Ocean Park's Bluff Walk: Kwomais Point and the 1001 Steps
Most of Ocean Park sits on a bluff above Semiahmoo Bay, and the best way to understand the neighbourhood is to walk down off the edge of it. Two public places let you do that: Kwomais Point Park on 128 Street and the 1001 Steps at the west end of 15A Avenue.
Kwomais Point Park is on the top of the bluffs at 1367 128 Street, with its parking lot on 128 Street. A walking path runs through it between 126A Street and 128 Street, and natural-area trails loop off it through grand fir, Douglas fir and bigleaf maple, some of them more than 80 years old. At the west end a viewing platform looks across the bay to Tsawwassen and beyond to Vancouver Island and the San Juan Islands. By the entrance plaza there is a labyrinth and a large mosaic, Kwomais: A Place of Vision, by Connie Glover and Deborah Putman. Kwomais Lodge and Sanford Hall, two heritage buildings beside the parking lot, run programs and rent out for events.
The 1001 Steps start where 15A Avenue ends, off 126A Street. There are not 1001 of them, but there are plenty: the stairs zigzag 40 metres down the bluff to a path beside the BNSF rail line, and about 200 metres along it an underpass takes you through to the beach. The views are wide the whole way down, and harbour seals are a common sight. The City of Surrey replaced the original 1980s stairs with a new stair system and new foundations, built between October 2024 and June 2025.
I grew up in Crescent Beach and live in Ocean Park today. Both parks sit off 126A Street, a short walk apart, so the village at 128 Street and 16 Avenue, Kwomais Point and the steps make an easy loop on foot. Both are open from dawn until dusk, which in November means an afternoon walk rather than an evening one, and 40 metres of stairs is a fair climb on the way back up.
For a buyer, the bluff matters as much as the view. Elevation and sightline decide value on these streets more than square footage does, and the same slope that opens the view brings some homework: on properties near the edge we check slope and covenant conditions on title, any protected trees on the lot, and the realistic rebuild envelope under the current zoning, before an offer rather than after.
The rest of the neighbourhood, from the schools to the two villages, is in our Crescent Beach and Ocean Park guide, and every home for sale there right now is on the Crescent Beach and Ocean Park listings page, live from the MLS®.
Quick answers
Where do the 1001 Steps start? At the west end of 15A Avenue, off 126A Street, in Ocean Park.
Are the 1001 Steps open? Yes. The City of Surrey rebuilt them between October 2024 and June 2025, and the park is open from dawn until dusk.
Where do you park for Kwomais Point Park? In the lot on 128 Street. The City asks visitors to respect the parking signs on the residential streets nearby.
Do the 1001 Steps reach the beach? The stairs drop 40 metres to a path beside the rail line, and an underpass about 200 metres along leads to the beach.
