Located on Bowen Island, a short ferry ride from Horseshoe Bay.

• For details of ferry fares and schedules please refer to www.bcferries.com
• Take Trans Canada Highway to the Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal in West Vancouver. Alternatively, public transportation is available by bus from downtown Vancouver to the ferry terminal.
• Follow the Highway signs to the Bowen Island Ticket kiosk.
• When you leave the ferry walk or drive up through the village to the first crossroads. Miller Road goes right and Dorman Road goes left. Take Dorman Road left.
• Within a short block you will see the “Village Baker” on the right. Take the road to the right which is Village Drive and follow this road through a series of switchbacks until you come to a stop sign at a T junction. A Rivendell sign here points to the right.
• Turn right and follow this road to the large sign: Rivendell. At the top of this driveway is ample parking. The address at Rivendell is 600 Rivendell Rd.
• Walking will take about 25 minutes for a person of average level of fitness, please see google maps for walking instructions. There is a bus that will take you to Artisan square which leaves you with about a 10 minute walk uphill. The bus to Artisan square is #280, please Bowen tourism website for bus schedule https://bowenislandmunicipality.ca/our-community/transportation/. There is a set of stairs beside Bowen Island Wellness centre, follow these stairs and the path and stairs across the road, take the stairs to the top, turn right then right again onto Rivendell Dr. you will see signs to Rivendell Lodge ahead. If you would like to hitch hike, Bowen island has an organized lift program. You will find a lift stop at the bottom of Village Drive (beside the village baker) it is where you can wait and very likely an islander will be happy to drive you up the hill.

The Hermitage is located in a quiet rural area of Bowen Island, which can be challenging to get to without a car. However as a form of pilgrimage, some retreatants travel to the Hermitage via foot/bus. If you plan to do this, please read the bus/walking directions below beforehand so you can prepare accordingly.

Unlike the main Rivendell Retreat Centre, the Hermitage is quite far away (11 km) from the ferry terminal in Snug Cove. Bowen also has bus service, but it is limited to a few main roads. The Hermitage is a 4 km hike from the nearest bus stop.

The Hermitage is located in an area called Cowan Point in the south part of Bowen Island, near the golf course. Google Maps

Once you have booked your retreat, please email the booking agent again to specify which ferry you plan to take, and what mode of transport you plan to arrive by, so that the host knows when to expect you.

Directions for those travelling by car

• From Horseshoe Bay take the Bowen Island ferry to Snug Cove
• As you drive off the ferry, you will be on Bowen Island Trunk Road
• Follow Bowen Island Trunk Rd as it becomes Grafton Road for 4.2 km
• Turn Right after the S curve onto Adam’s Road and continue for another 1.2 km
• Turn Left onto Sunset Road
• Follow Sunset Road as it becomes Cowan Point Drive
• Turn Right onto Fairweather Road
• Take the first Left onto Fairweather Bay (it is a hairpin turn). Follow this road to a fork where you will see a yellow “NO EXIT” sign where the road turns right. DO NOT TURN RIGHT, instead STAY LEFT of this sign and straight ahead onto the driveway 1070 and then down the hill to the Hermitage house. The Address for the Hermitage is 1070 Lindy's Road.

Directions for those travelling by Bus and Foot

• If you plan to arrive by bus and foot it is best to pack light as the last portion of your journey will involve a hilly 4 km hike.
• For the first part of your journey, you will take the C10 Bluewater/Snug Cove Bus. This bus goes to the west side of the island. Please check the bus schedule ahead of time: Translink.ca or 604 947 0229
• You can catch the C10 bus near the library on Cardena Drive, which is the first street on your right as you walk off the ferry.
• Tell the bus driver that you want to get off at Sunset Road (which is approx 6 km from the ferry terminal). You can catch the bus here when you leave, just flag it down.
• When you get off the bus, walk up Sunset Road which becomes Cowan Point Drive.
• Walk down the hill until you come to a large bank of community mailboxes on your right hand side. Just before the mailboxes you can take a shortcut down the old road which is now a walking path.
• You go down this path (about a 10 minute walk) until it meets up with Fairweather Road. Then turn right and walk down Fairweather Road about 40 metres until you see on the other side of the street a continuation of the wide path. A 5 minute walk down this path will lead you to the top of the Hermitage driveway, 1070 Lindy’s Road.

Possible alternatives for the walking portion

1. Hitchhiking is a very common practice on Bowen. Someone may stop to give you a ride for a portion of your journey if you stick out your thumb.
2. If a host is at the hermitage it may be possible to get a lift from the bus stop. This is not guaranteed, and you would need to inquire about that possibility before you come.
3. Some people prefer to do an alternative walking route to the Hermitage, which is shorter but steeper and is more off the beaten path (i.e. hitchhiking won’t work on this route):
   Get off the bus at the intersection of Grafton Road and Adams Road. Follow Cowan Road (which is blocked off to thru traffic at the top) till it meets up with Salal Road. Follow Salal till it joins up with Cowan Point Drive. Walk down Cowan Point Drive until you get to the large bank of community mailboxes. Just before the mailboxes you can take a shortcut down the old road which is now a walking path. You go down this pat, about a 10 minute walk, till it meets up with Fairweather Road. Turn right and walk down Fairweather Road about 40 metres until you see on the other side of the street the continuation of the path (there is a rope across the entrance). Go down the path, about 5 minute walk, which comes out at the top of the Hermitage driveway.

By Bike
The C10 Bluewater/Snug Cove bus has a bike rack, available only during daylight hours. As stated above, it is a 4 km, quite hilly ride from the bus stop at Sunset and Adams. If you plan to bike ride from the ferry, be aware that Bowen is very hilly and you need to be in good physical condition.

Blessings on your journey.

Download Directions

Directions will be provided upon booking.