Snow scene from December

 We did have some snow here in the BC lower mainland before Christmas but it was soon gone.  These photos were taken on the 12th of December, 2013.  Within a couple of days it was mostly gone and traces of it gone soon after.

 Enjoy the photos, and Happy New Year and all the best for 2014!

- Volker

update

Circumstances over the past few months have kept me occupied with other activities.  First, my old laptop died after four years of service.  Then I got a new notebook through a new IP but in the mean time I had to set up things with the new computer, which took time.

Then some weeks ago I adopted a 15 year old boy, who is now 16 since his birthday came along since, but this has kept me away from blogging since we chat online daily.  He is in Indonesia and I am in Canada.  Wahid lost his parents and his older brother in a car accident in the mountains.  They were on vacation and the car ended up in a mountain ravine with all occupants dead.  So the 15 year old (now 16) came looking for someone that would fill the roll of a father.  He found me and neither of us has looked back.

The weather has improved, so I have been back to hiking over the past few weeks.  I hope to post some photos soon from some of the recent hikes which include the Fraser River near home, Barnston Island in the Fraser River between Surrey and Pitt Meadows, British Columbia plus some from Hollyburn Mountain in West Vancouver (that hike is planned for tomorrow).  Look for some interest new images soon!
- Volker

a view on and from Burnaby Mountain

 Late last Saturday afternoon I went up to Burnaby Mountain along the south side of Burrard Inlet in the city of Burnaby to the north of where I live.  It was a short bus trip to hook up with the SkyTrain station, then a short trip by train (two stops) and then a longer bus trip to get to my destination.  Its always worth it.  The above image shows some of the shrubs leafing out.  The top of the mountain is about a thousand feet above sea level.  These are just some of the photos I took while there.  Enjoy!

 The Rose Garden near the Horizon Restaurant on the western end of the mountain looks rather lifeless but even there there were signs of spring with plenty of spring flowers in bloom, such as crocuses and spring heathers.  This will soon change as temperatures warm up.  Roses have begun sending out shoots!

 The mountains, part of the Coast Mountain chain, are snow-capped and look stunning against a clear blue sky on a bright sunny day.

 There were plenty of boats out and about on the Burrard Inlet and Indian Arm, as you can see in the above photo.  The above image look toward the north where Indian Arm is disappearing off into the distance.

I even saw a lone sailboat on Burrard Inlet just to the north of the mountain.  It was a beautiful day for a leisurely sail, don't you think?  I hope you've enjoyed these images as much as I enjoyed appreciating the view while up there!

~ Volker

signs of spring

Its now well into March and here on the west coast of Canada (Vancouver/BC) there are signs of spring everywhere if you look closely.  I took a shot of an Azalea shrub in full bloom this morning.  It is located on West Hastings Street at Burrard where I took the photo in the previous post.

We're struggling to reach 8 degrees Celsius while places in eastern Canada will see summer-like temperatures like Montreal, Quebec at 22 and Halifax, Nova Scotia at 24 degrees Celsius.  Oh well, with the clearing skies here, we get to enjoy the view of the snow-capped mountains in the distance against a blue sky.  And at the moment, the mountains is where the snow is staying!  What's the weather like where you are?

~ Volker

city lights

I took this photo in downtown Vancouver the other week after I left work.  This view shows the traffic and the look of the downtown at West Hastings Street at Burrard Street at sunset with darkness approaching.  What attracted me here was the reflections on the buildings, the lights and the dimming light.

With the weather getting warmer there will be more photo opportunities as we get into spring.  I walked past St.Paul's Hospital on Burrard Street late this afternoon on an errand to see that some of the early flowering trees are in bloom.  The crocuses and snowdrops are in flower as well.  There is more to look forward to.

~ Volker.

East Hastings Street - Burnaby

This is a view of East Hastings Street in north Burnaby, British Columbia looking west toward Vancouver.  The road is anything but straight as it would appear on a map.  This image was taken on the western end of Burnaby Mountain this evening at sunset.  This is why the lights of all the vehicles are so clear.  So, that's something to remember the next time you compare what you see on a road map with what you are actually seeing in reality. - V

sunset

This was the view of the sunset late this afternoon as seen from the western end of Burnaby Mountain.  The sun is setting behind Vancouver Island to the west.  The temperature was warm (nearing 10 degrees Celsius), so with the water still on the cool side, a low-hanging mist formed over the water while the sky in general was clear except for the odd cloud.  Those were very high in the sky.  Enjoy! - V

view from Sapperton

This past Sunday I went for a walk to check out a new grocery store near home. These are just a few photos that I took along the way. Above is a view to the northeast of Eagle Mountain where I had done three hikes this summer. You can see the microwave tower (red and white) just to the right of centre. There is a great lookout there with an awesome view below.
The second photo show the Fraser River as seen from near the top of the Fraser Cemetery in Sapperton. The image below shows the view of the mountains to the northeast from the same location.
Then there are photos of a mighty oak tree in the cemetery, one of the crown, one just looking up near the base of the tree and another looking at the moss on the bark of the trunk of that tree.
There is also a Monkey Puzzle Tree in the Fraser Cemetery. The photos below show the tree and a close-up of the crown. I hope you've enjoyed the photos.

monkey puzzle

On my way to Burnaby Mountain on Sunday afternoon, I decided to walk to the SkyTrain station. This took me past an excellent specimen of a monkey puzzle tree a few city blocks away from home. You're looking at the crown (top) of the tree which is native to the Andean Mountains of South America. The tree's Latin name is Araucaria araucana. You can clearly see the cones (brown). There are several interesting specimens in the lower mainland. This one in Sapperton (New Westminster) is but one of them. There is another in the Fraser Cemetery, at least one on Capital Hill (Burnaby) and some near the Lion's Gate Bridge in Vancouver. There are others as well. - V

Eagle Mountain - September 4th

Well, I've edited most of the photos taken on the September 4th hike up Eagle Mountain, the one on the Labour Day weekend. The top one is of some wild geranium flowers found in bloom along the Coquitlam Crunch Trail. There is a photo of wild asters as well. The mountain is Mt Baker across the border in Washington (state). The last photo has some huckleberry bushes in it. I was eating the berries as we went along. They are related to the blueberry. I'll let the images speak for themselves. Enjoy! - V

Eagle Bluff - photos

Here are some photos of Saturday's hike on Eagle Mountain. The goal was Eagle Bluff which I reached without incident. Enjoy the photos and the scenery! The hiking route took me up the Coquitlam Crunch Trail once again, to a view of the lower mainland and then on to Eagle Bluff. I couldn't have asked for better weather. I plan to post some more photos taken during the beginning of the hike but these will suffice for now. Enjoy!
That's the approach to the bluff above and tread marks in the sand from trail bikes in the photo below.
Here's another beautiful shot of Buntzen Lake above and a shot of the trail from where I came.
The image above looks down to Burrard Inlet and Burnaby Mountain. The photo below shows the top edge of the Eagle Bluff. Its a significant drop down from there.
Finally, this is a shot (above) across the top of a rock found near the edge of the bluff. The view alone was well worth the effort in getting there! - V

view from Eagle Bluff

On Saturday, rather than hike up the mountain I decided to complete the original hike to Eagle Bluff and the view from there of Buntzen Lake was more the worth the effort to get there. More photos are coming as soon as they are edited. Meantime, savour this one! - V

Eagle Mountain hike - photos

This past Saturday afternoon took me to Port Moody by a combination of bus, then train and then a bus once more (B-97). Then I walked to the start of the Coquitlam Crunch Trail in neighbouring Coquitlam. It turned out to be a much nicer day than I had originally imagined. It was bright and sunny, not to mention very warm. It was so warm that I took off the t-shorts I was wearing. I didn't need them, nor did I need the sweater I brought along in case it was cool. Part of the trail was sponsored by someone named "Mr. Bear." I saw neither Mr. Bear nor the furry creature, so all was well. Anyway, the weather was peerfect!
Going up the trail there are some courts of one description or another. The one pictured was used to play a sort of field hockey.
Raspberries and such are in season. Canes are found in many places. The photo above gives you an idea. Then the rules were posted for the safety of those using the Eagle Ridge Greenway.
The photo above looks south and the one below shows a bee visiting a buttercup (flower).
Rugosa-type roses are to be found with plenty of flowers or buds about to open and the rose hips that I found are large and plentiful.
Another wildflower to be seen is the Goldenrod, a sign that autumn is getting close. There is a close-up of a bee visiting one above and then a grouping growing along the trail in the photo below. The yellow blooms look lovely against the blue sky.
There is tall grass dried from the recent dryness plus vetch and crown vetch grow in the grass as well.
That's Yarrow in the image above and a view of the Golden Ears Bridge across the Fraser River in the photo below.
There is another field and a lovely view plus a photo of daisies in bloom on a hillside in the photo below.
I found a clump of Western Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea var. occidentalis) growing at the base of a tower. Below is a close up shot of one of them.
Eagle Mountain is off in the distance. Below is a shot of one of the mileage and elevation markers along the trail. The one shown was the last one at the end of the Coquitlam Crunch Trail.
I encountered several guys on motorbikes and trail bikes during the hike up the mountain and back down. On the way down I encountered a group of three I had seen earlier plus one other that stopped to ask permission regarding biking on the trails, then yet another before I made it back to the road.
There are all sorts of wildflowers along the trail if you take a careful look (see above). Eagle Mountain is ever closer as I proceed further up in elevation.
Thistles are associated with summer time and as I hiked up there were more and more of the Western Pearly Everlasting to be found along the trail.
There was moss-encrusted rock along the road. Below is a close-up shot.
It wasn't all Western Pearly Everlasting. I found some yarrow growing along the road and trail as well. Something that caught me by surprise was finding the bed of a railway freight car along the trail. I keep finding surprising things. Now how did that get there?
I encountered three streams on the hike. The one pictured is just one of the three.
Again, I couldn't get over the weather. We normally get such weather much earlier in the summer, but not this year. Huckleberries are in season now. A bush is show below and a close-up of the berries below that. The shrubs are related to the blueberry. I was nibbling on them as I hiked along.

A short trail is shown in the photo above. It lead to a wonderful surprise, a beautiful vantage point to see the area from the height of Eagle Mountain.
That vantage point is near a microwave tower. And again, lots of the Western Pearly Everlasting are to be found.
There was another vantage point looking west, southwest. Here you see Burrard Inlet, then downtown Vancouver and Stanley Park plus English Bay behind that. The photo below shows where Indian Arm meet Burrard Inlet at Burnaby Mountain (looking southwest).
The above photo looks west toward the mountains around Buntzen Lake. There is fireweed as well (below).
I had intended to hike to Eagle Bluff (image above). There is a view of Buntzen Lake from there but time ran out and I had to turn around to return home. There will be another attempt on the Labour Day weekend.
Then there are fish habitat signs posted, in this case regarding salmon!
I saw a nurse stump on the way back down that I had missed on the way up and on the road I found this big black slug crawling along! Enjoy the photos and feel free to comment or ask any questions! - V