Gates Park — Attraction in Port Coquitlam

I just found this park a few weeks ago when a friend suggested we take a dip in the river on a blistering hot day. I couldn't believe that I have been living in Cloverdale for years, missing Okanagan Lake and Kelowna ever since moving here a few years ago for work. I LOVE swimming, wading, sitting in a river, anything to do with being outside and enjoying the water. I am so grateful that I found this park. It is so conveniently located, just about 20 minutes from Cloverdale, the water is clean and the varying depths make it a great place to bring my 6 year old niece and not worry about her wandering in or getting caught in water over her head. I just plop a lawn chair right in the middle of the river and supervise. Well, unless I am sitting or lying back directly in the water, letting the cool, clean water rush over me. It's great for floating/tubing as well. One section has a rope swing and there are plenty of spots all along the river to find your own area. What really surprised me was the temperature of the water. I usually find the water really cold and difficult to get into at first when swimming outside, but not this one. It is a great temperature actually! A wonderful surprise! I've been back 3 or 4 times a week since the first visit, and plan to suck up every last day of summer cooling off there. The park also has tennis courts, fields, pathways, restrooms, although I haven't explored much outside of the river itself. Another nice surprise was the availability of parking. Even on the really busy weekend days I had no problem finding a spot right in the park, next to the trail, across from which is the entrance to the water. I'm wanting to go back just writing this review. Anyway, it might seem that I am a little over excited about a simple river/park, but it has brought back something that I have been SO missing since moving from Kelowna. I have been really not enjoying my summers here without a place to swim nearby, so it is a really big deal for me to find a place that I can just pop by to cool off after work (landscaping), without having to make a whole day trip out of it and fight with the other campers/weekenders all rushing to the same campground/parks outside the city. I am so happy to have found this place, really. Check it out,...

Huge park with multiple sports fields, running/walking tracks, and outdoor gym stations. Fantastic food at Pajo's (at the main baseball diamond).

Tennis courts, turf soccer/lacrosse fields, baseball diamonds all scattered throughout the park. The Traboulay/PoCo trail run around the outside of the park.

Fantastic park for exercising, but watch out for bears. Spotted a black bear cub 10 feet off the trail on Sunday July 17th at about 10pm. Momma bear was...

Gates Park is beautiful, part of the Poco trail so for cycling there is a lovely elevated track for bikes and walkers next to the river. Tennis courts, great play equipment, training stations if you want to work out and in the summer people come here to swim in the river because it's shallow in places. Home to Poco Soccer and a few baseball pitches, toilets that were clean and open; what's not to like. There is a bit of parking lot...