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Happened to find this series of 6
videos and thought it would make an interesting introduction.
Part 1: Kanada (BC
Canada) Vancouver
Vancouver (/vænˈkuːvər/) is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of
British Columbia, Canada. The 2011 census recorded more than 603,000
people in the city, making it the eighth largest among Canadian
cities.The metropolitan area, with more than 2.3 million residents, is
the third most populous metropolitan area in the country and the most
populous in Western Canada. With 5,249 people per square kilometre
(13,590 per sq mile), the City of Vancouver is the most densely
populated of Canadian municipalities having more than 5,000
residents.Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically
diverse cities in Canada, with 52% for whom English is not their first
language.
The settlement of Gastown grew to the West of the Hastings logging
sawmill established in 1867, enlarging to become the townsite of
Granville. With the announcement that the railhead would reach the site,
it was renamed "Vancouver" and incorporated as a city in 1886. By 1887,
the transcontinental railway was extended to the city to take advantage
of its large natural seaport, which soon became a vital link in a trade
route between the Orient, Eastern Canada, and London.As of 2009, Port
Metro Vancouver is the busiest and largest port in Canada, and the most
diversified port in North America.Vancouver is well known as an urban
centre surrounded by nature tourism is one of it's largest industry's.
Major film production studios in Vancouver and Burnaby have turned Metro
Vancouver into the third-largest film production centre in North America
after Los Angeles and New York City, earning it the film industry
nickname, Hollywood North.
Part 2: White Rock & Tofino Vancouver
Island
White Rock is a city in British Columbia, Canada, that lies within the
Metro Vancouver regional district. It borders Semiahmoo Bay and is
surrounded on three sides by the City of Surrey, British Columbia. To
the south lies the Semiahmoo First Nation, which is within the city
limits of Surrey. Semiahmoo Bay and the Southern Gulf Islands in the
Strait of Georgia are also to the south.
The boundaries between White Rock and Surrey are Bergstrom Road (136
Street) to the west, North Bluff Road (16th Avenue) to the north, Stayte
Road (160 Street) to the east, and 8th Avenue to the south. The area
south of 8 Avenue from Stayte Road westward to where 8 Avenue meets the
water is the Semiahmoo Indian Reserve and lies within the bounds of the
City of Surrey (though it is governed separately). The Surrey
neighbourhoods of Ocean Park and Crescent Beach lie immediately to the
northwest.
White Rock pier on a warm August dayWhite Rock has a moderate climate,
with average daily high temperatures of 23 degrees Celsius in summer and
6 degrees Celsius in winter. Pilots accustomed to flying around the area
often refer to it as 'the hole in the sky', referring to the fact that
White Rock is often bright and sunny while the rest of the Lower
Mainland is covered by cloud.
The pier and promenade are popular destinations, but do not allow dogs,
bicycles or skateboards. These areas are very busy during the warmer
summer months.
Tofino is a district of about 1,876 residents on the west coast of
Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada, located at the western
terminus of Highway 4, on the tip of the Esowista Peninsula, at the
southern edge of Clayoquot Sound.The settlement of Tofino first acquired
the name in 1909 with the opening of the Tofino Post Office, named in
association with Tofino Inlet nearby. Tofino Inlet was named in 1792 by
the Spanish commanders Galiano and Valdés, in honor of Admiral Vicente
Tofiño, under whom Galiano had learned cartography.A popular tourist
destination in the summer, Tofino's population swells to many times its
winter size. It attracts surfers, nature lovers, campers, whale
watchers, fishermen, or anyone just looking to be close to nature. In
the winter it is not as bustling, although many people visit Tofino and
the west coast to watch storms on the water. Close to Tofino is Long
Beach, a scenic and popular year-round destination, at the Pacific Rim
National Park Reserve. Nearby Maquinna Marine Provincial Park,with its
natural hot springs, is located about 45 kilometres (28 mi) north of
Tofino and is also a popular day-trip destination for tourists although
it is only reachable by boat or float plane.
Part 3: Victoria, Capital city of BC / Chemainus First Nation
Chemainus is a community on the east coast of Vancouver Island, British
Columbia, Canada.
Founded as a logging town in 1858, the town is now famous for its 39
outdoor murals. This outdoor gallery has given birth to 300 businesses,
including a theatre, antiques dealers, and eateries. The tourist
industry stemming from the murals saved the town after its mill closed
in the early 1980s. A resident of Chemainus is known as a Chemainiac.
Chemainus TheatreThe name "Chemainus" comes from the native shaman and
prophet "Tsa-meeun-is" (Broken Chest). Legend says that the man survived
a massive wound in his chest to become a powerful chief. His people took
his name to identify their community, Chemainus First Nation.
The railroad arrived in the 1880s and by the early 1920s the town's
population had ballooned to 600 persons. Today, Chemainus has a
population of approximately 5,000.
Chemainus Secondary School is located in the town, and serves as a
secondary school for students living in Chemainus, Crofton, and Saltair.
A BC Ferry terminal is located in Chemainus, which provides service to
Thetis Island and Penelakut Island (previously Kuper).
Canada Railroad later. Japanese, and later, east Indians blended their
cultures with Scots and Germans looking for riches in the mines and
staying to work in the forests and on fishing boats. And the beautiful
Cowichan Valley has been the home of The Original First Nations peoples
and their ancestors for countless generations, whose history and lives
have been interwoven since those first white settlers came to the area.
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located
on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The
city has a population of about 80,017 within the metropolitan area of
Greater Victoria, which has a population of 344,615, the 15th most
populous Canadian metro region.
Victoria is about 100 kilometres (62 miles) from BC's largest city of
Vancouver on the mainland. The city is about 100 kilometres (62 miles)
from Seattle by airplane, ferry, or the Victoria Clipper passenger-only
ferry which operates daily, year round between Seattle and Victoria and
40 kilometres (25 miles) from Port Angeles, Washington by ferry across
the Juan de Fuca Strait.
Named after Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and of the Dominion of
Canada, Victoria is one of the oldest cities in the Pacific Northwest,
with British settlement beginning in 1841. The city has retained a large
number of its historic buildings, in particular its two most famous
landmarks, the British Columbia Parliament Buildings (finished in 1897
and home of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia) and the
Empress hotel (opened in 1908). The city's Chinatown is the second
oldest in North America after San Francisco's. The region's Coast Salish
First Nations peoples established communities in the area long before
non-native settlement, possibly several thousand years earlier, which
had large populations at the time of European exploration. Victoria,
like many Vancouver Island communities, continues to have a sizable
First Nations presence, composed of peoples from all over Vancouver
Island and beyond.
Known as the "City of Gardens," Victoria is an attractive city and a
popular tourism destination with a thriving technology sector that has
risen to its largest revenue producing private industry.The city has a
large non-local student population, who come to attend the University of
Victoria, Camosun College, Royal Roads University, the Sooke Schools
International Program and the Canadian College of Performing Arts.
Victoria is also popular with retirees, who come to enjoy the temperate
and usually snow-free climate of the area as well as the usually relaxed
pace of the city.
Part 4: Whistler Shannon Falls, Brohm Lake
Whistler is a Canadian resort town in the southern Pacific Ranges of the
Coast Mountains in the province of British Columbia, Canada,
approximately 125 kilometres (78 mi) north of Vancouver. Incorporated as
the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW), it has a permanent
population of approximately 9,965, plus a larger but rotating
"transient" population of workers, typically younger people from beyond
BC, notably from Australia and Europe.
Over two million people visit Whistler annually, primarily for alpine
skiing and snowboarding and, in summer, mountain biking at
Whistler-Blackcomb. Its pedestrian village has won numerous design
awards and Whistler has been voted among the top destinations in North
America by major ski magazines since the mid-1990s. During the 2010
Winter Olympics, Whistler hosted most of the alpine, Nordic, luge,
skeleton, and bobsled events, though freestyle skiing and all
snowboarding events were hosted at Cypress Mountain near Vancouver.
The Whistler Valley is formed by the pass between the headwaters of the
Green River and the upper-middle reaches of the Cheakamus. It is flanked
by glaciated mountains on both sides; the Garibaldi Ranges on the side
that contains the ski mountains, and a group of ranges with no
collective name but which are part of the larger Pacific Ranges and are
essentially fore-ranges of the Pemberton Icefield. Although there are a
few other routes through the maze of mountains between the basin of the
Lillooet River just east, the Cheakamus-Green divide is the lowest and
most direct and naturally was the main trading route of the Squamish and
Lil'wat First Nations long before the arrival of Europeans. One Lil'wat
legend of the Great Flood says that before the deluge, the people lived
at Green Lake
2010 Winter Olympics:
Whistler was the Host Mountain Resort of the Vancouver 2010 Winter
Olympic and Paralympic Games, the first time the IOC has bestowed that
designation on a community. Whistler hosted the alpine technical and
speed events, the sliding events at Fitzsimmons Creek, the Nordic events
in the nearby Callaghan Valley and all the Paralympic events except the
opening ceremonies, sledge hockey and wheelchair curling. The Whistler
Olympic and Paralympic Village (commonly referred to as the Athlete's
village) housed around 2,400 athletes, coaches, trainers and officials.
Post-games, the site has been turned into a new residential
neighbourhood.
Black bear:
Whistler's urban landscape was specifically designed to accommodate the
natural environment, as well as to re-mediate a large garbage dump which
became today's Whistler Village which had been one of the main
non-natural feeding grounds for black bear in the valley. Since the
resort's development, black bear populations have gradually recovered,
coupled with the loss of pines due to multi-year drought conditions,
bears have begun seeking food in settled areas. Many of Whistler's bears
have learned to do things like open car doors or hold spring-closed
gates open so they can reach food. Most are relatively docile and few
bear-human incidents have been reported. Whistler residents are strongly
conservationist, and the official response has relied heavily on
behavior modification for both bears and people. Removal or killing are
last resorts. The techniques being used have been studied and adopted by
other municipalities with bear problems around the world.
Part 5: Banff National Park, Emerald Lake, Lake Louise, Revelstoke
Lake Louise is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Improvement District
No. 9 Banff (Banff National Park). It is named for the nearby Lake
Louise, which in turn was named after the Princess Louise Caroline
Alberta (1848--1939), the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria, and the
wife of John Campbell, the 9th Duke of Argyll, who was the Governor
General of Canada from 1878 to 1883. The province of Alberta is also
named for Princess Louise.
Emerald Lake is one of the most admired destinations in Yoho National
Park, with an unmatched diversity of both activities and landscapes
suited to the enthusiastic traveler. It was discovered in 1882, when
famed mountain guide Tom Wilson was led lakeside while rounding up a
group of horses that had gone astray, and was immediately taken by the
vivid Emerald-coloured waters.
Lake Emreald:
Here the vegetation is quite stunning, with several different
microclimates suiting a new collection of sensitive plant species,
making for some impressively delicate floral displays. The moist, shady
enclaves common to the Emerald Lake region make it one of the best
places to spot a variety of tiny, fragile wild orchids that survive only
in finely balanced conditions. If you're paying attention, you may be
rewarded with a Yellow Lady Slipper, Spotted Orchid, or Calypso
sighting.
An Outing at Emerald Lake
The hike around the lake, clocking in at about an hour, is one of the
least strenuous but most rewarding in the park. An incredible breadth of
geological features can be viewed from the lake, including the
world-famous Burgess Shale fossil beds, the Michael glacier, and an
avalanche slope carpeted by meadows where moose often graze.
Emerald Lake is a fantastic place to see wildlife, as animals are drawn
to the important water source. Bald eagles, moose, and ospreys are a
common sight, as are waterfowl such as loons and mergansers.The vibrant
waters of Emerald LakeHiking isn't the only way to see Emerald Lake,
however. Canoe and rowboat rentals are available at Emerald Sports, as
are cross-country skis and snowshoes in the winter. Fishing at Emerald
Lake is also quite popular during the summer months. Swimming comes
highly recommended for the experience, but is not for the faint of
heart. The water is cold! The more leisurely delight of having lunch at
the lakeside patio does the trick for some, as well. Picnic areas and
the Emerald Sports gift shop are also easily found.
Emerald Lake is easily accessible from Field by a 10-minute car ride, or
by biking or cross-country skiing along the Tally Ho trail, depending on
the season. Be sure to make a stop at the Natural Bridge viewpoint on
the way!
Revelstoke; population 7,500 municipal est. 2005) is a city in
southeastern British Columbia, Canada. It is located 641 kilometers (398
mi) east of Vancouver, and 415 kilometers (258 mi) west of Calgary,
Alberta. The city is situated on the banks of the Columbia River just
south of the Revelstoke Dam and near its confluence with the
Illecillewaet River. East of Revelstoke are the Selkirk Mountains and
Glacier National Park, penetrated by Rogers Pass used by the
Trans-Canada Highway and the Canadian Pacific Railway. South of the
community down the Columbia River are the Arrow Lakes and the Kootenays.
West of the city is Eagle Pass through the Monashee Mountains and the
route to Shuswap Lake.
Part 6: Rocky Mountains, Columbia icefields, Athabasca Glacier
Rocky Mountains:
The Rocky Mountains (or the Rockies) are a major mountain range in
western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than 3,000 miles
(4,830 km) from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western
Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States. Within the
North American Cordillera, the Rockies are somewhat distinct from the
Pacific Coast Ranges and the Cascade Range and Sierra Nevada which all
lie further to the west.
The Rocky Mountains were formed from 80 million to 55 million years ago
by the Laramide orogeny. Since then, erosion by water and glaciers have
sculpted the mountain range into dramatic valleys and peaks. At the end
of the last ice age, humans started to inhabit the mountain range. After
Europeans, such as Sir Alexander MacKenzie and the Lewis and Clark
expedition, started to explore the range, minerals and furs drove the
initial economic exploitation of the mountains, although the range
itself never became densely populated.
Currently, much of the mountain range is protected by public parks and
forest lands, and is a popular tourist destination, especially for
hiking, camping, mountaineering, fishing, hunting, mountain biking,
skiing, and snowboarding.
Athabasca Glacier:
The Columbia Icefield is an icefield located in the Canadian Rockies,
astride the Continental Divide of North America. The icefield lies
partly in the northwestern tip of Banff National Park and the southern
end of Jasper National Park. It is about 325 km² in area, 100 to 365
metres (328 to 1,197 ft) in depth and receives up to seven metres (275
in) of snowfall per year. The icefield feeds eight major glaciers,
including:
Athabasca Glacier,Castleguard Glacier,Columbia Glacier,Dome
Glacier,Stutfield Glacier,Saskatchewan Glacier
Some of the highest mountains in the Canada Rockies are located around
the edges:
Mount Andromeda (3,450 m),Mount Athabasca (3,491 m),Mount Bryce (3,507
m),Castleguard Mountain (3,090 m),Mount Columbia (3,747 m),Mount King
Edward (3,490 m),Mount Kitchener (3,505 m),North Twin Peak (3,684
m),South Twin Peak (3,566 m),Snow Dome (3,456 m),Stutfield Peak (3,450
m)
Parts of the Icefield are visible from the Icefields Parkway. The
Athabasca Glacier has receded significantly since its greatest
modern-era extent in 1844. During the summer months visitors to the area
can travel onto the glacier in the comfort of large "snowcoaches". The
Columbia Icefield is also a major destination for ski mountaineering in
the winter months.
The icefield was first reported in 1898 by J. Norman Collie and Hermann
Woolley after they had completed the first ascent of Mount Athabasca.
The Athabasca River and the North Saskatchewan River originate in the
Columbia Icefield, as do tributary headwaters of the Columbia River.[1]
As the icefield is atop a triple Continental Divide these waters flow
ultimately north to the Arctic Ocean, east to Hudson Bay (and thence to
the North Atlantic Ocean), and south and west to the Pacific Ocean.
Hudson Bay, in some watershed divisions, is considered to be in the
Arctic watershed, in which case this would arguably not be a triple
continental divide point.
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