October Events on the Sunshine Coast

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

As Wendy Weir from Libre Tea once told me, the Sunshine Coast is the “lost corner of the 604”. I used to go to summer camp each year in Roberts Creek and it quite often I’d have people tell me, “have fun on the Island!” The Sunshine Coast is indeed a part of mainland British Columbia and it’s definitely a region worth checking out.

Gibsons, BC

Just a quick ferry trip away, it offers recreation, entertainment, and some amazing natural scenery. The Sunshine Coast also hosts more festivals per capita than any other community in Canada with its main centres being Sechelt, Gibsons, and the Pender Harbour area.

Gibsons, BC Sunshine Coast Tours - Skookumchuck Narrows / Sechelt Inlet The Gumboot - Roberts Creek

To encourage you to take a trip along an arbutus-lined coastal highway this autumn, I thought that I would highlight some activities going on in the region.

Saturday October 9, 2010

  • The 10th Annual Gibsons Fall Fair runs Saturday from 10:00am – 5:00pm and Sunday, October 10th from 10:00am – 4:00pm. Festivities will take place at Quality Farm & Greenhouse at 325 Pratt Road. Activities include a craft fair, quilting contest, fibre arts display, and contests for baking, pumpkin carving, sunflowers and scarecrows. Door prize raffles will benefit local charities.
  • Saturday October 16, 2010

  • The last weekend of the Fiddlehead Farmers’ Market at Gibsons Landing.
  • The Sunshine Coast Mushroom Fest at Pender Harbour Community Hall takes place both Saturday and Sunday.
  • The Empty Bowls 2010 fundraiser takes place 11:30am – 2:30pm at the Roberts Creek Community Hall. Your $20 ticket ($10 kids ticket) is good for a handmade bowl from a local potter, lunch and dessert. Proceeds benefit the Sunshine Coast Food Bank.
  • Saturday October 23, 2010

  • The 11th Annual Fall Tune-Up cross country race takes place in Sechelt’s Porpoise Bay Provincial Park. Any proceeds from the event will support Sunshine Coast Athletics (for travel to championship events).
  • The Sunshine Coast Art Crawl is a free self-guided art tour happening on Saturday and Sunday. Follow the highway up and down the coast to spot studios that you can visit.
  • Sunday October 24, 2010

  • Pender Harbour Music in association with MusicFest Vancouver present Suzie Leblanc & Robert Kortgaard in concert at Pender Harbour Music School.
  • Should you have any additional events to list, please feel free to contact me. And remember, you only need ferry fare one-way as the return trip to Horseshoe Bay has no cost for cars or foot passengers.

    Vancouver History: Burrard Bridge

    Comments 3 by Rebecca Bollwitt

    A few months ago I put the call out on Twitter to see what people have been curious to know about Vancouver’s past. There were some great suggestions about Joe Fortes and the Great Fire along with several more tidbits that would be interesting to research. A few people asked about the Burrard Bridge and in particular, the enclosed space between the towers. To answer a few of these questions, here’s a brief history of the Burrard Bridge – from busts to bike lanes.

    Burrard Bridge History


    Opening Day, 1932. Archives item# CVA 99-2656. Photographer: Stuart Thomson.
    Vancouver Sun Run 2010
    Photo credit: Susan Gittins on Flickr

    The basics are that the bridge was constructed from 1930-1932 in order to join downtown Vancouver with Kitsilano by going over False Creek. It officially opened on Canada Day, July 1st 1932 with “A snip of a pair of golden scissors in the hands of Mayor Louis D. Taylor.” [source]

    Architect George Lister Thornton Sharp and engineer John R. Grant used various styles of trusses to create enough of a span for boats to pass underneath and also for the flow of traffic along the deck. The enclosed spaces between its towers on either end are referred to as galleries with small windows that peer out onto the traffic below. From what I hear, those spaces were never used for anything else (no actual gallery or office space) and are just there to hide the steel structure of the bridge. Other unused or now-defunct features include a stairwell from the deck to the beach that was shutdown in recent years as well as a railway bridge underneath the car deck that was scrapped.

    Burrard Bridge
    Photo credit: cmh2315fl on Flickr

    The lamps on either end of the bridge that flicker with a red glow at night are a tribute to Canadian WWI prisoners of war. [source] Vancouver’s coat of arms graces the front of the galleries while busts of Captain George Vancouver and Sir Harry Burrard-Neale adorn bows of ships that jut out from either tower, above pedestrian archways. I wrote a quick piece about the bridge a few years ago and discovered at that time that Sir Harry Burrard-Neale never even came within 5,000km of Vancouver at any time in his life. As he often did with waterways up and down our coast, Captain Vancouver simply named the inlet after an old navy buddy.


    1932. Archives item# CVA 99-4214. Photographer: Stuart Thomson.
    Burrard Bridge
    Photo credit: mikecogh on Flickr

    For many, this bridge offers the best views of a sunset of the annual fireworks in English Bay. The bridge was actually designed so that you can still enjoy the view even while you’re driving. According to the Burrard Bridge Heritage Study by Donald Luxton & Associates in 2001, the handrails along the bridge are meant to provide an unobstructed view of the bay when vehicles are driving between 40 and 64 kilometres an hour. This visual effect is referred to as “stroboscopic”.

    November twilight in Vancouver 2008
    Photo credit: Gord McKenna on Flickr

    _DSC5452

    In 2007 the Burrard Bridge was listed on Heritage Vancouver’s Top Ten Endangered Sites and in 2009 it began a bike lane trial. It continues to link the downtown core with Kitsilano, Vanier Park, and UBC whether you travel by car, bus, bike, or foot. For a great view of the bridge at any time of day, check out the legendary KatKam webcam.

    Clara Hughes to Lead Take a Hike Bike Ride in Stanley Park

    Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

    Six-time Olympic medalist Clara Hughes will be in Stanley Park tomorrow morning (October 7th) for a bike ride with the Take a Hike Foundation. Hughes, who is also set to be honored on Canada’s Walk of Fame this year, is hosting this event to celebrate Take a Hike’s 10 year anniversary.

    Take a Hike is an alternative education program that engages at-risk youth through a unique combination of adventure-based learning, academics, counseling, and community involvement.

    Clara Hughes
    Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr

    I sat in on a press conference during the Vancouver 2010 Games after she won a medal as a part of the speedskating relay team where she announced that she was donating her medal bonus ($10,000CDN) to Take a Hike. She also gave the teacher who founded the program tickets to her 3000m race at the Olympics.

    Thursday’s event will start off with a press conference at 10:30am over at Second Beach. Hughes will give a talk about her life journey and the Olympics, which is bound to be incredibly motivational. She and Take a Hike students will then set out on a biking tour of the park.

    If you’re in the area, I encourage you to check out her speech – even during the press conference in February I was moved by her determination and inspirational words of wisdom.

    Joe Fresh Flagship Store on Granville

    Comments 4 by Rebecca Bollwitt

    Joe Fresh is a brand typically associated with Superstore that produces clothing for men and women. They’ll be hopping outside of the giant green box and launching a flagship store in downtown Vancouver this month, bringing more fashion options to the entertainment district.


    Photo credit: From the Joe Fresh Life blog

    On October 16th they’ll be celebrating their grand opening with one giant street party outside of 540 Granville Street. This will include free concerts from Mariana’s Trench, Divine Brown, Stereos and Sweet Thing — some of the country’s hottest acts right now.

    Things will kick off around 2:00pm and go until 6:00pm on Granville between Pender and Dunsmuir. Follow @JoeFreshStyle on Twitter for store opening announcements, events, and the latest from Joe Fresh.

    Metro Vancouver Pumpkin Patches: Tips

    Add a Comment by Jennifer Miles

    With Halloween right around the corner, thoughts of witches, pirates, bags-full of candy and of course jack-o-lanterns fill children and parents’ minds a-like. In a follow up to my pumpkin patch write up from a few years ago. Here a few tips for those of you headed out to pumpkin patches over the next few weeks.

    Pumpkin Patch

    • Don’t pick your pumpkins too early in the season. Pumpkins are living things after all and if you pick them too soon they will be stinking piles of mush long before your munchkins can take a knife to them. Either that or they will just be too soft to carve. Don’t wait too long either, the closer you get to Halloween the less choice there is and if it’s been rainy (which is fairly common) the pumpkins start to get soggy sitting in the fields.
    • Try to head to the pumpkin patch during ”non-peak” times. Obviously weekends are the busiest but be mindful of when bus loads of school kids on field trips might also be showing up. I recommend mid afternoon during the week to avoid crowds. Of course check websites or call ahead to confirm hours of operation.
    • Don’t get carried away. It’s easy to get excited (we’ve done this several times) when picking your future jack-o-lanterns and end up with too big or too many pumpkins. Little ones tire quickly of cleaning pumpkin guts and some of the fun of carving your pumpkins will be lost. Try not to chose the biggest pumpkins in the patch but something you can picture your kids being able to clean and carve (with help). Also, don’t pick too many as carving pumpkins is time consuming and you- know- who ends up doing all the work once the kids get tired.
    • Have fun. Put on your boots and old jeans. Let the kids get dirty as they wander the muddy fields finding that ”perfect” one. It’s usually a good idea to bring cash as some places don’t take interac or credit cards. Also, bring a bag to carry pumpkins and to protect the trunk of your car. Don’t forget your camera either.

    For more information here are the links to a few local and very popular pumpkin patches. Most have additional activities but also charge admission (which may or may not include a pumpkin): Laity Pumpkin Patch, Country Pumpkin Patch, Aldor Acres, Apple Barn, Maan Farms, Petey’s Pumpkin Patch.