Category Archives: British Columbia

Now You Have to Cook Them!

Adult Memories, Advertisement, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, First Nations, Fishing, Lighthouses, Recipes, Recreation, Tourism, Travel, , , , , , , ,

After posting the story Then You’ve Got to Clean Them! I obtained permission from Pacific Wild to use some photos showing the cooking of the salmon by the people in Bella Bella, British Columbia (BC). These pictures just made me drool. The people were cooking planked salmon which has to be one of the tastiest ways of cooking salmon over an open fire. See the photo and gallery below:

Planked Salmon - Bella Bella - Pacific Wild
photo courtesy of Pacific Wild

 [nggallery id=79]

The photos above are in no set order – just as I downloaded them. On the lighthouse we used to cook the salmon many ways but this was the most fun, and the tastiest. Continue reading Now You Have to Cook Them! →

Mise Tales Twenty-Eight

Advertisement, Bed & Breakfast, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, First Nations, Fishing, Game, Lighthouses, Oil Spills, Photos, Recreation, Tourism, Travel, Wildlife, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

For an update on what a Mise Tale is then please see Mise Tales One.

The Lovely Bones IMDb

The Lovely Bones IMDb2

Has anyone seen the movie released in 2009 entitled The Lovely Bones? It features a fictitious lighthouse marking the entrance way to heaven in a thoroughly entertaining film.

“Centers on a young girl who has been murdered and watches over her family – and her killer – from purgatory. She must weigh her desire for vengeance against her desire for her family to heal.” – IMDb

There is one strange thing about this lighthouse – the light in the lantern revolves counter-clockwise (CCW)! This is most unusual and there are only a few lighthouses in the world that revolve CCW, the majority revolving clockwise (CW).

A couple I found were in Australia. Does anyone know the whys and wherefores of CW vs CCW rotation of the lamp? I think this deserves further investigation and maybe a future article. Thanks for any help you can contribute. Continue reading Mise Tales Twenty-Eight →

Wildlife and Spirit Bear Adventures

Advertisement, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, First Nations, Game, Information, Lighthouses, Maps, Photos, Recreation, Tourism, Travel, Wildlife, , , , , , , , , , ,

When I wrote the story A Wolf At McInnes I never really explained how the wolf got on to McInnes Island, so today I am going to combine two stories into one. Firstly, the wolf swam from nearby Price Island over two (2) kilometers away, probably island hopping to catch its breath. Pictured below and in the album are photos of wolves swimming taken by photographer Leanne Reandy, a staff member of Spirit Bear Adventures, on a trip back to Klemtu from Bella Bella, BC. 

wolf swimming - by Leanne Reandy

[nggallery id=78] Continue reading Wildlife and Spirit Bear Adventures →

Tar Sands SOS: Save Our Shore

British Columbia, Canada, Environment, First Nations, Fisheries and Oceans, Fishing, Government, Incidents, Information, Maps, Oil Spills, Reprint, Shipwrecks, Wildlife, , , , , ,

Tar Sands SOS Keep Our West Coast Tar Sands Free

The photo above is a screen capture of part of the Tar Sands SOS webpage. Click the photo above to go to the webpage and you can track the tar sands tankers on the interactive map, scroll down the webpage and learn more why the tar sands tankers are a bad idea. One thing I learned is that tar sands oil sinks to the ocean bed rather than floating up on the beaches. This lengthens the time the oil can pollute British Columbia waters!

I have seen an oil spill personally – it is not a pretty sight!

Inside Passage Ferry Trip to Visit Some of the Lighthouses

Advertisement, Anti-Automation, Automation, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, Ferries, First Nations, Fisheries and Oceans, Fishing, Information, Lighthouses, Maps, Photos, Recreation, Tourism, Travel, Wildlife, , , , , , , , ,

The idea for this story came from an article in the Vancouver Sun newspaper. I asked for permission to reprint it here for all to see, and they said I would have to pay them. This was an article about the Inside Passage ferry trip with mention of a couple of lighthouses – very few actually. I am not even going to mention the title of the story – how can they turn down free advertising.  😉

manned lighthouses
manned lighthouses

 When you visit Canada do you plan on seeing some lighthouses? We have twenty-seven (27) manned lighthouses on the west coast of British Columbia (BC); Canada. There are other unmanned lighthouses that are available for viewing also. You can see some of them if you wish with the BC Ferries, plus enjoy wonderful trips through BC waters.

 

The Inside Passage

Let us start with the longest trip first. How about fifteen (15) hours on a luxurious ferry in daylight so that you can make many photos. Fifteen hours may seem like a long time, but there is so much to see that time flies by, especially if the weather is fine.

Northern Expedition
Northern Expedition – BC Ferries photo

 

Northern Adventure
Northern Adventure – BC Ferries photo

There are two ferries on the route (2013) – the Northern Expedition and the Northern Adventure. You can actually follow them live on this website.

Continue reading Inside Passage Ferry Trip to Visit Some of the Lighthouses →

Tidelines and Ocean Currents

Adult Memories, Beachcombing, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, Fishing, Incidents, Lighthouses, Recreation, Tourism, Travel, Tsunami, Visitors, , , , , , , , ,

Tidelines – it is spelled both ways but I prefer the one-word form.

A tideline, according to Wikipedia, 

refers to where two currents in the ocean converge (or meet). Driftwood, floating seaweed, foam, and other floating debris may accumulate, forming sinuous lines called tidelines.

Two-rivers-that-meets-but-do-not-mixThe topic of this article came about after I saw the photo above.The photo actually shows two oceans meeting, but is similar to what happens with the tides on the ocean further south, especially with reference to the Pacific Ocean on the Canadian British Columbia (BC) coast where the tides change (from high to low and back again) twice a day – sometimes rising and falling by as much as seven (7) meters (22 feet)! Continue reading Tidelines and Ocean Currents →

Mise Tales Twenty-Six

Adult Memories, Anti-Automation, Art, Beachcombing, Books, Books, Books, British Columbia, Canada, Construction, Environment, First Nations, Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act, History, Information, Keepers, Lighthouses, Recreation, Souvenirs, Tourism, Travel, Wildlife, , , , , , ,

 

For an update on what a Mise Tale is then please see Mise Tales One.

August 26, 2013 Vancouver Sun

Keeping the light on at Point Atkinson

Pt.Atkinson

 When the Point Atkinson lighthouse was built 130 years ago, it was designed to protect shippers in the Strait of Georgia. Now the lighthouse itself is in need of a benefactor. . . . more

 

 

[private] Keeping the light on at Point Atkinson

 

 VANCOUVER SUN AUGUST 26, 2013
  
Keeping the light on at Point Atkinson
 

The Point Atkinson Lighthouse at Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver stands guard at the mouth of Burrard Inlet May 11, 2004.

Photograph by: RIC ERNST , PNG

When the Point Atkinson lighthouse was built 130 years ago, it was designed to protect shippers in the Strait of Georgia. Now the lighthouse itself is in need of a benefactor.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the District of West Vancouver are discussing ways to put the lighthouse into the hands of the community after Point Atkinson — along with 18 other B.C. lighthouses — was deemed “surplus” to the federal government’s needs three years ago and offered up for sale or transfer.

“In reflection, (the federal government) realized some of the national historic sites aren’t going to go to the highest bidder,” said Brent Leigh, deputy chief administrative officer at the District of West Vancouver, which has a co-management agreement with the government to maintain the lighthouse.

“They expect to work with the district in a community-based program that would ensure that we retain community use … Point Atkinson is one of our most beloved community assets.”

Originally built on a rocky cliff in 1875, the lighthouse has been more than just a beacon of hope for shippers over the centuries. It has also recorded a series of historical firsts as time went on, as chronicled in the book Keepers of the Light, written by one of the last lightkeepers, Donald Graham:

1774: Captain Vancouver rows past the point and names it for a ”particular friend.”

1872: The Marine Department awards contract to Arthur Finney to build the lighthouse.

1875: New lighthouse exhibits fixed white light illuminated by two coal oil lamps and silver-plated copper reflectors.

1875: Edwin Woodward and his wife land at the station.

1876: James Atkinson Woodward, the first white child born in West Vancouver, is born there.

1881: 185-acre park created as a Lighthouse Reserve.

1889: Scotch siren fog signal, powered by a coal-generated steam plant installed to help shippers navigate the fog.

1912: Original tower replaced by 60-foot-high concrete tower. Light replaced by a vaporized oil lamp.

1960: Vaporized oil lamp replaced by electric light bulb.

1994: Lighthouse designated a National Historic Site.

1996: Point Atkinson refitted with an automated solar-powered light.

Donald Graham and Gerry Watson were the last lightkeepers. Graham’s wife Elaine still lives in the cottage at Lighthouse Park.

With files from Canadian Lightkeepers Association website

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun [/private]
 
*************************** Continue reading Mise Tales Twenty-Six →

Doug Clement Photography

Advertisement, Art, British Columbia, Canada, Lighthouses, Maps, Photos, Photos, Radio, Tourism, Travel, , , , , , , , ,

All photos copyright by Doug Clement Photography, and used with permission.

Doug is a professional artist, videographer and photographer. He is a lifetime resident of Victoria and has been capturing its beauty on film for over 30 years. – from the Facebook page

Lightning at Trial Island
Lightning at Trial Island © Doug Clement Photography

In my teenage years while attending High School and University, and before I moved onto the lighthouses, I lived in Victoria, British Columbia (BC), Canada (on southern Vancouver Island off the West Coast of BC). It was a delightful town to grow up in and had access to numerous beaches, parks and believe it or not, a few lighthouses, of which I was not interested at that time.

Just recently on Facebook I have seen some wonderful photography of the lighthouses in and around Victoria, BC by Doug Clement. He has given me permission to publish them here, I hope that in your first or next trip to Victoria, you get a chance to see these places. If not, please admire them in the photos by Doug Clement. 

The first photo above shows Trial Island Lighthouse at night with a blast of lightning. The actual light of the lighthouse is the greenish glow on the right side while the red lights are  warning  lights for aircraft mounted on the radio towers on the island (see the last photo in this story).

Here is a link to a Google Map showing the Trial Island Lighthouse, above photo (yellow point on map) and Ogden Point Breakwater light, photo below (red point on the map). Continue reading Doug Clement Photography →

Haida Gwaii

Adult Memories, Beachcombing, British Columbia, Canada, Environment, First Nations, History, Information, Lighthouses, Maps, Recreation, Totems, Tourism, Travel, Wildlife, , , , , ,
Queen_Charlotte_Islands_Map
Haida Gwaii Map

Haida Gwaii (High-Da Gwi my pronunciation) literally means “Islands of the Haida People”, informally but formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands (QCI) and the Charlottes, is an archipelago on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada, populated mostly by first nations Haida people.

Langara Point Lighthouse

Langara Point Lighthouse courtesy of Langara Fishing Adventures on Flickr Continue reading Haida Gwaii →