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From the Vault #7: Widgeon Creek Part 3
After a short hike, we finally made it up to Widgeon Falls. The guys and I took a much needed break to eat lunch and enjoy the scenery before hiking back down to the canoes and the long paddle back.
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From the Vault #6: Widgeon Creek Part 2
As we paddled along Widgeon Creek, one of the guys spotted a tributary to the creek. Despite the clear “Do Not Enter” sign and the chain across the entrance, we decided it was worth a further look. The water level of the creek was just high enough over the chain that we could paddle our canoes across. The farther we travelled up the creek tributary, the narrower it became until we ran out of water.
We had no idea how to rejoin the main creek and we were certainly not going to turn back so some of the guys went off scouting ahead on foot. They shortly returned with cries of “That way!” and “Portage!” Soon we were all yelling “Portage!” We picked up our canoes, held them over our head and began to portage in search of rejoining the main creek.
After a short trek, we came across an old abandoned dock. The dock was no longer on the water as the creek had changed course over the years, but the creek was just on the other side. As we traversed the dock, one of the guys nearly fell through the rotten timbers. He was lucky to make it across with nothing more than a few scrapes. Luckily no one else fell through. Once on the other side, we re-entered the creek with our canoes. The water was crystal clear (unlike the rest of Widgeon Creek) so we decided to have a swim and play in the water for awhile. Soon we were racing each other to see who could pull the canoes the fastest while swimming.
After our swim, we followed the new creek to see where it would lead us. As luck would have it, we rejoined Widgeon Creek not more than 100 feet from where we entered the tributary. Talk about a shortcut! Our adventure over, we continued up to the Falls. -
From the Vault #5: Widgeon Creek Part 1
My first trip to Widgeon Falls was back in July 1994. My friend Kevin was getting married and he really wanted to do this hike for his bachelor party. So we rented some canoes and paddled across Pitt Lake past Siwash Island to the entrance of Widgeon Creek. But that was only the beginning of this memorable adventure. We would soon go off exploring and get ourselves lost!
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Opera Walk
These are from the Opera Walk in the Italian Garden (Il Giardino Italiano) at Hastings Park in Vancouver. Hastings Park is one of my favourite parks because I grew up close by and have many great memories of visiting the park.
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Stanley Park Seawall
I shot these in August 2014 while walking the Stanley Park Seawall in Vancouver.
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Tower Beach
I shot these in July 2014 at Tower Beach in Vancouver. Tower Beach takes its name from the two World War II era searchlight towers that still stand on the beach silently guarding the entrance to Burrard Inlet. The photos below are of Tower #2 aka CASL #9 (Coast Artillery Search Light) which sits further east along the beach from Tower #1 (CASL #10). You can learn more about the towers on Michael Barrick’s website.
Both towers are accessible from Trail 3 at UBC or by hiking in from either Wreck Beach or from Spanish Banks. The towers are boarded up now for safety reasons, but 20 years ago you could still access the inside. Back then, a friend and I hiked down to Tower Beach to explore the towers and we discovered a log propped up against the back of one of the towers leading to the second story entrance. We scaled the log to the top and went inside. From inside there is an unobstructed view of the harbour, which has since been covered up by a metal grate across the front. The moorings in the floor where the searchlights were mounted could still be seen, albeit they were thoroughly rusted. It was quite the experience, and while I understand why they are boarded up now, a part of me still feels that the towers should be open to the public. After all, they are a part of history.
I shot these photos on an expired roll of Kodak Ektachrome 200 that I had cross-processed.
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Fountain Statues
I shot these over Christmas as it snowed using Kodak Tri-X 400 film. I love this film! It has a wide exposure latitude and good contrast and I always get great results.
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Starboat Cove
Whenever I’m back home on the coast, I try to sneak in a hike or two while visiting family. These were taken during a hike through Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver. I like to hike a few of the lesser used trails (fewer tourists) and my favourite leads to Starboat Cove. I snapped these with my Superheadz Ultra Wide & Slim and I have to say that this little camera has yet to disappoint me!
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From the Vault #4: More Seabird Island 1991
Here are some more photos from the 1991 Stein Valley ‘Voices for the Wilderness’ Festival on Seabird Island. Many bands took the stage that weekend and sadly I can only remember one of them: Spirit of the West.
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From the Vault #3: Seabird Island 1991
In July 1991, the Stein Valley ‘Voices for the Wilderness’ Festival had relocated to Seabird Island. I met up with some friends at the festival that weekend and shot these photos of the guys doing some face painting and body art. These were taken with my old point & shoot camera and a roll of Fuji Super HG 400.
