.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Wednesday morning and another perfect weather day. The sun is shining and it's not too hot to go out and have some fun. Late morning we drive north past the city and climb into the mountains to visit Capilano and Grouse Mountain. Many years ago I saw a photo in a calendar of the Capilano Suspension Bridge and always dreamed of seeing it in person. Today is my day to accomplish that.
The drive is beautiful and as we climb the residential areas have magnificent homes with great views looking back to Vancouver. The bridge is now within a touristy (think Disney) park with a hefty admission fee plus parking lot charges. We enter amid throngs of people and lots of noisy kids. I had imagined this to be a serene experience and it is not. The bridge is amazing with a long, high span over a pretty stream. It has a wood plank floor and mesh sides that came up over my waist. You can fit two people across and it was crowded and wobbly. As we made our way across there was constant shaking which made it difficult to take pictures or really enjoy the experience.
Safely across we visited the attractions which included a tree walk where we traversed five paths suspended way up high by huge Douglas Fir trees. Not too exciting but a good chance to look down from the top of the canopy. There were other paths and kid's areas and of course food stands and souvenir shops. We didn't spend too much time and made our way back across the shaky bridge to the exit.
Next stop was Grouse Mountain which is about two miles uphill from the suspension bridge. This is a winter ski area and all the summer attractions are at the top. You make your way up in a large (@100 passenger) gondola with breathtaking views of Vancouver. First stop for us was the restaurant where we had a nice lunch seated at a window table overlooking the mountain, shipping port and Vancouver. Next we saw the lumberjack show which was carefully scripted and staged, but entertaining. Two guys competed in axe throwing, log climbing, log rolling and log sawing. Get the picture??? A comic guy then climbed to the top of the climbing logs, 60' tall and made me very scared by doing handstands and other stuff without a net. At the end he fell off, but was attached to a safety harness and slid to the ground.
We took a ride on a chair lift which went partway down the mountain and then back up. More great views and then it was time to go home before the worst part of rush hour began. Another quiet evening with dinner and TV.
The drive is beautiful and as we climb the residential areas have magnificent homes with great views looking back to Vancouver. The bridge is now within a touristy (think Disney) park with a hefty admission fee plus parking lot charges. We enter amid throngs of people and lots of noisy kids. I had imagined this to be a serene experience and it is not. The bridge is amazing with a long, high span over a pretty stream. It has a wood plank floor and mesh sides that came up over my waist. You can fit two people across and it was crowded and wobbly. As we made our way across there was constant shaking which made it difficult to take pictures or really enjoy the experience.
Safely across we visited the attractions which included a tree walk where we traversed five paths suspended way up high by huge Douglas Fir trees. Not too exciting but a good chance to look down from the top of the canopy. There were other paths and kid's areas and of course food stands and souvenir shops. We didn't spend too much time and made our way back across the shaky bridge to the exit.
Next stop was Grouse Mountain which is about two miles uphill from the suspension bridge. This is a winter ski area and all the summer attractions are at the top. You make your way up in a large (@100 passenger) gondola with breathtaking views of Vancouver. First stop for us was the restaurant where we had a nice lunch seated at a window table overlooking the mountain, shipping port and Vancouver. Next we saw the lumberjack show which was carefully scripted and staged, but entertaining. Two guys competed in axe throwing, log climbing, log rolling and log sawing. Get the picture??? A comic guy then climbed to the top of the climbing logs, 60' tall and made me very scared by doing handstands and other stuff without a net. At the end he fell off, but was attached to a safety harness and slid to the ground.
We took a ride on a chair lift which went partway down the mountain and then back up. More great views and then it was time to go home before the worst part of rush hour began. Another quiet evening with dinner and TV.
No comments:
Post a Comment