Tag: Parks

After our search for Notch Hill didn’t work out, I wanted to treat the family to a nice ocean view. I had seen on one of the maps a tiny park right in Fairwinds Community called Brickyard Community Park, which was maintained by Regional District of Nanaimo. This sounded a little more promising that the Fairwinds’ private trails. We drove down to the water past the Fairwinds Golf Course. The area and architecture spoke to me saying, “rich white dudes wearing bad golf shorts.” Had the housing come with price tags, it would have said, “if you have to ask, […]

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Many years ago, we bought a book called 109 Walks. It’s one of those books you pull off the shelve every now and then to be ambitious when you are a city slug in a pandemic wanting to feel less locked in. The walking team picked Four Lakes Trail at Alice Lake Provincial Park. They set out from Vancouver and took the Upper Levels Highway (99) and drove about 12 km past Squamish to Alice Lake Road. At the Park it turned out the parking closer to the HQ was full, but there were lots right near Alice Lake itself […]

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One of the more popular easy trails with stunning views is Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver. When I asked Google Maps for a driving route, it suggested taking the Upper Levels Highway, which is a horrible route for a tourist. If you are coming from Vancouver stay on Marine Drive and head west. This will take you through the Ambleside and Dundarave sections of West Van, but then lead you to twisty roads with wonderful views. Be careful because the locals like to take these fast. It’s a left turn onto Beacon Lane where you can head down to the […]

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Englishman River Falls Provincial Park is located in Errington BC, which is about 6 km from Parksville. It’s my kind of hike (more of a walk, really) because it’s short (3 km) is easy and the scenery is spectacular. There are two falls (upper and lower) that have wonderful views. The lower falls ends in a pool in which thick-blooded individuals were splashing about. The water comes from a mountain and I expect it would be a tad chilly. The park is fairly busy, given there’s a campground attached and is easy access to day trippers as well. But you […]

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Kits Beach Park Pool opens every Victoria Day weekend and for the first time in years, I managed to catch it when it was the long weekend and it was warm enough. The trick with opening weekend is to stay in the water once you are in the water and, when out of the water, return yourself to the sun to heat up. Shade is not a thermally suitable place. Kits Pool has this wonderful combination of very long lane lengths so that the people wanting a workout can get one, but also with nice shallow areas for kids to […]

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Oak Bay in Victoria is a beautiful place with lots of lovely water views. There are many small parks along the vista, one of them being Queens Park. It is a small viewpoint with a piece of public artwork, a series of wolves and a deer made out of metal. And, although that was fun to look at, my favorite part of the park is it’s old swing. Now, I am not referring to some ordinary swing, this swing is built for four people and you push its floor with your feet for momentum. It’s quite calming and a lovely […]

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It’s summer in Vancouver, and as the temperature rises, so does the desire to be outside, soaking up some rays by the water. Here’s some information so you’re ready to go! There are many good beaches around Vancouver, but what about outdoor pools? Yes, the beach is free and just as great, but sometimes, a pool is just what one needs. And there are many fantastic pools to be found! My personal favourite is the Kitsilano Pool. It’s an outdoor pool near Kits Beach, on Cornwall at Vine street, so the the views are amazing. The pool itself is very […]

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Kitsilano is a Vancouver neighbourhood that begins on the south west side of the Burrard Street Bridge. Kitsilano Beach Park, or Kits Beach as it’s known locally, has a great beach, wonderfully upgraded concession stand and a huge swimming pool. An additional feature of Kits Beach is the Kitsilano Showboat which, this year, celebrated its 80th anniversary. It’s an outdoor theatre on the south side of Kits Beach Pool. (Were it on the north side, it would be in the ocean!) In 2015, Kitsilano Showboat ran from June 22 through to August 15. We caught the last show which was […]

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In the spring of 2015, Vancouver had an unusual run of dry weather — milimetres of rain, not the usual feet of rain. So when our work team decided to do our second (now annual) team bike ride around Stanley Park we were expecting to work up a sweat. Of course it rained. Not hard and not for long but it was cool and damp. Another expectation I had was that it would be crowded on the sea wall walk, which is a 10 km scenic trail around this massive park. I’d heard of incidents of cyclists, inline skaters, pedestrians […]

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Queen Elizabeth Park is a stunning 130 acre oasis in the city of Vancouver and is the city’s highest point; sitting atop 150m/500ft of granite. Millions of visitors walk through these gardens every year. Since the 1960s it has played host to countless weddings, family reunions, proposals, and picnics. Moreover it is a wonderful place to visit just for a stroll on a sunny afternoon. Take a leisurely walk through the beautiful and fragrant Rose Garden, or the equally beautiful Quarry Garden and Arboretum. There’s also a pitch and putt and a lawn bowling green, picnic tables and even a […]

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