UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest

Maintained by the Faculty of Forestry at the University of British Columbia, the UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest was established in 1949 from a Crown grant. The forest is located near Maple Ridge and a section of the park contains well marked trails used by hikers and joggers.

There are a variety of trails to hike in the area and it is best to pick up a map at the office building by the gate to the park. The map shows several trails by colour and it corresponds with the maps and trail markings throughout the park. For the following description, we have chosen a route that follows the blue trails, eventually looping around the area and ending on the red trails.

After passing through the gate, immediately go left and follow a small trail across the grass and into the woods. The forest becomes quite lush with lots of moss as it weaves it way through the forest and across a small stream. Pass the trail junctions and follow the blue trail markings as you begin to descend downhill towards a clearing. At the clearing, peer over the rocks and through the trees at the view of the farmlands in Pitt Meadows.

Continue following the blue trail markers to the right as the route gradually descends until reaching another stream crossing. The next section of the hike passes through a variety of mini forests used by UBC for research, evidence of which can often be seen by different colours of ribbons that mark the trees. Walk through each section, crossing the winding gravel road each time and continuing along following the blue trail markers.

Once you reach a crossroad with a large signboard on the other side, this will be the final crossroad in this section. The trail continues to the left of the sign and now begins to gradually climb. The site of the next clearing used to have a wooden bridge, however this bridge was destroyed and never rebuilt. The trail continues uphill as it now enters a section of forest that is less maintained from the trails you have been walking up until this point.

Go right at the trail junction and continue until you reach a gravel road. There is no trail directly across the road but instead you must walk about 100 meters down the road and watch for blue markings on the left to where the trail enters the forest again. The trail again crosses a small stream and winds through a forest area, crossing two more forestry roads before eventually reaching a wider road with a pond on the left. This marks the end of the blue trail and now the route will follow the yellow and red trails to return to the starting point.

Cross the culvert where the pond drains through and immediately go right onto the narrow trail following the yellow markers. Stay on the yellow trail and go right at the junctions until it merges with the red and green trails. Follow the red trail to the left and around a clearing to a gravel road and walk around towards where the trail opens up and arrives back at the gate where you began.