I'm trying

Saturday, 4. April 2009, 02:24:58

...when you don't bring a camera!

The weather has finally cleared. I decided to go out for a walk along the sea wall in West Vancouver after work. Sans camera. You know, sometimes it's just nice to walk along not thinking about taking photos, not thinking about making a blog post, just walking and looking.

Halfway along I was watching the birds on the water, and then a huge bird surfaced and swam into shore. Not a bird though. An otter! A river otter to be exact. Carrying a flatfish (sole?) half it's size. I watched it for awhile as it took a few bites from the fish and then carried it further up the shore to a large drainage culvert. It just made my day to see such beautiful creature in my back yard. I do think I'll take my camera along next time though.

Monday, 30. March 2009, 03:12:05

What a glorious day. I think spring is finally here. Got a call this morning from a friend who wanted to go for a hike. So we decided to walk all the way from the beach at Ambleside park up to the Cleveland Dam. I had hiked part way up before, stopping at a lookout to get a view of the dam, but never the whole way. How bad could it be?

The familiar Capilano River trail. I used to live near here and have walked this route many times. So great to be amongst the trees.

This picture does not do this view justice. So steep and lush and rugged.

8.5 kilometres later...we arrive at the top. What a great view of The Lions. Maybe that could be a future hike someday. I certainly would like to do some backcountry hiking and camping this year.

That's a long way down.

Back down the trail on the other side of the river. This is a popular fishing spot.

17 km. in total today! We celebrated with coffee and a well deserved piece of pie at Savoury Island.

Hope I have energy to swim tomorrow.

Monday, 22. December 2008, 04:24:47

Check this out. It'll make you go awwwwww....Poor little beaver guy.

Tuesday, 25. November 2008, 17:30:44

...be sure of a big surprise!

Well, I didn't actually see the bear, sorry if my previous post was misleading. This sign is just a few doors down from my place. A few minutes away is a heavily wooded trail that leads along the river so it's not surprising that we see wildlife at times, but not usually so close to home. All I can think is that it's a young bear, hungry and looking for a way to pad itself for winter hibernation. Anyway, I don't think I'll be going for a run along that trail until that warning is down.

Monday, 22. September 2008, 17:59:46

Went to the aquarium yesterday to see the baby beluga whale which was born a few months ago. It was incredible to see mom and calf swimming so closely. There were also a few new exhibits, one being all the critters that live in our local waters. Divers say that some of the best diving in the world is here on our BC coast. The colours of the coral, fish and other animals are just incredible. Anyway, it's not easy taking pictures through the aquarium glass, but I managed some good shots of the jellyfish. I also took a few videos of the whales and then captured some still shots from those. Am trying to edit the videos, maybe I'll post them later. My computer is a little slow. (so am I)

More photos here.

Monday, 10. March 2008, 03:42:40

Adele has a new post about a plan/experiment to kill off wolves in Alberta so the elk population will increase for hunters. Here is a link to an article in the Calgary Herald about it, and a link to sign a petition to stop this senseless experiment.

Monday, 15. October 2007, 17:14:00

This is one of my favorite places to hike. Lynn Headwaters Regional Park. It's only a short drive, maybe 15 minutes from my home. Some of the trails are very accessible and on a weekend it can be quite busy. Nice that people of all ages can enjoy the beauty of this region though.

Anyway, even with lots of people on the weekend, there are always places where you find yourself completely alone and in wonder.

The rainforest is so dense here. Huge red cedars, douglas firs, vines and ferns.

The terrain is very steep in parts, deep canyons dropping into rushing water and clear green pools. Many of the steepest areas are heavily fenced. People die every year here, either slipping off the trails in the back country areas, or...

foolishly cliff jumping into the deep pools.

Fall in the rainforest.

Next week, weather permitting I plan to hike further into the backcountry.

More photos here.

And...what better way to promote a clean healthy environment but by showing you one. Let's keep it this way.

Thursday, 26. July 2007, 23:51:42

Living in the most expensive municipality in Canada doesn't mean exemption from such critters...But at least my city is not on strike as the workers are in Vancouver. Which means...no garbage collection for them! Oh, the rats downtown are going to have a feast in a few days! And, the weather is warming up!