August 09, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Burnaby, Historic & Heritage Sites
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This will probably appeal to the resident of Metro Vancouver who is looking at doing something different this coming weekend.
What better way of spending a Saturday morning than visiting an oasis, the Four Seasons Oasis Car Wash – near Metrotown in Burnaby. Even if you don’t have a car but you love the 50’s era coupled with Florida styling it is worth a trip. Located on Kingsway the car wash seems like an oasis nestled in a predominant Asian landscape. It’s styling as you can see in the image above is a classic, and so is every detail of the car wash experience.
August 09, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Vancouver, Gardens
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If you are the type of person who likes to tour the streets at Halloween or Christmas to view what creative ways people have decorated their gardens, then you’ll love this house.
Located in Burnaby, this garden is a real delight. I first noticed it as I took a different route biking to work. There was street after street of regular looking housing and then I saw this house coming up in the distance. At first I wasn’t sure what it was, it looked like an explosion of colour had erupted all over someone's the garden. In essence this is what has happened. Every square foot has some kind of decoration or fun toy.
Whether a rainy Vancouver day or a perfect sunny afternoon this garden is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.
August 09, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Vancouver, Beaches & Swimming
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Killarney pool is part of the Killarney Community Centre.
Located at Killarney and East 49th Avenue, it has become my new favourite pool in the lower mainland. Designed by Vancouver architect HCMA (Hughes Condon Marler: Architects), the facility was designed with the customer in mind, packed with features to enhance the customers overall experience.
The large North facing windows showcase the North Shore mountains and allows for an open and inclusive experience.
The open walk through design of the universal change rooms creates a feeling of acceptance, welcoming a variety of users. Ideal if you have children, need extra space, or if you prefer to have a private change room.
There are two pools. One pool is for children and parents including fun water jets, erupting bubbles and a kids slide. The other pool is more traditional, with lane swimming and a general splash and fun area.
Did I mention the corkscrew slide? Love it.
The whole facility is accessible by wheelchair users. The long ramp into the hot tub also doubles as a place for young children and their parents to enjoy the hot tub experience as well.
Finally, my favourite, the steam room. If you don't like it hot (and I mean HOT) avoid the steam room.
The community centre also offers a fitness centre, childcare, a computer lab, gymnasium, activity rooms and dance studio. Finally, if all that wasn’t enough they are building an ice rink which will be used as the short track speed skating training venue as part of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Patience at peak hours will be required as parking is limited. This will be resolved once ongoing construction on the ice rink is complete and more parking is added.
Killarney is an amazing facility, extremely well designed and enjoyable for everybody.
August 09, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Quesnel, Hiking
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The town of Quesnel is a worthy stop on any trip through the Cariboo Chilcotin region. With just over 9000 inhabitants the town has everything you need while still offering the appeal of a small community. If you happen to be in the area around the middle of July be sure to catch the Billy Barker Days with live performances, a midway, street market and parade. The Quesnel Museum, located beside the Visitor Centre, is full of historical treasures including the haunted Mandy doll, a scavenger hunt for kids and a detailed history of the industry and development of Quesnel. From Quesnel it is only an hour out to Barkerville and Wells to visit the historic Gold Rush town. Quesnel is also close to Pinnacles Provincial Park to view some hoodoos or a large variety of cycling and hiking trails for the outdoor adventurer. There is a beautiful river trail that encompasses both central and western Quesnel and even features a large pedestrian bridge over the river. If you are looking for something more challenging stop in at the Visitor Centre and ask for a trailbook for the area and choose from a selection of easy to strenuous trails that lead you through the natural settings of the area or to a waterfall or canyon. With great places to eat, stay and visit Quesnel is a must.
Jen S
August 09, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Wells, Kayaking & Canoeing
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The Bowron Lake area is a beautiful stop for outdoor enthusiasts and even for those who want to take in the serene view of the lake and surrounding landscape. Only about a 30 minute drive down a well-maintained dirt road will bring you to Bowron Lake and the start of the world renowned canoe circuit. At Bowron Lake Becker’s Lodge and Bowron Lake Lodge offer rustic cabins and camping a short distance from the lake itself or Bowron Lake Provincial Park offers well-maintained and forested sites a little further down the road. Even if you do not want to undertake the several-day canoe circuit you can rent canoes for the day to do some exploring or use the area as a quick access to hiking or Barkerville and Wells. Or simply lie on the quiet beach and enjoy the sunshine in a mountainous setting.
Jen S
August 08, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Sidney, Attractions
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This summer I took a trip down to
Victoria. I saw a lot of the local attractions, but one in particular was absolutely incredible. The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre is a new aquarium that just opened up in Sidney, BC. I walked in and was greeted by so many friendly, knowledgeable volunteers. I loved that there wasn't a voice booming over the loud speaker (I personally think this can ruin the ambiance of a place) but I was learning through the conversations I had with volunteers. The exhibits were really interesting, especially because everything there is from the Island's local waters. I was also very reassured to hear that a lot of the creatures there will actually return to the ocean to complete their natural life cycles. Most aquariums I've visited are nice to look at, but that's about it. At this one, there were so many interactive activites, I was engaged the whole time I was there.
I would definitely recommend this attraction to anyone going through Victoria. Sidney is just a short drive out of town towards the airport or ferries. The whole town is really quaint, it's a great place to spend an entire day.
August 08, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Wells, Art Galleries & Artists
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The town of Wells has lots to offer visitors. You can rent a canoe and paddle along the Jack O Clubs Lake located on the West side of Wells just as you enter town. While you are there be sure to stop in at the visitor’s centre for more ideas and brochures on the things to see and do around Wells. The town itself is home to more artists per capita than any other place in the world and the buildings and art galleries prove that. Take the historic artist walk through town to discover all of the art galleries. Eat at one of the great restaurants and be sure to talk with the locals to get a sense of the kindness that Wells is known for as a SuperHost community. Also, take in their museum to see the history of the mining town and area. If you are more interested in the adventure recreation then there are a myriad of hiking trails around the area that are easy to access providing wonderful views and great experiences.
August 07, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Dawson Creek, Beaches & Swimming
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I'm not sure if you guys noticed, but there has been a heat wave hanging around B.C. recently. With temperatures hovering around 27-30 degrees for the past couple weeks, we finally decided to beat the heat and head over to the swimming pool.
The Kenn Borek aquatic centre is located in the recently built Encana Multiplex. It's a state of the art facility, featuring an 8 lane, 25m competition pool, and a leisure pool complete with many fountains and a lazy river for the young 'uns. There is also a waterslide, sauna and steam rooms, hot tubs, 1m and 3m diving boards, and a swirl pool.
The pool is well built to accommodate swimmers of all ages and abilities. The leisure pool is shallow enough for most children, and the area is well monitored to assure safety. The competion pool has a lot of toys to play with, which makes it fun for more experienced swimmers who are comfortable in the water. My personal favourite, however, is the waterslide. Truly there is no greater thrill in this world that wooshing down a tube filled with water, with no control of your direction or speed...
..or maybe that's just how I feel about it.
August 07, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Dawson Creek, Festivals & Events
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Today from 9:30 to 11:00am the Dawson Creek Visitor Center staff participated in the Dawson Creek Fall Fair Parade. It was a blast! Yes, we were super hot, but all the kids and cheering people made it very fun. The Visitor Center staff and the Art Gallery staff, next door, teamed up and the product was an amazing float that earned us 2nd place! The theme was ‘aliens and tourists’ celebrating 51 years of Dawson Creek with Area 51. The Art Gallery has been working hard for months to prepare the float and costumes. They had green paper mache faces and silver body suits. As for the Visitor Center staff we went home, raided our closes and found shorts, Hawaiian shirts, hats, cameras, socks and sandals. My legs are now very tired from the fourteen odd blocks we walked. But the 2nd place ribbon looks great!
The parade consisted of many horses, some people were riding English but most rode western. There were the most adorable little kids atop some horses, and one miniature horse was even on a float. The floats ranged from small to large tracker-trailers. Many were representing businesses in town while the rest were for clubs in the area, some coming from as far as Beaverlodge, Alberta. Not far in front of our float there were two rodeo trick riders, dressed in pink and standing atop their horses for much if the parade. There was even a chuck wagon on a low-bed being pulled in the parade. All of the clubs, businesses, and local people put tremendous amounts of effort into our small town parade!
August 07, 2009 | Tips from Travellers >
Chilliwack, Hiking
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We arrived at the Foley Forest Service Road,28km down the Chilliwack Lake Road and started the 15km drive up to the Mount Cheam trailhead. We passed a number of ATV’s and dirt bikes on the lower section of the climb.
Not long into the drive it became apparent why a 4x4 is recommended on this road. The forest service road is decommissioned and the frequent and fairly deep ditches and uneven surface mean that having a vehicle with a decent height clearance is important if you want to make it all of the way up to the trailhead. The ascent gets fairly steep in places as well as narrow. There are definitely a few points you don’t want to meet a vehicle coming the other way! If you want to break the journey up, there are a number of good lookout points to grab some photos. Do this on the way up if the weather is good as by the time you are on your way down, conditions could change.
About 4km before the trailhead we passed a few SUV’s (probably not 4WD) parked just off the road and this is the point where your 4WD will become very useful. Ironically the last km of the drive is comparatively smooth and in fair condition, compared to what you have encountered before. There is a parking area at the trailhead.
This is the first time I had climbed Mount Cheam and the first difference I immediately noticed was the absence of a forest canopy. The terrain was very open and from the outset we could see the climb which lay ahead. The first section of the hike from the trailhead lead us up a steadily climbing winding gravel path which crossed a few streams. It’s not long before you are rewarded with your first views of snow covered Mount Baker.
Not too long into the hike, we encounter our first large area of snow to traverse, the first of several which would add at least 20 minutes to our hike. After the gravel path and snow fields, we reached the first meadow and saw the first signs of beautiful wild flowers you only tend to see at this altitude. Still at the this point there hadn’t been too many steep climbs, though this is the first point at which the trail narrows to the point at which it is one person at a time!
Gradually the meadow opens up and the climb becomes steadily steeper. Before the final push we are treated to views of both Jones Lake from the first of several cliff edges we encounter and Cultus Lake can also be seen in the distance. This is also the first point at which it is evident that our day of blue skies and hot weather is quickly changing. Thin cloud is starting to roll in below us and temperatures start to fall surprisingly quickly. The first change we encounter on the final push is wind, lots of it and whilst refreshing at first to counter the sweat we have worked up it soon becomes irritating as we all become very cold and realise that we have not come prepared for the changes in weather we are encountering. Having left 30 degrees and blue sky on the ground it is difficult to believe we are now struggling to stay warm.
As we reach the plateau it provides superb views of the valley on a clear day, which unfortunately this day no longer is! A memorable and exhilarating hike meaning I now look at Mount Cheam with a renewed respect.