several films and TV shows were filmed there including, Deadpool 2, Watchmen, the X Files, Riverdale and Supernatural.
While you can visit this site, there are certain rules you must follow. Visitors can visit between the hours of 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. You cannot visit outside of these hours as there is a 24-hour security patrol and CCTV monitoring.
You also cannot go inside the buildings without authorized access and the use of drones is also not permitted.
Whistler Train Wreck
Address: Whistler, BC
Why You Should Go: You'll find the remains of a train crash from the 1950s in a Whistler forest.
According to the Whistler Museum website, the train crash happened in 1956. Following the wreck, a railway company reached out to a local family to help get the train cars off the track.
The Valleaus family used its logging machine to relocate the train cars inside the forest, which is where you'll find them today.
Getting to the site is relatively easy. It's about a 1.5-hour drive from Vancouver and a quick 1-kilometre hike to get to the location. There's also a suspension bridge and a beautiful waterfall close to the train wreck.
Blue Hawk Mine
Address: Near the east slope of Blue Grouse Mountain, west side of Okanagan Lake
Why You Should Go: You'll find the Blue Hawk Mine in the B.C. woods near Okanagan Lake in Kelowna.
The former mine was once in operation, back in the 1930s.
According to the website Atlas Obscura, the mine only produced ore for a single year and has been abandoned ever since.
The mine is now a tourist destination, but is still considered a "dangerous and enigmatic abandoned site."
If you visit, keep in mind there is no infrastructure at this site so it's completely dark inside.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
Before you get going, check out our Responsible Travel Guide so you can be informed, be safe, be smart, and most of all, be respectful on your adventure.
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