Maple Ridge

Maple Ridge is located approx 47 kms about one hours drive from Vancouver. The district lies on the North shore of the Fraser River with the district of Pitt Meadows bordering to the west. The area has a population of approx 65,000 but still manages to maintain the atmosphere of a small town.

Maple Ridge offers a wide variety of

Parks , trails and sports fields within the community. The parks offer many different facilities from children's play areas, picnic sites, scenic areas to ball diamonds and other sports fields. The extensive local Trails are ideal for biking, hiking, running and horseback riding, while the dyking system is perfect for recreational purposes.

For a more educational experience, the Maple Ridge Wetlands are a perfect opportunity to observe wildlife and a wide variety of plants. As one of British Columbia's largest and most popular parks, Golden Ears Provincial Park has an extensive trail system which is ideal for hiking and horseback riding. Alouette Lake is a favourite spot for swimming, boating, wind surfing, water skiing and fishing. There are also over 400 campsites in the park.

The Grant Narrows Regional Park is located at the mouth of Pitt Lake, the biggest lake in the Lower Mainland; there is access to extensive trails which lead to the foot of Alouette Mountain.

Kanaka Creek Regional Park is a beautiful picnic area, with around 12 kms of trails which pass stunning waterfalls and even a fish hatchery.

Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows have an excellent variety of Recreation Facilities between them.

There are a total of six golf courses that offer year round golf (a rarity in Canada!!). Maple Ridge is known as the Horse Capital of Canada and has many Riding Clubs and Equestrian Centres. The Greg Moore Youth Centre provides excellent amenities from recreation and education to computers for all youth 13 to 18 years of age.

The award winning Maple Ridge Leisure Centre has a competition sized pool, a teaching pool, a leisure pool, a wading and toddler's pool. There is also a water slide and swirl pool. The gymnasium, weight room, squash and racquetball courts complete what is a fantastic community facility.

The Pitt Meadows Family and Recreation Centre has outdoor pools, ice arena, curling facilities, a fitness room and sports hall. There is a seniors lounge and day care also available.

The Planet Ice skating rink has two NHL size rinks as well as a sports bar and grill and a pro shop. For senior citizens, the Ridge Meadows Seniors Activity Centre offers many programs and activities and has a beauty parlour, pool room and workshop. There are also activity rooms which are used for cards, crafts, meetings and socializing. The Curling Rink is home to the Golden Ears curling club and has recreational and competitive programs.

Education in Maple Ridge is served by School District 42 - there are 25 elementary schools and five secondary schools in the district. There is also the Ridge Meadows Career and Training Centre which offers accredited post-secondary certificate programs in a variety of different areas. The Thomas Haney Centre is a secondary school and the Douglas College campus all under one roof. The centre was designed to allow students to progress from grade 8 to the completion of a college diploma uninterrupted.

Maple Ridge has many smaller strip malls which offer a good variety of stores and services, the two main shopping centres are Haney Place Mall and Valley Fair Mall, both have major retailers.

Health services are provided by Fraser Health, which ensures that 24/7 emergency care is available at the Ridge Meadows Hospital.

Public Transport is provided by Translink - there is a bus service which operates throughout the district and surrounding areas and also links to the lower mainland communities. The West Coast Express is a high speed commuter train which provides a service to downtown Vancouver.

Maple Ridge is made up of seven distinct neighbourhoods, Haney, Albion, Hammond, Yennadon, Ruskin, Whonnock and Websters Corners. There is a good mix of housing types available. The housing prices in Maple Ridge are amongst the lowest of the GVRD the average price for a detached house is $346,945 (June 05).