The totally un-canceled Celebration of Light fireworks nightime summer fun extravaganza blitz is upon us once again however this year a new radio station in town is spicing things up a bit.
Shore 104 (104.1 on your FM dial) is presenting the Rogue Folk Shorefest, which is a series of three concerts facing the crowds in English Bay on each of the fireworks nights (July 22, 25, 29, and August 1). These free and unplugged performances will feature the likes of Jim Byrnes, Wide Mouth Mason, 54-40, Barney Bentall, Dustin Bentall, Odds, and more.
Things kick off at 6:30pm in the West End and you can tune into Shore 104 to hear the soundtrack to the fireworks display each night.
As a side note, on July 25th I’ll be participating in my third annual Blogathon in support of the Union Gospel Mission in Vancouver’s Downtown East side. The goal is to blog every 30 minutes for 24 straight hours and we’ll be live on location at Workspace in Gastown. As an added incentive to support my campaign, readers who pledge a minimum of $20 will all be entered to win a fireworks boat cruise presented by Granville Island Brewing. The winner and a guest will enjoy dinner, drinks, and one of the most unique views of the fireworks on July 29th.
To enter, sign up and pledge my campaign on the official Blogathon website. Thanks in advance to everyone who will be supporting my campaign in one form or another (if even by reading my site at 3am that day to keep me going).
Earlier this month I previewed a few upcoming events that all ages can enjoy for free throughout the city this summer. I’m excited to add to the list Carousel Theatre’s presentation of Macbeth, which will run on the Performance Works Outdoor Stage on Granville Island form July 31st until August 15th.
A haunting tragedy of vaulting ambition in the castles of Scotland –a murdered king, evil witches, and a Scottish lord’s bloody rise to power.
The show is entirely free of charge and to make it even more interesting, it is being presented by the Teen Shakespeare Program, starring 13-17 year olds from around the Lower Mainland. The Gothic retelling of Macbeth will be the culmination the teens’ intense 6-week program with the Carousel Theatre, which is now in its 19th year.
They will also be hosting a silent auction in order to raise funds to keep this inspirational and creative program going in the future.
Bring a blanket (and some warm clothes for the cool summer nights) to the Performance Works Outdoor Stage (Ron Basford Park) at 1218 Cartwright Street, on Granville Island to enjoy this free event until August 15th.
After walking around Central Park this morning, I started thinking about Stanley Park back home and that it would be a great time to rustle up a quick history tidbits post.
At 1,000 acres Stanley Park is just slightly bigger than New York’s Central Park (843 acres)
July 27, 1911: The Province reported that one third of Vancouver’s population had passed through the gates of Stanley Park during the week of July 10-16, making it one of the most popular pleasure resorts the Terminal City possesses.†[source]
Stanley Park is named after Lord Stanley who also has a prized hockey trophy named after him. Check out this post I wrote a little while ago with links to some great hockey history.
Plans for gun emplacements in Stanley Park, between Second and Third Beach (near the Pauline Johnson Memorial) up on Ferguson Point were made Juanary 19, 1938. [source]
In 1964 Vancouver’s Mayor Bill Rathie and Park Board Chairman George Wainborn drove the last spike in the Stanley Park miniature railway. [source]
The original Lumberman’s Arch
Related post: Vancouver History Tidbits: Stanley Park Trails & the history series.
Since I’m currently away on business I won’t have much time to post until tomorrow. However, this morning was just too good not to cover.
The only thing better than taking a morning stroll down the bustling streets of Manhattan is doing so in the company of Michael DiLorenzo, the Director of Social Media Marketing & Strategy for the National Hockey League.
Fun times are ahead for the rest of today and tonight, but I’ll see everyone back in Vancouver (if even just virtually) tomorrow evening.
The following has been contributed to the Park Series by Raul of hummingbird604.com
I had been wanting to go for a hike to Buntzen Lake for a long while, but for one reason or another, I hadn’t gotten a chance, so one of my recent Sunday evenings JT and I decided to go for a short hike and we settled on (finally!) the Buntzen Lake area. I noticed that Rebecca had recently visited Belcarra Regional Park and I wanted to contribute to her Park Series with a post about Buntzen Lake.
Photo credit:
phobus on Flickr
How to Get There You could drive all the way to Anmore/Belcarra but the sustainable mode of transportation would be taking Skytrain or the 160 Express to Coquitlam Centre Station and from there the community shuttle C26.
View Larger Map
Metrics Buntzen Lake is a BC Hydro reservoir, located about 30 km from Vancouver, with an overall area of 182 hectares and a length of 4.8 km. HISTORY From the BC Hydro site:
Formerly known as Lake Beautiful, the lake is named after the first general manager of B.C. Electric Co., Johannes Buntzen. In 1903 the Buntzen hydroelectric project was put in service by the Vancouver Power Company to provide the first hydroelectric power to Vancouver. Previously, the city had to depend on a 1,500-kilowatt (kW) steam plant for its power supply. The project involved raising the level of the dam on Coquitlam Lake and excavating a 3.6 km tunnel to carry water from Coquitlam Lake to Buntzen Lake. The tunnel runs under Eagle Mountain, reaching a maximum depth of 1.2 km below the surface, and empties into the north end of Buntzen Lake.
Water from Buntzen Lake is used to feed the Burrard Generating Station. While one of the generating plants (Buntzen 2) is still in operation, and monitored from a facility in Burnaby, Buntzen 1 (built in 1903 and shut down in 1951) is no longer functioning.
Notes Buntzen Lake has a variety of amenities and thus it is a popular site for beach-goers and hikers alike. Trails are clearly marked, and there is a short (Energy) trail that has a number of cute little displays that allow hikers to learn more about the area (similar to an interpretive display). There’s also a hollow tree but not as big as the one in Stanley Park.
Dr Raul Pacheco is a local blogger, teacher, researcher and consultant on water governance, environmental policy and urban sustainability.
