Vancouver and Whistler

Finally got out of the mine, when the clouds lifted and back to Vancouver via Edmonton. Headed to downtown Vancouver to find a hotel on Granville Street - with a list of tourist spots to check off. Checked out: Granville Island, and Commercial Drive before heading to some Irish pub that proved to be very popular. Met lots of cool people, Canadian, Aussies and even an ex South African, stumbling out at 4am. Up at 8 for a run around the [huge] Stanley park, that almost killed me (had to take the bus back halfway around). Before heading back throught the Canada Day (1st July) Celebrations to check out [late] from my hotel to catch the greyhound up to Whistler ski resort.

In summer whistler turns into a mountain bike haven - with amazing singletrack trails, scary downhills, bike parks, lifts the works. I arrived there [still] in a bit of a daze wandered around to see the redbull bmx champs.

Me at Rainbow Lake

Next day got up early to hike up to Rainbow Lake 14km and 850m up into the mountains, hiked up through amazing forest past waterfalls to the snow line, plodded through the snow around the lake. Kept falling through up to my waist into little rivers feeding the lake, that started getting a bit dodgy - then ran down the mountain. Stopping for a swim in a lake that was as packed as Clifton on a public holiday. 6 hours and 28km after I started I was back at my hotel - just in time to catch the last 30 min of the Tour de France stage.

Whistler MTB trails

My version of Colin's photo from his South America trip.

Enough inspiration to get me to the bike shop to hire a bike to go ride the singletrack trails. The trails were excellent, some smooth, some rocky, and some on tree cut tracks meters off the ground. Even saw a black bear on my way back [followed very closely by a ranger with a shotgun and flak jacket] I Rounded off a very good day by drinking a couple of Canadians with some Candians at the pub.

Next day [Monday], headed back to Vancouver to see the city some more, and the MEC store -before making my way back to the airport for the 22hr flight back to Sydney. Which is where I am now writing this in a semi dazed jet lagged state!