21 freckles

A is for Aquarium, Zed is for Zoo

2012-01-07T15:04:00.000-08:00

I went to the Vancouver Aquarium in Stanley Park with a photography buddy recently. I was so excited to go. I hadn't really been taking any pictures since my trip to Osoyoos with my 'road trip buddies' back in October. It's now January and I'm once again eager to get my eye up against the back of my camera and see the world through the lens again.

With good intentions, we got up at the crack-of-dark to get out to Stanley Park to try and shoot the sun coming up. Man it's cold down by the water at six o'clock in the morning. But we set up our tripods and 'attempted' to shoot in the dark. All I can say is; I really need more practice with long exposures and using my tripod! Once the sun had come up and we'd taken all the shot's we could, we rewarded our efforts with breakfast at White Spot then we went back to the park to take pictures of the Totem Poles at Brockton point before going into the aquarium.

So, the aquarium - like zoos, I have mentioned it before but I truly have a love/hate relationship with them. I hate to think of all the cages, pens, tanks, displays and scheduled 'performances'. But the draw of these creatures on me is like the draw a flame to the moth (and look how that works for the moth). I cannot resist them. I like to think my visiting pays for better care for these unwilling 'guests', I'm helping feed them, I'm paying the staff to take care of them. (it eases my guilt?)

Maybe we should open up our federal and provincial 'correctional facilities' to tours. The price of admission could fund inmate improvement and rehabilitation programs? I think the government might consider a money making venture like that, don't you?

But I digress and not in a good way.

When I walk through a zoo/game farm/aquarium I stare dumb-struck at the animals I will never get the opportunity to see in their natural environment, yet at the same time I shudder in anthropomorphic sadness for them stuck in these 'exhibits' that all seem so insufficient and bordering on cruel.

But go I must, it seems. And I will go again and again and again. It's a love/hate activity I can't stop myself from doing.

This visit to the aquarium turned out to be, well, a 'zoo'! I have not seen so many strollers and ankle-biters in one place at one time! And I suspect that they were all pumped full of sugar before they got there. Did you know there's a "stroller parking lot" near the Beluga exhibit??? It was like a Wal-mart parking lot at Christmas!!!
As tempted as I am to continue with a rant about the army of tiny tots and their tantrums and the stupid, stupid parents (and doting grandparents) whose collective brain seemed to shut off the moment they entered the aquarium, I won't . . . instead I'll just focus on the memory of seeing a ginormous sea turtle, floating jelly fish, little shiny black monkeys and all the other amazing creatures we are so fortunate to see close up (even though it's in teeny tiny prison tanks).

I know I've gone on about these tourist attractions being cruel, but I want to believe that there's proof we are learning from our past zoo and aquarium 'mistakes'. In 1962 the Hudson's Bay Company presented the Stanley Park Zoo with a pair of orphaned Polar Bears that lived their entire lives in the zoo. Loved by thousands who visited the then thriving Stanley Park Zoo. A zoo that was started with yet another orphan - a baby black bear that was chained to a tree stump 'back in the day' to entertain the curious. I like to think that hings had already improved by the time the Hudson's Bay Company came along with those orphaned Polar Bears. I remember seeing them when I was younger and always wondered why they were so yellow and not snowy white. Was it the result of captivity? The Polar Bear "Pit" was once the main attraction of the now closed "Stanley Park Zoo". It's been closed since 1996 when it's last tenant Tuk died at the ripe old Polar Bear age of 36. It's ominous now in its emptiness. Just sitting there decaying away. Echoing with memories of Tuk and his 'pit mates'.

But to zoos and aquariums I must continue to go despite the mixed emotions they dredge up within me. I wonder what a Serengeti National Park Safari would do to me? I'd probably weep so loudly in amazement that I'd scare all the migrating antelope into a stampede. I'd sure like to find out!

When we finally dragged ourselves away from the aquarium and back to New Westminster, we strolled around some of the condominiums down on the Quay.
I was startled to find a Koi fish swimming around this one complex that sits in it's own Venice-like waterway. It's very cool! And got a funky surreal shot of it swimming by the reflection of a window.

And in the teeny tiny penned-in dog park (what is it with our obsession with penning in animals in too small places?!?) I ran into my neighbour walking another neighbour's beautiful Golden Lab, Maya.

It felt so good to be out shooting again. Now where do I go...

2011-12-24T16:00:00.000-08:00

T'is the season to be . . . . . .

2011 has been a year worth forgetting in my books. There have been losses on many levels for me this year that I would happily have missed out on, but life goes on, eh?

Not dwell on the sadness and disappointment of the closing year, I'm looking forward to the upcoming 365 days to be filled with warmer and fuzzier memories.

So I would like to wish one and all . . .

. . . and may all your dreams and wishes for the New Year come true.

See you all in 2012.

Beautiful Colours whatever time it is

2011-11-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

I love the light this time of year. I love the changing colours. I think nature puts on a stunning display of flaming colours this time of year just to distract us from the nonsense known as Daylight Saving Time. Seriously, is it still necessary? Apparently it is. Clocks have been turned back and like clockwork, traffic accidents have spiked as they do every year at this time. Still need DST? Right...I rest my case. Yes I'm being smug.
But speaking of those colours, there are trees right under my bedroom window that are blindingly stunning right now so I went downstairs this afternoon and took a few pictures of them while their brilliant leaves were still attached.

Post-tourist season road trip to Osoyoos, BC

2011-10-22T21:59:00.000-07:00

Our trip started with thick patches of fog that thankfully burned off to be replaced by brilliantly clear blue skies and vibrant fall colours.

leaves blowing across the highway

crow's nest pass - highway 3

We stopped in Hope - a road-trip tradition - for breakfast. Took shots from the car along the Crow's Nest Pass highway until we pulled into "Mariposa's" produce market looking for Russian Red Garlic. They were sold out but we were sent down the road to "Parson's" where we found the mother load.

walnut beach resort great room

We stayed at the Walnut Beach Resort (posh to us) in a cozy little suite with an fireplace and full kitchen.

beach parasol on resort's private beach

view of resort from boat launch

sunset from resort beach

The next morning, after a little searching and help from the iNFO centre, we found the Osoyoos "Lakeview" Cemetery. (cemetery visits are a trip tradition with us)

collapsed grave slab

three differently 'preserved' grave slabs

graveyard mushroom

two wives at the same time....

detailed grave slab ornament

After the cemetery, we went off to check out the first Aboriginal owned and operated winery NK'mip Cellars where we all indulged in a delicious wine tasting and bought multiple bottles on our way out the door.

NK'mip (pronounced in-ka-meep) Cellars

We stopped next at a tiny pull-off looking over "Spotted Lake". We stared in awe at this naturally occurring phenomenon just sitting there in the dessert.

look-out over 'spotted lake'

There is a struggle going on right now in the area regarding the fate of Canada's only desert. There were signs everywhere along the highway declaring "NO National Park". After a little hunting on-line, I found what I think might be a balanced article on the issue. What do you think? Preserve this delicate ecological area or let what happens happens to this beautiful area.....? From the Osoyoos Times newspaper

the NO side was very visible we didn't see any YES signs

We stopped in at Mariposa's on the way out of Osoyoos and Keremeos for our going-home apples. One of our party bought 13! separate varieties of apples all grown in the surrounding orchards to sample at home.

mariposa roadside produce market

We ran across an old pick up in a beautiful golden field with a little white chapel perched on the hill above it.

cattle grates with a pick up and chapel in the distance

After that it was back along the twists and turns of the winding highway home, creeping up the endless inclines and coasting down the other side along rolling golden valleys and tree lined canyons.

winding roads through the dessert

and the mountains heading home


yes, that's snow on that peak. winter's on its way

And now I'm back home enjoying an apple a day marveling at the variety of apples we have right here in our backyard.

Tsawwassen Cemetery

2011-09-17T20:58:00.000-07:00

I love cemeteries. They've always fascinated me. And I'm so happy that my two best friends enjoy visiting them too and like to wander through them with me. When Sunday morning started out cold and rainy, I knew it would be perfect for moody, shadowy images. At first we weren't sure where to go but on my suggestion we ended up heading out to Tsawwassen, BC to find a recommended cemetery to walk through and take some shots of. I set the camera to black and white. The stone, moss, marble and mortar just seemed to invite black and white photography.
In contrast to the rain and flat grey sky back in town, it was dry and only a little cloudy out in Tsawwassen . I shot in black and white anyway despite the bright sunlight.
Whenever we go into cemeteries we do that with the utmost respect. We speculate about the lives and families of the dearly departed, comment on the variety and styles of the stones, read and comment on the inscriptions and are amazed when we find stones that have been there since the mid 1800s. We've never found anything older, but we keep looking.
In this particular cemetery, we were aghast at the vandalism done to the majority of the headstones. It was truly awful. How bored can people be that the idea of defacing or destroying the only remaining link some families have to those that have passed on would be great fun is beyond my comprehension. The level of disrespect leaves me speechless.
I hope to one day visit century old cemeteries around Scotland and England - to take pictures of headstones, crypts and mausoleums that have been there for hundreds of years. It will be an experience of a life time. But for now, I take advantage of local, younger places of rest with continued respect and curiosity.

Great Canadian River Shoreline Cleanup

2011-08-29T17:41:00.000-07:00

Well, I had an interesting Sunday morning. I was asked to go out and take pictures of, well trash. A friend of mine is organizing a local Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup on a section of the 'mighty' Fraser river here in New Westminster, BC.

Trash that is ignorantly tossed, strewn, flung and dumped where it most obviously should NOT be. But people do it just the same. Like so many other rivers across this beautiful country of ours, careless, inconsiderate, ignorant people continue to pollute them. After how many years of awareness and education and still there are ignorant jerks who think their actions have no consequences!!! What's it going to take?

All I can say is we are lucky that there are so many energetic volunteers that each year take it upon themselves to clean up their river shorelines all across Canada. The annual event takes place September 17th to 25th.

If you think you'd like to help in the cleanup, why not check out their website and see where you can sign up and lend a hand in saving our shorelines. Go to Great Canadian River Shoreline Cleanup for more details.

* * *

I'm not posting photos of the trash here. I wanted to post shots of 'nice' or interesting things I saw on Sunday instead.

the Fraser River is a very silty river

cut down for pulp and paper?

an early morning glimpse of the river from under an overpass

a higher up view of the river in the morning haze

formerly 'The Pen' now know as "Dublin Castle"

closer to home, a neighbour's calico

Sunday's Ladner Market was taken over by Chrome

2011-08-23T20:41:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday was hot and sunny, not a cloud in the sky. We headed off to check out Ladner's Sunday Market. When we got there we were a little perturbed at first that the stalls were missing. But soon we were thrilled to find them replaced by endless rows of glistening polished chrome and white walls as far as the eye could see! Chrome and impeccable paint gleaming everywhere.

let's twist again, like we did last summer

There were "American Graffiti" speedsters, Capone era roadsters, 70's muscle cars, a Delorean from 'the Future', and an enthusiastic singing group belting out 50s chart-topping tunes to the milling crowd of admirers from all walks of life. There were adorable babies and dogs everywhere. Again. a photographer's delight. At least this photographer's. It was a car enthusiasts dream and a photographer's playground. (I couldn't help notice just how many were shooting with Nikons.)

Immaculate paint after all these years


Pristine Packard

Roomy AND gorgeous

This little Boston Terrier enjoyed posing for the camera

Taking in the sights with 'dad'

Stunning British vintage

A couple of beauties saying hello

You can still imagine that 'new car smell' looking at this car

Dirt first, cool cars later

Sleek and luxurious

This was one of the weirdest sights there

Vintage fire truck

Why aren't today's cars this cool?

The good old days, eh?!

Classy detailing

Beautiful ornamentation from a different era

Get me to the church on time

2011-08-18T17:34:00.000-07:00

I got to break in the new D90 last weekend and shot a wedding for a friend. I've been a guest at a couple of weddings over the years and liked some of the shots I'd taken from that 'angle'. This time I was kinda/sorta the 'hired' photographer. I think I managed to capture a few good memories for the bride and groom. I hope they think the same. If I didn't - I'm sure the hoards of guests that had point-and-shoots and camera-phones did. It was a challenge shooting with the new camera. And as a result, I've set aside time to learn more about white balance (which I *should* already know) and figure out the whole focusing system on the D90.
I'm posting a few of my shots here as a reminder to myself of the day. I don't have any 'model releases' so I posting a few I feel are safe to post publicly.

The wedding dress

Enhancing natural beauty

Last minute touch-ups on the sister-of-the-bride's sari

Earrings

Details on the brides maid's dress

Reception set up

The bouquet

From a Nikon D60 to a Nikon D90

2011-08-05T18:59:00.000-07:00

Have upgraded to a Nikon D90. Sadly because the Nikon D60 that I carried with me every single day, everywhere I went for over the past four years, gave up the ghost. I will get it repaired when I can afford to and will cherish it as a solid 'back-up' unit. The D60 was a fantastic 'starter' DSLR for me. It was a kit that came with an 18-55 + 55-200 VR lenses.
If it is still being manufactured, I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a decently priced DSLR camera (maybe even cheaper 2nd hand?)

I had a couple of shooting commitments looming in just over a week and faced with a six to eight weeks turn around time on 'possible' repairs, I started looking for a replacement. I thought I would stick with what I was comfortable with (and liked), so I pooled my savings, borrowing funds from a very generous friend and ended up picking up another 'kit' The D90 came with an 18-105 + 70-300 VR lenses.

Well, I charged up the battery, put on the UV filters and headed out this morning to see how user friendly it was. Okay, I have a few more of the bells and whistles to find and some combination button pressing to figure out but over all, I think I'm pleased with my choice!

I thought I'd park a few samples here of some of the test shots I took today. I was hoping to get a combo sunny/cloudy day but it was extremely overcast when I was out and the sky was a kind of blinding flat white. Of course I'm looking out my living room window right now and brilliant sun shine is taunting me. But for now, the very first images shot with a new Nikon D90.

Oh and as usual, down at the bottom - I encountered a critter or two while I was out....

Gazebo in Queen's Park Rose Garden, New Westminster, BC

Queen's Park petting zoo resident

Inter-species encounter

Murphy

Dakota one half of the stink sisters 15 yrs old

Kilby Historic Site & Mont Woodridge Jumpers

2011-06-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

So, the lower mainland. IS BIG. Bigger than I thought. I need a GPS I think. What was going to be a short two hour 'jaunt' max, turned into a seven hour trek. But worth every minute. Even if my trip buddy was NOT happy about roaming around an historic site. He -and rightly so- can gloat about the second place we visited. Mont Woodridge. It was amazing!
It's going to take something even more amazing-er to top that! Srsly!

Anyway, Kilby is a "1920's Historic Site". With cool 1920's farm buildings and a couple of goats and bunnies, pigs and ducks. It's one of BC Heritage's recognized sites (which there are over 200 of them). It is a nicely maintained 'living museum' and recommended to all interested in taking a look back at a little corner of BC.

A little past the farm, we found a forest service road that went, well, straight up! Where we found a handful of some crazy fools who enjoy running off the tops of mountains and soar over the valley and river(s) below. The drive up there was bone jarring but the view was spectacular!!! And of course, what kind of trip would it be if I didn't meet a four footed friend.

Here's some of the stuff I saw.

It seems like ages since I've been by

2011-04-18T18:58:00.000-07:00

The last time I posted any pictures was a sunny day in February and that seems ages ago. I've been through a bunch of not so great stuff but I've been able to escape the crap by reaching for my camera. So, to get things posted, I'm going to toss an assortment of images I've taken over the last month or so.

I've taken pictures of abandoned swings and the fattest stray cats I've ever seen.
Birthday treats and ballet slippers.

A neighbour's upright piano that, I confess, covet

and funky old banjo.

I received flowers from some tenants in the building when they found out I had been home for my mother's passing and funeral. Kindness comes from unexpected places at times.

How about a couple of shots of the stink sisters?

and the last thing I shot just this weekend was a cool DC-3 at the Langley Airport (unfortunately it was penned up behind a frost fence).

It was so neat to see it in person

2011-02-24T17:44:00.000-08:00

It was a clear, crisp cold, COLD Saturday morning. We left early to get to the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal to head up the Sunshine Coast to Gibson's to visit what some (older Canadians) might call a National Shrine. At least any Canadian raised on CBC's "The Beach Combers".

We stepped out on the deck of 'The Queen of Surrey' as she pulled out of Horseshoe Bay to take in the view but the strong, biting cold wind quickly drove us back inside. It was amazing to watch the cold blow across the eerie dark water as we headed around Bowen Island over to Langdale.

The Beach Combers' "Molly's Reach" is still standing and still has the giant "Welcome Back" in green across the front of its yellow facade. I didn't think I'd be as thrilled about walking up to AND into Molly's as I was. I think I was getting second looks from the 'locals' because of the stupid grin on my face. The town is picturesquely quaint, if that's possible and I imagined myself retiring there and living in a funky houseboat to write all the unwritten novels I have banging around in my noggin.

It had warmed up by the time we off-loaded at Langdale. We drove to Gibson's, walked around for a while at the marina, ate our scrumptious "Veggie Hash" breakfasts in Molly's Reach before heading further along the winding bending coast, passing communities with wonderful names like Smuggler's Cove and Half Moon Bay going as far up as Madeira Park.

Of course true to form, I met a four-footed friend happy to pose for a quick snapshot.

Heading back to Langdale, we pulled in along a beautiful stretch of 'seawall' and I just lost myself watching the wind push wave after wave toward the shore while gulls hovered in the air currents overhead. This display of water and wind has strengthened my desire to get over to Tofino to "Storm Watch". I'll be beside myself when I see that. But that's for another blog post isn't it......

It was just a 'day trip' but it was a great day, one I won't soon forget.

Was backing up foto files and found some old stuff

2011-02-03T18:26:00.000-08:00

This is a hodge-podge post of pictures taken at various times and I just wanted to 'document' them here even though there's no theme what-so-ever. They range from thistles, to water droplets, to a heron in Burns Bog, to a chunk of amethyst and feral cats living out back under our carport.

There's a little lake in the middle of Burnaby

2011-01-31T19:07:00.000-08:00

Met a friend right after work and scooted over to Burnaby's Deer Lake Park. I always doubt that there will be interesting things to shoot in the middle of winter. No vibrant colours anywhere and endless frustrating white skies. I guess it's all in how you look around on a chilly winter day.

Spotted this beautiful reflection of part of the Burnaby cityscape.

I love the way the defused light lit up this green house

Oh, and if you can't decide just
what breed of dog is your favourite, take a walk in any park around the lower mainland and narrow down
your choices - if you can!

And this guy was just floating by minding his own business

It's a sunny Sunday...that means driving practice.

2011-01-30T14:08:00.000-08:00

I got the chance to get in some driving practice this morning - highway practice. Not just out to the mall, the coffee shop and home again practice. It was absolutely beautiful out there this morning. Crisp, clear and dry. And there was a strange bright ball in the sky. I looked it up - it's called the SUN. It's been a 'little' wet around here lately. A random "sun" day is pretty exciting this time of year.

I had no idea where we were going to end up - I was supposed to have decided that before we headed out. Quick thinking and a vague memory made me pick The Reifel Bird Sanctuary out in Ladner. I've been there once before with a photo club and after getting through only a fraction of the sanctuary, I promised myself that I would get back out there somehow - I didn't have access to a car back then. Well, today, I pointed my nose in the general direction of where I wanted to go and stepped on the gas.

I have to pat myself on the back. I got us there in one forward motion - no back tracking or retracing any of our steps - and I got us there in one piece!
However, because this was an opportunity for me to practice my driving, I did not actually spend any time in the sanctuary. I settled for taking a few shots of the ducks stationed just alongside the parking area. We were there just long enough to stretch our legs, we never went inside, then clamoured back into the car and continued my 'driving practice'.

On our way home we got to see Snow Geese, honking happily, as they flew by overhead in 'v' formation. I really wished I could have pulled over to take some pictures of them and the Bald Eagles we saw floating on the thermals looking for prey.

Finding my way home was as important as getting to my destination. I made it back with only one missed exit and in one piece - obviously, I'm making an entry - and now I really want to go back to Reifel and actually go in and stay a lot longer - as soon as I can get my hands on a car.

Random is as random does

2011-01-25T17:25:00.000-08:00

Well, not much of a theme to this post. Maybe that's the theme. A few random shots that caught my eye in the last week or so. I *am* going to eventually plan a photography outing to get the rust out of my shooting elbows. There's no excuse for not shooting -even the crappy weather- if you're a photographer, you should be photography-ing. So, I better get it in gear and dust off my equipment. But until I do get out there in all the rain and fog, I'll take random things that catch my eye - like these...

The cats got hand made beds from a great little etsy store called weez wear kitty beds for Xmas. Pixel and Dakota have had 'discussions' about who's turn it is to cuddle down for a cat nap. Pixel usually wins....

The sky was beautiful behind the Lion's Gate bridge as we headed over to North Vancouver.

These bottom two images are of a friend's paper lamp shade taken at two different white balance settings. I thought they make for cool texture photos, dontchoo?

Snow-magedon ended up looking more like a mocha slushie

2011-01-12T19:27:00.000-08:00

So the "STORM OF THE CENTURY" hit last night and dumped heaps of very heavy wet snow over night. The city freaked of course and by noon we were wading ankle-deep through brown slush. *sigh* Anticlimactic is an understatement. But I did cuss-out the stupid 'property owners' who didn't shovel their stretches of sidewalk - interestingly the major offenders between work and home were the 'houses of worship' in the area. Sloppy people, sloppy. And for the next Gawd-knows-how-many-days we can all go back to grumbling about all the rain we get out here. And there are buckets on the way. I'm glad I've got my old-lady rubberized winter boots. Fashion be damned. I'm not sitting at work with pruned toes in chilly, wet, soggy footwear in the name of fashion. Anyway, while splashing home in the mocha slushie I took random pictures. Like these...

First real outing in 2011: Surrey's Green Timbers Park

2011-01-10T19:22:00.000-08:00

Well, it's too late for Happy New Year's wishes and all that seeing as we're nearly three weeks into the new year - and decade. Can you believe it? The new century is already a decade in. Why does time feel like it's speeding up?
The new year came in very low key. Don't know if it's going to get much better, the remaining three hundred and some odd days will tell. Hopefully issues will improve.
Anyway, managed to get out on the 2nd for an hour or so and boy oh boy, what a stunning day it was! Bright sun, a clear, crisp blue sky and a terrific bite in the air that makes you smile and sniffle.
My friend and I took a short drive and we ended up out in Surrey's Green Timbers Park. I'm not sure just how big this little gem of a park is because we took only a short walk around a small loop and called it a day.
If anyone was looking for where all the snow was should trot over to the park. It was like a post card winter wonderland in there. I took some pictures.

The winter storms haven't hit yet - if at all - but hopefully I'll be able to get out again from time to time to take a couple of pictures in and around the lower mainland.

So, welcome 2011, I hope you've brought along a little bit more health, happiness, love and laughter with you than 2010 did.

Spent the weekend in Portland

2010-10-22T21:05:00.000-07:00

Vancouver BC to Portland OR is 313 miles one way. 6.5 hours.
Last Friday we headed south mid-morning. The sky was brilliant blue, a rim of impressive clouds hung over the horizon and the sun was shining like crazy. It took forever and a huge part of our gas tank just to get across the flipping border!!! I was ready to stab myself repeatedly in the eye by the time we got to our grumpy border guard's little hut. And You know those 'border notices' giving you the 'wait at the crossing' - they're a massive joke. But anyway. We got across and headed down the I-5.

We stopped in Blaine for breakfast at "Tony's White Spot & Cafe".

Spotted an interesting mural around the corner from 'Tony's'.

Got a little experimental after the sun went down and still had an hour or two to drive before we got to our hotel.

We stayed in a two bedroom suite! We had a full-sized fridge and a microwave in our 'kitchen' area. Each room had a flat screen TV and each bedroom had its own bedroom. Pretty amazing luxury!!! We stopped for food to stock the fridge and we found goodies like this mocha and whipped cream beauty at "Fred Meyers". Holy smoly!! What a place to shop. And they have aisles and aisles of booze RIGHT IN their supermarkets. One stop shopping. In the morning we had a buffet style continental breakfast in the dining room off the main lobby.

We stopped in a Target on the return trip home, but found nothing. We ate at a Shari's restaurant. OMG You have to try the strawberry/rhubarb pie!!! On the way out of the parking lot and on the final stretch home we stopped to take pictures of this amazing mountain. I believe it's Mount Hood. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

We bought some American beer called "Alaska", some pretty crystals and a few books from Powell's City of Books. I want to be locked in over night in Powell's one day. The place is AMAZING!!! I hope we get back down there again in the future.

It's fun to go south for the weekend, but let me tell you, it's the greatest feeling to get our passports handed back to us and to roll back onto Canadian soil.

The stink sisters

2010-09-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

Okay. So, my buddy Deb pointed out the little orange terror Pixel hogged all the lime light the other night, so I snapped some shots of the 'girls' tonight and made a post just of them. So without further ado, here are the stink sisters.

Agatha and Dakota.

They're not sisters at all. But they're both old bony females and kinda stinky. Dakota came to me the size of a baking potato. That was close to fifteen years ago. Agatha ended up on my doorstep at the ripe old age of thirteen or fourteen because I couldn't bear the idea of her being brought into the S.P.C.A. with hopes of being adopted. Senior cats don't get adopted. So I took her in. And after a couple of years of unpredictable and unprovoked biting, that have thankfully cleared up, we are buddies.

I think she adopted me

Sittin' pretty

2010-09-18T21:20:00.000-07:00

I have a cat.

Actually, I have three cats. I think I'd have more if the landlord said I could. I guess it was kind of good he capped me at three.

If I could, I'd have (multiple) dogs too - if my lifestyle and residency warranted it.

I'd considered getting a couple of song birds once but, umm, seriously. cats + birds = ?!?!?

So, I have cats. Three of them.

I have two stinky old girls, Dakota and Agatha who are both over 15 years old. One came from a friend's unspayed cat. The other was an adoption from someone leaving the country. One is stinkier than the other, they're cranky, sleep most of their days away and don't do much other than work on gooy, stringy hairballs while I'm at work. But they're my old girls and I love them.

Pixel, the newest addition to the herd, has been with us for four years already and I can only figure out that his purpose on earth is to get the two old girls so pissed off that they poop in the most inconvenient places in the apartment - none of them ever being in either of the litter boxes. It's usually in the middle of a hallway, under a piece of furniture or on a shoe. He's a big orange mama's boy. He's extremely vocal - at the wrong times of the day - especially night. He's big. Not over weight big - just a big boy. He's a bit of a suck though and needs regular cuddles from me - whether I am ready for them or not. He clamours up the front of me and parks himself there until he's feeling loved enough - before dashing off to torment the stink sisters. He seems to play endlessly with imaginary 'friends' and is great at fetch, but when he's done, he crashes like a rock. I swear I can hear the crones let out matching sighs of relief when he's conked out. I try to scold him when he gets really wound up and terrorizes the poor girls into a lather. But when he's being good and cute and charming and adorable, he's the most lovable critter ever and I forget he's the reason there's a little turd at the foot of the bed when I get home. He has one major flaw (like tormenting the other two cats isn't enough) . . . He hates any people that are not me. He loses his shit when people visit. We all laugh nervously at his noises and posturing as we back away making sure we don't make eye contact until he calms down. I have no idea why he does it, I wish he'd stop. It's embarrassing. Anybody have any suggestions?

The other night I was fortunate to catch him in one of his quieter moment. He hadn't decided if he wanted to take a power nap, find one of the girls and corner her or bound off the cat tree and check out the noises coming from the hallway. He ended up having a good stretch, turned around three or four times in one spot before settling in for a nap.

Oh, and he snores . . .

Hell's Gate

2010-09-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

Hell's Gate got its name from an 1808 log entry by Simon Fraser after coming upon this section of the Fraser River; "...surely this is the gate of hell." It must have been pretty unnerving to see and hear the raging river crashing into and through the narrow gorge.

Hell's Gate is roughly a two and a half hour drive from Vancouver up highway one. The four of us headed out early. We made a now officially traditional stop in Hope for a delicious breakfast at "Darryl's". Highly recommended. The coffee is great, the hash browns hit the spot and I dare you to hate their cinnamon buns!

One of the seven
tunnels you drive
through to get to
Hell's Gate.


The Fraser River.

Looking down at the
churning water below us
from our air tram.


There were tonnes of these little chipmunks racing around everywhere like they were on crack.


The other air tram heading back across the gorge.


Can you see the seals in the rock formations?


Mesmorizingly water smooth white rocks.


Puzzle pieces.

The PNE's 100th Aniversary

2010-08-26T21:16:00.000-07:00

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking that many cities in Canada have their own version of a summer "Exhibition". Vancouver's summer fair is the Pacific National Exhibition, the 'PNE' for short.
There are rides, endless food vendors, games, concerts and just about everything else under the sun.
My buddy in crime, her charming younger son and I spent nearly four hours roaming the grounds under a relentless sun.
We watched a much-too-short "SuperDogs" demonstration with - to name a few - a trio of Pugs named "Snap, Crackle and Pop" and a floofy two-toned English Sheepdog by the name of 'Puff Daddy'.
We ate whale tails and 'those little donuts' you can only get at the PNE (I think). We tossed tooooo much money away along endless rows of those games-of-chance. But with Joe's talent we did come away with five adorable stuffed animals including my Dachshund in a hot dog bun!

Now all that being said, I didn't take a single shot of the rides, or milling crowds or the colourful stalls and 'atmosphere' around me in the brilliant sunlight. It was just too hot to. Instead, I opted to shoot indoors. I went in search of the farm animals. I shot in less-than-ideal lighting conditions while trying very hard not to get elbows or noses or arse holes wandering into my shot.
It was pretty easy to find the agricultural pavilion despite the bustling, sugar-infused crowd. We followed the pungent whiff of the manure and found our prize. Clydesdales, Llamas and

If looks could kill?


It was warm in there his 'bangs' were all frizzy.

pretty eyelashes!

Monkey on your
back kid?

Mmama LLama


The picture is all blown out but the expression on her face just cracks me up. It looks like she's about to hook a huge loogie at the camera.

Bbaby Llama

And the Beatles were called
The Mop Tops..


The hugest most laid-back cows ever.


And what is an agricultural exhibit without piglets!

We were hot, achy and tired after wandering the fairgrounds for four hours. We shuffled back to our car, waved good bye to the PNE and its 50 year old wooden roller coaster and headed home.

A Sunny Sunday in Steveston, BC

2010-08-21T21:17:00.000-07:00

Steveston, British Columbia. Once a bustling fishing village is now really more of a tourist attraction and a colourful but crampled backdrop for the grotesque amount of encroaching condominium developments crowded around it.

And before heading home from the crowded pier, we came across a dog training/obedience class in session - who can resist shooting adorable pooches! They all did their humans proud.

Zoo & Garden revisited | BC Highland Games | Stewart Farm

2010-08-21T20:49:00.000-07:00

Multiple visits to the Queen's Park rose garden and petting zoo in New West are a given every summer and every time I go I'm fortunate enough to see things I missed the first or second time I dropped by.

Rose Garden | Petting Zoo

BC Highland Games

Slainte Mhath! Coquitlam's Percy Perry Stadium hosts the annual BC Highland Games. Where "gingers" rule and the haunting drone of the pipes moves the heart. World champion Simon Fraser University Pipe Band attend. Highland dancers 'fling' their hearts out and the majority of the merchants carry 'clan-centric' goodies to tempt even the tightest of purses. See you there next year!

Stewart Farm

Built in 1894 by John Stewart, this beautifully restored Victorian-style farm house features a wrap around verandah. There is a vegetable garden, fruit trees, machine sheds and much more to explore.

Tacoma's Point Defiance Aquarium & Zoo

2010-08-13T20:47:00.000-07:00

WARNING: This post is very image heavy because I couldn't edit myself no matter how hard I tried. Meerkats people! And Leemurs.....and, and, and....
So, this Point Defiance Aquarium & Zoo has animals I have NEVER seen in real life! The grounds themselves are HUGE.........the enclosures themselves, uh, not so much. On one hand I was thrilled to see some of their 'residents'!!! But on the other, I was upset by the sadness some of the others seemed to give off. Yes, yes, I know I'm anthropomorphizing them - but that's how I felt looking at some of them. The elephants broke my heart and I just wanted to bust open the 'camel-ride' enclosure and set the poor things free.
But, but but, the smaller critters seemed relatively happy in their environments.
(just so's you know: there are no sad elephants or camels in this post)

The Lemurs

The Meerkats

Black Gibbon with White Cheeks

Walrus (he came to the zoo when he was 8 months old, he's 28 years old)

Seal (pretty blissful looking)

Sea Otter

Sea Anemone (in Pacific North West aquarium display)

Some decorative landscaping and plants

Big Cats

Clouded Leopard

Sumatran Tigers

The two tiger cubs lolling calmly in the midday heat had just been presented to the public that week.

Screech Owl

This teeny owl lives at the zoo because of an injury that left her blind in her left eye.

Puffins

Eatonville, WA's Wildlife Trek Park

2010-08-13T20:29:00.000-07:00

Zoos to me are and I think always will be a love/hate issue. I LOVE that I get the opportunity to see wild and/or exotic animals I would NEVER get a chance to see in the wild. On the other hand, some animals in these places eminate such sadness and dispair.
That said, the Wildlife Trek Park in Eatonville, WA was a very enjoyable experience!
The animals roam around free over acres and acres of natural terrain. The only concrete in sight was the path that snaked through their world that our (windowless) tram took over an hour to cover.
The Wildlife Trek Park houses, not exotic animals but North American species we don't think of normally as zoo displays, at least I don't think of them as something to stare in awe of up close and personal. The animals looked content and serene. There were adolescent/juvenile critters lolling about in meadows or camouflages under thick ferns and ground cover.
If you're ever in the Tacoma/Seattle area, try and make a trip a little further south to Eatonville and spend some time with beautiful North American creatures.

baby porcupine testing his balancing abilities.

A wee calf stood just off to the left of this fella's rump.

This was one display I wish wasn't so 'prison-like'.

This trio sat SO STILL everyone who wandered up honestly suspected that they were stuffed. I swear! I saw them weave and blink!

Queen's Park Garden & Petting Zoo

2010-08-13T19:01:00.000-07:00

Nestled in New Westminster's Queen's Park, just a stone's throw from the arenas and playing fields is the 'Rose Garden' and a quick jog across the parking lot, is a kid's delight - the petting zoo.

Fraser River graveyard?

2010-08-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

Was out and about on a sunny Sunday morning, getting in some driving practice and we stumbled on an interesting view or two driving along River Road. Spotted a swan family that taken up residence in a rundown hodge-podge of a pier (wharf?) not far from a rotting old boat moored at low tide.

Oh, and this is my crazy orange cat Pixel giving me either a yawn and stretch or is laughing hysterically at me. :o\

Taking the summer slooooow and ezzy

2010-08-13T18:28:00.000-07:00

Haven't traveled much this summer. Did the economical 'stay-cation' thing instead in early July. Actually I've been as lazy as a "slug" during my time off and barely pointed the old Nikon at anything.

Finally stepped into the realm of manual settings

2010-05-17T19:07:00.000-07:00

My friend recently discovered the thrill of shooting in "M" and encouraged me to take a step away from the "A" setting on my D60 and we spent a gorgeous Sunday afternoon shooting down by the Fraser River.

We parked right under the skytrain tracks

Low tide left little rivulets in the sand

Looking through a knot hole

Solitary rock stranded in sand ripples

Hidden mushrooms on the path above the beach

And I always seem to meet dogs on my photo outings. This beauty was skittish and barky.
But a good lesson: Bright sun + Dalmation + manual settings = many attempts at proper exposure

West Coast Train Museum, Squamish, BC

2010-04-19T14:39:00.000-07:00

Bright and early, we booted it up to Squamish, BC along the newly beautified Sea-to-Sky Highway (the #99) on Saturday, a typically rainy, grey spring morning in this part of the world. We got to the West Coast Train Museum in good time and found the place - to our delight virtually deserted - only because of the relentless rain. But that suited us just fine. We weren't being jostling by absent-minded elbows or excitable youngsters or waiting for idling bodies to get out of our shots. It was a blast climbing in and out of the cars that were open to the public even despite the steady rain and there were some fascinating things to shoot. I was disappointed to see no passenger cars. If there ever were any, they may have been gutted to house the 'museum exhibits' (a lot of which were behind plexi-glass or obscured by "do not touch" signs. But it was interesting just the same. We also managed to take a tour of Brightbill House (circa 1930).

Engine car
Brakeman's perch in Caboose
Brakeman's quarters
Canadian Pacific place setting
Dining car
Telegraph car
Brightbill House
Inside Brightbill House

Taking stock?

2010-04-19T13:41:00.000-07:00

A friend asked me recently if I'd submitted anything to competitions lately. Good question. Anything I've submitted has been through the Royal City Photography Club - of which I am a member. I've never entered anything on my own. I think I'm going to post the (club) ones I can remember submitting so far here (in no particular order) to keep track of them. I will probably post a batch from time to time just to keep a record for myself (hopefully there's a noticeable improvement in the quality of the images improves). I think I might finally join CAPA (Canadian Association of Photographic Arts) now too. They have competitions for individuals as well as clubs. Time to step it up. Thanks for the suggestion Deb, it was a good idea. :o)

Cafe on Hastings
Fraser Heights river walk
Bloedel Conservatory
Cleveland Dam
Burnaby Village Carousel
My living room
The Othello Tunnels
Bloedel Conservatory
The McQueen's front room

2010-04-07T15:16:00.000-07:00

Wow! Are we already chipping away at April? Where the heck did March go? I hardly got a chance to take any pictures.
Well, spring is here - in all its rainy, windy dullness. We are getting the odd fleeting glimpse of sunshine to keep us from giving up the will to live until summer gets here but right now it's dreadful. We were nearly blown away by a nerve wracking wild wind storm just the other day (shades of the storm that changed the face of Stanley Park about four years ago!) And another is on the way supposedly!
Before March closed its doors, the sun managed to shine for us here and there.
There were looming clouds everywhere most of the time but, see look, we do get sunshine out here in the spring.

The front rock wall of a neighbour's house that shows off its purple cascading blanket every year. It slows traffic it's so beautiful.

Looming clouds with the promise of the rain that was to come later that week.

It may only be March but I guess no one told the dandelions.

Or the magnolia.

Oh, and as often I can, I like to throw in a random critter I've had the pleasure of running into or spending time with. Hi Rocky!

What a difference a day makes

2010-03-14T19:08:00.000-07:00

So I was gloating just the other day about the amazing weather we'd been having.
Well, I guess mother nature didn't think it was nice to gloat.
It's been blustery and wet and very grey out there for the last few days.

So to distract myself, I've been playing/experimenting with a set of filters I just bought on eBay that enhance the 'macro' setting on my lens. If I had the equivalent of a mortgage payment to by a legit macro lens I would, but until then, I will play with these. They're pretty cool.

I shared them with a friend then dragged her along with me to go shopping for a backpack and cheap socks at Army & Navy Once the pack was acquired and despite the miserable weather we wandered around on the top level of the parkcade that runs behind the store and along the Fraser River. We found an interesting back view of a dilapidated old building to shoot.

They call these the pistils?
(macro test)

The ramp to level B

Train tracks below the parkade

Piles and piles of squished cars!

A patchwork picture

Still standing after all these years
This is two images fused to get the whole building in
maybe I should look into a wide(r) angle lens too....

New Westminster in March

2010-03-10T15:37:00.000-08:00

We keep watching the skies for snow. But it's just not up there! We've been so fortunate this winter - compared to last winter - we're having a winter we, on the coast, love to smugly brag about. Yep, slippin' on shorts and sandals to go down to the local Starbucks and people watch over our extra-hot-no-foam-triple-shot cappuccinos. In March. March!
Friend and I took a stroll down on the New Westminster Quay last week to enjoy the sun and gawk at the flowers already out and beautifying the neighbourhood.

Sun through bedroom linen

Happy flowers facing the sun

Beautiful Magnolia in the breeze

Sun tipped ripples over sand at low tide

Inn on the Quay reflected in the sand

Great weekend weather means hitting the road

2010-02-21T20:00:00.000-08:00

Terrific weather this weekend had us heading off early on Saturday morning to Sumas Mountain in the valley to see just how high up the logging road(s) we could go before bolders, washouts or fallen trees stopped us. We made a stop at the desolate radio tower to get a look out over Mission, BC. The wind up there was biting cold under a clear blue sky. Water filled tire ruts were frozen over. We went up a couple more roads that snaked off in different directions up the mountain - mostly ending at clear cut sections or passing through them.
The idea of clear-cutting drives a dagger through my heart. The end results are devastating to look at, a terrible scar on the landscape that can be seen for miles until the new growth takes hold.

Ice as thin as fine crystal

Looking over Mission from tower height

Forgotten casualties

Aged to a shiny silver

Standing against the winds

Colourful winter walk home

2009-12-30T17:16:00.001-08:00

We aren't knee deep in snow out here on the coast and we're not even getting any of the endless, dreaded rain that is the west coast version of the white stuff.
Walking home on a mild overcast December after work ended up being quite colourful when normally it would be quite drab, grey and featureless.

From swishy winter grass and vivid bouquets to a mossy sign and a warm sunset.

Sunny Christmas day

2009-12-26T12:34:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, 2009

Worked a 5:00 a.m. shift on Christmas Day which meant I was out of the office by 12:30. My friend picked me up after my shift and we drove out to look for things to photograph. Christmas 25th, 2009 turned out to be an unbelievably sunny and gorgeous day! He drove out to Mission along Lougheed hwy and I drove back along the #1. I think he got the better deal. (not really, I didn't want to drive right after work. I was enjoying being a passenger)
Our day was incredibly sunny and clear so it was quite a surprise when we came back into New West and the place was blanketed in fog. It was magical and peaceful.
(no images of the fog however because I was the one driving)
Hopefully there'll be other foggy days ahead.

sunny winding road
Mount Baker from Mission
a gull and his shadow
birds on a wire
Pixel's toes in Christmas lights

Pixel poses and bird watching

2009-12-20T08:05:00.000-08:00

This (not so) little guy is going to figure prominently in blogs from time to time. He's my sitting-around-the-house subject to shoot when he sits still long enough to get the camera aimed and focused on him. He enjoys perching on the cat tower to take in his kingdom and occasionally I am in arms length of the trusty Nikon D60 to shoot him. I'm learning ISO, shutter speeds and white balance taking pictures of his lordship.
(thank you Pixel)

There is a house on my walk home that has a birdhouse hanging in a riot of branches right outside what I think is their dining room or kitchen. Two adorable calicos were parked on the sill the other day watching the recently replenished feeder. I will have to stop again (when my white balance is correct) and get more shots of the birds feeding, the cats watching them and the chubby squirrel that manages to get up there to partake of the suet and seeds.

Burnaby Village decked out for the holidays

2009-12-17T18:58:00.001-08:00

Burnaby Village is a combination of heritage and replica buildings site depicting life circa 1920. Period costumed 'townsfolk' greet and entertain visitors. We wandered around the 10 acre site in the on again-off again rain for four hours. We watched the carousel and its pretty painted horses. We stopped in such places as the schoolhouse, the newspaper office, the bank and the general store. We met Santa Claus and did some experimenting with shutter speed and exposure.
(no tripod was used in the making if these images)

New Westminster's Festival of Lights Parade

2009-12-11T14:47:00.000-08:00

Shortly before a clear December dusk, the City of New Westminster held its "Festival of Lights" parade on a crisp cold Saturday afternoon to the delight of the hundreds of spectators that lined the parade route down along Columbia street.

Some of New West's finest
We made the news.
The top brass?
Blow your own horn
Santa Paws

That's not a reindeer
Behind every great man is an even greater woman.

Happy Holidays to you and yours from me and mine.

Harbourview Park, North Vancouver. Revisited

2009-12-11T14:42:00.000-08:00

I had an opportunity to revisit Harbour View Park in North Vancouver recently and walk all the way to the end and watched the SeaBus cross from Lonsdale Quay over to Waterfront. We met happy friendly dogs of all kinds of shapes and sizes with equally happy owners in all shapes and sizes.
The sun was brilliant in the nearly endless blue sky overhead. Seagulls churned and soared above the pilings as the wind whipped anxious little waves against the rocks.
The vivid edges of razor wire topping the fence around the CN lot looked stunning in the sunlight. And a riot of graffiti colours on overpass pillars looked alive in this amazing December light.

The next day walking home from work I couldn't not take pictures in the incredible light of the late afternoon sun. Vibrant moss clinging tightly to a stone wall, the sun silhouetting fuzzy buds on a dormant bush and plump little moineaux taking delight in what looked like a very chilly bath.

Autumn is settling in around us

2009-11-27T19:44:00.001-08:00

Gosh who hit the 'summer-is-officially-over' button? And hit the accelerate button into winter? I nearly had to dust off the D60 to shoot this morning. These first two shots are of 4:45AM fog I took walking to work. They are also the first images I managed to upload into LightRoom and fiddle with. (so excuse the quality) I love fog. I wish I had blown off work today and just wandered around taking pictures of the city draped in all that beautiful fog. Maybe next time - which is apt to happen. It's weird here, we can get day, even weeks of fog here in the middle of winter. It's kind of awesome.

This little guy was cooperating for once and was sitting still enough in a box for me to capture a pretty crisp image of him. He's usually just a blur when ever I try taking any images of him.

I hope I don't go as long between shoots. I miss taking pictures every day. I might do a 365 project again for 2010. I could use the excuse to get to learn just how much neat stuff my dSLR does.

Deep Cove in fall colours

2009-10-25T19:20:00.000-07:00

A lucky break in the weather greeted me and a friend when we headed over to Deep Cove, BC. It's surprisingly a noisier area than I thought it would be.
I was a little surprised how apathetic the locals' were to the majestic beauty around them. I guess indifference eventually takes over when you don't see your magnificent surroundings any more. ...shame.

Salute to Halloween

2009-10-14T17:41:00.000-07:00

For a recent photo club 'assignment' we were asked for 'Film Noir' images.
I don't think I quite captured the classic film noir style when I set out to shoot.
But I thought these would be good for Hallow'en instead.

Happy Halloween!

There and back before the first major snow of the season

2009-10-02T16:28:00.000-07:00

Our round trip covered 2,000+ kms in less than 48 hours.
In order, we either stopped in or drove through the following places: New Westminster. Chilliwack.Hope.Princeton.Hedley.Keremeos.Cawson.Osoyoos.Midway.Grand Forks.Cascade.Rossland.Trail.Montrose.Fruitvale.Salmo.Creston.Erickson.
Yahk.Moyie.Cranbrook.Fort Steele.skookumchuck.Canal Flats.Fairmont Hot Springs.
Invermere.Windermere.Radium Hot Springs.Shuswap.Vermillion.Banff.Lake Louise.
Field.Golden.Glacier.Revelstoke.Malakwa.Sicamous.Salmon Arm.Sorrento.Kamloops.Merrit.Hope.Chilliwack.New Westminster.
We went along Crow's Nest Pass; Vermillion Pass, Kicking Horse Pass and Roger's Pass.
We travelled Trans Canada Hwy, hwys; 3, 3b, 5, 5a, 93, 95 and Coquihalla there and back.
We stopped for fuel in Husky, Esso, Shell, a PetroCan station I think and fueld ourselves up at the odd Tim Horton's.
We pitched our tent overnight Saturday in the Dry Gulch Campground (riding out a pretty nasty wind storm) and while we could see our breath, we broke camp before sunrise and crossed the BC/AB border as the sun was coming up over the mountains.
Stopped at the Continental Divide(5382ft/1640m above sea level). Any water on the left of the line flows into the Pacific, any water on the right of the line flows into the Atlantic.
Image Quality: most images were taken through the front windshield of a Suzuki Sidekick travelling between 60 and 130km/h.

Heading out first thing Saturday morning.

Turning leaves.

The Continental Divide

A quick trip down to Banff before Lake Louise.

A view in front of us leaving the Banff Springs Hotel.

Alberta builds wildlife corridors that straddle the highway - I'm not sure if they're called 'wildlife corridors' but how cool is that?!?

Lake Louise in all its turquoise beauty.
(of course my photos do not do it justice)

Mountain glacier silt - the reason for the colour of the water.

Seattle's Woodland Zoo

2009-09-25T18:10:00.000-07:00

I have mixed feelings about zoos. I want so badly to get a glimpse of animals I would never get a chance to see in the wild that I'm glad I have access to a few local facilities. However, as I gaze through three inch thick glass or crane my neck to try and seen anything through snow fences, I'm struck with a sadness looking at something that should be roaming free sitting lethargically in a man-made environment that is probably about 1/10 the size of their natural environment. But oh, how fascinating and beautiful these wonderful animals are! Just last month I got down to Seattle's Woodland Zoo in Washington State.
[note to self: NEVER go to the zoo on a weekend!]

Foggy Mount Baker, Washington State

2009-09-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

Mount Baker. Is an 'active glaciated andesitic statovolcano. It is the second most active volcano in the North Cascade Range next to Mount St Helens.
Mount Baker is 3285 m high. The indigenous people call it Komo Kulshan "white sentinal".

We drove up it's winding switch-back road in dense ethereal fog and cold misty drizzle. We couldn't see more than a few metres in any direction when we first got to the top parking lot. The fog lifted briefly to reveal spectacular postcard perfect vistas and almost as quickly as it pulled back to share its colourful secrets with us, it settled back in turning everything back into a mysterious tableau of white, grey and black.

Wahleach Lake

2009-09-20T18:22:00.000-07:00

Approximately 15 kms southwest of Hope, in the Skagit Range of the Cascade Mountains, up a pot-holed, rock riddled logging road is Waleach Lake (also known as Jones Lake Reservoir).

Finn Slough, Richmond BC

2009-09-20T17:43:00.000-07:00

Pronounced 'slew' it sits in a quiet back water of the Fraser River in Richmond.

Destination: Back to Vancouver along Hwy l part final

2009-09-18T18:18:00.000-07:00

The last leg our our trip included some cool tunnels and a stop at the Alexandra Bridge. And what a gorgeous old bridge she is!

One last train to wave at as we wrap up our road trip to Kamloops and home again.

Funky skies as we get closer to the city.

And a startling reminder that we were back in the lower mainland.

Destination: Back to Vancouver along Hwy l part IIi

2009-09-18T17:43:00.000-07:00

After an enjoyable lunch in Lytton, we hit the road. Once back on the highway, we watched the changing scenery zip by us and marveled at the beautiful colour of the Thompson river.

I don't think the plain little 'pull-off' has a name but it was where we got to get out to stretch our legs and look out over the Thompson River.

We came across another unscheduled stop in Boston Bar. We found an another abandoned site. The Boston Bar Bed & Breakfast. There were a few boarded up, sagging buildings left to nature's attention. One structure caught our eye; it has a fascinating building tucked back away in the dense trees that vandals had tried their best to bust up, but it looked like one 'glass house' that could withstand some stone throwing.

Fascinating.

With this site explored, we piled back into the car and hit the road for what we thought would be the last, uninterrupted stretch of road back to Vancouver, until I remembered that we were going to be driving rigth by the Alexandra Bridge...

Destination: Back to Vancouver along Hwy l part II

2009-09-18T16:55:00.000-07:00

'M' spotted the little church as we barrelled down the highway heading home and suggested we turn back and have a look-see. It was the oddest place to find a church and the two fenced in cemeteries.

It seemed like such a lonely little church sitting in a fork in the highway beside a dingy trailer park, two desolate little cemeteries and train tracks.

We're not sure why there were two separate fenced in cemeteries or why there were no signs* or names on anything in the area or why this was sitting where it was. The site was just 'there' sitting in the middle of nowhere.

When we pulled in off the highway we wandered around silently, making only hushed comments about this and that. Lost each in our own thoughts. After being in the cemetery area for a while we noticed that what seemed like hoards of people were pulling in to the site. It had been deserted when we pulled in and was quickly overrun with curious travellers as we pulled back out onto the highway that would take us home. *(I will research this place until I find it and update this post with the information)

From this solemn little 'attraction', we pulled back onto the highway. We made a quick stop in the cutest little town on earth; Lytton, for lunch and then back on the road. We found a place along the highway to pull off for a short break look around. We pulled into what I will refer to as the 'Thompson lookout'....

Destination: Back to Vancouver along Hwy I part I

2009-08-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

We checked out and were all looking forward to heading home along Hwy 1. We had a number of 'points-of-interest' to find along the way. But first we said good bye to "Balls Deep", our neighbouring guest, turned off the freight train AC and hit the open road.
We stopped at a look-out and took some shots of the fascinating terrain of the area, took shots en-route and even took time for a few shots at a gas station that had railway tracks running by it like this little orange cat.

Our next official stop: Ashcroft Tea House. Well, unfortunately, the tea house was closed, but to my delight, there was a row of abandoned homes right by it so we
wandered around and took what pictures we could from behind the NO TRESPASSING signs.

We regretfully drove away from the Ashcroft Tea House vowing to return when it was open and with a plan to try and get inside some of those houses after we were finished our crumpets and jam.

Our next and quite unexpected stop was at a little church plunked down in the middle of nowhere by what looked like a trailer park with railway tracks running along side it and two fenced in old and very tiny cemeteries....

Destination: Kamloops, BC part III

2009-08-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

Day Two (cont'd) Only the rare vehicle passed us along this oddly quiet and 'tranquil' road. A little hesitantly, we turned off onto a packed gravel road that looked like it might get us closer. We'd found what looked like might have been the main entrance people would have once passed through upon arriving here for treatment. Courtesy of our audiophile again as we parked off to one side of the train tracks that runs in front of the property the next creepy instramental track of our cd started.

[angelo badalamenti - audrey's dance]

The property is huge, sprawling, and is oddly peaceful in all it's eerie emptiness. It was like the empty black windows were staring back at us with as much curiosity as we had staring in at them. Almost like they were wishing we would come in and visit as much as we wanted to step inside their darkened rooms. The area was all so still.

Reluctantly, we piled back into the car and drove away from Tranquille and its echoing empty halls to get ready for the trek back to Vancouver. We were leaving first thing in the morning and were looking forward to the scenic Hwy 1 route we were taking home . . .

Destination Kamloops, BC part II

2009-08-18T17:37:00.000-07:00

Day Two: we woke to a gloomy and overcast sky on Monday. Fitting for the 'mission' we were setting out on. The room was sweltering from Sunday's sun and high temperature so we slept with our air conditioner on all night. Have you ever slept under a freight train engine? Neither have I but it would probably be quieter than our air conditioner.

Up, washed and dressed, we had the pleasure of collecting our 'continental breakfast' in a dim little cubbyhole behind reception. We were stared down by a hostile bunch of fellow guests all being very territorial about their inch of the arborite table tops they were hunched over. It was surreal and amusing how angry all the sleepy faces were. We brought our bagels, toast, coffee and juice back to our room and ate in comfort
and privacy.

We slid in the second of our three road trip cds and off we went knowing the site was on the north shore of Kamloops Lake, out past the airport. We weren't sure how far we'd have to drive before we found it - if we found it at all, but we hit the road excited to find Tranquille. After a quick reference to our map, we headed out to find our destination: Tranquille Santitorium (occasionally referred to as Serenity on the Lake).

Tranquille's 60+ buildings are spread out over 180 hectares of land on the Lake. It was originally a sanitorium for tuberculosis sufferers. In 1958 it was then converted to a mental health facility until provincial budget cuts dispersed its patients into group homes and surrounding communities. Its final closure came in 1984.

Tranquille has sat empty now for over 20 years.

Our audiophile, who'd painstakingly compiled our 'trip tunes' had selected the appropriate music and with uncanny timing each piece seemed to be perfectly fitting for each 'leg' of the trip. As we searcdhed for Tranquille, classical music filled the car, enhancing our experience and when we rolled to a stop at our first glimpse of the property, an eerie haunting bag pipe piece spilled from the car almost sounding like it was rolling across the moors to meet us.

[First Battalion Queen's Own Highlanders. The Road to the Isles -Glenaural Highlanders]

Teh property is fenced-in and covered in security notices making our access frustratingly limited to what we could see from the perimeter. Our first stop was on the lake side of the property with a view of only a handful of buildings in their various states of disrepair.

Hoping we might find an entrance or a closer view of the buildings, we got back in the car and continued along the road looking for a better view or if we were lucky, a way in . . .

Destination Kamloops, BC Part I

2009-08-17T18:25:00.001-07:00

We hit the road nice and early Sunday morning under slightly overcast skies. Traffic was light and we motored along highway 1 at a steady speed heading for Hope and breakfast at Darrell's Dinner.

Our Darrell's breakfasts consumed and the 'road trip' CD spinning, we were back on the road. The sun broke through the clouds long before we even hit the Coquihalla. Traffic was still light and we made excellent time.

We made it to our next pit stop - Merritt - fairly early. There wasn't a whole heck of a lot to see there so we gassed up the car and stretched our legs briefly before we all piled back in the car and continued on our journey under clearing blue skies.

We're not sure if it was our estimations being way off or the road conditions and light traffic that got us there so fast, but we found ourselves in Kamloops before noon and way too early to check into our room.

So with time to kill we decided to check out Kamloop's BC Wildlife Park. The sun was intense and it was blistering HOT out there! The animals were laying low to stay out of the heat but we saw some beautiful species practically at arm's length. One irritating moment at the park was unfortunately encountering an idiot who thought it was the most entertaining thing ever to tormenting an already agitated badger for the sheer fun of it. Needless to say, we didn't stop to take any pictures of the poor little guy and piss him off more than he already was.

We were excited to find out that the park had lemurs, Astro and Zaboo - who ironically happened to be visiting from the Greater Vancouver Zoo for the summer - but their enclosure was soooooo fenced up that you could barely see them through the mesh of the (triple?) fencing. I guess they were making sure they didn't lose their exotic house guests. [Astro and Zaboo, we'll come out and see you when you're back home on "Lemur Island" at the Greater Vancouver Zoo.]

Despite "Mr. Stupid vs the Badger" and the heat, we were glad we walked through the park. We headed back into Kamloops, picked up some 'supplies' and checked in. We chilled for the rest of the evening anticipating our outing in the morning.

Tranquille Sanitorium . . . .

A little piece of heaven behind a neighbour's fence

2009-08-02T19:24:00.001-07:00

I live in an apartment. An apartment that doesn't have a balcony or access to a roof deck common area like some buildings have. I have neighbours who live in heritage-like homes with backyards. These yards are protected behind six and seven foot high fences or hedges. And until you step through their gates, you really have no idea what's hidden behind those barriers.

These neighbours also have cottages on gulf islands they escape to on weekends or they travel out of town whenever they can. These exoduses leave homes and yards empty and quiet.

Enter me.

I get to house-sit on lengthy out-of-town trips and get free run of empty back yards while families are away for long weekends.

If I had a heritage-like home, with a backyard, I'm pretty sure I'd stay in town all the time. My yard would be my little corner of paradise. It would be my escape from everything. I would LOVE to have a house and garden.

Anyway, I got to spend this afternoon in yet another neighbour's yard. I have to share some of the beauty I found within their fences.