Fraser River boat tour takes you under five existing and future Metro Vancouver bridges
After a period of reduced operations due to the pandemic and the cost inflationary environment, the Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours (PRT) have made a strong comeback for the 2024 summer season, with full operational capacity restored.
The iconic MV Native is once again regularly plying the waters of the Fraser River in the Lower Mainland, offering locals and visitors alike a chance to experience the natural beauty and industrial history of the region from a unique perspective.
Based at the dock directly in front of the Inn at the Quay in downtown New Westminster, PRT has been a staple of the region’s boat sightseeing offerings for more than three decades.
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“The return of Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours marks an important milestone for New Westminster,” said Gerardo Corro, executive director of Tourism New Westminster.
“We are thrilled to bring back this iconic experience that showcases the natural beauty and historical significance of the Fraser River to those exploring Metro Vancouver. Guests can look forward to an authentic and memorable adventure that connects them with the river’s historic past in New Westminster, Where Stories Meet.”
Following the initial pandemic-related shutdown, Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours initially operated at approximately 50% capacity. However, as the economic environment became increasingly inflationary, the company faced financial challenges that ultimately led to a complete cessation of its services in 2023 due to its inability to afford fuel costs.
MV Native of Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
MV Native of Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
MV Native of Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
MV Native of Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Certainly a whimsical mode of transportation.https://t.co/lZQNw5zhXn pic.twitter.com/nGzMHYuktd
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 25, 2024
Paddlewheeler now has scheduled sailings for most days of the week for the operating season through early October 2024, including multiple sailings on Saturdays and Sundays.
This includes lunch and dinner cruises, with itineraries reaching as far east as Historic Fort Langley, as far north as Pitt Lake, or as far west as the wetlands of Ladner in Delta.
Most of these PRC itineraries use the flagship MV Native, a vessel with a 100-passenger capacity across two passenger decks that whimsically employs old-fashioned paddle wheelers for propulsion. Despite its vintage appearance, the MV Native is relatively modern, having been built in 1988 as a replica of a paddlewheeler that previously navigated the Fraser River from 1863 to 1921. Over a century ago, such vessels transported pioneers, fur traders, gold rush miners, and families among the communities along the Fraser River.
But unlike its inspiration, which used steam power, the MV Native has a contemporary diesel-hydraulic engine.
Metro Vancouver’s other renowned paddlewheeler boat cruise vessel is the MPV Constitution, built in 1983. It is another vintage replica, operated separately by Harbour Cruises, based in Coal Harbour in downtown Vancouver.
However, Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours’ use of the MV Native on the Fraser River offers passengers a route that is often overlooked and under-appreciated, given that it is a working river.
For example, the “Sunset on the Fraser” dinner cruise — which includes a three-course dinner freshly prepared onboard the MV Native — running almost every Saturday through the end of September is a three-hour roundtrip journey along the Fraser River central segment within Metro Vancouver. It begins at downtown New Westminster and circles around after passing by Douglas Island — where the Fraser River and Pitt River meet between Fraser Heights in Surrey and Mary Hill in Coquitlam.
SkyTrain Expo Line’s Skybridge in the foreground. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge, with the existing Pattullo Bridge and New Westminster Bridge also shown. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge, with the existing Pattullo Bridge and New Westminster Bridge also shown. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Going under SkyTrain Expo Line’s Skybridge across the Fraser River.https://t.co/lZQNw5zhXn pic.twitter.com/hUxRKgc0lH
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 25, 2024
This particular cruise provides a unique perspective of five major bridges in Metro Vancouver, including SkyTrain Expo Line’s 1990-built Skybridge, the 1937-built Pattullo Bridge, and the 1904-built New Westminster Bridge.
The New Westminster Bridge is a railway-only swing bridge — a key route for freight trains (Canadian Pacific, Canadian National, and BNSF) and passenger trains (VIA Rail and Amtrak) to reach the railyards near downtown Vancouver and on the North Shore (via the Thornton Tunnel and Second Narrows Rail Bridge). Except when it is open to enable marine traffic to pass through, the bridge is often closed given the high frequency of train traffic.
The cruise also provides a limited-time view of the Pattullo Bridge’s existing arch structure before its demolition starts in late Fall 2025.
The existing Pattullo Bridge, of course, will be replaced by the brand new replacement Pattullo Bridge that is currently being constructed immediately to the east. It will reach completion and open in 2025.
Work just recently reached completion on the final segments of the new cable-stayed bridge’s main tower, now rising approximately 550 ft above the Fraser River — taller than the towers of the Port Mann Bridge.
In late Spring 2024, the first segment of the bridge deck was installed, and the first suspension cables went in to support the first bridge deck segment. The cruise provides a rare up-close view of the major construction project, which is the fourth bridge on the route.
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge, with the existing Pattullo Bridge, New Westminster Bridge, and Skybridge also shown. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge, with the existing Pattullo Bridge, New Westminster Bridge, and Skybridge also shown. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
June 2024 construction progress of the new Pattullo Bridge, with the existing Pattullo Bridge, New Westminster Bridge, and Skybridge also shown. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Going under the 1937-built Pattullo Bridge, 1904 New Westminster Rail Bridge, and the under-construction new replacement Pattullo Bridge.https://t.co/lZQNw5zPMV pic.twitter.com/wEUw9n49u4
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 25, 2024
The New Westminster Bridge was originally built with two decks, with the lower deck used for the railway and the upper deck used for vehicle traffic, which replaced a previous ferry service. After the existing Pattullo Bridge opened, the upper deck for vehicles was removed. There have been some considerations lately to replace the aging railway bridge.
Further upstream, the fifth and final bridge on the cruise is the Port Mann Bridge, which is the second bridge with the name, replacing the original 1964-built arch bridge. When the current cable-stayed bridge opened in 2012, it was the world’s widest long-span bridge, with 10 vehicle lanes and space reserved for a potential future rail rapid transit line.
Throughout the cruise, a guide, speaking through the onboard audio system, will highlight natural and manmade features along and near the river, including historical tidbits.
In the early 20th century, a frenzy of real estate speculation swept through the area due to the construction of the Panama Canal and the anticipated impact it would have in realigning global shipping routes. This included plans for the new city of Port Mann, situated near the south end of the present-day Port Mann Bridge. The Canadian Northern Railway had drawn up a master plan for a major port city with a railyard, the terminus of its trans-continental railway, and residential and commercial developments across a significant stretch of land it owned in North Surrey.
Port Mann Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Port Mann Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Port Mann Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Port Mann Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Port Mann Bridge. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Going under the Port Mann Bridge.https://t.co/lZQNw5zhXn pic.twitter.com/2o2FQKesuo
— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) July 25, 2024
However, this ambitious plan never came to fruition due to the impacts of the First World War and the subsequent economic downturn, and the Canadian Northern Railway was later acquired by the federal government due to its financial troubles and merged with the Canadian National Railway. The major railyard for the area on the riverfront was ultimately built, known as the CN Rail Thornton Yard, but the railway route ultimately continued to the North of the Fraser to terminate in Vancouver.
Other points of interest include remnants of the historic BC Penitentiary in New Westminster’s Sapperton area. This includes the boathouse, now home to the Vancouver Wooden Boat Society, on the Fraser River, which once brought in prisoners. Additionally, there are various dilapidated American and Canadian navy ships from the Second World War rusting away on Surrey’s riverbank, along with wooden remnants of a large paddleboard now sprouting vegetation.
On this cruise of the working river, the MV Native also passes by storeys-high piles of road salt just east of the historic site of the Fraser Mills sawmill, which first began accumulating as part of the region’s preparations to host the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Second World War ships in North Surrey. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Historic boathouse of the BC Penitentiary in New Westminster. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Road salt pile near Fraser Mills in Coquitlam. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Needless to say, the cruise also provides a unique perspective of the surrounding mountains, natural landscapes, and wetland habitats, as well as the emerging tower skylines of the Lougheed-Burquitlam corridor, Coquitlam Town Centre, and New Westminster.
The newly-built pair of Pier West residential towers by Bosa Development on downtown New Westminster’s riverfront now have a commanding presence, reaching 584 ft with 53 storeys and 472 ft with 43 storeys, respectively.
For those eager for a more comprehensive cruise along the working river, Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours also offers a “Historic Fort Langley” lunch roundtrip cruise between downtown New Westminster and Fort Langley. This cruise extends beyond the Port Mann Bridge and Douglas Island, passing under the Golden Ears Bridge to dock at Fort Langley. The itinerary includes a two-hour layover at Fort Langley, in addition to the 7.5-hour cruise. But there are only a handful of such sailings per year, coinciding with key holidays.
Skyline of the Lougheed-Burquitlam corridor. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Skyline of the Lougheed-Burquitlam corridor. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Pier West towers in downtown New Westminster. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
Pier West towers in downtown New Westminster. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)
- You might also like:
- An entire New Westminster neighbourhood used to be a massive prison
- From Brentwood to Burrard Inlet: All about the 3.2-km-long railway tunnel deep under Burnaby and its fake house
- New Pattullo Bridge opening pushed to Fall 2025
- Uniqlo features iconic New Westminster public art sculpture destroyed in fire four years ago
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