Lower Mainland. 
Know before you go
Advisories
Safety information
- South Fraser Trail Conditions Report [PDF] (August 31, 2023). Scroll down to the Cultus Lake Provincial Park entry.
- ATVs and other off-road vehicles are not permitted within the park. This includes vehicles registered under the ORV Act.
- Swimmer’s itch may be present in Cultus Lake. To learn more, visit the HealthLink BC swimmer’s itch information page.
- Sudden drop off close to shore. There is a sudden change in depth of water which may cause swimmers to quickly become out of their comfort zone and swimming ability. There is an elevated risk of drowning.
Special notes
Take all your equipment with you when you leave, including recyclables, to help keep the park clean for everyone. Dumping large items, like chairs and tents, is not permitted.
Review the detailed guides under visit responsibly for more information on staying safe and preserving our natural spaces.
Visit responsibly
Follow these guides to ensure your activities are safe, respectful, and ecologically friendly:
Maps and location
- Park map [PDF] (updated June 2008)
- Westside Group location park map [PDF]
- Park brochure [PDF]
- Delta Grove and Clear Creek campground map [PDF]
- Entrance Bay campground map [PDF]
- Maple Bay campground map [PDF]
- Map Bay cabins [PDF] (updated 2019)
- Horse trail map [PDF]
- Google Earth KMZ file of the hiking trails (for use in Google Earth and/or and Google Maps)
Getting there
Cultus Lake Provincial Park is 11km southwest of Chilliwack. Access to the park is off Highway 1 at the Yarrow or Sardis exits. It is 16km to the park entrance from Yarrow and 10km from Sardis via the Columbia Valley Highway, which bisects the southeast section of the park.
Camping
Cabins and huts
There are 25 visitor cabins next to the Maple Bay campground available to reserve.
Each cabin is 200 sq ft and sleeps up to 5 guests, with 1 queen bed, 1 set of single bunk beds and 1 single bed. They include heating, lights, and a power outlet (110 volts). Each has its own private covered patio complete with picnic table and a stainless-steel cooking surface. The cabins do not have fire pits, but you can bring your own propane fire pit. Bedding, dishes and cooking stoves are not provided. Running water, washrooms, and showers are available at central shower building. Each cabin comes with one assigned passenger-vehicle parking spot. Additional parking spots are not available.
Pets and tents are not permitted.
Reservations for the cabins are available through the BC Parks reservation system. Cabins can be reserved up to 4 months in advance. Fees are $90 per night, plus the cost to reserve ($6 per night plus tax, to a maximum of $18 plus tax). The senior's discount and the Social Services Camping Fee Exemption do not apply.
Cabins and huts
Frontcountry camping
This park offers vehicle accessible campsites. Campsite reservations are accepted and first-come, first-served sites may be available.
There are four campgrounds within this park:
- Clear Creek has 82 sites
- Delta Grove has 58 sites
- Entrance Bay has 52 sites
- Maple Bay has 106 sites
There are 19 double sites and no pull through sites. There is no parking available for extra vehicles. If no staff is available to help find a site, reserved sites are posted on the gate house board and remaining sites are on a first come, first served basis. Camping is not available if the gate is locked. The nearest store is in the municipality of Cultus Lake approximately 2km away.
Take all your equipment with you when you leave, including recyclables, to help keep the park clean for everyone. Dumping large items, like chairs and tents, is not permitted.
Camping fees
- Vehicle-accessible camping fee: $35 per party per night
- BC Senior’s rate (day after Labour Day to June 14 only): $17.50 per senior party per night. Read the camping fees page for information on senior camping discounts.
Frontcountry campgrounds
Group camping
There are four group sites available at Cultus Lake park:
- Two at Honeymoon Bay, each of which can accommodate 15 to 45 people.
- Two at Westside, sites A and B, each of which can hold a maximum of 30 people and provides an area for RVers and tenters to enjoy the lake.
To get to the Westside group site, approach from Chilliwack on Columbia Valley Highway, approximately 7km from Chilliwack.
All group site users must check in at the Cultus Lake gate house first to register and get camping information.
Group sites are open from March 31 to October 10. Click here to book a group site or for more information.
Group site fees
Youth group camping charges per night are $1 per person (6+), with a $50 minimum and $150 maximum. Read the Youth Group policy for more information.
Regular group camping charges per night are the base rate for the site, which is $120 per group site per night, plus $5 per adult (16+, minimum charge for 15 adults), plus $1 per child (6 to 15 years old). Children under six camp for free!
Groupsites
Winter camping
Delta Grove campground offers camping in the off-season. There are no services, and sites are available on a first come, first served basis. Fees are $13 per night.
Things to do
- South Fraser Trail Conditions Report [PDF] (June 20, 2024) (scroll down to the Cultus Lake Provincial Park entry)
There are five main trails for you to enjoy and admire the wonders of nature:
- Teapot Hill Trail is located near the Honeymoon Bay group site. There are some steep sections making this trail moderately difficult. This trail is a 5km round trip (2 hours) viewing Cultus Lake and Columbia Valley.
- Seven Sisters Trail connects Entrance Bay and Clear Creek campgrounds. Along the trail, stands a group of large Douglas-fir trees, once numbering seven (2 hours return).
- Cultus Lake Horse Trail is 20km round trip (5 hours), traveling from Edmeston Road to Watt Creek, which joins the north and south ends of the park. The trail was closed in August 2013 due to an active landslide in the area. BC Parks installed warning signage and reopened the trail to the public, however; we strongly recommend visitors do not cross the landslide area during periods of intense rainfall.
- Giant Douglas-fir Trail begins 150 metres west of Delta Grove campground. The walk leads to this forest goliath and also connects with Clear Creek campground (45-minute return walk).
- Maple Bay Trail starts near the day-use parking lot and provides a self-guiding interpretive stroll past some of the park’s natural wonders (30 minutes).
For your own safety and the preservation of the park, obey posted signs and keep to designated trails. Shortcutting trails destroys plant life and soil structure.
Swim only within the buoyed swimming areas. There are wharfs available in the Entrance Bay and Maple Bay day-use areas. Beaches are sandy. Please note that there are steep, dangerous drop-offs along the lakeshore.
There are no lifeguards on duty in BC Parks.
Canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddle boards are permitted on Cultus Lake.
There are kayaking opportunities in this park.
Cultus Lake provides good sports fishing for rainbow trout, cutthroat trout and Dolly Varden. Nearby Chilliwack Lake is noted for steelhead as well as whitefish and Coho salmon.
Anyone fishing in British Columbia must have an appropriate licence. To learn more, see the fishing and hunting guide.
Find fun summer outdoor learning experiences with Discover Parks Ambassadors here all summer long. For specific dates, along with many more seasonal and year-round activities, visit discoverparks.ca.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC has a fun, hands on, Learn to Fish Program that will teach basic angling skills to youth under 16 years old.
Pets/domestic animals must be on a leash at all times and are not allowed in park buildings or beach areas except for Entrance Bay and Maple Bay dog beach areas. You are responsible for their behaviour and must dispose of their excrement. Backcountry areas are not suitable for dogs or other pets due to wildlife issues and the potential for problems with bears.
Bicycles are permitted on some of the Cultus Lake trails, especially the horse trails. Many of the other trails are for pedestrians only. Bicycle helmets are mandatory in British Columbia.
For details on e-biking within Cultus Lake Park, see the e-biking section.
Please note that bicycles with electric assist motors (e-bikes) are permitted on signed or designated trails within Cultus Lake Provincial Park, provided they meet the definitions and criteria for e-bike use as outlined in the BC Parks cycling guidelines.
Waterskiing is available on Cultus Lake. Travel on the lake is restricted to counter clockwise.
A maintained horse trail, also used by hikers and cyclists, connects Edmeston Road at the north end of the park with Watt Creek Trailhead. Please note that horses are not permitted on Road 918. The Cultus Lake Horse Trail is open all year but the parking lot is closed during the off-season. There are approximately 20km of compact gravel and shale horse trails. Camping and stop-overs in day-use areas are not permitted with horses.
The trail was closed in August 2013 due to an active landslide in the area. BC Parks installed warning signage and reopened the trail to the public. We strongly recommend visitors do not cross the landslide area during periods of intense rainfall.
Facilities
Accessibility information is available for these areas of the park:
Jade Bay boat launch
Maple Bay boat launch
There are double paved boat launching ramps located at Maple Bay and Jade Bay.
- The boat launches are open from 7 am to dusk.
- There is parking available for boat trailers during the day, only.
- Boats cannot be left in the water or beached overnight.
- There is no marina or moorage available in or within the park.
- Boaters are cautioned to remain well clear of buoy-marked swimming areas at all times.
- Water skiers and jet skiers can enjoy this lake.
- Cultus Lake is closed to open air exhaust motors.
- There are no vessels allowed on certain parts of the lake.
- There is a speed restriction of 5 km/h at the north end of the lake as buoyed and signed.
Clean Air Campground
To promote better air quality and provide a variety of camping options for all visitors, Maple Bay Campground sites 66 to 97 are designated as Clean Air Campsites. Fire rings have been removed and wood burning fires are prohibited. Campers are allowed to use individual propane fire rings.
Campfires are allowed in designated campsites only. You can conserve firewood and air quality by keeping your campfire small. Be prepared to bring a portable stove for cooking.
Firewood can be purchased in the park or you may bring your own wood. Fees for firewood are set locally and may vary.
To preserve vegetation and ground cover, please don’t gather firewood from the area around your campsite or elsewhere in the park. Dead wood is an important habitat element for many plants and animals and it adds organic matter to the soil.
Campfire bans may be in place. Before lighting a fire, check for bans or restrictions on BC Wildfire Service and on local or Indigenous government websites.
Maple Bay day-use area
There are picnic grounds with tables and garbage containers at Entrance Bay, Maple Bay, and Spring Bay day-use areas. There are parking facilities for 700 vehicles. Change houses are located at Entrance Bay and Maple Bay. The available beaches are sandy. Entrance Bay and Maple Bay picnic areas have flush toilets. Spring Bay campground has only pit toilets. Campfires are prohibited. However, some picnic tables have BBQ stands for hibachis.
There is a beach area for dogs, but they must remain on leash. There is a gate that is locked between dusk and 8am during which time the day-use area cannot be accessed.
Take all your equipment with you when you leave, including recyclables, to help keep the park clean for everyone. Dumping large items, like chairs and tents, is not permitted.
Operating dates
- Entrance Bay day-use area is open from March 31 to October 9.
- Maple Bay day-use and boat launch is open during the peak season.
- The Spring Bay day-use area is open all year with no services.
- Watt Creek is open from March 31 to the Labour Day long weekend.
- Spring Bay and Tea Pot Hill parking lots are open all year, weather permitting.
A sani-station/dump is located on the roadway leading to the Maple Bay boat launch and is open only during the campsite operating season. The nearest sani-station/dump to the park is the Husky Truck stop in Sardis.
Sani-station use fee: $5 per discharge
There are hot showers available at all four campgrounds. Maple Bay day-use area has a cold shower facility. There are change houses located in Maple Bay and Entrance Bay campgrounds.
About this park
Cultus Lake was known as Swee-ehl-chah or Tsowallie by local First Nations. Cultus is a Chinook word derived from the Salish word Kul, meaning 'bad' or 'worthless'. The lake was considered 'bad' in a First Nations legend.
The park was given Provincial Park status in 1948.
The park lies in the transition zone between the Coastal Western Hemlock and Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zones. Douglas-fir and broadleaf maple are the dominant species. Hemlock is evident in the understory, largely on the wetter east side of the lake. A recent park expansion added 202 hectares including important foreshore habitat for the endangered Cultus Lake Sockeye, and the threatened Cultus Pygmy Sculpin.
The park provides habitat for a variety of wildlife including coyote, blacktail deer, beaver, shrew mole, and 100 species of birds. Cultus Lake contains rainbow, Dolly Varden, steelhead, and cutthroat trout, and all five varieties of salmon.
Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples
BC Parks honours Indigenous Peoples’ connection to the land and respects the importance of their diverse teachings, traditions, and practices within these territories. This park webpage may not adequately represent the full history of this park and the connection of Indigenous Peoples to this land. We are working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to update our websites so that they better reflect the history and cultures of these special places.
Contact
| Reservations, changes, and cancellations | Our call centre is open from 7 am to 7 pm Pacific Time. There is a $5 fee for reservations, changes, or cancellations made by phone.
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| Park operator | This park is operated by Sea to Sky Park Services Ltd. |
| General questions and feedback for BC Parks | We answer emails weekdays from 9 am to 5 pm Pacific Time. |
