Directions: The trail head for Granny Falls is located just above at the second of the two dams in Colliery Dams Park. To reach parking lot situated by this dam turn off onto Nanaimo Lakes Road at the intersection where 6th turns into Wakesiah. This intersection is located just before or after Vancouver Island University depending on which way your coming from. Drive along side the Nanaimo Military Camp then turn right into the concrete parking lot around 250m up the road. Park here and your adventure begins at the trail in the left back corner of parking lot that boogies along side the lake.
A friendly warning to those who may be nervous around dogs or who are hoping to bring there nervous pup/kitty along for the walk, the trail around this lake is a designated off-leash area and is almost always very busy.
Trail: This trail is rated as short and easy, that being said make sure to wear some good hikers as there is uneven ground towards the end and muddy spots in the spring and fall. The trail will take you along side a stunning lake, over picture perfect wooden bridges, through an art gallery of a tunnel and make you some furry friends before your departure.
Reaching the falls takes around ten minutes, to start follow the well trotted trail along side the lake until you reach a set of wooden stairs and a bridge which crosses over Chase River. Once at the top of these stairs turn left and descend down the root strewn hill towards the river. Here you will reach Nanaimo’s street art gallery, the art is constantly changing and some pieces are really good and some not so good. Cross under the tunnel to the other side where you will meet a small grove of Alder trees. Pass through the grove and congratulations you’ve made it to Granny Falls! Snap some shots, eat some snacks and enjoy your time.
More: Although the extensive network of trails in this park only officially weave around two of the dams, Colliery Dams consists of four dams, three of which are stocked and great for Rainbow Trout fishing. In the summer many residents of Nanaimo come here to hang out and take a dip in the waters of the first and second lakes that are within the park boundaries. The body of water above Granny Falls is the Nanaimo #1 Reservoir, this was the open air reservoir where much of the water supply for South Nanaimo passed through on the way to the southern community’s homes. By 2015, after over 100 years of use, this reservoir was replaced by the closed concrete reservoir now standing adjacent to it, which receives the treated water from Nanaimo’s filtration plant to distribute through the community.
Bonus: Colliery Dams is steeped in history and over 100 years old. Like many other relics mentioned when talking about Nanaimo, Colliery Dams is a link to Nanaimo’s past as an industrious coal mining town. In 1910 construction of the dams had started and by the next year it was completed. These dams were used to provide water for the coal industry, for coal washing, for the miners, there mules, and there horses. Not long after completion homes near the pipeline tapped into the water for there own use and soon the rest of South Harewood followed.
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