I have experienced the changing leaves in New England first hand, as the countryside puffed up under a colourful patchwork quilt of foliage, but still nothing compares to autumn on the West Coast. Crisp marine air tickles your nose with a hint of sea salt as chestnuts tumble and evergreens collect scattered crumbles of fallen leaves. The wind blows, rain clouds tease, and gumboots get dusted off.
If you’re like me, you love getting out and about in the fall. Warm beverage in hand, scarf around the neck, and a camera to capture the hues and patterns of the season. Here are a few recommended spots for taking photos of fall’s beauty around the region.
10 Parks for Fall Colours Around Metro Vancouver
Minnekhada Park
Enter off 4400 Oliver Road in Coquitlam. I have yet to check out this gem but John Biehler’s been on several photo walks and I know it’s a local favourite. Google Map / Metro Vancouver Park Listing
Queen’s Park
Enter off 3rd Avenue or McBride Blvd in New Westminster. The area is beautiful year-round but at this time of year the meadow is naturally overgrown and neighbouring heritage houses will start putting up their beautiful lights for Christmas in a few weeks. Google Map / New Westminster Parks Listing
Burnaby Lake
Enter off 4519 Piper Avenue in Burnaby. Adjacent to the rush of the Trans Canada Highway, it’s a scenic pocket of plant life, birds, and other wildlife. Google Map / City of Burnaby Park Listing
Campbell Valley Park
Enter off 16th Avenue or 204th Street near the Surrey and Langley Border. Walk along the boardwalk or through the forest trails for some great shots. Google Map / Metro Vancouver Park Listing
Green Timbers
Enter off 100th Ave between 144th and 148th Street in Surrey for the lake trails. Explore the deep woods of the urban forest or the foliage around the lake. Google Map / City of Surrey Park Listing
Tynehead Park
Enter off 96th Ave just west of 168th Street in Surrey and check out Serpentine Field, the off-leash area with your pup, or the perimeter trail. Google Map / Metro Vancouver Park Listing
Queen Elizabeth Park
Enter off Cambie around W 30th or from E 33rd Ave in Vancouver. Filled with flowers and flowering plants the old quarry still comes alive in the fall with evergreens, changing colours, and sweeping views of the city. Google Map / City of Vancouver Park Listing
Pacific Spirit Park
Access the Park Centre off 16th near Sasamat or 33rd and Camosun for the Camosun Bog. Take your pick of routes throughout over 73kms of trails. Google Map / Metro Vancouver Park Listing
Stanley Park
Enter off West Georgia before the Stanley Park Causeway or exit to Park Drive off the Lions Gate Bridge. The classic, the staple, the must-see park in Vancouver. From the Prospect Point lookout over the narrows to Beaver Lake. Google Map / City of Vancouver Park Listing
Lynn Headwaters
Enter near the Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre on Park Road or off Lynn Valley Road/Rice Lake Road. Rushing water, a canyon bridge, and 54kms of trails. Google Map / Metro Vancouver Park Listing
Everything is still pretty green out there but splashes of orange, yellow, and reds will appear over the next few weeks. These parks are just a few suggestions and we’re fortunate to have so many great green escapes around here. For more inspiration, check out my Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley Park series.
In 1910 it was the tallest commercial building in the British Empire as well as Vancouver’s first skyscraper. The distinct Dominion Building still commands attention today, standing above Victory Square at Hastings and Cambie.
(Left) 1908 Construction. VPL Accession Number: 6884. Photographer: Philip Timms
(Right) 1912 VPL Accession Number: 13678. Photographer: R. Broadbridge.
The nearby Sun Tower claimed the title of tallest in the empire just a few years later but the style and architecture of the Dominion Building is admired to this day.
From about 1905 on, Vancouver was in the midst of an unprecedented economic boom. Structures built during the boom period, including the Dominion Building, were of a new scale and design. Despite outward appearances of earlier design, they were among the most advanced buildings of their time. They used steel girders and concrete as basic structural elements and remained, well into the 1940s, the ‘modern’ buildings of downtown Vancouver. The centre of this commercial district was Courthouse Square, now Victory Square. [Source: Historic Places]
(Left) 1927 VPL Accession Number: 6434. Photographer: Leonard Frank.
(Right) Photo credit: Patricia Meyer on Flickr
To a steel-framed Chicago-style high rise, architect J.S. Helyer added classical columns, Sullivanesque detailing above the tenth floor, and a Second Empire curved mansard roof. The interior design was even more unusual: a central core design with a ten-storey spiral staircase. [Source: Historic Places]
An urban legend tells the tale of Helyer’s demise within the skyscraper that he designed. Some say he died by his own hand in his office and others say he tripped and fell down the interior staircase — where his ghost is reported to have been see on the seventh and eighth floors.
The building is no stranger to fiction as it has been featured in several big and small screen productions over the years. From local music videos to Battlestar Gallactica, Blade: Trinity, Alcatraz, and The Neverending Story.
The Dominion Bank sold the building in 1943 to S. J. Cohen, president of the Army and Navy Department Stores, who intended to convert it into a multi-storey department store at the end of the war. These plans were never carried out. When the Dominion Bank merged with the Bank of Toronto, a branch of the new Toronto-Dominion Bank was housed in this building. [Source: Historic Places]
The Dominion Building today is home to a variety of tenants in offices, workspaces, and showrooms along with Opus art supplies and a restaurant, Nuba, on the corner.
October is BC Hydro PowerSmart Month which focuses on sharing information about conserving energy, using electricity wisely, finding the right electronics and lighting options for your home, and offering great deals and savings to consumers. Throughout PowerSmart Month I will be sharing updates, deals, and a few exciting giveaways.
This morning I walked over to Georgia and Granville downtown where the BC Hydro PowerSmart team setup the Power Experiment. From today until Friday, October 5, 2012 you can stop by and walk through the setup to see just how much power you use every morning when you’re getting ready. Pick up a booklet and post a sticker to everything you would touch that uses power — remember the faucet counts because it takes power to make hot water!
This demonstration will move around the province this month with a stop in Kamloops and then in South Surrey. The point is to make everyone aware of how much power they’re using everyday, just during a normal routine.
Power-Eaters in the Morning
Using a hair dryer for 5 minutes in the morning can eat up 36.50 kWh.
Leaving a small lamp on for an hour can use 27.38 kWh, which is almost double the power you would use if you turned on the microwave for two minutes.
Coffee makers are the biggest offenders since they’re usually left on longer than any other appliance when you’re getting ready for work. If you have it on for 10 minutes it can use up to 54.75 kWh.
Everyday PowerSmart Tips for the Home
Reducing your shower time by 1 minute will save approximately $15 year.
Put up some drapes to limit cold drafts and save up to 15% on your heating bill.
Since the coffee maker uses the most energy of all small appliances used in the morning, consider turning off the heating element while you enjoy your brew to save.
LED bulbs cost more, but they can last up to 25 times longer than an incandescent bulb – and use at least 75% less energy. The lifespan of an ENERGY STAR LED is 15‐20 times longer than an incandescent and about three times longer than a CFL.
Learn more about energy-efficient appliances, fixtures, and design inspirations at the Vancouver Home & Design Show which is coming up October 11th to 14th at BC Place.
Celebrity guests include HGTV stars like Bryan Baeumler and Jillian Harris, stylist Janette Ewen, colour expert Maria Killam, designer Alykhan Velji, and Graeme & Tammy Huguet of My House Design/Build. The Exhibitor List is extensive and you can search for products that range from bathtubs to blenders.
While there’s no big league action happening on television and in our high-capacity arenas, there’s plenty of hockey being played in rinks across the country. Players, coaches, and organizations of all sizes in communities across Canada have started their season and Mars® has partnered up with Hockey Canada to support these home-grown teams with their Play Your Part campaign.
The Mission rink needs a new score clock as their current one is more than 15 years old and they need to replace it before they host the 2014 BC Winter Games.
To spread the word and help them reach their goal, I have a Mars® and Hockey Canada themed prize pack to offer up to my readers.
Stocked full of Mars bars that will come in handy for Halloween, the prize pack (valued at $250) also contains a duffel bag, a replica Team Canada hockey jersey, and other goodies.
Here’s how you can enter to win:
Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win a Mars Canada & @HockeyCanada prize pack from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/ecbnj
I will draw one winner next Wednesday, October 10, 2012 at 12:00pm. The winner should also be sure to enter the pin codes from their prize bars online in order to support the Mission rink. No purchase necessary, full campaign rules are available online.
We all have these pocket-sized time capsules lying around that contain our favourite music from the past decade. Shoved into drawers, sitting on shelves, on it a big box marked “recycle” that’s been sitting around collecting dust. What can you do with your old iPod or mp3 player? You can donate it to the iPod Pharmacy and support Music Heals.
Music Heals is a Vancouver-based non-profit organization that supports a wide range of music therapy services to communities across Canada by providing ongoing funding for those agencies that develop and use music therapy.
The iPod Pharmacy is an initiative started by Peak Performance Project Top 20 artist Dominique Fricot. He will be teaming up with businesses and schools during the week of October 15th and 19th and is also giving away a free house concert by drawing a name from all those who donate their devices this month.
So, gather up your old iPods and mp3 players (that are still in working order) and donate them so that someone can have the simple gift of music. Send them to:
Attn: iPod Pharmacy
Suite 400 – 1788 W. 5th Ave.
Vancouver, B.C. V6J 1P2
Follow Music Heals on Twitter and Facebook for more information, and follow Dominique Fricot on Twitter to find out where he’ll be and where you can donate in person.
UPDATEiPod Pharmacy Week drop-off locations have been confirmed for October 15th to 19th, 2012:
Tom Lee (All 7 Locations in Greater Vancouver)
929 Granville Street
Vancouver, BC V6Z 1L3
Marquis Wine Cellars – 10% discount with donation
1034 Davie Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 1M3
The Five Point – 25% discount with donation
3124 Main Street
Vancouver, BC V5T 3G7
The Cannibal Café – 25% discount with donation
1818 Commercial Dr.
Vancouver, BC V5N 4A5
![Conservatory Autumn [Explored, Oct 16]](https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4089/5086692742_c8e11a6737_z.jpg)
(Left) 1908 Construction. VPL Accession Number: 6884. Photographer: Philip Timms
To spread the word and help them reach their goal, I have a Mars® and Hockey Canada themed prize pack to offer up to my readers. 
