Blogs from Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, North America

The weather was awful again today but, according to the forecast, the rain was due to stop at midday. We had a causal morning to wait it out and sure enough it cleared up as scheduled. Whilst bears are dangerous and there are warnings everywhere about not feeding them and how to react when you come across one, they are actually something that everyone wants to see. Black bears are apparently relatively harmless, but it is the grizzly bears that you need to look out for. Apparently, however, there are constant patrols checking for grizzly bears and if any are spotted then the whole area is closed off to the public. Anyway, there is a road called Callaghan Road where there is apparently a strong chance of seeing some black bears. We drove along it and ... read more

It was our last day in Seattle today, but before we left we went for a late breakfast / early lunch at the Russian pastry shop. Being that bit later there was a queue outside, which was almost as long as the queue at the Starbucks next door. The reason for the long queue at the Starbucks is that it is ‘the’ original Starbucks, dating back to the 1970s and a place where people are obviously keen to order some coffee. Today we were driving to Whistler in Canada, which should take about four hours. There was a bit of convoluted driving in Seattle (not as much as when we went to Everett), but once we got on the Interstate 5 it was just a matter of just keep going until we reach the border. The ... read more

Supposedly Whistler isn't named after some whistling founder but after the whistling noises the local marmots make whilst mating. As it's still Winter here at the moment we have very little chance of seeing - or hearing - any marmots whilst we're here so won't be able to vouch for the accuracy of this. Originally I hadn't expected to ski Whistler but once J found a reasonably priced Air BnB place in Creekside for 4 nights mid week so we thought we would give it a go. Whistler is considered to be one of the top ski resorts in the world, so I have been keen to come here for a long time, but I have also heard some mixed opinions so I am keen to experience it for myself. We have 4 days skiing here ... read more

Geo: 50.1183, -122.954On Saturday, March 4, 2017, I drove toWhistler, British Columbia to participate in the “DiscoverBobsleigh” activity that was being offered by the Whistler SlidingCenter. During this activity the participants are given basicinstruction on how to pilot a two person bobsleigh and how to operatethe brakes. Then it is off to the Olympic ice track, the fastest inthe world, for two runs down the track from the lower starting point– one run as the pilot and one run as the brakeman. Here is adescription of the “Discover Bobsleigh” activity (temporarily off line):http://www.whistlerslidingcentre.com/community-sport/sport-programs-camps/discover-bobsleigh-introductory-clinics-20162017My interest in bobsleigh goes back toat least 1987. In November of that year I flew from Oakland, CA,where I was living at that time, to ... read more

Today is a huge 122km bike race from Vancouver to Whistler with 4000 entries. It is called the GranFondo and is one of the main cycling events in North America each year. The main car park is closed for competitors and prize giving, roads are diverted and the main road has a lane taken out. So, what to do in order not to get too tangled with this event? Our host suggested that since we were in Whistler South we should continue in that area and hike up a river valley to a small lake called Logger Lake. It would also incorporate seeing the bike riders coming up the main route into Whistler. First, we went into Creekside to get some lunch then packed a backpack and set off on a shared bike trail just down ... read more