Cleveland Dam

Description

The Salmon Hatchery/Cleveland Dam, Capilano Road, North Vancouver. In August all the salmon are returning to spawn and they are blood red in colour. You can watch the salmon leaping up the falls, learn about the hatchery, and view the salmon in huge tanks. The Dam is Vancouver's water supply, and there is a lovely park with rest area. The surrounding area is forested with wonderful walking paths.

The Cleveland Dam is a concrete dam at the head of the Capilano River in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada that holds back Capilano Lake. Part of the Capilano River Regional Park, it is not used for generating hydroelectricity, but rather for storing a portion of the Lower Mainland's drinking water. It was completed in 1954, and is named after Ernest Cleveland, first chief commissioner of the Greater Vancouver Water District.

Hike or drive from the Capilano Suspension Bridge to take a guided tour of this immense edifice that captures and stores the region's water supply. Surrounded by lush forest and spanning 640 feet across the canyon, the dam has a bridge that visitors can cross to watch the water's torrential release. Seventeen billion gallons of the life-giving liquid are stored here. The free bus tours led by the dam's staff inform visitors about where the water comes from, where it's going, and everything in between.

Cost

Free

Getting There

Take Highway 1 and exit off the Capilano/Grouse Mountain exit 9 (exit 14) and drive north along Capilano Road about 1.5 km to the fish hatchery turnoff, or continue on Capilano Road for another kilometre to the Cleveland Dam parking lot.

Capilano Drive

North Vancouver, BC V7R 4J1 Canada
+1 604 682 2222 (Visitors Bureau)
Open Hours
8am-6pm daily, call for tour info
http://www.gvrd.bc.ca