July 8-14: Vancouver, BC

July 14, 2012

Capilano River RV Park, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

As always, please click on any picture to see a larger version...

It was a good thing we arrived well rested, because we had a busy week in Vancouver!  We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and already have a list of things for “next time”...

We had an easy drive getting here, heading north from Bellingham on WA-539, fueling up (won’t need diesel in Canada if we work it right) and crossing the border with no issues.  This was the first time we were searched leaving the US - by US authorities.  We had to exit the coach and they poked around inside for a while before letting us go.  The questions from the Canadian side were perfunctory at best.  Who knows what we’ll find when we get back in a few weeks.

Once across the border, it was a short drive north to Trans-Canada Highway 1 (TC-1), which we followed west to Vancouver.  If we’d gone up I-5, we’d have had to drive right through downtown Vancouver to get to the RV Park, so I mapped out a more circular route.  We crossed the Fraser River and were soon in North Vancouver, where we exited and quickly found our destination.

This RV Park is older and pretty tight quarters, but we had a prime spot with a small hedge next to us where we could put up the dog pens and sit out almost every afternoon.  The weather was fantastic with sunny skies and relatively cool temperatures (70s).  We deployed the outdoor cooking equipment and even ate out on the picnic table several nights.  That’s unusual for us because we normally eat so late that there are too many bugs, but no issues this week.

One of the local “tourist attractions” is the Capilano River Suspension Bridge, so I gave it a shot (Geri politely declined).  It was an interesting way to spend an afternoon, and I got a few photos of the various “death defying” set-ups hanging several hundred feet above the River.

Since the weather was nice, we booked a whale watching cruise during the week.  This was a bit of a project, since it involved getting the pups into doggy day care and being at the dock by 8:15 AM.  Since it was about an hour’s drive south through the city, this meant getting up at oh-dark-thirty, but it was well worth it to see the Orcas and other wildlife.

The other “attraction” close to the RV Park is Grouse Mountain.  Essentially a ski area with summer activities, it’s quite popular.  We took the aerial tram up to the top and had great views.

Closer to home, I took a walk across the Iron Gate Bridge and meandered along the shoreline in Stanley Park toward Downtown Vancouver.  It was an excellent walk on another nice day.  Next time we’re in the area, I’ll try to walk around the whole park’s seawall, a loop of probably 22-25 km (13.5-15.5 miles), or maybe I’ll have a bike with me to make it easier.

We also took a walk over to Ambleside Park on the north side of Burrard’s Inlet, right near the RV Park.  We took the pups so they could play on the beach and see other dogs (it’s an off-leash beach), and everyone had a good time.  It was Merlin’s 14th birthday and he loves the water so it was a special treat for him!

On our last day in Vancouver, we headed to the Granville Island Public Market to stock up on good foodie items for the next few days.  We really enjoyed browsing through all the stalls, although that C$100 I got from the ATM seemed to disappear quite quickly.  It reminded us of the West Side Market in Cleveland or the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia.  Cheese, meats, vegetables, greens, mushrooms; we got some of each!  Although we’re being careful to manage our food around border crossings, we’ll definitely eat well for the next week or so!

Tonight, we did our standard pre-travel activities, putting away all the outside stuff (dog pens, grill, chairs) and getting much of the interior secured before bedtime.  Tomorrow, we have a longer-than-usual driving day of about 5-6 hours, but nothing that’ll cause us to leave before our “normal” departure time of 10:00 AM...