The most intense windstorm to hit the Vancouver area since 2006 ripped through the region on Saturday, August 29th, at one point leaving over 300,000 people without power. With service yet to be restored in some areas, here is a look at just some of the damage done:
Photos of Vancouver Windstorm Aftermath
Just as the downed tree in Stanley Park, along the SeaWall near the rowing club, became an iconic image of the 2006 storm, unfortunately I think this one of the tree atop the red Dodge Neon might be the photo that represents this storm:
For the latest power outage information, check BC Hydro on Twitter. If their main website is not working for you, they are uploading PDF documents to Twitter so you can get some updates there.
Check out my post about what you should have in a 72 hour emergency kit, courtesy of Red Cross Canada.
The last outdoor movie at Holland Park, the last Take Off Friday at YVR and the last Sunday Afternoon Salsa at Robson Square are all this weekend! Take advantage of some of these activities, and more, before summer ends in Vancouver.
Update: The Fair at the PNE just announced that they’ll open for free this weekend, Saturday, August 29 & Sunday, August 30 between 11:00am and 1:00pm.
Events that run for longer than three days in a row are highlighted in green below.
Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend
Friday, August 28, 2015
Sponsored by Miss604: Friday Late Night Movies at the Rio Theatre
Friday Movie Nights in Cloverdale, Surrey
Supernatural (TV Show) Convention, Vancouver
Take Off Fridays, Free Fun at YVR Airport
Free Friday Walking Tours, West Hastings
Fresh Air Fridays at Highstreet in Abbotsford
CASINO ROYALE – Party on the Patio
Shipyards Night Market, North Vancouver
Free Waterfront Walking Tours, North Vancouver
Surrey Night Market
International Night Market, Richmond
PNE Summer Concerts
Vancouver Wooden Boat Festival
Theatre Under the Stars in Stanley Park
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Sponsored by Miss604: Downtown Surrey Movies Under the Stars — Postponed due to rain
Music Therapy Ride
West End Art Market
YSL BEAUTY INSPIRATION: Charity Beauty Makeup Event @ Shangri-La
Bowen Island Rotary Run for Rwanda
Vancouver Pagan Pride Day
ArtStarts: Free Weekend Workshops for Kids and Families
Summer Sessions Concerts at Shipbuilders’ Square, North Vancouver
Cates Park Concerts
Trout Lake Farmers Market
West End Farmers Market
Free Waterfront Walking Tours, North Vancouver
Vancouver, Plaza of Nations Night Market
Richmond Night Market
Surrey Night Market
International Night Market, Richmond
PNE Summer Concerts
Supernatural (TV Show) Convention, Vancouver
Vancouver Wooden Boat Festival
Theatre Under the Stars in Stanley Park
Sunday, August 30, 2015
ArtStarts: Free Weekend Workshops for Kids and Families
Pink Salmon Festival
Voice Over Intensive –One Day Workshop with Jesse Inocalla
Free Sunday Salsa Downtown
All Things Pop Up
Vancouver Street Food Festival
Ambleside Artisan Farmers Market
Kitsilano Farmers Market
Free Waterfront Walking Tours, North Vancouver
Vancouver, Plaza of Nations Night Market
Richmond Night Market
Surrey Night Market
International Night Market, Richmond
PNE Summer Concerts
Supernatural (TV Show) Convention, Vancouver
Vancouver Wooden Boat Festival
Theatre Under the Stars in Stanley Park
Check out the full August event listings here and if you have an event to include, please send it in by email for a free listing. Follow Miss604 on Twitter for more daily updates.
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Looking for a simple, refreshing vacation to wrap up summer or kick off fall? Parksville and Qualicum Beach are just a three-hour car trip from Vancouver, including the scenic ferry crossing from West Vancouver’s Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay in Nanaimo. Whether you prefer nature, dining, exciting rides, shopping or culture, there’s more to do here than just hang out on the beach.
Connecting With Nature
From viewing the towering, ancient Douglas firs at Cathedral Grove to going bird-watching at Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park, Parksville and Qualicum Beach abound with timeless natural wonders.
Vancouver Island is home to more than 1,000 caves, and exploring the surreal, beautiful limestone formations in the Horne Lake Caves is a special highlight. The caves introduced several metal slides in fall 2014 to help visitors get around easily and reduce wear and tear on the priceless calcite that lines the walls.
Also worth experiencing is the 2013-launched Deep Bay Marine Field Station, not just to admire the state-of-the-art, clam-shaped roof, but also to touch anemones and sea cucumbers and view a huge grey whale skeleton.
Dining in Parksville and Qualicum Beach
Parksville and Qualicum Beach have a strong emerging restaurant scene. You can tuck into halibut and chips or a hand-peeled shrimp sandwich at CView, the refurbished Qualicum Beach Inn’s new restaurant. The unique, circular room is complemented by colourful glass ornaments and a magnificent view of the Strait of Georgia.
Devour a coconut chicken curry wrap or potato wedges at quirky, cozy Lefty’s, which pays tribute to southpaws and has locations in both Parksville and Qualicum Beach.
And there’s always room for wine and cheese, right? Head to Morningstar Farm, home to both Little Qualicum Cheeseworks and MooBerry Winery, to discover some savoury artisan products.
Thrills from Go-Karts to Horses
Ready to pick up the pace? You can rev up your engines at Fast Time Grand Prix, Vancouver Island’s newest and hottest go-kart track. Founded in Parksville in 2014, it offers 35 turns on a half-kilometre course, as you race around at up to 50 km/hour.
For an alternative way to explore the quiet roads and waterfront vistas around Qualicum Beach, rent an electric bike at Pedego Electric Bikes. These state-of-the-art vehicles offer throttles and enhanced pedalling power, and tandem bikes and trailers to pull the kids are available.
Or saddle up and go horseback riding at Tiger Lily Farm, where petting the bunnies and calves afterwards adds to the fun.
Quaint Boutique Shopping
It’s pretty much the polar opposite of big-box shopping in Parksville and Qualicum Beach. What are some of your options? Gape at the real, live goats grazing on the roof of the Old Country Market in Coombs. Head up to Fanny Bay Trading for a gorgeous selection of authentic native carvings, prints, and pottery.
Browse through 4,000 square feet of vintage furniture, radios, and Royal Albert bone china at Yesterday’s Child Antiques in Qualicum Beach. Or nostalgically search for literary treasures at Fireside Books. Burgeoning with gnomes, miniature cars, and other collectibles, it’s been family-owned and operated in Parksville since 1991.
Culture in the Oceanside Region
Check out the Oceanside Concert Series starting this fall at the Knox United Church in Parksville, which has delighted audiences with string quartets, harpists, and choirs since debuting in 2014. Echo Players Village Theatre offers enthusiastic performances of hit plays like Calendar Girls (October 8-30, 2015).
And don’t miss the Old School House Arts Centre, where you can watch artists at work on watercolours and jewelry, listen to scintillating music played on a Seiler grand piano, or purchase a hand-carved marble wine rack. See the Visit Parksville Qualicum Beach, Vancouver Island Travel or Destination BC websites for more information.
A t-shirt could be your ticket to an amazing destination in Asia courtesy of Vancouver International Airport (“YVR”) and its partner airlines. These graphic t-shirts have been available for free at events and festivals all summer long and each one features one of the grand prize destinations: China, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea and The Philippines.
Here’s how T-Shirts to Paradise works:
- Visit a YVR Community Festival Booth located across the Lower Mainland this summer and pick up a t-shirt (last chance is September 5th at the Richmond World Festival)
- Snap a photo of you with a t-shirt showing the destination of your choice
- Sign up at the event with YVR’s Brand Ambassadors through email submission
- Post your photo to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using #TSHIRTSTOPARADISE
YVR has strong linkages to Asia, with up to 134 direct flights per week to Asia at the peak period in August. Thirteen air carriers currently service routes between YVR and 10 major destinations in Asia, providing excellent connections to all parts of the region. YVR is also the only airport in North America with service from four mainland China carriers: China Eastern, China Southern, Air China and Sichuan Airlines.
Fly Business Class to Japan, or receive a a $5,000 travel voucher to Korea, the prizes are amazing for any seasoned world traveler or first time explorer. In total, there will be nine grand prize winners thanks to partner airlines. Contest closes at midnight on September 13, 2015.
Win a YVR Airport T-Shirt to Paradise
Since each t-shirt could be your ticket to paradise, I’m going to arm 60 Miss604 readers with the t-shirt of their choice so that they can enter to win the grand prizes. I’m giving away 10 t-shirts for each destination!
Once you have your t-shirt, you can then enter to win grand prize trips, outlined above, by sharing a photo of yourself in the shirt using the tag #TSHIRTSTOPARADISE on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
Here’s how you can win a t-shirt, which could be your ticket to paradise!
- Leave a comment on this post naming the t-shirt you want (which will correspond with the destination to which you’ll be entering to win a trip): China, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea or The Philippines. (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I will draw 10 winners for each shirt (60 winners) on Thursday, September 3, 2015 at 12:00pm. Note the Miss604 contest is only for the t-shirts, with the t-shirts though, you can enter to win the grand prize airfare/trips.
Must be 19+ to enter the contest. Check out full grand prize details and rules online and follow YVR Airport on Twitter and Facebook.
I found myself thirty minutes early for a family airport pickup on a warm Tuesday night in August and while I love killing time at Vancouver International Airport (at the Observation Area or Chester Johnson Park) I turned off Grant McConachie Way, looping past Burkeville on Russ Baker Way, and pulled into Flight Path Park.
Larry Berg Flight Path Park opened in 2013 at the tip of the YVR Airport’s south runway. Landscaped with plane watching in mind, benches line small mounds of grass and the globe in the middle of the information plaza is grooved for climbing. Children race down paved mini runways, giant paper airplanes dot the grassy field, and picnic tables provide a venue for an extended stay.
There is a small parking lot off of Russ Baker Way but if you keep going a few meters you can turn onto Airport Road and find much more parking space in a gravel lot.
Taking your bike? There’s a bike tool and pump station at Flight Path Park.
Tail wings around the plaza area feature historical YVR facts and fun, educational aviation statistics tell you the story of YVR and why it is one of the best airports in the world.
Landing at sunset.
It’s the best place to watch planes land with your family as you hang out at a picnic table, scale the globe, or set up a blanket on the grass as aircraft approach for landing overhead.
