Great New Fresh Snow at Mt. Washington...where are you?

To see the video of the fresh snow on mt. Washington, click here. Great New Fresh Snow at Mt. Washington...where are you?

Hamper Party a huge sucess thanks to Joyce Kline and Peter Such

An annual Christmas Hamper party that brought some 300 people together that jointly produce 158 hampers that the Salvation Army delivered to grateful people throught out Greater Victoria was held December 18 at the home of Joyce Kline and Peter Such. Well done Joyce, Peter and Friends. This amazing event just continues to get bigger and bigger and the idea has now spread to other North American cities and what a great idea it is. To see more pictures go to our Facebook page.

Santa Bringing Snow This Christmas to Mount Washington

Santa Bringing Snow This Christmas!
Image: The Pepsi Torchlight Parade and Fireworks will light up the night sky on Boxing Day.
Credit: Slipstreamimages.com

La Nina was in full force in November. The snow was falling fast and furious, the temperatures were below normal and Mount Washington opened ahead of schedule. It was the kind of early season dreams are made of. Then something strange happened, La Nina went on holidays.

“Since opening on December 2nd, we've had one of the sunniest, driest Decembers on record,” explains Resort spokesperson Brent Curtain. “That's not what you would expect from a La Nina weather pattern. It's been a great start for fairweather skiers and boarders but not the best for the powderhounds.”

Looking at the forecast, it appears the sunny and dry conditions are going to change pretty quick and it definitely looks like La Nina's holiday is coming to an end. According to snow-forecast.com, snow is expected to fall moderately beginning Friday afternoon with heavy accumulations expected through Sunday.

“It looks like we may get another epic Christmas Eve like last season,” says Curtain.

Going back to last year's Christmas Holiday, Mount Washington received a whopping 1.5 metres of snow on Christmas Eve. The snow in the forecast isn't expected to arrive in the same epic proportions that it did last year, but new snow is more than welcome for the holiday season.

“The new snow will put a nice frosting on the trees and turn the Resort into a winter wonderland just in time for Christmas, thanks Santa!”

The conditons will be perfect for Mount Washington's holiday events over the next two weeks:

December 23 Carols by Candlelight
December 24 Christmas Eve Service
December 26 Pepsi Torchlight Parade and Fireworks
December 31 New Year's Eve Celebrations

If you're looking for a white Christmas, Mount Washington is the perfect location! For more information on the holiday events, check out the full event calendar at mountwashington.ca.

Mount Washington Alpine Resort is located 30 minutes above The Comox Valley on Vancouver Island. WestJet, Central Mountain Air, Pacific Coastal Airlines, and Island Express service the Comox Valley Airport (YQQ). To find out about accommodation and package information, call Mount Washington Alpine Resort at 1-888-231-1499 toll free or locally at 250-338-1386. Surf to www.mountwashington.ca for additional information including our live snow cam.

Sun Shines on Victoria To Golf or not to Golf

Sun Shines on Victoria - To Golf or not to Golf, that is the question. The golfer next to the oak tree has a Santa hat on. I love golf, but I have my limits. These photos were taken around 11:30 am this morning and although it was sunny, the temperature was only about 5C or 41F. I like about 15C for a minimum to golf...yes I know, what a weep! Check out our Facebook page for more photos and to see what our City fountain looks like at 5C or 41 F. Enjoy

Birds and Seals get hungry too....

Today I took my granddaughter to the Oak Bay Marina to feed the seals and to Esquimalt Lagoon because these are a couple of her favourite things to do. It was a nice day and all the critters were really hungry. Merry Christmas critters....from Madison. For more pictures go to our Facebook page.

CVS Sightseeing Tour to Butchart Gardens

Last night members of the Victoria Guest Services Network toured the incredible Butchart Gardens winter display. The Gardens do such an amazing job it is easy to see why they are the number one tourist attraction in Victoria and why they are world famous. The displays are amazing and the light show is simply incredible. Thousands of lights cover the flower beds, trees, walk-ways and buildings. Search for the 12 Days of Christmas displays as you walk through the Gardens. We all had a ride on the Carousel which is also world class. All of the critters are wood carved, which is amazing in this day and age. We finished our tour with supper in the blue poppy. Everyone raved about the great food. Well done Butchart Gardens. Thanks to Josh Bickerton from Sales and Marketing for organizing and guiding our tour and to Dawn as well and to April, manager of the Blue Poppy Restaurant for making sure we were all well fed. Butchart is such a classy organization. Be sure to visit the Gardens and see for yourself. Bring you family and friends. There is definitely something for everyone. For more pictures visit our Facebook sight. Thanks to Tom and driver Adrienne from CVS Sightseeing for arranging and driving us to and from Butchart Gardens. CVS are the best way to get to and from the Gardens.

Mount Baker viewed from Victoria BC West Shore

Today Victoria is covered in glorious sunshine and a high pressure over the city is giving us incredible views of our surroundings. Mount Baker to the east of the city is beautiful as you can see.

See more pictures on our Facebook page.

Culture in Vancouver - An Amazing Sweepstake Opportunity

Photo credits: bottom - CREDIT: Derek Jackson, top - CREDIT: The Dirty Apron Cooking School

Tourism Vancouver with the assistance of smashLab has just announced a campaign to introduce local culture to you. The campaign highlights the vast amount of arts and culture available in Vancouver; it promotes all types of culture as accessible, from opera to burlesque; and it encourages people to try something different. Visit Vancouver and find out why it is BC's most significant cultural destination. Learn more at http://www.cultureinvancouver.com/ &
at http://www.tourismvancouver.com/

A Sweepstakes is a significant component of the campaign. Tourism Vancouver is offering five incredible prizes, in which each “experience” has been uniquely tailored with themes ranging from Theatrical to Culinary. Each of the prizes offers truly special experiences that are uniquely individual. The Ultimate Experience—the grand prize—will offer a three-day weekend of behind-the-scenes sneak peeks into some of Vancouver’s most notable cultural venues, including passes to some of the most coveted local events. For each prize, the winner and a friend will receive two to three nights stay in Vancouver and dine at some of Vancouver’s best restaurants. Entering the sweepstakes is easy: just submit your name and email once for a chance to win any one of the five Experiences. The sweepstakes will end with the drawing of the final winner on January 6, 2012. Learn more at www.cultureinvancouver.com/sweepstakes






For more photos, please go to our Facebook Page.

Summer-like day in the Fall - Nov 3-2000 Victoria BC

It was a spectcular sunny fall day and the city was awash with fall colours. It was warm, with the occassional ugly clowd floating by toward Vancouver, but Victoria was under a whole in the sky. For Nov. 3 it was amazing. Enjoy the fall colors of greater Victoria. Maybe if you are somewhere else in the world you might want to come for a visit. October and now into November was great weather. For more pictures please visit our Facebook Page.

Prospect Lake Rd. Enjoying a warm fall afternoon

Drove to Hartland Landfill to day and decided to take the scenic road home. It was a great sunny afternoon and I should have stopped for a round of golf at Prospect Lake. Just took my clubs out of my car or I may have. It was so warm in the mid-afternoon sun...hard to believe it snowed at the other end of the country. Enjoy today on Vancouver Island. For more photos check out our Facebook Page.

Ghostly Bus Tour - Discover the Past Happy Halloween

Tonight we went on a Ghostly Bus Tour which was a fund raiser to the Old Cemeteries Society. Our leader and knowledgeable story teller was John Adams. I learned so many things about this City. We just toured Oak Bay and Victoria and heard many credible stories. We started in Oak Bay and got out at the Royal Victoria Golf Course 7th fairway to look for Doris in her pink outfit. Never saw her but I sure felt the high energy at this site. We finished at the spooky Christ Church Cathedral where there are 1300 bodies buried in Pioneer Square (the original graveyard for Victoria). I highly recommend John's Tours. See his web site at Discover the Past. It was very well done..Thanks John! For more pictures check out our Facebook Page.

Nautical Nellies Steak and Seafood Restaurant Victoria BC

Tonight we attended a familiarization tour at Nautical Nellies Steak and Seafood Restaurant. This is truly one of the best restaurants in Victoria and well worth a visit. They strive to be different and do it their way and this is reflected in the amazing food seen above and in the service, friendly staff, and great ambiance at this downtown Victoria Restaurant. We urge you to give it a try.

Please go to our facebook page to see some of the delicious food that the restaurant prepares. It is an amazing menu, the food is well presented, looks and is delicious, the staff are friendly and the service staff were excellent. What a great culinary experience. Be sure to give them a try. I know you will not be disappointed.

Dallas Road on a Sunny Day Victoria BC

On a bring sunny day, people in Victoria flock to the waterfront at Dallas Road where you can spend you time looking at Juan de Fuca Strait and the Olympic Mountains. There is lots to see and do. There is the Dallas Road Breakwater, the Ogden Point Cafe, Beacon Hill Park, and Clover Point...all within a short distance of each other. For more pictures, please go to our Facebook Page.

Fall is definitely arrived. Yesterday we drove up island and there were piles of pumpkins everywhere. To see more pumpkin pics....see our Facebook page.

Sandy Terry at the Sidney Art Show

Last weekend was the Sidney Art Show at the Mary Winspear Centre just off Beacon Ave. in beautiful Sidney by the Sea. If you missed it, that is unfortunate. It was an excellent show. There was a couple hundred exibits to delight everyone in attendance. Above is up and coming artist Sandy Terry with on of her great works. Watch for it next fall and be sure to take it in. For more pictures check us out on Facebook.

Sunset on Vancouver Island

Our house faces North and as a result we often miss some of the really great sunsets that we get on Vancouver Island. A few nights ago we did not miss an incredible sky, so we thought we would share it with you. Enjoy more on our Facebook Page.

Victoria Store offers exceptional deals on I-Pads

If you are looking for a special deal on I-pads, you need to come to Victoria....see above a picture of the eye pad.

Swans Brew Pub in Old Town in Victoria BC

Are you looking for a great place to eat? Why not try Swans Brewpub at 506 Pandora, just a hop skip and jump from the Blue Bridge. The pub has great food and good ambiance. The pub has lots of seating in an open air patio, where you can enjoy the sun and the great flower displays in the spring and summer. The heritage hotel looks very cool and the pub has lots of stunning original artwork and First Nation's Carvings. It is just a really neat place to go for a beer and some really good food. Check it out. They also serve good breakfast.

Ghost Bus Tours Victoria BC

Victoria is the most haunted city in British Columbia and many visitors come to experience haunted holidays. Ghostly Walks are popular walking tours in downtown Victoria throughout the year, but at Halloween the Ghostly Walks team, in conjunction with the Old Cemeteries Society, conducts Ghost Bus-tours. Now in their eighteenth year, Ghost Bus-tours are two-hour excursions in the luxury of a modern coach. The routes are different each year and are kept secret until the tours begin. Ghost Bus-tours glide through Victoria’s heritage neighbourhoods and into the suburbs to explore the city’s most haunted places. New stories are added each year, but by popular demand the favourites from past years are always included. One of the locations that has become an annual tradition is the Victoria Golf Course where the ghost of Doris Gravlin, murdered there by her husband in 1936, is frequently seen. John Adams, well-known historian and ghost storyteller, is the host for Ghost Bus-tours. Proceeds from Ghost Bus-tours assist the restoration and education programs of the Old Cemeteries Society.

Ghost Bus tours 2011 have tours scheduled on October 22, 28, 29 and 30. On each night there is a 6:30 pm departure. On Saturday October 29 there are departures at 6:30 and 9:00 pm. Tickets are $32 each plus HST. They are available exclusively through Tourism Victoria. Purchase them in there ways: at the Visitor Information Centre counter; by telephone 250.953.2033; or online at www.tourismvictoria.com/ghosts

The Great Blue Heron at Esquimalt Lagoon Victoria BC

Today was such a great sunny day, I had to get out. Yesterday as we were passing by Beacon Hill Park, we saw a heron and took pictures with our phones. Today it was such a special day in the sun, I took my camera and headed for the Park. Workers had a front end loader right beside the lake, so most birds were far away. So, I headed out to beautiful Esquimalt Lagoon and took a bunch of pictures which you can see on my Facebook Page. Enjoy!

Orcas Whales - L-Pod sighting - near San Juan Island about 5 miles from Victoria

We have been lucky enough to have gone whale watching perhaps 25 times or more. We have seen all three resident pods in the same place at the same time and after that show, nothing has ever been as good. This year we got out to see the L-Pod, of J, K, and L pods, our local resident (summer pods). About two days before we went out, there was a news article with a picture of a bunch of whales swimming in a straight line. I thought this was unusual behavior as we had never seen it. Two days later we did. One of my pictures shows at least 15 in a row. Some days you get lucky and some are just OK. This days L pod show was great. A new baby joined L pod this year and there are a few pictures of it on our Facebook Page. Whale watching continues for most of the winter as there seem to be lots of transient whales coming through. It is a stunning sight to see Orcas doing their thing! Enjoy. For more pictures, please go to our Facebook page. Above is a classic Orca Picture, showing the big dorsal fins.

Victoria to Vancouver and Return through Active Pass on BC Ferries

Getting to Vancouver Island from Vancouver takes you through active pass. If you click on the LINK to our facebook page, we will share with you pictures from our latest trip over to Vancouver and return the same day. It was a typical West Coast high pressure weather with blue sky and no wind....it just does not get any better than this. The pictures of Mount Baker are good, but this was not one of the clearest days we can get. Enjoy and come for a visit.

Tour of BC Legislative Assembly Victoria BC

Today I was lucky enough to have a special tour of the Legislature. If you go to this link, you too can see well inside the legislative buildings in Victoria BC.

Spock does Milestones on the Inner Harbour Victoria BC

Last night we had a birthday celebration at Milestones on the Inner Harbour. The meal was great and the complimentary "Ganache Torte" they gave me with the sparkling candle was so delicious it bordered on being criminal. My friend Terry said he saw Spock in the restaurant and we all thought the wine was getting to him. Later when we were leaving, I saw this guy who was about 6'9" tall and when I approached him, he had an uncanny resemblance to Spock. Maybe he still might be out there.....who knows what the far reaches of the Universe will unfold? The young hostess at the door never heard of Spock....yikes...I think I have had too many birthdays. If you look closely behind Spock, up and to the right you will see the beam of light locking on to Spock. I heard him say, "beam me up Scotty-some idiot is taking my picture" and he vanished.

French Beach - the surge is up

The surf from surge always seems to roll in at French Beach. Often you can hear the rattle of stones as the waves receed...add in a bit of gorgeous scenery and you have French Beach!

French Beach - A Great Place on a Warm Day

For more images of French Beach visit our Facebook Page. This is a great place to go on a warm summer day, like to day and the past 40 or so days in and around Victoria. We have been blessed by an amazing August and September. Blue Sky, warm temperatures...keep it coming, we love it. I hope you had the opportunity to share part of this great summer and I hope you had an opportunity to visit French Beach.

Olympic View Golf Course - A Victoria Gem

Today we played the beautiful and amazingly scenic Olympic View Golf Course. The staff we met were very friendly and helpful and the course was in good shape as usual. This course has a lot of unique holes that set this course apart from others in Greater Victora. It doesn't get much better than this. The restaurant and lounge serves great food and it has one of the best views from the outside deck. The proshop is very well equipped. It is really worth a visit if you have not been there before. If you have been there before, you did come back, right? The weather was amazing....I take credit for that! I certainly urge you to give it a try.

Arbutus Ridge Golf Course - A must do....

Today we played a round of golf at Arbutus Ridge Golf Course. The course was in great shape, the staff were very helpful and friendly, the weather was near perfect, our game....well that is another story.

We had a great time and enjoyed the course immensely. It is very scenic and every hole is different. It is not a difficult course, but it is also not easy either. We have been here a number of times before and recommend it to you. Give it a try...you will be pleased. It is close to Duncan and about 30 minutes north of Victoria.

Smoked Out in Cowichan Bay

Today we were golfing at the beautiful Arbutus Ridge Golf Course. After we were done, we headed for Cowichan Bay because the Rock Cod Cafe serves the best fish and chips in the country. We were early for dinner, so we went to the Bay Pub.
This is a great place to relax, soak in one of the valley's excellent ocean views, and savour some pub style tummy pleasers. It is also a great place to get smoked out.

Two years ago I was there and did a follow up with the owner/manager. You see, they allow smoking on their outer deck. There is about half of it reserved for non-smokers and the other half is reserved for smokers and according to the waitress, they are visited often by inspectors who indicate that this smoking area is OK....

Well, as far as I know, it is illegal to smoke in bars/pubs indoors and on outdoor patios. The last time we were inside and the doors were open and the smoke drifted inside. This time, we were outside and when the smokers arrived, the breeze was blowing our way, and we simply had to leave. Not sure why this place is allowed to operate this way?

The Fish and Chips at the Rock Cod Cafe made up for the bad end to our beer at the Bay Pub.

Sooke Potholes - the best of the West Coast Watering Holes!

The Sooke Potholes are beautiful, polished rock formations carved into the natural bedrock of the Sooke River by ancient glacial activity. The river water is bright aqua-green, and cascades down through waterfalls into deep crystal-clear pools - a perfect place to cool off, rest, and regenerate in the summer months - especially during this gorgeous heat wave we've been having!

It's a very popular place with the locals, too - so be sure to come early to find the best spot, and bring a picnic lunch with you. Hiking can be a bit tricky with steep inclines to navigate and slippery river rocks, so good footwear is a must. Children should be well attended to, and diving is not advised.

Directions: From Douglas Street in Victoria, travel west on Trans-Canada Hwy 1 towards the West Shore. Take Colwood exit 10 and travel for about 30 min on Sooke Road (Hwy 14). Keep on the lookout for Winks Convenience Store on the right (just past Edward Milne Community School) - Sooke River Rd is just beyond it (you may want to stop at Wink's for ice cream, or make a plan to come back here at the end of the day - we sure did!)

At Winks, turn right onto Sooke River Rd and drive for another 5 km - straight to the first parking lot. If you'd prefer to park for free, stay here, but if you don't mind paying $2.50 for the day (bring change), proceed to the 3rd parking lot and follow the map trails to find the first set of Potholes.

Enjoy - maybe we'll see you there next Sunday!