I love to showcase the works of local photographers as there are so many talented camera-wielding folks in this town of all skill levels. I never thought of myself as a photographer but after publishing over 14,880 photos to Flickr and writing over 5,550 photo-filled blog posts, I guess I have quite the library at my disposal. As such, I have taken a cue from my friend Duane Storey and have decided to offer up a selection of my Vancouver photographs as Facebook cover images.
Feel free to download and use any of the following Vancouver Facebook Cover Photos. I simply ask that you do not crop out the Rebecca Bollwitt/Miss604 credit. Enjoy!
Vancouver Aerial Photo
Right-click and “Save As” to download the file at 851×315 Facebook cover size standard.
Lions Gate Bridge
Right-click and “Save As” to download the file at 851×315 Facebook cover size standard. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
When I married a nice Midwest man from Iowa I had no idea that with that union, I would soon begin to learn many things about corn. From the late summer aroma of sweet corn to processes like detasseling. While his Iowa corn is grand, I still love our fresh Fraser Valley corn and thanks to Maan Farms, there’s an entire weekend dedicated to this beautiful golden crop right in our backyard.
Maan Farms August CornFest
The 2013 Maan Farms August CornFest will take place Saturday, August 24th and Sunday, August 25th during their weekend hours of 9:00am until 7:00pm.
Highlights include a corn cannon, a corn maze, a kiddy labyrinth, the Critter Corral Petting Zoo and Kidz Zone Play Area, and pony rides. All of the food on their country kitchen menu will be corn-based like special topping corn on the cob, corn dogs, popcorn, corn chowder, and more.
The Estate Winery will also offer tastings of Maan Farms’ strawberry and raspberry blends. If you are 19+ you can RSVP to the official CornFest invitation to enjoy a free wine tasting.
CornFest Package
Get access to the labyrinth, petting zoo, play area, and a bag of homemade popcorn for $8.
Corn Cannon Package
Shoot the corn cannon, explore the corn maze and the labyrinth, access the petting zoo and play area, and take home a bag of popcorn for $10.
Maan Farms is located at 790 McKenzie Road in Abbotsford. Follow them on Twitter and Facebook throughout the season for the latest information about their produce and special events.
The street we know as Kingsway today connected New Westminster to Vancouver as far back as 1860 (before Vancouver was a city). Following the wagon road built by the Royal Engineers between the Colony of British Columbia in New Westminster and the area near Granville Townsite, it has stayed pretty true to its original path for over 150 years.
1890: Northwest view of Westminster Road (Kingsway) between 7th and 10th Aves. Archives# Dist P141.
Vancouver Road, 1892:
In 1872 the stretch through Burnaby was widened and it became known as Vancouver Road (previously Westminster Road). “This section of the road was further improved following Burnaby’s municipal incorporation in 1892; together with the opening of a parallel interurban line connecting Vancouver and New Westminster the previous year, the area along the road became increasingly favourable for settlement.” [Source].
Paving, 1912:
The provincial and municipal governments joined forces in 1912 to improve and pave the road, which officially reopened on September 30, 1913 as Kingsway. The route crossed over the watery False Creek span and eventually became a part of dry land, connecting Gastown and Mount Pleasant when the backfill of False Creek took place around that time as well.
1937: 1595 Kingsway. VPL# 10948. & 1937: Kingsway at Marlborough in Burnaby. VPL# 11033. Leonard Frank Photos.
1932: Kingsway and Spencer. Archives# CVA 20-32.
1932: Kingsway and 12th. Archives# CVA 20-103.
1931: Kingsway and 14th. Archives# CVA 20-39.
August 15, 1949:
“Kingsway was re-opened as a six-lane highway between Vancouver and New Westminster. It was described as ‘strikingly handsome’ in the newspapers.” [Source].
1980s: Kingsway at Joyce. Archives# CVA 772-940.
There is plenty of history to be found along Kingsway, especially in Collingwood and Cedar Cottage areas in East Vancouver, the Interurban trolley car past, and more. Explore more historical photographs in the Vancouver Public Library and City of Vancouver Archives databases.
The PNE returns for its 103rd year from August 17th until September 2nd with its full line-up of summer concerts, food vendors, exhibits, Superdogs, rides and attractions. Once again members of Vancity Credit Union will be able to receive a discounted admission for PNE Vancity Member Day on Thursday, August 29, 2013.
Vancity Member Day at the PNE
On Vancity Member Day August 29, 2013, Vancity members and one guest receive a discounted admission of only $5 per person ($9 savings on each ticket!). Simply present your Vancity MEMBER CARD® debit card or Vancity enviro™ Visa* (or other form of membership verification) at the PNE ticket booth.
Vancity will “Cowpower” all the electricity consumed at The Fair on Vancity day, i.e. by supporting Cowpower our dollars go to enabling local farmers to install biodigesters on their farms to process cow manure to make electricity (and it also make a digestate that is a high nutrient natural soil amendment that farmers can spread on their fields). A drinking-water station will also be made available on Member Day, to encourage visitors to use re-usable water bottles for the day. The water station will be provided by Metro Vancouver.
Eco Alley
Eco Alley at the PNE will be an engaging activation area that will showcase The Fair’s current green initiatives with a strong focus on recycling and composting, engaging visitors in generating new ideas and proposing additional ways the PNE can “go green.”
The area, highlighted by a 20×20 activity tent and a 10×10 composting tent, will feature a number of activities centered around recycling, composting and transportation for attendees to participate in:
- Eco-enga Enviro Trivia Game – Vancity has designed a life-sized Jenga game specifically for PNE 2013. The traditional Jenga game is given a “green twist,” as each block offers attendees a chance to answer enviro trivia for a slew of fun prizes.
- Feature Ideas Wall – Vancity wants to engage attendees and solicit their feedback on how the PNE can further green their operations, so they’ve built a dry-erase ideas wall that will elicit attendees to write down ideas around water, waste and energy.
- Commuter Survey – Vancity will have a survey wall asking attendees to pinpoint where they commuted from and their method of transportation. Along with the survey, they’ll be offering tips on how you can further green your commute.
- Onsite Commercial Scale-Composting Demonstration – A commercial composter will process food scraps from PNE food vendors and will be adjacent to small food gardens (planted by students from local schools) sharing the message of “Fork-to-Farm” and how food scraps can be digested into nutrients to help our soil grow food. The composter will be provided by Recycling Alternative, a proud Vancity community partner who provides eco-solutions to communities around the Lower Mainland.
- “Silver Dragon” In-Home Composter Display – A composter designed for residential use called, “The Silver Dragon,” will also be on display for visitors to learn more about how they can add composting to their lifestyle.
- Make Good Money Photo – Vancity has also prepared a social media component, where visitors are encouraged to share their ideas on how to build a healthy community, snap a photo with their idea written on one of our exclusive social media blocks and share the photo with their social media networks.
By the entrance of the PNE Main gates, Vancity is also providing a free valet bike service for PNE visitors, providing secure bicycle storage and a chance to win a green prize pack for users of the valet.
PNE Prize Pack Giveaway for Vancity Member Day
To get the word out about Vancity Member Day and Eco Alley at the PNE, Vancity has offered up a prize pack for a Miss604 reader that includes: A pair of Fair Gate and Ride passes (value $100), a green cleaning kit (value $50) and a stainless steel green waste bin (value $50).
Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment on this post with a green cleaning tip (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 5:00pm on Friday, August 23, 2013.
Gates open at 11:00am on PNE Vancity Member Day. Follow the event on Facebook, and on Twitter using the tag #VancityMemberDay for more information. Check out the full PNE Concert Lineup for nightly entertainment at The Fair as well.
Update The winner is Am!
Whistler is a beautiful place to visit at any time of year although John and I most often find ourselves there in the summer, enjoying the hiking trails, parks, restaurants, and other alpine adventures. We’ve been fortunate enough to dine at some of the best-reviewed restaurants in this resort municipality and some of our most memorable experiences always lead us back to Araxi.
In 2011 we experienced first our longtable event with them in Pemberton at North Arm Farm and it’s one we’ll never forget. It gave a new meaning to “farm to table” cooking as we enjoyed the bounty of North Arm while sitting about 20 feet away from row upon row of crops. Araxi itself is located in the heart of Whistler Village and their outdoor summer longtable series has become an instant classic.
We joined them again this year at Lost Lake. Here’s our recap (my words and photos along with John’s photos) of the Araxi Longtable Dinner at Lost Lake with Quail’s Gate wines this summer:
Araxi Longtable Dinner at Lost Lake
Imagine, a four-course meal prepared with local, farm-fresh ingredients served up on colourful platters, paired with Okanagan wines at a table for over 100 people — in the middle of a grassy field at a lake-side community park in Whistler.
It was a hot and sticky summer day, I’d say about 25C with the sunshine beaming down and making me regret wearing a black top. The Lost Lake recreational area was packed with sunbathers, swimmers, families, hikers, paddle boarders, and all those who wanted to cool off in the crisp waters. From the parking lot we walked down a path until we saw white tents on a grassy slope, just off to the side of the main beach area. It was there that we signed in for the dinner and were met with cocktails and canapés.
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