Careful

Final photo from the hike: an information sign about how to take care of the alpine. Great advice!

Civilization?

Even at 1100m elevation there are signs of civilization.

Garibaldi Lake

This August I have spent more time hiking than wandering the city, which is why yet again there are photos from the region and not New Westminster proper.

The spring is so late in the alpine that this lake only thawed in the past 10 days or so. That snow over there won't melt before the next snowfall. In the alpine meadow, most wildflowers have not yet started blooming.

Platform View

Sunflower

Broken path

Took one of my favourite walks the other day, and noticed that the rail bridge has been repaired and was open for the tugboats pulling log booms to pass through.

Going Home

X marks the spot

Blackberry Season

Although they shouldn't be growing here, they are. The Himalayan blackberry has taken over any bit of wasteland that is available. In the case of this plant, it's growing on the top of a tall tree stump in the middle of a park!

Kids' Korner

Spotted this wee urban garden as I was walking past an elementary school. Looks like a fun project, and that people have left it alone.

Glacial heat

Hottest day of the year so far. Sun everywhere. Wildflowers in bloom. What's that? Up there! It's a...glacier.

Shot of the Comox Glacier from Goose Spit Regional Park. Beautiful place.

Thus ends the Vancouver Island adventures for the next little while. Back to New Westminster tomorrow.

Precarious

A master of architectural design, the Arthur Erickson Filberg House in Comox is a sight to behold. However, it is also situated atop a bluff that is being eroded by the sea 60m below at a somewhat alarming rate. No matter - if you have $6 million you can enjoy it until things get really dicey!

(Obviously this photo is lacking in wow - look elsewhere for professional quality photos at much better angles, both indoors and out.)

Moo-vin' on

Love photo-ops like these! Visited Morningstar Farm/Mooberry Winery/Qualicum Cheeseworks, sampled some wine and cheese after visiting all of the baby animals.

Dudley Marsh - Vancouver Island

Moved inland today to do some hiking, and stumbled upon this in the woods. It's a wonder that in this conservation area that this was allowed to remain, although it seems fitting when you think about it.

Mirror Image

One island, or two? Well, officially these are two islands, although it looks as though if the tide went any lower one could walk from Newcastle Island (left) to Protection Island (right).

Bubbles

Like an Aero chocolate bar, the sandstone at Newcastle Island is weathered so it resembles bubbles in the rock. Curious. Peeking above is a small welcome building with the logo of the First Nation that calls this small island home.

Stealth

View of the ferry from Vancouver arriving in Departure Bay in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. Yes, New Westminster Daily Photo is on holiday once again. This time, the blog is coming along.

Monolith

Stawamus Chief, Squamish. A granite monolith that some say is the second largest in the world. There's rock climbing up this face, and a walking trail at the back. This is one view of the Chief, taken from the patio of the Howe Sound Brew Pub in Squamish.

History

Visited Fort Langley National Historic Site today, about 40km east of New Westminster. It's in the quaint town of Fort Langley, which is bordered by the Fraser River and farmland. After the historic site tour (where we were saw a wedding in progress) we hit one of the local wineries - The Fort Wine Co - where we sampled some fantastic fruit wines and left with some bottles to enjoy later!

Scat!

One of the realities of living in this area, so close to mountain wilderness, is that often black bears will wander down into urban areas. It seems that one has done just that, making its presence known (as I saw today, 2 large piles of blackberry-filled scat on the trail) in local parks where they chow down on the blackberries which are now ripening. It's been a late spring in the alpine; many areas still have snow, meaning there are now delectables for the bruins.

So, in Burnaby Lake Regional Park stands this Live Bear Trap. Inside the trap are things that a bear should be attracted to, but so far can't be bothered to give up the blackberries for tins of fish.

Skill Testing

This is new. I've seen this in other places, but never yet here until today. Too bad that even small amounts of copper, such as from a couple of pennies, can be highly toxic to aquatic life.

Anchored

Nautical themed gardens on the boardwalk at the Quay. If I'm not mistaken, these are new this summer.

Gotta go!

Whimsical washroom sign at the River Market.

Frozen Foods

Donald's Market as seen from the second floor of the River Market.

Mystery Objects

Come summertime when I'm not working, I rarely stay close to home...or, my home city of New Westminster as it's one of the smallest cities that make up the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. So, for August at least, expect to find fewer photos specifically of New Westminster and more of the surrounding cities as I enjoy my vacation to its fullest.

Today's photo comes from Garry Point Park in Steveston, a small fishing village near Vancouver Airport (which are both in the city of Richmond, actually). Here we are looking northwest-ish across the Scotch Pond Historic Moorage site (the water), to Sturgeon Banks (an estuary) and in the background are the North Shore mountains (where many Olympic 2010 events were held).

There are also some mystery objects in the picture, but an internet search turned up nothing.

Secret passage

Another day spent outside of New Westminster exploring, this time at Buntzen Lake in Coquitlam. This is a reservoir / dam combination created by BC Hydro, turned into a recreation area. There are several great hiking trails here, the most challenging one (but of course with the best views) is Diez Vistas. This shot is of a lightning burnt cedar tree sitting on the Buntzen Lake Trail on the east side of the lake.

Urban still life

Alley between Agnes and Carnarvon streets.

Tunnel vision

A glance up Carnarvon Street from 10th yields a view of tower blocks leaning inwards. Perhaps someday the complex on the right side of the street will be completed. It's been 5 years now with no end in sight.

Follow

To get over jet lag, I have implemented "sun therapy" otherwise known as spending as much time as possible outside. This day I chose to walk around Deer Lake Park, close to the border of New Westminster and Burnaby, but on the Burnaby side. It's a habitat restoration area for riparian wildlife, so better keep your dog on a leash!

Green land?

The second day of the month was spent flying from Moscow to Vancouver via Frankfurt and Calgary. This is a view over Greenland's west coast.

Postcard Shot

Monday was my last day in Russia, where I had spent the last month traveling from end to end. This was taken from the pedestrian bridge behind Christ the Saviour cathedral, overlooking the Moscow River and Kremlin.