We recently heard from some Midwest travellers who visited Vancouver this spring and it was fascinating to hear them remark not on the mountains and the ocean, of which locals are so proud, but our architecture. In particular, the brilliant glass along False Creek and Coal Harbour that has been forming like crystals since the early 1990s. Vancouver’s building history plays a large part in the story of our city, from the tallest buildings in the British Empire to repurposed residential towers. One local has even taken to Instagram to tell the story of Vancouver’s building history like no other.
Photo credit:
WFLBC on Flickr
Vancouver Building History on Instagram
“I started this series because of The Electra,” Scott Graham of WFLBC told me. “I feel like most Vancouverites don’t know how old it is or that is used to be the headquarters of BC Electric. When I started searching the Vancouver Archives I found so many cool pictures of other buildings that I decided to make it a series.”
Scott has been posting photos of buildings in the downtown core, from unique and often elevated perspectives, for several months on his Instagram feed. He adds informative captions and will also post “then and now” comparisons using images from the City of Vancouver Archives‘ database.
In May of this year, four years after his WFLBC (“What’s For Lunch BC”) blog began in May of 2010, Scott shared a roundup of some of his Instagram features in a blog post, shifting the focus from food to a new passion.
“I wrote about food and beer for a long time, and I still do, but I find both scenes are becoming a little stale and over saturated. Every new restaurant is the same and of all the new breweries in town there’s only 2 or 3 that are really outstanding.”
To Scott, architecture and history are timeless, and as subject matter they come with less pressure since they are a personal passion and not a driving force for blog statistics and freebies offered by companies. “Talking about history and buildings isn’t about getting things, it’s about sharing something, bringing attention to parts of Vancouver’s past that are long forgotten.”
Of all the towers that dot the Downtown Vancouver landscape, there are a few that Scott will feature more frequently than others. “I’ve learned so much about some of my favourite buildings through this series. My favourites have been the Marine Building. The Old Stock Exchange, The Qube, and of course The Electra.”
You can follow Scott’s posts on his Instagram and with the tag #wflbcbuildinghistory.
On this day in 1948, the Fraser Valley Flood took its grip on the community, causing an estimated $20 million in damages (equal to over $210 million in 2010). According to Environment Canada, it was the greatest flood the region had seen since that of 1894.
Fraser Valley Flood of 1948
By the time the flood reached its peak on June 10th, nearly one third of the entire lower Fraser Valley floodplain area had been doused, from Chilliwack to Mission. The flood was caused by rapid snow melt, which caused levels to rise dramatically. There was an evacuation of 16,000 people and damage or complete destruction of about 2,000 homes.
Photo by Artray Ltd. Archives# Air P80.4
The passage of five decades had witnessed the transformation of the lower Fraser Valley into a highly developed agricultural area, with commercial and industrial development becoming appreciable and suburban residential areas beginning to appear. Two transcontinental rail lines and the Trans-Canada Highway had been built through the valley, and the largest airport in the province had been established on Sea Island.
The floodwaters severed the two transcontinental rail lines; inundated the Trans-Canada Highway; flooded urban areas such as Agassiz, Rosedale, and parts of Mission, forcing many industries to close or reduce production; and deposited a layer of silt, driftwood and other debris over the entire area. [Environment Canada]
The Fraser Basin Council reports that since 1948, the Fraser River has not had a flood of this magnitude, although there have been many high water events and limited floods. Today in the Fraser Basin, there are about 600km of dikes, 400 floodboxes and 100 pump stations to protect communities and infrastructure from flooding.
The Vancouver Canadians have invited local media personalities (myself included) to step up to the plate at Nat Bailey Stadium on June 11th for the annual Strike Out Heart Disease Celebrity Softball Game. We’ll play in a six-inning ball game at this historic stadium in support of the St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation.
I’d like to invite everyone to this game, where admission is by donation ($2.00 suggested) and 100% of proceeds go to the St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation and its efforts to raise funds and awareness of the risks of heart disease. Cash donations can also be made per strikeout throughout the season.
Last year, Strike Out Heart Disease raised $60,000 for the provincial Heart Centre at St. Paul’s Hospital with support from the John C. Kerr Family Foundation. The season opened with the inaugural St. Paul’s Celebrity Softball Classic, a five-inning softball game featuring staff from presenting sponsors Blake, Cassels & Graydon, and Deloitte, along with local celebrities.
Join two teams of local media (TV, radio, print, and digital) personalities, local celebrities and dignitaries, Jake Kerr, Co-Owner of the Vancouver Canadians, and Andy Dunn, President of the Vancouver Canadians for this very special game.
The Vancouver Canadians Strike Out Heart Disease Celebrity Softball Game takes place Wednesday, June 11, 2014 at 7:05pm (gates open at 6:00pm). This action-packed night at the Nat will be complete with dancing groundskeepers and I’m told the two-foot hot dogs will be available –- true essentials to any ball game.
Win Tickets
To make sure the stands are packed at this special event for a great cause, the Vancouver Canadians have offered up two pairs of tickets for me to give away to my readers. Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post a baseball/softball photo like this one to Instagram and include @VanCanadians @Miss604 #StrikeOut (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
The Vancouver Canadians‘ season will open at home on June 18th as they defend their 2011, 2012, and 2013 Northwest League Championship title.
I will draw two winners at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, June 4, 2014.
Update The winners are Darcy and Tammy!
One of the things I love about Las Vegas is the wide variety of things to do there, aside from the casino floor (which can also definitely be fun). This series will share my recent trip with Travel Nevada, covering some of the fun activities that you can do in Nevada, all within a few hours (or less) from the Las Vegas Strip. This week begins with Red Rock Canyon and The Valley of Fire.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Red Rock Canyon
Less than 20 miles from the Las Vegas Strip is one of the most stunning places I’ve ever been to: Red Rock Canyon.
Photo credit: John Biehler
With its amazing colours and massive, surreal rock formations in the middle of the Mojave desert, Red Rock Canyon is a magnet for visitors looking to do all kinds of activities including hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking and even horse back riding.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Classified as a National Conservation Area, there is a visitor centre that is a great starting point to learn more about the desert surroundings. For some place so hot, there is a surprising amount of life (wild and plant) all around the canyon…like this chuckwalla lizard:
Photo credit: John Biehler
The visitor centre has lots of outdoor exhibits and displays the explain everything you’ll see.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Photo credit: John Biehler
On this trip, we met with Doug from the American Alpine Institute to go rock climbing. This is something that I haven’t done for 20 years, and that was at an indoor gym. Most of us on the trip were a little worried about what we were getting ourselves into but as soon as we met Doug, he started to put us at ease. We were given helmets, harnesses and climbing shoes and headed out to the crag in the heart of the canyon.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Then Doug scurried up the rock face to setup the ropes for us.
Photo credit: John Biehler
In a manner of minutes he was back on the ground, giving us instruction on the basic techniques we’d be using as we climbed and belayed each other up the rock face. The total height we were climbing was 80 feet which doesn’t seem like much until you think about it as 8 stories up.
Photo credit: John Biehler
There was one spot, about a third of the way up, that was particularly difficult and the first few people climbing gave up on. Then the next climber made it up to the top and then it was my turn. No pressure.
Photo credit: John Biehler
I actually got stuck on the same spot and almost gave up a few times but Doug convinced me to keep trying each time. Eventually I made it to the top. I even stopped for a selfie:
Photo credit: John Biehler
Photo credit: John Biehler
While it was just a beginner climb (a 5.6 rating if you’re familiar), it was still a huge personal accomplishment to get over that spot and make it up and take in the amazing view. It will be hard to top this experience.
Valley of Fire
A little further away from Las Vegas is the famous Valley of Fire state park. Used as the backdrop for dozens of movies and just about every car commercial you’ve ever seen, the road winds through the valley in a 20 mile loop with many lookouts and hiking spots.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Photo credit: John Biehler
Like Red Rocks, the Valley of Fire is something you just have to see in person to appreciate with the hoodoos that greet you upon entering and the multicolor rock formations (caused by varying levels of iron) throughout the park that seem like a painted backdrop in a road runner cartoon.
Photo credit: John Biehler
It can be hard to get a sense of scale without some people in the shot to give you idea of the big open spaces here.
Photo credit: John Biehler
Fans of Star Trek movies flock to the park to see where the final showdown between Kirk and Soran on Viridian 3 in Star Trek Generations which took place on this formation:
Photo credit: John Biehler
There are many petroglyphs easily visible from the trails as well as many wind eroded rock formations throughout the park.
We only had a few hours to tour the valley but plan to spend a full morning there if you can as there is lots to see. It gets blazing hot in the afternoon so if you do make the trek, bring lots of water and sun protection!
More photos of Red Rock Canyon and the Valley of Fire can be found on my Flickr. Stay tuned for the next instalment in the series to learn about more of my adventures in Nevada.
Be a tourist in your own town and discover what Surrey has to offer during Surrey Doors Open! From City Centre to Bear Creek, Newton to Cloverdale, sites and attractions will be open to the public with free admission for the day.
Surrey Doors Open
In one day you can visit the Bear Creek Park Train, do a Historic Cloverdale Walking Tour, attend the Whalley’s Corner Festival, visit the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, and explore the Artisans Market at Hawthorne Square. Guided tours, presentations, children’s activities, and entertainment will be offered a a variety of venues. Take the free hop-on hop-off trolley to experience as much as you can.
Surrey Doors Open will take place Saturday June 21, 2014 from 11:00am to 4:00pm. There are close to 50 sites participating in the following categories: Culture and Places of Worship; Art and Architecture; Family Friendly; Heritage; Festivals and Restaurants.
The inspiration for Surrey’s Doors Open stems from origins in France where the first Doors Open event (La Journee Portes Ouvertes) took place in 1984. The idea soon spread to neighbouring countries and has since expanded around the globe.
Toronto was the first North American city to follow the European lead and launched a high profile event showcasing constructed heritage, architecture and design as a millennium project in 2000. The City of Richmond has hosted the event over the last 4 years, and has grown their community involvement to over 50 open sites throughout Richmond. [History of Doors Open]
Check out the full list of Doors Open Sites, the Doors Open Site Map, and find out how you can get to Doors Open locations on June 21st.
For more information, see the Doors Open 2014 Event Guide and follow the City of Surrey on Twitter and Facebook using the tag #SurreyDoorsOpen.
Miss604 is a proud sponsor of Surrey Doors Open 2014
