Category: Vancouver

From the building where we stay in Yaletown it’s just a block walk to the Sea Wall, bordering False Creek on the south, to a ramp, then a pier with a shelter that makes a small boat dock. Usually the wait is from nothing to sometimes as much as 15 minutes for the what must be the niftiest public transportation in any city in the world. For soon enough up chugs what can best be described as a semi-ugly duckling, a small canopied boat with wooden bench seats lining both gunwales and prime seats for the kids in the bow […]

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Some days it’s fun to play tourist in your own town.  On a recent trip to Victoria from the mainland, I had the pleasure of taking a trip on one of the new ferries – the Coastal Celebration.  The trip started in Tsawwassen with a breakfast at the Tsawwassen Quay.  We enjoyed crepes – yes really!  One of us had a ham & egg crepe and the others had fruit crepes – very yummy.  We then grabbed our Starbucks addictions and headed back to the car to wait for the loading call. Once on board with a lovely window seat […]

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On a clear sunny day in the spring after a cold wet winter nothing better suits me than this great mountain biking trip, which I’ve been riding for the better part of twenty years. It’s a classic combining Vancouver‘s seawall, beaches and the natural beauty of single trails through Pacific Spirit Park. From start to finish the ride takes roughly 2 1/2 hours and covers 35 km of off road riding. The starting point is at the Coast Guard station at the entrance to False Creek on the south side of the Burrard Street Bridge. If you look up at […]

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This year marks the 25th anniversary of Vancouver’s annual fitness love fest, aka “The Vancouver Sun Run”; it also marks my second anniversary, at age 52, of participating in this quintessentially Vancouver experience. Before you start gagging, let me reassure you that this is not one of those fat-turned-fit-over-fifty stories, in which erstwhile couch potatoes start running half-marathons in their sleep in order to combat the ravages of menopause. Rather, this is a story of a woman who is resolute in her determination to solidly advance (retreat?) to the back of the 55,000 plus pack incrementally.  I want to age […]

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Local and foreign news has been covering the birth of eagles in Sidney BC, on Vancouver Island, that has been on a live web cam provided by the Hancock Wildlife Foundation.  This is a remarkable way to watch bald eagles. In Vancouver, however, you don’t need to go further than Vanier Park, which is on the north side of English Bay and is right next to the Burrard Street Bridge.  It’s not exactly a peaceful in the summer down there.  The tree the birds nest in is close to where cars park when they come to the annual Shakespeare Festival, […]

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Vancouver makes cycling fun. From the many cycling events hosted in Vancouver to its kilometers of marked bike routes, make your next trip around Vancouver by bike. Do you want to take in the Aquarium and Science World? Why not rent a bike at one of the rental shops at the North foot of Denman Street and make the short cycle over to the Aquarium, almost exclusively along the Stanley Park seawall. Ready to head to Science World? Get back on the bike, take the short trip along quiet side streets of the historic West End and connect onto the […]

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If you are from other parts of the world, or even other parts of Canada, you will find Vancouverites a strange bunch of drivers. When I first came to Vancouver I had inherited a set of aggressive driving tendencies from elsewhere in urban Canada. Therefore it came as a shock when trying to pressure Vancouver drivers to hurry up; it actually confused them and they slowed down.  There seems to be a certain disinterest in driving.  Clouds?  Imaginary friends?  I could not tell what was distracting Vancouver drivers.  With the advent of cell phones, the distraction became directly observable.  If […]

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Want to get out of Vancouver but avoid that long congested drive to go anywhere?  Since spring is almost here I am giving you another quick get away that involves you riding or walking: Iona Beach otherwise known as “the Spit”. Located in West Richmond adjacent to the Vancouver International Airport and the Iona Island sewage treatment ponds.  To get there: head to the Vancouver airport, and at the last set of lights  – turn right – there is a small sign that leads you to Iona Beach.  You can park the car about 200 meters from the right hand […]

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Isn’t it great that we live in a city with so many little adventures close by?  I’ve found another gem that even many locals don’t know exist – and it’s right in your backdoor. A short drive to West Vancouver. takes you to a little early history of Vancouver : Lighthouse Park. To get to the trailhead – follow Marine Drive in West Vancouver. for about 9+ km – this drive alone will get your drooling (the view is about the BEST in the WORLD – as far as I’m concerned) go past Caulfield Cove and watch for the small […]

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A lot of attention is paid to Vancouver‘s downtown, but just over the Burrard Street Bridge in the Kitsilano neighbourhood is a bike/walk that allows visitors and locals to enjoy beaches and views. The best place to start is at the corner of Cypress and Cornwall where the No. 22 bus, which goes to/from downtown, stops. Once there, head north on Cypress St. and walk by the homes and look for the big totem pole in front of the Marine Museum. You will see a walking path that heads west and then curves to the south. At this point you […]

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