October 11, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Vancouver, Breweries, Distilleries & Cideries
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It's Autumn! You can always tell - the air is crisper and cooler, leaves start turning colour, and
Steamworks Brewpub serves up their delicious Pumpkin Beer. Located in Vancouver's Gastown area - the most historic
neighbourhood in Vancouver - Steamworks brews this unique beer the beginning of every Autumn. Lightly spiced and ripe with pumpkin flavour, it's a great way to ring in cool season in the city. If you like beer, head down for a pint or two. But don't wait too long, they only serve the brew till Halloween.
October 06, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Dining
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When I was on
Vancouver Island last week, I couldn't help but indulge in my favourite chocolate treats. I know the Island is well known for grizzly bears, salmon fishing, spring golf, totem poles and whale watching - but I think chocolate
has to be added to that list. Whenever I visit
Victoria, I refuse to leave without my pink-and-white checkered hand-wrapped Victoria Creams from
Rogers Chocolate; Raspberry for my youngest son, Strawberry for my 11-year-old, Rum for me and just plain, which is anything but plain, Chocolate for my husband. I place them in the bottom of my travel bag (where they are hard to reach) and wait anxiously until I arrive home. Needless to say, I get swarmed by the family everytime. I grew up eating Nanaimo bars, which are named after the City of
Nanaimo, at Christmas time. When I was there last week I came face-to-face with an entire tray of these layered treats. Hold me back! Semi-sweet chocolate top, sugary yellow centre and graham crumb bottom. I walked by all the souvenir shops, with their spoons, pins, t-shirts and placemats, and snuck home with a tray full of Nanaimo bars.
October 04, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Vancouver, Wildlife Tours
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When visiting the
Capilano Suspension Bridge and/or
Grouse Mountain, make sure to stop at the
Capilano Salmon Hatchery. It's right in between these two two attractions and it's free! It's a great way to learn about the lifecycle of Salmon. I spent an hour there with visitors from out of town last weekend and it was fun cheering on the Salmon at a special viewing area as they make their way up the river.
October 01, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Vancouver, Breweries, Distilleries & Cideries
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I have a wee bit of a headache. Yep, that's right, I went to the
Autumn Brewmasters' Festival in
Vancouver last night. It was my first time and I don't think it will be my last. For $25 I received a four ounce plastic beer glass and three token chips to trade in for BC brew samples (I have one left I would now love to trade in for a Tylenol). I purchased more tokens at a price of 3 for $5. As the night went on, the crowd got busier, the music got louder and the beer needed to be lighter. I started out with a good hearty chocolate and coffee infused Stout, by half-time I was drinking Amber ales, and at the end of the night I was looking for golden Lagers. The other thing that progressed throughout the evening was the length of the line-up for the washroom. In total I tasted about 20 samples from Breweries all over BC; my top picks were from Crannog Ales, located in Sorrento, and Steamworks Brewing Company, located in
Gastown. The event sells-out each year, so if you are already planning on going next year purchase your tickets in advance.
September 30, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Art Galleries & Artists
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When I prepare myself well for a trip, I appreciate the journey more. Practicing a few words in another language helps me communicate. Understanding the geographical formation and history of a particular region helps me appreciate viewpoints.
I started my preparation for a visit to
Emily Carr House in
Victoria over a year ago, knowing, like Emily, I could only appreciate the fullness of the trip if I developed a deeper connection to the subject. Emily Carr, a famous Canadian painter and author, was born in Victoria, lived in Vancouver and traveled throughout the BC coast up to Alaska.
Yesterday, when I finally stood in her garden, I was shrouded in the layers I accumulated from hodge-podging together pieces and experiences that touched Emily’s life in one form or another. Here is what I did over the last year to prepare for a trip to Emily’s garden.
1. First, I read The Forest Lover by Susan Vreeland. In my opinion this book presents a good visual of British Columbia life at the time, and set a vivid, colourful stage of Emily’s puzzled and courageous life between 1871 and 1942.
2. Next, I read Klee Wyck, by Emily Carr. This is her own account of her travels as she ventured along the coast to paint. Klee Wyck is the aboriginal name given to Emily by the First Nations People in
Ucluelet; it means "laughing one."
3. I have spent many hours wandering through the
Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver. I love seeing first hand the totem poles and artefacts of the myriad of First Nation groups throughout BC. I tell everyone to go there. Often.
4. Emily C
September 26, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Vancouver, Sightseeing Tours
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One of my favourite things to do downtown
Vancouver is walk in a big square. Four unique streets all join together, and in an hour or two you can capture the essence of them all and get in touch with the diversity of the city. Robson to Denman to Davie to Granville to Robson.
Yesterday I started on
Robson Street, the see and be seen street. The spend all your money before you go home street. The high end, high style street that surprisingly offers much to be bought at discount prices. I made it to the other end with only a few bumps and a new bohemian bracelet, despite all the shoe stores with half price signs summoning me in.
Denman Street is laid back with funky shops, restaurants and cafes, which all lead to English Bay beach. I stopped at Bud’s for some greasy fish and chips and a brew before heading down to the waterfront, where a fire dancer just finished her show. Pretty much every night of the week you can catch some type of street entertainer, from violin quartets and comedians to African drummers and sketch artists. I threw a Toonie ($2 coin) into her donation hat and kept walking.
Davie is the gay-friendly street and is dappled in rainbows. I sat down at one of the hot pink bus stops for a rest and watched everyone walk by. And I mean everyone. An obviously well off couple in their convertible Acura. Two young, Japanese women holding hands with a picnic basket and a sleepy boy. A transvestite, I think, all dressed up. An elderly man with a fedora and walking cane.
Granville is a street in transition. I used to come down here to catch a flick, hunt through vintage clothing stores and dance at the Commodore Ballroom. Now I come down for 99 cent pizza, a drink after work with friends and to dance at the Commodore Ballroom. The street is considered the club and bar zone for Vancouver. As it was a bit
September 21, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Campbell River, Wildlife Tours
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Today is the official last day of summer. Sigh. But, it has been a busy, and as usual, adventurous few months and I wanted to share with you my top destination of the summer.
I had never even heard of
Mitlenatch Island until the day before I left to visit it. I was told by a local boater that it was like the Galapagos of the North. I’m not sure why but pictures of penguins and sea turtles came into mind – two things you don’t find in waters 30 minutes off the coast of
Campbell River.
Mitlenatch means ‘calm water all around’ in the Coast Salish language. But the island was anything but calm. The noise from the birdlife was like a chaotic musical symphony. Gulls squawked, cormorants cawed and there were hee-ha and whee sounds coming up from guillemots, oystercatchers, auklets and other species of birds too numerous to count. We did count seven bald eagles including 3 hatchlings. It was early summer and the tiny island was filled with newly born baby birds.
As we toured to the other side of the rock the relentless roar and barking of the migrating sea lions joined in the chorus. I had never seen this many large lions on such a small space before. Needless to say they were all jockeying for position, with many getting pushed back into the crashing waves.
Once on shore (just a little beyond the basking seals) we climbed over sun-bleached driftwood and were met with the park keepers. BC Parks has a program where volunteers can stay on the island for a week in exchange for maintaining trails and ensuring visitors don’t encroach on protected areas.
The island is very small but we were able to climb up to the peak to peer down to study the roosting birds from behind a lean-to. Then we meandered through a meadow filled with vibrant wildflowers with intriguing names like seablush, chocolate lilies, death camas, gum
September 20, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Sightseeing Tours
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Last week I had to make a quick trip to
Victoria from
Vancouver. Of course, like all good West Coasters, I chose float plane as my mode of travel and eagerly booked my flight with
Harbour Air Seaplanes.
When the flight was ready for loading I was front of line and as luck (and a little maneuvering) would have it, the pilot asked if I wanted to sit in the co-pilot seat. Not too many people know this, but the co-pilots seat is often available on these flights. After always being the brides-maid and not the bride, so to speak, I finally figured it out - all you have to do is be the first in line or just ask.
Perhaps the best part of the trip is wearing the “official” headset and listening to all the flight chatter. My pilot was extremely amicable, complete with an Aussie accent, and I received a personal tour of the sites below. As we whisked our way over Pender Island, Mayne and Saltspring I watched ferries dock and sailboats find their moorage. From 3,000 feet up he pointed out the winery on Saturna Island and I picked out my waterfront dream home. We saw tankers, cruise ships, tugboats and the Coast Guard. On previous trips I spotted submarines and historic tall ships. I am still waiting to see a pod of whales.
Although I haven’t experienced it, Harbour Air offers the $149 Mail Run Tour, a 75 minute ride with the locals on their regular flights from Vancouver harbour to the remote villages of the Gulf Islands. That sounds pretty cool too.
September 19, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Sechelt, Outdoor Activity Tours
Saturday - Local Hangouts in Sechelt
It’s the middle of September and I have finally managed to make my summer pilgrimage to
Sechelt. Usually I come up to here at least 4 times between June and September, but this summer I was so busy on other adventures (Tofino, Campbell River, etc) that I pretty much missed the high time. This meant that I needed to fit in all my favourite local activities into one late summer weekend. Kind of like Christmas really, just a few short weeks to cram in all those traditions, but I only had two days.
Saturday morning was spent at the beach in Davis Bay overturning barnacle encrusted beach rocks and watching the kayakers paddle by. Did I mention I came up with three energetic kids? Beachcombing took a while and I was happy when we all agreed that green and black spotted crabs do exist and that they should remain hidden under the seaweed with their family. I was happy to move onto bigger and better things, namely "Troll Forest".
I had never heard of Troll Forest until my parents moved a 5 minute walk away. It starts from a non-descript pathway in Brookman Park and heads up Chapman Creek. In fact, you would have no idea you were even in Troll Forest until you got to the Troll House a few metres into the path. The House is an old tree stump with a dilapidated shingle roof. Continue walking up the path and see if you can spot the 14 hidden Trolls. A local carved these mischievous faces into tall cedars, fallen firs and spruce stumps. Some are easy to spot, some more difficult. I like to think of it as the I Spy of the natural world.
Onto Roberts Creek where I absolutely have to indulge in fries with miso gravy at the Gumboot Café. Roberts Creek is my favourite community on the Sunshine Coast, mostly because I feel as though I am on one of the Gulf Islands, complete with a vibrant art scene and a laid back ambiance. Kayaks, essential oils, pottery and Indones
September 19, 2005 | Tips from Us >
New Denver, Festivals & Events
Those words are proudly displayed on my souvenir t-shirt. The event, which has become so popular, they've moved it from the village of Hills to the larger community of New Denver, was definitely a highlight on my recent five day road trip in the
West Kootenays. Venders from all over BC were there selling a wide variety of home-grown organic garlic. Prices averaged $6 to $9 a pound. If you've never had organic garlic before, I can tell you it's well worth it. A single clove has the same potency as four or five cloves of non-organic grocery store garlic... and the flavour and aroma is incomparable. I ended up with four pounds of garlic, a jar of organic garlic powder and, of course, the official t-shirt. The Garlic Festival was more than just garlic. There was musical entertainment, arts and crafts for sale, and plenty of food venders selling everything from garlic-buttered popcorn to borscht and organic buffalo chilli.