The weather has been really good to those of us who live in Southwestern British Columbia. Robyn, Jenny and myself though it would be a good time to get out over to Dog Mountain this weekend, with the beautiful weather we have. We tried to do hike Dog Mountain earlier in the year but when we got up to the parking lot at Mount Seymour, we were greeted by at least a half a foot of snow at the far end of the parking lot. The snow has since significantly melted away and we were excited hike Dog Mountain.

Dog Mountain is located off of Mount Seymour in North Vancouver. The trail head is roughly a hundred feet from the end of the parking lot at the top of Mount Seymour and quickly ducks into the trees heading West. The trail itself is a bit rough with rocks and roots, so don’t expect to get a stroller through it. Check out Vancouver Trails for information on getting to the trail head.

The total journey from the parking lot to Dog Mountain and back is roughly 2 hours. Of course this is when there is no snow on the ground and the ground is fairly dry. We hit some muddy patches along the way, but nothing horrible.

About the half way point you come to First Lake. A great place to stand and admire the beauty hidden by the trees. Though don’t hang around too long, during the beginning of Summer the flies and mosquitoes are out in full force. Be sure to use bug repellent or you will complain about it the whole trip like I did.

Eventually you will reach the end point; Dog Mountain. It offers a spectacular view of Vancouver as well as Grouse Mountain. If you have binoculars or even a decent zoom lens, you can see various highlights of our beautiful city too.

Another highlight for Dog Mountain is the remains of an old cabin. As each year passes, less and less evidence of the cabin remains. Why was there a cabin and what happened? Who knows?

While you are at Dog Mountain, it is a great place to sit, relax and even enjoy some lunch. You might even see the occasional chipmunk or grey jay bird too, whom might sneak near you asking for a crumb or two. We also heard an owl hooting in a local tree, though we could not locate it among the branches.

When you are ready to head back to the parking lot, just turn around and head back the way you came. The majority of the trail is downhill so it might be easier than the hike up.  I also recommend heading up earlier than later as once the sun peaks, it does get fairly hot.

Dog Mountain is a great way to spend a morning on a sunny day. It is also a decent little work out as well as you scramble up and around the various roots too.  Just be sure to put on bug repellent!

Don’t forget, you can click on any photo above to view it’s larger version!

Photography Notes:

It was difficult to get photos of Vancouver and the surrounding area when on the top of Dog Mountain. Our city can be fairly polluted and hazy, specially closer to noon. The photos of the city I edited with Lightroom to help take away the crazy haze as well as blue tone you get when you shoot landscapes from a far distance. The circular polarizer on my 18-55mm kit lens did not help much, and I do not have any sort of UV or Haze filter on my 70-200mm lens either. An UV or haze filter might have helped, but my edits were alright.

Shooting in the trees was not too difficult though I did need to bump up my ISO to 400 to get a decent shutter speed, even when using an f-stop of 2.8. I’ve had difficulties before with shooting in a forest on a hike do to the poor lighting you can get. I probably also should have used a wider angle when we got to the First Lake, as the 70-200mm was attached. I just didnt want to stop and switch lenses at the time. Perhaps I should get a second camera body

Every time I take a ferry across from Vancouver to Vancouver Island I always hope to see some whales. It’s a rare occurrence to see any form of whale while traveling the BC Ferry routes so I asked Robyn if she wanted to do an Orca Whale Watching tour when we got to Victoria. She was a bit hesitant at first but she was intrigued about the idea. I have always wanted to go on a whale tour even since I got my Canon DSLR. The last whale watching tour I did was when I went to Alaska back in 2006. I went on a humpback whale tour and saw the magnificent mammals in their natural habitat. Too bad I don’t have those photos any more.

Prince of Whales

Whenever I think about whale watching companies, the first one that has always popped into my mind has been Prince of Whales. Prince of Whales has been in operation since 1995 and have locations in both Victoria and Vancouver. With their fleet of zodiacs and two Ecological cruisers (Ocean Magic I & II) they can run tours to the resident Orca pods every half hour (during peak times).

I do highly recommend taking one of the zodiacs as I thought the ride itself was worth the $95 price per person.

The Ocean Magic (I & II) are 62-foot vessels that have on-board washrooms, heated indoor seating area (with pantries) as well as a large outside on-deck area to view the killer whales and other marine wildlife. With carrying capacities of up to 74 people, the carbon foot print is minimized without hampering the views for the passengers.

When you first arrive at the Prince of Whales location in the Inner Harbour of downtown Victoria you get to suit up in red jumpsuits which also act as flotation devices. You might think it odd to wear things during these hot sunny days, but when you are out on the water traveling at 35 knots (~60km/h) you will be glad you are wearing one.

Twelve of us boarded the first zodiac of the day which sat us comfortably. Our tour guide told us what we would expect and that we had a really good chance of seeing Orca (killer whales) as they were seen feeding the previous day. We slowly made our way through the Inner Harbour past Ogden Point, at which point he opened up the throttle and sped us to San Juan Island at 35 knots! It’s pretty cool to see the coast of Victoria from the perspective of a water craft, I also had a smile plastered on my face the entire way.

Thar She Blows!

When we got to the San Juan Island (US) right off the bat we got to see Orcas zig-zagging their way down the shore line feeding on salmon. Our guide mentioned that the Orcas would dive roughly 100 feet down to feed on the large amount of salmon that were in the waters. According to our guide these were members of the J-Pod, a group of resident Orcas traveling south to feed on the incoming salmon.

It was pretty cool and surreal to see these magnificent mammals in their natural habitat. Prince of Whales is really good at following the whale watching guidelines that has been put out by the BeWhaleWise Orginization. We would approach, and then back off to to either side of the whales to ensure we did not interfere with them. Being on the zodiac allowed for the best possible approach for capturing these mammals in their environment with my camera too.

It also helped that I borrowed my buddies EF 2.0x Extender to increase my focal reach (400mm) as well.

There were a couple of breaches, but they were too far away to capture their glory with my camera. We did get a great spy hop from one of the males though and it was pretty close. Orcas will spy hop when they want to take a look at the surface surroundings, its a pretty cool thing to see happen.

Among the J-Pod is one of the oldest documented Orca whales in North America tagged as J1. He is estimated to be over 58 years of age!  In total we saw about 6 different Orca whales, which included 2 younger whales.

Heading Back

The trip back after 3 hours was pretty fun. Speeding over the water at 35 knots and getting air off of other boats’ wakes is pretty cool. We slowed and approached some of the smaller islands that are off the shore of Victoria (across from Willows Beach in Oak Bay) where dozens of Harbour Seals were basking in the sun along with some seagulls and cormorants.

If you are looking for a great tour to see some of the coolest water mammals, then I highly recommend heading over to Prince of Whales and booking one of the 3-hour tours they have. I also recommend booking the zodiac over the Ocean Magic if you want a more intimate setting with Orca whales.

Not in Victoria? You can head over to their Coal Harbour location in Vancouver for a few options from whale watching to general water tours too!

Either way both operations offer great experiences for water based sight-seeing! Perhaps next time we’ll see Grey Whales or even Humpback Whales!

You can check out the rest of the other photos I uploaded from our Prince of Whales experience over at Flickr.

Yesterday we attended a baby shower for our friend Meghan. It was fun, even if I was to be the exotic entertainment (inside joke). It was pretty weird to be remembered by Meghan’s parents when I haven’t lived in Victoria for more than 20 years too. I am quite disappointed that the Oak Bay Galley (on Estevan) is yet again closed during a visit of mine, it too has been over 20 years since I have fish and chips from there. Perhaps one day they will not have ‘Gone Fishing’.

Summary of Recent Travel

Hornby Island - There are many things I can write about our 7 night stay over on Hornby Island, I have posted about the various critters we saw, though there have been even more since that previous post.

Adding to the list of critters: Harbour Seals, Harbour Porpoise, Turkey Vulture, Otter or Weasel (not quite sure but he had a red coat), just to name a view. We also rescued sea creatures from the ultra-low tide that we have been having as well. 

Miracle Beach – We headed up to Miracle Beach after we left Hornby Island, but the weather was pretty rainy. Keira-Anne (@keiraannemellis) suggested we head up to Mount Washington (@mountwashington), but the weather was not the greatest for that sort of trip. We would love to hit it up in the winter season for some ski and snowboard action though.

Things To Come

Prince of Whales – I have been itching to see some orcas (aka Killer Whales) in our travels and it looks like we’ll be booking a whale watching tour with Prince of Whales on Tuesday. According to their blog they have recently seen a pod playing near San Juan Islands south of us, so hopefully they are still near by and I can get some photos of them. 

Sidney – As I mentioned before, we’re heading up north to the city of Sidney for a bit of a day trip. Sidney is located North of Victoria, and about 10 minutes south of the Swartz Bay (BC Ferry Terminal). My grandparents also used to live there too. We also plan on checking out some of the local beaches near there as well as a lake that Robyn has been talking about called Durance. 

There are numerous places we would love to visit on our trip, but unfortunately we just do not have much time left. We’re heading back to Vancouver on Wednesday (Canada Day) and back to our jobs. This is probably the last time I have a chance to write a blog post until we’re back home. Then I will have to go through over 1000 photos too and see which ones will be uploaded to Flickr.

Oh, and I am writing this on our friend’s Mac too. I miss having a Mac based machine. Perhaps one day I’ll get myself another Mac. I doubt it though, they are still pretty expensive and I need to save my money up for some more important items.

What sort of critters can you find on Hornby Island? Well there are not any larger predatory animals such as black bears or cougars, I guess the largest predator on the island would be Bald Eagles. As for land mammals there are deer dotted around the island, but other than them I have not seen anything smaller either, such as raccoons, skunks or even squirrels. Most of the wildlife here on Hornby Island seem to be more of the avian variety.

I’m on a mission to get a prized photograph of an Adult Bald Eagle. A few times they have appeared to me up in the large fir trees here, but I have only been able to take photographs of them while the sun is primarily behind him, which means they are usually underexposed. While Robyn and I were swimming off the rocks in front of the cabin, she did point out to me a bald eagle perched in a tree above. I climbed out, went up to the cabin to fetch my camera and came back down.

The above photo is the result of about 60 photos I took, all at various distances from the Eagle. My lens plus an extender, allowed me to get closer than I have been able to in the past. Since I was shooting handheld with about 640mm of focal length, the image isn’t as sharp as I would have liked it. Still not a bad job, but I am my worst/meanest critic.

While walking through Helliwell park there were numerous birds flying about. A bald eagle was circling over head, robins seemed to follow us around, and I briefly glimpsed what I thought could have been a yellow finch. The coolest bird we saw though would have been the Black Oystercatcher.

These guys are relatively small, and make the cutest chirping noises. I just hope I didnt step on any of their nests/eggs while I crept closer. There were two of them just hanging out on a small island that we could access by foot as the tide was low. They just chirped up a storm as I stood around snapping photos of them.

Back at Ford’s Cove Marina we walked out on to the dock to look at the various boats that were moored. It seems that a few swallow families have taken up residence there and hang out among the tall masts.

I have always found it extremely difficult to capture a swallow in flight. They move so quickly and can change their direction in a heart beat. We just stood and watched them enter and leave the various swallow houses, possibly feeding their young.

Up top I mentioned that there is some sort of deer population on the island, right? Well we did see 2 female deer on our drive to Helliwell, but we got to see a doe closer up when Robyn took me to an orchard nearby.

This doe was watching us as we walked past the abandoned orchard. We stood there while taking photos of her. She walked off slowly and we proceeded back to the cabin.

One thing I have always liked about the shoreline and oceans are the many little tidal pools that are created when the tide goes out. We saw numerous groups of purple starfish, a huge amount of oysters as well as clams. I doubt you would want to eat these types of shellfish though. Robyn managed to find a Moon Snail shell and in good condition. I found a couple of smaller shells, but their not worth mentioning.

There were a ton of smaller crabs scurrying about their way as we wandered around the beach. Robyn said that she saw a bigger crab and I asked her to point it out to me. She used her foot to point and the crab reared up as you can see in the photo above. It looks like the little crab is lifting up Robyn’s foot! We left him alone after I got my photo and continued our walk.

So far these are the various critters we have seen here on Hornby Island. I hope to see some more wildlife, but being on a relatively small island I am sure there isn’t much more I have yet to see. We are going to try and hit up Mt.Geoffery sometime this week as it is the highest part of Hornby Island. Hopefully there are some impressive views along the many trail systems that seem to circle the island.

What would you do if you had 2 weeks of time off from work for a vacation? Would you head off somewhere tropical? Perhaps you would jump in the car and just drive randomly around? Robyn and I decided that with the 2 weeks we had for vacation that we would hit a few places for some much needed rest and relaxation.

Over the next 2 weeks we decided we would hit 3 places that we have always enjoyed visiting on a yearly basis. The first 2 nights would be at the surfing town of Tofino. Tofino is located on Vancouver Island on the west coast about 2.5 hours from Naniamo or about 5 hours from the city of Victoria. For us, it took roughly 5 hours from Vancouver; the drive to Horseshoe Bay, ferry across the water to Naniamo, then the 2.5 hour drive across Vancouver Island to Tofino. Yes, the drive to Tofino is pretty awesome too, if you have not done it you should go one day!

Our plans were to stay at Green Point campground in the Pacific Rim National Park. We booked our campsite far in advance just to be safe, but when we arrived there were not full. Though, with this Canada Day coming up soon, I am sure they are booked solid for the next week.

Green Point is located 20 kilometers south of Tofino and 20 kilometers north of Ucluelet, a very popular fishing destination. The Green Point campsite itself sits above Long Beach, the popular surf destination. The campground features drinkable water, food lockers, washrooms, walk-in campsites as well as 2 private accesses to Long Beach itself. It is camper friendly, but there are no hookups or sani-station. There are also no showers, so you can expect to get a little grungy, or head into Tofino to use one of the available shower facilities. On a side note, your camping permit does not allow you free parking at the other parking lots either, such as Long Beach or Coombs.

So what did we do in Tofino?

We took it easy, went on Tofino time and just enjoyed each other’s company. We took long walks on Long Beach, Chesterman Beach as well as Coomb’s Beach. Breakfasts were at the campsite, we ate lunch once at the campsite and hit up the Common Loaf for some food another day. As for dinner we had hot dogs over the fire one night and then BBQ chicken the next.

Of course I had my camera in hand for most of the time as well:

Long Beach on a sunny, hot day. Typically most people rarely see the sun in Tofino, or at least we rarely see it out.

I thought this would look cool. The reflection of the clouds in the water at my feet.

Sea Lions on Sea Lion Island. Hundreds of them just being lazy and hanging out on this overcast, chilly morning as we walked on Coomb’s Beach.

This is part of a private island off of Chesterman Beach. When the tide is low (as it was here) you can walk out to them, though you’re not allowed to poke around. We did anyway, and there was a huge eagles nest in one of the trees. Can you see it in the above photo? There are at least 3 houses on this small private island, when the tide goes out, you can only get to it by boat. Robyn mentioned one of the houses can be rented for $200 a day!

The two above photos were taken at Chesterman Beach. It seems that this was a bit more popular than Long Beach was while we were there. I would say, at a given time there were about 20 surfers here and only about 4 or 5 at Long Beach. The skill of the surfers varied as well, from beginners to some what more competent. We did not see any extreme skilled surfers, nor were the waves big enough for much riding either.

Who doesn’t like sunsets? The weather in Tofino was awesome, better than we expected.Most people will say it will probably rain when you go, but even then it is a cool place to visit. There were some drizzly times during our 2 night camping stay, but the clouds parted numerous times and the sun came out in full force. I think I’m still a little burnt by all the outside time we’ve had.

This doesn’t end our vacation. We will be on Hornby Island for 7 nights, and we’re looking really forward to it. I am also sitting here at the cabin with my awesome view of the water and Denman Island writing this. Ford’s Cove (where we’re staying at) has great wireless Internet among the cabins as well. Yes, I feel completely relaxed typing this out while Robyn reads a book. Looking forward to our daily trek to Helliwell Park.

Stay tuned as I report back on our trip on Hornby Island!

Most people who frequent my blog have probably come to notice I take photos of the local birds we have near where I live, particularly around Lost Lagoon. One of the more popular species of birds that people will watch along the edges of Lost Lagoon would be the Mute Swans. These large, white ‘Royal’ looking birds are not native to North America either! In fact, you can see them all year round here at Lost Lagoon and Beaver Lake in Stanley Park.

The most interesting fact about these large birds, for me anyway, is that their wings are clipped. Well technically there is a tendon that has been clipped so that the Mute Swans cannot fly away. They can still flap their wings and get above the water, but they cannot leave the area by flight. Some people will see this as being bad, and others will not care too much.

According to the Stanley-Park-Swans.com the original Mute Swans were introduced back in 1889 as a gift from England. Currently, from my observations while on my walks around the lagoon, there are at least 4 pairings.

If you have walked around Lost Lagoon in the recent months you probably have noticed some temporary fencing that has been put into place around some sections of the lagoon. These temporary fenced off areas are where the Mute Swans have been nesting. There are at least 4 nests along the shores of the lagoon, but as of this post 3 of them have been abandoned. The fencing has been put up into place by the various volunteers to help protect the swans while they nest. When I talked to one volunteer they mentioned it was to keep away dogs and some of the other predators such as Raccoons. Though if you have seen the Raccoons at Lost Lagoon, they can easily swim in the water and access the nests that way. There have been reports, from last year, that off-leash dogs have attacked the nests as well and that previous cygnets have been killed.

Cygnets or Sygnets

Cygnets are baby swans. I found that out recently as I have been waiting for any of the Mute Swan eggs to hatch. Though the outcome hasn’t looked great thus far. Out of the 3 nests that have been abandoned I have only ever seen 1 cygnet. They are pretty cute too, the Mute Swan variety are fluffy off-white with black beaks. They are also curious little guys too as the one pictured above would come right up to me to see what I was up to. The mother Mute Swan saw no threat from me and just watched as I took photos.

Yesterday I found the same Cygnet with the parents in close proximity too. I just sat on a rock and took photos for a while. He (or she) has grown pretty quick and I am glad to see him (or her) still around as well.

I am hoping that the 4th nest produces some more cygnets. I know the Ecological Society of Stanley Park would also be excited if more cygnets survived as well. Though as one person has mentioned, why would they not incubate the eggs themselves to help ensure a higher survival rate and then put them back into the lagoon among their parents? Perhaps it has to do with the way cygnets are raised and they want a more natural way of life? Who knows? It will be interesting if there are more Mute Swans present in the lagoon though.

What are your thoughts?

With the more recently announcement of Apple releasing the 3Gs iPhone what better way to protect your new investment by purchasing a good, sturdy case? I have used some of Speck’s products before but their newer CandyShell iPhone Cases have definitely peeked my interest in ensuring my iPhone stays clean and scratch free, but still allows it to stand out in the crowd of other iPhones.

Speck CandyShell iPhone Cases

I have been using my Speck SeeThru case for quite some time and was looking to upgrade to something a bit sturdier. I received notification that Speck release a new iPhone case called the CandyShell and when I looked at the initial photos, I thought that this might be a great upgrade to the SeeThru I was previously using.

My first impressions when I received my CandyShell cases were that not only would it protect against scratches and marks on the outer portion of my iPhone 3G, but it would would give my iPhone a more unique look. In fact, I still get people asking me what sort of phone and case combo do I have when I take my phone out.

Features of the CandyShell.

• Fits iPhone 3G and iPhone 3Gs
• Lightweight, one-piece design.
• Colorful on the outside, rubberized on the inside
• Includes screen protector with screen cloth
• Easy access to ports and controls

The Speck CandyShell offers me the features I want in a case for my iPhone; uniqueness and protection.

Performance

How does one measure performance on an object that is passive? Well in the case of the Speck CandyShell, placing your iPhone into it doesn’t take much effort. The corners are rubberized to allow a bit more flex when you put your iPhone into the case and take it out (if you ever need to). I would recommend applying the included screen protector prior to placing your iPhone into the CandyShell.

The case itself is a constructed of hard plastic with rubber corners. The rubber corners allow the harder plastic to flex when you first insert your phone, or ever need to take it out. The rubberized interior allows for protection against bumps and scratches. The CandyShell case also does not add much bulk either, which I think is important. I love that I can still easily slip my phone, with the case on, into a front pocket and be able to easily retrieve it when needed.

The opening for the ports allows easy access for connecting your iPhone’s USB cable as well as headphones. There could be a little bit of an issue if you have a dock of some sort, but for me I haven’t had any issues.

The headphone jack is also easily accessible in case you need to plug in a pair of  headphones, or when you hook it up to an auxiliary port on a stereo or some similar device. The power button has a cover over it and does not allow for accidental button presses.

When you need to access the mute/silent switch on the side, it can be a bit tricky with larger fingers. It also helps keep you from accidentally switching on  mute/silent, which I used to do in the past. The volume buttons are similar to that of the power button, and you need to push a bit harder to make it work. Though I have had no issues pressing them and no fear of breaking it either.

The back of the case also has a small opening for the camera of the iPhone. If the front of the camera gets a bit dirty, the case still has enough room that you can take a small cloth and remove any dirt or dust that might have settled over time.

When you go to apply the screen protector, make sure the surface of your iPhone’s screen is completely clean and free of any dust. I accidentally dropped my screen on the floor and spent a good 30 minutes using scotch tape to pull off the dust that stuck to it. It was easy to apply, and it was my first ever successful screen protector application. I have no bubbles and there is no loss in touch-sensitivity with the screen protector in place either.

Final Thoughts

Overall I have always enjoyed using Speck products. Not only do they release new innovative cases for Apple’s iPhones but they also release some pretty cool protective cases for their Macbooks too.

Every time I bring out my phone, I get people asking me what phone I use because they have never seen one like it. People also ask me what case I use because it looks cool and they want one as well.

If you are looking for a great looking, good protection case for your Apple iPhone 3G or even that new iPhone 3Gs you have your eye on, I would highly recommend the CandyShell case from Speck. They also come in 4 great colour schemes too; Lemondrop Liqurorice, Keylime Jawbreaker (featured above), Cranberry White Truffle and Watermellon Gumball.

Pros

• Unique Design
• Included Screen Protector and Screen Cloth
• Rubberized Interior for better shock absorption
• Easy access to ports, buttons
• Does not add bulk

Cons

• Power and Volume buttons might be a bit harder to press
• Mute/Silent Switch can be tricky to flip back and forth

Enter To Win!!

Want to win your own iPhone 3G/3Gs CandyShell case? I have a Lemondrop Liqurorice CandyShell (black with yellow accents) case to give away to one of my readers here at Tyler Ingram dot com. All you have to do is comment on this post to be entered to win the case!

If you leave a comment, I will draw 1 lucky random person to win the free Apple iPhone 3G/3Gs Lemondrop Liqurorice CandyShell from Speck!

Want to earn an extra entry to increase your odds of winning the case? Just click on the following Twitter link: http://twitter.com/?status=Win+an+Apple+iPhone+Case+from+%40TylerIngram+over+at+http%3A%2F%2Fsnipurl.com%2Fk6fmc – This, along with your posted comment will allow you for 2 entries into this small and simple contest.

I will make the draw on July 1st (Canada Day) 2009. Comments must be posted no later than June 30th 23:59:59 PST 2009.

Please be sure to include a valid Email address so that I can get in contact with you if you are the chosen random winner.

Good Luck!

Sunday, June 14th 2009 marks the day that people from around Metro Vancouver got to walk across the newest bridge connecting Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge to Langley. What people didn’t realize is that well over the expected 30,000 showed up. Some numbers I have read recently this morning have been that 60,000 people showed up and eventually the Traffic Authority had to turn people away.

Robyn, myself, my little sister and my mum ventured to the Golden Ears Bridge at 11:00AM and joined the slowly increasing mass amounts of people on the bridge deck. The Traffic Authority had one side of the bridge closed off for bus, media and and event people access, which forced people to funnel up the one side of the bridge to the mid span.

I thought it was pretty cool to walk over with the mass crowd towards Langley from the Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge side. There were various food and drink vendors along the way as well as various organizations such as Scouts, Beavers, and Vintage Car clubs too. A large stage was set up near the mid span to offer some entertainment from the massive crowd that began to slow foot traffic down.

We walked about 3/4 of the way over the bridge and decided to turn around and head back. The amount of people on the bridge seemed to have doubled if not triple as we made our way back towards Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge.

I stopped to take photos of the Brazilian entertainment and people were pretty much at a standstill at this point. People were pushing, shoving which were making it harder for people to move across the bridge. The people around me were getting upset at the pushing and shoving as we tried to make our way back down the bridge, of course people were also trying to still get up on the bridge too. No control, just mass chaos.

We all got separated as the mass crowd pushed and shoved itself around. I eventually caught back up with Robyn near the end of the bridge where the crowd thinned out. My mum and little sister were waiting for us near the car. The Police and Traffic Authority at that time were telling people that they were not allowed on the bridge due to the large amount already on it. That definitely did not make more happy parents trying to do something fun with their children, but then again, children were also being pushed and shoved around on the bridge deck. The sun was also coming out and people were complaining about not moving and becoming overheated.

It wasn’t as spectacular of an event as I thought it might have been, and we are glad we didn’t venture all the way over to Langley either. We would have been stuck somewhere among the 60,000 or so people that were stuck on the bridge and not moving.

The bridge is toll free starting June 16th for 1 month, after that you will have to pay Toll to cross either way. On Wednesday I will drive across the bridge on my way into work as it should save me a great deal of time, though on the way home, it will be a nuisance due to traffic congestion near 152nd street in Surrey. It will definitely be neat driving over the new bridge though, but I will not be driving over it when the Toll goes into effect.

Did you manage to walk onto the bridge on Sunday or did you participate in one of the many Car Free Days that were happening around Vancouver?

Other photos from the Golden Ears Bridge event can be seen on my Flickr Photoset.

Yesterday when Robyn, our friend Jenny and I went to the BCKA Kite Festival we walked by what seemed to be a large gathering of people at Sunset Beach. What we didn’t notice was that the people in the middle of the crowd were all nude cyclists. I remember last year while I was walking down Thurlow Street, a horde of nude cyclists whet riding past on Robson Street in Vancouver. So this group of nude cyclists I thought might be the same protesters from last year, well some of them anyway, but with the same idea of riding around the tourist filled streets this year with nothing on but a smile and perhaps some body paint.

What is the protest about? If I remember correctly it has to do with clean or green alternatives to driving, particularly biking your way around the city. Is it a coincidence that it happens the day before Car Free Day? I also remember reading that a local association is trying to have even less cars in the downtown area of Vancouver by trying to get rid of permit parking as well as residential building parking. Yes, I live in the West End but I need my car to get to work on the two days I do work, our Transit system fails me for my long commute out into the valley. I am also not about to get a different job closer to home either. Robyn too has to take 3 buses to get from our place in the West End to her work on Broadway, now that doesn’t seem very transit efficient does it? Oh well.

Anyway, I’m falling off topic here with personal rants. After we got back from the Kite Festival and walking along the First Beach area of English Bay the nude cyclists were on their way back and made quite a ruckus as they passed by. Some were fully naked, some were just topless and the occasional person was clothed, though those people might be just random cyclists that got sucked into the massive group. The Police were also escorting the group on their bikes too.

So how does this increase traffic to someone’s Flickr Photostream? Well, I found that within 24 hours I have received 3,000+ views alone just on the Flickr photoset I created for the Nude Cyclists. Within that set, the two most popular photos are the following:

So how does one get such a huge increase in traffic with Filckr on their Photostream? The secret I would guess are the keywords that are associated to these photos; Breasts, Topless, and Nude. People must be searching for these terms on Flickr and just lurking behind the scenes, not commenting either. The photos of the females cyclists are also receiving more views then the male cyclists, does this mean guys are more likely to search for the above terms on Flickr?

So now that these photos are receiving hundreds of views, what now? Nothing really, the photos are not receiving any comments. Nor do I think the photos themselves are very technical either. I did some cropping, colour and light adjustments.

I did tweet saying that I saw this group of cyclists, received a few replies, but nothing spectacular. I wasn’t expecting any sort of traffic increase, but there is the odd person who would be curious what the Nude Cycling in Vancouver was all about.

If you want a quick increase in Flickr photos traffic, just post a couple of nude photos!

The great thing about Vancouver and the area around (I guess Metro Vancouver) is that there are so many places you can go to enjoy a great day hike. The North Shore has a few that I personally like to do over and over again as there are also ones I have yet to do but we’re planning to do soon.

Our plan was to hit Dog Mountain, which is part of Seymour Mountain in North Vancouver. When we arrived at the parking lot the outcome didn’t look great. There was still snow (about a half a foot of it) and it was pretty chilly. I remember that majority of the trail to Dog Mountain is in the trees and last time I went, there was a large part that had snow. Since there was snow at the parking lot still, i didn’t think we were prepared for it, so we decided to choose a different hike. Robyn and Jenny suggested the Capilano area.

Most people will know Capilano because of the Capilano Suspension Bridge also it is enroute to Grouse Mountain too. Both are great tourist destinations if you’re visiting Vancouver. Though what we were going to do was set around the suspension bridge area and starts at the Cleveland Dam.

If you drive past the Capilano Suspension Bridge for about 5 more minutes you will come to the Cleveland Dam area. There is a parking lot (free) as well as washroom facilities, picnic benches and grassy areas. The only downside is that you cannot go swimming as the water is the drinking source for most of the city of Vancouver.

The trail system starts at the other side of the Cleveland Dam. In the middle of the dam you can look over the edge and down into the beginning of the Capilano Canyon. The surge of water from above is a pretty impressive sight.

There are a couple of trail systems along the way. We took the Capilano Pacific Trail which follows along the Capilano River.

Cleveland Dam

There are many view points along the way as you meander around the forest of old growth trees and vegetation. There is also a Fish Hatchery that you can visit while you’re there. When we stopped there for a bio break, a bus load of tourists got out as well. The hatchery is pretty cool as it shows live stages of a fish’s life cycle in a hatchery. The area has some pretty cool architecture as well.

Small runoff from fish hatchery

Pipe Bridge

There are a couple of loop trails, some being longer than others and the one we took takes you behind the Capilano Suspension Bridge area to where their Treetop Adventure is located. The elevation gain isn’t horrendous and it seems many people were trail running it too.

Overall it was a great way to spend a cooler day in Vancouver, it also didn’t cost us anything other than the cost of the gas to drive there. It also only took us a few hours to complete, though it can probably be done around 2 hours, but with me taking photos it always makes our walks and hikes a bit longer.