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We set off for a visit to the ski resort of Whistler, where we were staying at a cabin (mansion!) belonging to Ivy's son Kevin.
One the way we stopped just South of Vancouver in as we saw a hardware store which sold a woodpecker door knocker which we had seen in Tampa which we intended to buy when we were there but never did. We didn't let this opportunity pass us by!
From there we drove through the centre of Vancouver and round Stanley Park, a large area of parkland (much of which is wooded) in the centre of Vancouver.
It was then over the Lions Gate Bridge to what is described as the North Shore and a visit to another branch of Walmart which was in Capilano mall. This was followed by a drive through West Vancouver and along Marine Drive to Horseshoe Bay, which is a departure point for ferries to Vancouver Island and the Sunshine coast (an area of mainland British Columbia which is separated from Vancouver by a large inlet called Howe Sound.
After lunch, we drove along the road (known as the sea to sky highway) which follows Howe Sound to Squarmish (originally named Newport, but renamed to reflect the name of the local indian tribe). It was then on through stunning mountain scenery to Whistler, a ski resort built from nothing over the last 25 years where we met up with Mum, Jan, Ivy and Jack.
The morning was spent looking round the shops in the Village at Whistler. It was out of season so there was no snow and the chair lifts were not working.
In the afternoon we headed further north, past ? lake to the town of Pemberton, which did not have much and on to Mount Currie, where there was an indian reservation. We drove beyond this, but when we reached a narrow temporary bridge, Claudette decided that it was time to return to Whistler! On the way back we called in at a farm which was in the middle of nowhere and bought a delicious pumpkin pie.
We returned from Whistler using the same road (the only other one is a couple of hundred miles longer!). When we got back to North Vancouver, we visited Capilano Suspension Bridge and Grouse Mountain Skyride (we did not go on the latter as the mountain was shrouded in mist
From North Vancouver we returned (via Fort Langley) to Ladner.
Today we visited Victoria, on Vancouver Island, which is the provincial capital of British Columbia.
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In order to reach Victoria, it is necessary to take a ferry through the Gulf Island (the picture shows the ferry passing through Active Pass and then a bus to the downtown. You actually board the bus on the ferry. |
We walked around Victoria and visited the Crystal Garden, a former swimming pool now converted to an indoor garden with beautiful plants, birds, animals and butterflies.
For more about Victoria, see our Victoria page.
We travelled by the normal service bus downtown and took the 'trolley' tour round Vancouver. This travels round the city allowing you to alight and re-board as much as you wish.
A relatively quiet day, church in the morning followed by a visit to Richmond Shopping centre for mum and Jan to do some last minute shopping.
Mum and Jan went home.
We caught a bus to Scott Road Station (in Surrey) and then caught the Skytrain, that is Vancouver's rapid transit system to a large Mall, Metrotown.
Shopaholics unite under the roof of British Columbia’s largest shopping complex. Home to several major department stores such as The Bay, Sears, Zellers, T&T Supermarket and Toys ‘R’ Us as well as almost 300 specialty stores as well as 4,000 parking spaces! Get there by SkyTrain in 15 minutes from downtown and be sure to wear a good pair of shoes. This mall is not for the faint-hearted!
Having exhausted Claudette, we moved on to Downtown Vancouver, but as the weather was so bad we limited ourselves to visiting (another!) mall. This time the Pacific Centre Mall, a rather upmarket mall.
Then on the bus home.
