tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-156301902011-04-21T12:38:08.354-07:00One chick's adventures and travels around the beautiful province of British ColumbiaC. Hillnoreply@blogger.comBlogger471100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1143402682058927592005-12-15T11:51:00.000-08:002006-03-26T11:54:02.390-08:00

I have lived in Vancouver, BC for the past two years. But now I am done with my grad program at UBC, and it is time to move on. It breaks my heart to leave this beautiful city and beautiful province that I have come to know and love. While this blog will no longer be regularly updated, there will be new posts on the (hopefully not too rare) occasions when I take trips back to BC.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1133765105340637342005-12-04T22:30:00.001-08:002005-12-04T22:45:05.366-08:00

It snowed in Vancouver this past Tuesday, November 29. It was pretty cold after that so the snow pretty much stuck around. It snowed again today. Since I'm now done with school and I have time to enjoy the pretty white stuff, a friend and I took a walk through Pacific Spirit Park this afternoon to admire the beauty. We ended the walk at the University Golf Course, where several cross-country

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1133044822253952152005-11-26T13:44:00.000-08:002005-11-26T14:41:26.970-08:00

This morning I went for a walk in Capilano Canyon Regional Park. The sun was shining, I had cabin fever, and I was desperate to stretch my legs after a week in front of the computer. It was a beautiful morning, perfect for a walk on the North Shore. It hasn't snowed in the mountains for awhile, so there wasn't a lot of snow on The Lions. But they were still pretty as a backdrop against Capilano

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1132000034223793732005-11-14T12:27:00.000-08:002005-11-14T12:35:31.320-08:00

The clouds have finally lifted today, revealing the snow-capped North Shore Mountains.Downtown Vancouver backdrdopped by Crown and Grouse Mountains on the left, and the mountains of Seymour Provincial Park on the right.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131065912229976192005-11-03T16:58:00.000-08:002005-11-03T17:03:45.386-08:00

We had a VERY stormy day in Vancouver. Howling wind and driving rain for most of the day. The weather finally eased shortly before 3:00, and a little while later we had a dramatic sunset.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130894294824589292005-11-01T17:18:00.001-08:002005-11-01T17:25:15.600-08:00

Now that we're off Daylight Savings, official sunset today was at the depressingly early time of 4:52. But it was a beautiful sunset nonetheless.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130187319868495662005-10-24T13:55:00.000-07:002005-10-24T13:55:19.906-07:00

Autumn Sunrise

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1128283315549338532005-09-25T22:36:00.000-07:002005-11-04T19:34:30.920-08:00

On the way home from Whistler today, I stopped at Porteau Cove Provincial Park. This is a nice little 57-hectare parked tucked on a piece of land between the highway and the water. It's just 24 miles (38 km) north of Vancouver. The park was established in 1981 to provide marine-oriented recreational opportunities including boating, fishing, scuba diving, camping and picnicking.The views are

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1128283261241748762005-09-25T22:04:00.000-07:002005-10-17T12:45:57.373-07:00

We had gorgeous weather in Vancouver this weekend. So I took a much-needed day off from school work and drove up to Whistler for the day. I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day. It was a spectacular drive up the Sea-to-Sky Highway. I stopped at the Tantalus viewpoint north of Squamish. WOW. What a view.Tantalus Range panoramaI continued on to Whistler Village. I parked the car and headed

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1126917040367240472005-09-16T23:53:00.000-07:002005-09-17T00:00:13.913-07:00

When I visited friends in Boston in summer 2004, they took me to the North End where we had a fabulous Italian dinner. Afterwards, they insisted on taking me to Mike's Pastry. Despite my groans of protest and my fear that my stomach couldn't hold another bite of anything, they promised me it was worth it. They were right. The cannoli that I got there was, quite possibly, the yummiest dessert I've

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1125540743645672082005-08-31T19:11:00.000-07:002005-09-01T18:05:37.186-07:00

Today some friends and I drove out to Hope to see the Othello Tunnels. The tunnels are in Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park, just east of downtown Hope. The trail in this park used to be a railroad and it passes through four tunnels carved out of the rock. The Kettle Valley Railway was built across southern BC from the Kootenays to the coast. It was a challenging and expensive rail line to build,

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124673013728777312005-08-21T17:26:00.000-07:002005-08-21T18:18:29.226-07:00

Today some friends and I went to Belcarra Regional Park in Port Moody, just east of Vancouver. It was a beautiful day and we knew it would get warm later, so we started off in late morning by walking the Admirality Point Trail. This is a lovely path that follows the shoreline on the western edge of the park. There are occasional viewpoints along the way in addition to constant peeks of the water

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1132555505983076502005-08-04T22:45:00.000-07:002005-11-20T22:46:12.910-08:00

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1135719955806565572005-07-24T19:45:00.000-07:002006-03-03T21:26:40.850-08:00

It was a beautiful day today and I needed to get out and stretch my legs. So I drove all the way over to Golden Ears Provincial Park (that is a such a long drive from Point Grey!). I hiked the West Canyon Trail, which runs north along the west bank of Gold Creek.According to 109 Walks, the West Canyon Trail follows an old railway grade, and you can supposedly see relics from 1920s when the area

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490519882142442005-07-22T21:54:00.000-07:002005-12-19T16:54:23.656-08:00

We returned to Vancouver today. We drove from Clearwater to Kamloops on Highway 5, then headed west on Highway 97. At Carquile we picked up Highway 99, which wound its way west through the mountains. The scenery was nice, even though it was an overcast day. We got occasional glimpses of the mountain peaks through the clouds. I imagine that the views are pretty spectacular on a clear day. I would

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490470653820202005-07-21T19:53:00.000-07:002005-12-06T14:25:23.393-08:00

We checked out of the campground and left about 9:30 this morning. Before leaving Jasper, we wanted to go up to Mount Edith Cavell. The mountain is accessed by a 14.5 km (9 mi) winding bumpy road that starts from Highway 93A just north of our campground, about 15 minutes south of Jasper townsite. The road is so bad that there's a trailer drop-off area at the bottom. It's not a good road for RV

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490410184235782005-07-20T21:53:00.000-07:002005-11-24T18:13:39.810-08:00

Getting ready for bed last night proved challenging. My sister's tent accomodates two people, but it is really tight quarters and getting myself into my PJs was difficult. Plus, I couldn't stop laughing, which just made it worse. Finally I got myself into my sleeping bag. But I didn't sleep well. Despite my exhaustion, sleeping on my back on the hard ground in the cold without the ability to move

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490364826603052005-07-19T23:52:00.000-07:002005-11-24T10:59:53.726-08:00

We both had a hard time getting up this morning. We finally dragged ourselves out of bed at 7:40 and slowly got ready, packing up our packs for the overnighter. I was dismayed to discover that my sleeping bag -- which is meant for car camping, not backpacking -- took up the entire main compartment of my backpack. Since I also had to carry food, water, travel pillow, long underwear (for at night),

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490335021923872005-07-18T22:51:00.000-07:002005-11-23T22:16:27.390-08:00

It was a rainy and low-picture-taking day today. We woke up to rain this morning. So we decided to spend the day exploring Jasper townsite. We stopped in at the Jasper Information Centre National Historic Site, a cool building dating back to 1913 that is home to the visitor's information centre. We registered for our overnight hike to Jacques Lake tomorrow and bought a topo map of the area around

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490288435363912005-07-17T22:51:00.000-07:002005-11-20T22:40:13.856-08:00

It was another cold morning (but sunny!). Every morning is cold here in the mountains. And everything was still wet too. We decided to let everything dry out while we drove up to Moraine Lake. It was our last chance to go and it was a lovely morning. The drive was beautiful in the early morning light. The mist and low clouds were still burning off and we were above it.Morning mist hanging over

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490257381283092005-07-16T21:50:00.000-07:002005-11-20T16:11:29.493-08:00

This morning was cold and overcast. It was a good day to drive down to the Banff townsite and look around. Instead of taking the highway, we took the Bow Valley Parkway, which runs parallel to the highway, about a mile away. It's supposed to be more scenic and supposedly you're guaranteed to see wildlife along it. It was scenic and we stopped at several viewpoints along the way, seeing Storm

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490237069354822005-07-15T20:50:00.000-07:002005-11-20T00:12:22.793-08:00

We woke up to a cold cloudy morning. Since today was supposed to be the better day for weather, we decided to go to Lake Louise. We drove the short distance up to the lake, which is just a short drive up from the campground. Even though lots of lakes around here have the lovely green color that comes from suspended glacial sediment, Lake Louise is the famous of all the lakes. Perhaps it is

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490197101546072005-07-14T22:49:00.000-07:002005-11-19T22:59:57.316-08:00

We were up at 7:00 after a long cold night. It was a very cold morning too. We hit the road by 8:20, eager to get a good campsite (or any site at all) in Banff National Park. We had plenty of campgrounds to choose from. We stopped at the first one we came to, just 30 minutes after leaving Kicking Horse (Yoho and Banff border each other). We got a spot at the Lake Louise Campground without any

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131490109494264272005-07-13T20:47:00.000-07:002005-11-16T22:25:11.323-08:00

It was a loud night with all the traffic going by, plus the occasional train up on the hill. I even woke up once because it was so quiet. But as soon as I did, a truck came rumbling down the hill with its engine breaks. ARGH!We couldn't take another night next to the highway, so we packed up and drove up the road to Kicking Horse to get a site. We got site #69 next to the Kicking Horse River,

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1126399837180171782005-07-12T17:36:00.000-07:002005-11-16T14:35:14.990-08:00

In the morning, we packed everything up except the tent, which we left out to dry. Then at 9:30 we headed back up the rails-to-trails path which took us to the trailhead for Marion Lake and Abbott Ridge. Where the old rail line crossed the Illecillewaet River, we got a sunny view to the north, in the direction of the campground.Illecillewaet River just upstream from campgroundBecause of lack of

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1131067306572527612005-07-11T21:14:00.000-07:002005-11-16T14:38:02.186-08:00

We left Vancouver at 9:40 a.m., a much later start than we were planning for. We headed east to Hope, then drove up Highway 5, better known as the Coquihalla Highway. It's a beautiful mountain highway. I can see why they charge a toll ($10). It must be a nightmare to maintain in the winter. We kept seeing avalanche warning signs and other similar weather condition warnings. They're not applicable

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1132886561962988182005-07-10T18:25:00.000-07:002005-11-24T18:42:41.976-08:00

Tomorrow morning, my sister and I are leaving on a 12-day trip to the Canadian Rockies. We'll visit Glacier and Yoho National Parks in British Columbia, then Banff and Jasper National Parks in Alberta. We'll be back on July 22, then I'll post retro posts here.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1126486168766568022005-06-11T17:47:00.000-07:002005-09-11T18:02:55.066-07:00

Jack Christie, author of 50 Best Day Trips From Vancouver (see My Guides review), has published a successor to his Whistler Outdoors Guide.Jack Christie. The Whistler Book. 2005.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1132613364020902452005-05-19T22:00:00.000-07:002005-11-21T14:52:25.476-08:00

What a day. The weather was even worse today in Whistler than it was when my parents and I went last May. Forecast: scattered rain and 15C/60F. Actual: downpour and 8C/47F. I have HAD it with this rain. It rained the entire drive up there. Five minutes after we left the car to start walking around Whistler Village, we were all soaked. It was so miserable. While we were eating lunch, the rain

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124602525219437862005-02-15T22:35:00.000-08:002006-03-23T15:59:47.660-08:00

My sister is visiting and we decided to go to the Bloedel Conservatory today. The conservatory is on a hill in Queen Elizabeth Park. It's full of exotic birds, plants, and flowers and is a great place to go on a yucky winter day. Ironically, though, today was a pleasant sunny day in Vancouver.View of the North Shore and The LionsStrange plant growing out of a tree limbCharlie the

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1132530263330295312005-02-13T22:09:00.000-08:002006-03-23T15:36:50.106-08:00

My friends and I thought it would be fun to try snowshoeing. So today we went up to Cypress Provincial Park to give it a try. The Cypress Mountain ski resort has a nordic base on Hollyburn Ridge for cross-country skiers and snowshoers. When I hiked there last summer, I remember seeing the winter trails cutting off through the forest.There had been a slight dusting of snow last night. It started

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124602741895360432004-09-05T22:38:00.000-07:002006-03-23T15:34:34.336-08:00

To ensure we did something fun for the long weekend, some friends and I decided to spend the day at Cultus Lake. We got a late start and we didn't truly hit the road until 11:30. It was an hour and a half drive out to the lake, which is east of Chilliwack. It was mostly cloudy when we got there, with a few blue patches of sky here and there. We parked at the main beach at the north end of the

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1125275674770643932004-08-08T17:33:00.000-07:002006-03-23T15:35:40.503-08:00

Today I hiked to Dog Mountain in Mount Seymour Provincial Park. The Dog Mountain trail is one of many in the park. Seymour is apparently quite popular with hikers. The best part about the Dog Mountain hike is that it's relatively short but you get fantastic views.It was a gorgeous day for a hike. Perfect weather. The drive up there was very beautiful. Driving over the Lion's Gate Bridge was cool.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1125275549269257262004-07-24T17:32:00.000-07:002006-01-13T14:32:15.646-08:00

Today I went to Buntzen Lake, which turns out to be a VERY VERY popular recreation area on a hot July weekend. It took me just over an hour to get to the lake, which is northwest of Port Moody. I arrived at 10:30, part of a long convoy of vehicles that were pouring into the park. Ominous signs at the entrance warned that once the parking lot was full, the gates would be closed and you couldn't

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1125275480887666012004-07-04T17:28:00.000-07:002005-09-15T10:03:54.063-07:00

I went up to Cypress Provincial Park on the North Shore today. This is the same park where Black Mountain is (my snowy mountain from May). My intention was to hike Hollyburn Ridge and turn back, but I ended up hiking both the ridge and the peak.I parked at the snowshoe/cross-country/snowtubing lot and picked up the Hollyburn Ridge loop trail there. It started climbing uphill immediately. Pretty

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124600988775645522004-05-20T21:58:00.000-07:002005-09-11T17:58:09.696-07:00

I have several guidebooks for Vancouver and BC that I refer to.Dawn Hanna. Best Hikes and Walks of Southwestern British Columbia. 1997.This hiking guide covers everything from half-day walks to all-day hikes. This book is useful for both the inexperience and the experienced since the hikes range from easy to challenging. Each hike contains a detailed description as well as a unique elevation

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124602707617903322004-05-06T22:38:00.000-07:002006-01-13T15:20:04.160-08:00

Today I went hiking at the 395-acre Capilano River Regional Park which surrounds the Capilano River below Capilano Lake. I started off at the 295 foot high Cleveland Dam, which is pretty impressive. You can cross the dam and walk along the river on the downstream side, but the lake side of the dam is off limits because it's a water supply for Vancouver.View of The Lions from near the dam (which

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1125365516337401312004-04-30T18:31:00.000-07:002005-10-28T17:54:05.936-07:00

Today I ventured east to Golden Ears Provincial Park to do a short hike. The park stretches north from Maple Ridge, a suburb to east of Vancouver. It's quite a drive out there; it took me just under an hour and a half from Point Grey. But it was worth it. The park is absolutely beautiful. It's also huge. It stretches north into remote mountainous territory, connecting with the southern boundary

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124602780919290182004-04-25T22:39:00.000-07:002005-08-23T19:41:51.603-07:00

Today was a beautiful day, so I went up to West Vancouver on the North Shore and visited Cypress Falls Park. It is a beautiful municipal park not far off of Highway 1, at the base of the mountains. Essentially, they took the forest surrounding the lower part of Cypress Creek and made it a park. Even though it feels like you're in the wilderness, the park borders a small subdivision and is easy to

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124852886768180342004-04-25T20:06:00.000-07:002005-08-28T17:15:44.633-07:00

In addition to going to Cypress Falls today, I went to Lighthouse Park as well. This is a lovely 183-acre park on a forested point of land that sticks out into Burrard Inlet from West Vancouver on the North Shore. The park is riddled with eight miles of trails, most of which seemed fairly rugged and rocky. Unlike most of the other forestland in the lower mainland, it has never been logged, so

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130631647873819332004-03-26T20:58:00.000-08:002005-11-12T20:22:52.850-08:00

My sister and I returned to Stanley Park today, this time to visit the Vancouver Aquarium. It was pretty cool. I didn't take very many pictures, but I had a great time. We got to see almost all of the demonstrations, including the Belugas, the dolphin, and the adorable sea otters (my favorite).Beluga whalesSpinnaker the dolphinDolphin tricksOtters floating on their backsOtters playing

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130631490700369952004-03-22T20:13:00.000-08:002005-10-29T17:18:10.700-07:00

We went down to Wreck Beach this evening to see the sunset. Pretty nice for a winter sunset.

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130631675879471482004-03-22T19:20:00.000-08:002005-11-12T19:53:29.313-08:00

My sister is in town for a visit. Since the forecast looked like today could possibly be the best weather day this week, we decided to spend the day outdoors. We went to Stanley Park and saw the totem poles.Totem poles at Stanley ParkWe walked along the seawall as far as we could before we had to detour for the seawall construction.Lions Gate BridgeGirl in a Wetsuit sculptureWe walked up to

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130702798577153372004-01-30T22:41:00.000-08:002005-10-30T12:21:58.176-08:00

We returned to Tower Beach again today. This time we took Trail #3, which can be accessed on the west side of Marine Drive where it intersects with Chancellor Boulevard. This trail proved much better. It wasn't quite as steep as #4 and it seems to be better maintained. In addition, while #4 zig-zags down the face of the cliff, #3 traces the path of a huge gully on the slope. I read somewhere that

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130701229164375792004-01-25T21:04:00.000-08:002005-10-30T11:44:35.973-08:00

This evening my classmate/neighbor and I went down to Tower Beach. This is the beach that lies at the tip of the peninsula on which UBC sits. It wraps around to the south to become Wreck Beach, and also to the north where it becomes Spanish Banks beach. There are two trails down to Tower Beach. We took Trail #4, which starts behind the Museum of Anthropology. It was a terrible trail. It was very

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1130631108581816092004-01-15T19:53:00.000-08:002005-10-29T17:11:48.583-07:00

A fellow classmate and I are also neighbors. This afternoon she suggested an afternoon trip down to Wreck Beach. This beach is a famous Vancouver landmark because it's a nude beach in summer. It's accessed off of Marine Drive on the south side of the University of British Columbia campus. It's kind of weird that there's a nude beach at the edge of this huge university, but whatever. There weren't

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15630190.post-1124600292921500822004-01-05T21:56:00.000-08:002005-08-20T21:58:28.940-07:00

Welcome to the British Columbia Scrapbook blog! I just moved to Vancouver, BC from Portland, Oregon to attend a two-year graduate program. This blog will detail my travels and adventures around Vancouver and BC during my next two years here. Hope you enjoy!

C. Hillnoreply@blogger.com