Buntzen Lake is best known today for hiking, swimming, and recreation, but the landscape also contains reminders of more than a century of hydroelectric and industrial activity.
The Buntzen hydroelectric system began operating in 1904. Water was diverted from Coquitlam Reservoir through a tunnel beneath Eagle Mountain into Buntzen Lake, then carried through penstocks down to generating stations on Indian Arm. Over the years, the area also included dams, pipelines, pumphouses, transmission lines, and other infrastructure.
During my hikes around Buntzen Lake, I have come across quite a few remnants of that industrial history. Some are easy to identify, while others are more mysterious. I think of them collectively as the industrial relics of Buntzen Lake.
Old Electrical Insulators
Some of the smaller remnants around Buntzen Lake come from the area’s former electrical transmission infrastructure. One example is this discarded and broken ceramic insulator I found beside Pumphouse Road. Insulators like these were used to electrically isolate overhead conductors from the poles and structures supporting them.
A broken ceramic electrical insulator near Pumphouse Road.
I also found this striking piece of an old glass electrical insulator. Its green-blue glass and heavy moulded construction are typical of insulators once used on overhead electrical lines.
A fragment of an old green glass electrical insulator found in the Buntzen Lake area.
The Old Buntzen Lake Pipeline
Another interesting piece of infrastructure can be seen near the pumphouse. An older water pipeline emerges from a much larger metal cylinder approximately 25 m long.
I originally wondered whether the large cylinder was some type of backflow-prevention structure. I have not found documentation confirming its exact purpose, so it is probably safer simply to describe it as part of the old pipeline infrastructure.
The old pipeline emerging from a much larger cylindrical section near the pumphouse.
Below is a closer view of one of the fittings on top of the larger cylinder.
A detail view of the old pipeline infrastructure.
This pipeline was associated with the freshwater supply system serving the Burrard Thermal Generating Station in Port Moody. Burrard was built in 1960 and used Buntzen Lake water for several plant purposes. Although electricity generation at Burrard ended in 2016, some infrastructure associated with its freshwater supply system has remained.
Artifacts at North Beach
In May 2014, I came across a collection of small metal objects that someone had apparently found around the North Beach area and arranged for display on the memorial there.
I do not know who collected them or exactly what each object was used for, but seeing them together was a reminder of just how much industrial activity has taken place around Buntzen Lake over the past century.
A collection of old metal objects displayed near North Beach in 2014.
An Industrial Drum in the Forest
While following a rough shortcut between the Diez Vistas and Lakeview trails along a creek, I unexpectedly came across this old metal drum in the forest.
I do not know its age or original use, but it is another example of the industrial remnants that occasionally appear well away from the main recreation areas.
An old metal drum encountered in the forest between the Diez Vistas and Lakeview trails.
Old Metalwork Near the Dam
Close to the dam, I found these heavy pieces of old metalwork. Their exact original purpose is uncertain, although they may have been associated with the historic hydroelectric infrastructure in the area.
Old metalwork near the Buntzen Lake dam.
The most interesting feature is the manufacturer’s plate, which reads:
BC IRON WORKS
VANCOUVER, BC
The manufacturer’s plate reads “BC Iron Works Vancouver, BC.”
BC Iron Works was one of Vancouver’s early industrial manufacturers and operated in what is now the Railtown area near Gore Avenue and Alexander Street. I have not found documentation confirming when this particular piece of equipment was manufactured or exactly where it was originally installed, but the plate provides an interesting connection between Buntzen Lake and Vancouver’s early industrial history.
More of the Old Water Pipeline
Sections of the former above-ground water pipeline can still be found in the Buntzen Lake area. The line was associated with supplying freshwater from Buntzen Lake toward the Burrard Thermal Generating Station.
A surviving section of the old Buntzen Lake water pipeline.
And here is one of the more unusual fittings or assemblies attached to a section of the old pipeline.
An unidentified fitting on the old pipeline.
Old Transmission-Line Foundations
The early hydroelectric system also required transmission infrastructure to carry electricity away from Buntzen. Remnants of former transmission-line structures can still be found around the trails.
Below are several old concrete pole foundations that are no longer in use.
Old concrete foundations from former electrical infrastructure.
A closer look shows the heavily rusted mounting bolts still embedded in the concrete.
Rusting mounting bolts remain in one of the old concrete foundations.
Another group of redundant pole foundations can be seen below.
More remnants of former transmission infrastructure.
An Old Wooden Hydro Pole
On the Old Buntzen Lake Trail, I also came across this weathered wooden hydro pole. Old poles and foundations like these are easy to walk past without noticing, but they are physical reminders of the infrastructure that once surrounded the lake.
An old wooden hydro pole along the Old Buntzen Lake Trail.
More Than a Recreation Lake
These remnants make Buntzen Lake particularly interesting to explore. The forest has reclaimed much of the landscape, but pieces of the old hydroelectric and industrial infrastructure still appear beside roads, trails, and in unexpected places.
The hydroelectric system itself is far from abandoned. Buntzen No. 1 remains part of BC Hydro’s generating system, and the Coquitlam-Buntzen diversion tunnel continues to move water from Coquitlam Reservoir into Buntzen Lake.
For more about how the hydroelectric system developed, see my Buntzen Lake history page. BC Hydro also provides current information about the history and operation of Buntzen Lake.
