Stories

...area, observe the wolves, or take in many different shows such as the lumberjack show.

In the Fall and Winter you can ski, snowshoe and ice skate up on what they call the peak of Vancouver.

...of a leisure pool, Watermania in Richmond are featured on this site. There are many more throughout the lower mainland and and the province.

For public golf courses the Vancouver Park Board provides Fraserview, Langara and McLeery.

Most Community Centres have gyms for basketball and Volleyball but there are both basketball and volleyball outdoor courts as well.

If you want a winter activity and don't want to go to our mountains visti one of the Park Board Ice Rinks. We feature Kits, Kerrisdale and Burnaby's eight rinks here but there are many more in the lower mainland.

You can also visit 180 tennis courts in Vancouver alone and more in the rest of the lower mainland. Some we recomend are Kitsilano Beach, Stanley Park and for indoors Grant Conell public indoor facility.

To keep yourself in shape there are fitness facilites galore.

These are just a few. If you have some facilities you like please add them to this site by posting in our editor.

...to the Chief, Garibaldi and Black Tusk and further on to Whistler and Blackcomb.

In the summer all of these areas are great for hikes. The Baden Powell Trail travels along the North Shore Mountains from Mount Seymour to Black Mountian. There are many trails along this way.

At Deep Cove there is a short leg of the Baden Powell Trail which takes you from the villiage out to a lookout point of Indian Arm. Moving west a favourite workout of Vancouverites is the Grouse Grind. Depending on ones fitness it takes half an hour to an hour and a half to get up the mountain. It is also know and natures stairmaster.

Cypress Bowl area has a hike up Black Mountain with spectacular views of Howe Sound, the city and Vancouver Island. The Bowl also is the starting point for the Howe Sound Crest Trail.

Of course the three Cypress Bowl, Grouse Mountain and Seymour are all ski areas that are right at the city. These are smaller mountains with Cypress being the longest runs and Grouse the best facility.

From Cypress turnoff you can head up the Squamish Highway you can take a ferry over to Bowen Island an hike Mount Gardner or go for a kayak. If you continue up the highway you will pass Deeks Creek which is a challenging hike up to Deeks lake or for a serious multi-day excursion on to the Lion Heads.

At Squamish there is the Chief which is an impress three head monolith overlooking the town. Further up between Whistler and Squamish is the turn off to Garibaldi Park and the hike up to Garibaldi lake and Black Tusk.

After Garibaldi you are on to Whistler/Blackcomb one of the major ski destinations in the world.

These are just a few things you can do. Feel free to share any hikes or ski trips you have had on this site in the post section.

...running routes along the sea walls.

The south side of False Creek going west eventually turns to Kitsilano Beach a Venice Beach like location crowded with sunbathers, volleyball, basketball, tennis, and swimming. This beach also has a huge pool on the west end of the beach.

Further west you get to Point Grey which is home to Jericho, Locarno, and Spanish Banks beaches. Out here you can paddle and the wind is good for sail activities. This is less trendy than Kits Beach and it offers about 1.5 miles of beach area. This area also is popular for running routes with a seaside trail or running up in the wooded trails of Pacific Spirit Park.

When your not playing tennis at Stanley Park or Kits Beach it can be fun to take kayaks from False Creek and got to the various beaches for a swim. One of my favourite short paddles on a kayak would be to go on the North side of False Creek and down along English Bay past the Vancouver Aquatic Centre and down to Stanley Park and Third Beach.

Third Beach is one of my favourite beaches in the city. It is not too big and seldom is that crowded but it is not too deep and tends to keep the water warmer for more enjoyable swimming.

If you go on the south side of False Creek and English Bay you can do a short paddle to Kits Beach or a longer paddle to Jericho Beach or beyond. We often would paddle down to Jericho where they have a sailing centre with a food service. This place has the best ocean side view of the city, the north shore mountains, the water and Bowen Island.

From here if you want you can go further along Spanish Banks and around Point Grey eventually ending up at Wreck Beach, Vancouver's nude beach. The area around Point Grey is a more natural padlling area and the water is a little more active than in English Bay or False Creek. In this area you can find more secluded areas of beach to sun and swim. One note of caution, as a return trip this is a long kayak and should only be done by experience kayakers.

Outside of Vancouver there are many great places to kayak. This website has a few, Broken Islands, Desolation Sound, and Howe Sound. The Howe Sound kayaking can be done from Bowen Island just a 10 minute Ferry from the city and you can get kayaks from Bowen Island Sea Kayaking.

Feel free to share any on or near the water trips or activities on this website through the post section.

 

...from the truth. Contributing to your RRSP is tax smart, meaning the government will give you a deduction on your taxes. If you make a contribution you are ahead of the game. But you ask what is the point of putting money in the market if it just continues to go down, who cares what tax deduction I get if my principal declines. While the major indexes have shown weakness over the last three years some sectors have been quite resilient. With interest in the market low and stock prices weak the time to start investing is now. Over the next few weeks we will look at various strategies that can take seemingly mundane investments into a hobby that can be rewarding both spiritually and economically. A ten percent return may sound small by the late 90's standards but it is substantial. A ten percent return will double yor money every seven years and it is an achievable rate even in todays market conditions. Join us next week for a discussion on mutual funds versus stocks and which should you choose when you are creating your own portfolio.

...to your RRSP is tax smart, meaning the government will give you a deduction on your taxes. If you make a contribution you are ahead of the game. But you ask what is the point of putting money in the market if it just continues to go down, who cares what tax deduction I get if my principal declines. While the major indexes have shown weakness over the last three years some sectors have been quite resilient. With interest in the market low and stock prices weak the time to start investing is now. Over the next few weeks we will look at various strategies that can take seemingly mundane investments into a hobby that can be rewarding both spiritually and economically. A ten percent return may sound small by the late 90's standards but it is substantial. A ten percent return will double yor money every seven years and it is an achievable rate even in todays market conditions. Join us next week for a discussion on mutual funds versus stocks and which should you choose when you are creating your own portfolio.