Activity date: 11 October 2010
Energy level: 2/10 (followed by 6/10 at the playground)
Cost: $0
We were visiting in friends in Seattle the weekend of a big beach clean up in Vancouver. I had meant to volunteer our family.
Today the boys and I decided to do our own beach clean up. We went to Cates Park in North Vancouver and filled one plastic bag each. The tide was in most of the way, so there wasn't much beach.
It was surprising how little garbage there was. Mostly hunks of polystyrene, aluminum cans and coffee cups.
Then we foraged for end-of-season blackberries, had a snack, and hit the playground.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Goat mountain
Activity date: Early October 2010
Energy level: 9/10
Cost: $0
We made it to the top of Goat Mountain!
It was a lovely Fall day -- 23 degrees C, and sunny. As we rode the gondola up to the Grouse Mountain recreation area we passed through a layer of low cloud that made me wonder whether it was prudent to go hiking in the woods, but the cloud was just passing. The entire day was lovely. I actually got slightly sunburned.
We followed the Alpine Ridge trail from Grouse Mountain. When we signed in at the trail head, there were notes from hikers that there were two bear cubs and a mother bear on the trail. We kept our eyes open, but did not see them.
The trail is rugged but the boys and I were full of energy. There were some good spots to stop along the way and forage for blueberries.
After an hour and half of scrambling over rocks and tree roots, the trail leveled out. We were on a ridge, skirting the crater around Kennedy Lake. We stopped to admire the view.
The signs said we were about 1km from the summit but what they didn't say was that the rest of the hike was vertical. There were even a few chains installed to hold onto while climbing the rocks. Our trusty trail guide book says the final ascent is 120 meters.
I think that my reassurances that "we're almost there" will never be given any credence in future. But we made it to the top -- a rocky mesa with spectacular views in all directions.
Thing 1 and Thing 2 are in excellent physical shape but this is by far the most grueling hike they have ever done. I was hiking in boots but they were only wearing sneakers. The trail was wetter than it had been on our previous adventures, and some of the rocks were slippery. Next season they get their own hiking boots. Several older hikers were impressed to see a six and eight year old tackling the mountain.
On the way back, they still had plenty of energy although Thing 2 stumbled several times. They were hoping for a treat from the concession stand in the touristy area at Grouse Mountain but it was just after 5pm when we got back and the stands were closed.
I always tell the boys to keep a look out for deer on the side of the trail. There was a deer casually grazing in the touristy area, oblivious to the tourists with their cameras.
We had to wait in line approximately 20 minutes for the gondola back down the mountain, then we headed off to the nearest Scottish restaurant to scarf down some dinner.
The boys slept well and were none the worse for wear the next day.
Energy level: 9/10
Cost: $0
We made it to the top of Goat Mountain!
It was a lovely Fall day -- 23 degrees C, and sunny. As we rode the gondola up to the Grouse Mountain recreation area we passed through a layer of low cloud that made me wonder whether it was prudent to go hiking in the woods, but the cloud was just passing. The entire day was lovely. I actually got slightly sunburned.
We followed the Alpine Ridge trail from Grouse Mountain. When we signed in at the trail head, there were notes from hikers that there were two bear cubs and a mother bear on the trail. We kept our eyes open, but did not see them.
The trail is rugged but the boys and I were full of energy. There were some good spots to stop along the way and forage for blueberries.
After an hour and half of scrambling over rocks and tree roots, the trail leveled out. We were on a ridge, skirting the crater around Kennedy Lake. We stopped to admire the view.
The signs said we were about 1km from the summit but what they didn't say was that the rest of the hike was vertical. There were even a few chains installed to hold onto while climbing the rocks. Our trusty trail guide book says the final ascent is 120 meters.
I think that my reassurances that "we're almost there" will never be given any credence in future. But we made it to the top -- a rocky mesa with spectacular views in all directions.
Thing 1 and Thing 2 are in excellent physical shape but this is by far the most grueling hike they have ever done. I was hiking in boots but they were only wearing sneakers. The trail was wetter than it had been on our previous adventures, and some of the rocks were slippery. Next season they get their own hiking boots. Several older hikers were impressed to see a six and eight year old tackling the mountain.
On the way back, they still had plenty of energy although Thing 2 stumbled several times. They were hoping for a treat from the concession stand in the touristy area at Grouse Mountain but it was just after 5pm when we got back and the stands were closed.
I always tell the boys to keep a look out for deer on the side of the trail. There was a deer casually grazing in the touristy area, oblivious to the tourists with their cameras.
We had to wait in line approximately 20 minutes for the gondola back down the mountain, then we headed off to the nearest Scottish restaurant to scarf down some dinner.
The boys slept well and were none the worse for wear the next day.
The rocket
Activity date: August 2010
Energy level: 2 / 10
Cost: $6 (vinegar and baking soda; the rocket was a gift).
Thing 1 got a rocket for his birthday last year. It sat in his closet until he rediscovered it recently.
The rocket gets its propulsion from a familiar chemical reaction -- the CO2 released when you combine vinegar and baking soda. We headed off to the supermarket to buy our fuel then went to lower Hume Park in New Westminster to launch it.
Conditions were perfect, and there were not too many innocent bystanders. We organized our equipment and made sure we looked stylish for the "before" photo.
You pack the baking soda into the base of the rocket, pour vinegar into rocket, push the rocket down on the base, shake two or three times, set it upright then run!
Our first few attempts fizzled. The baking soda plus vinegar reaction was obviously taking place, but all we saw was bubbles fizzing out the side. We had to tighten some seals and try again a few times before our first successful launch -- a modest two meters.
After some trial and error we realized that we had to thoroughly clean the base of the rocket before pouring in more baking soda. There was often a gooey mixture of baking soda and vinegar left. The vinegar would quietly react with the fresh baking soda before we really intended the reaction to start.
Our most successful launch was perhaps five meters high. We all took turns shaking the chemicals and placing the rocket ready to launch.
Energy level: 2 / 10
Cost: $6 (vinegar and baking soda; the rocket was a gift).
Thing 1 got a rocket for his birthday last year. It sat in his closet until he rediscovered it recently.
The rocket gets its propulsion from a familiar chemical reaction -- the CO2 released when you combine vinegar and baking soda. We headed off to the supermarket to buy our fuel then went to lower Hume Park in New Westminster to launch it.
Conditions were perfect, and there were not too many innocent bystanders. We organized our equipment and made sure we looked stylish for the "before" photo.
You pack the baking soda into the base of the rocket, pour vinegar into rocket, push the rocket down on the base, shake two or three times, set it upright then run!
Our first few attempts fizzled. The baking soda plus vinegar reaction was obviously taking place, but all we saw was bubbles fizzing out the side. We had to tighten some seals and try again a few times before our first successful launch -- a modest two meters.
After some trial and error we realized that we had to thoroughly clean the base of the rocket before pouring in more baking soda. There was often a gooey mixture of baking soda and vinegar left. The vinegar would quietly react with the fresh baking soda before we really intended the reaction to start.
Our most successful launch was perhaps five meters high. We all took turns shaking the chemicals and placing the rocket ready to launch.
Up close
Activity date: August 2010
Energy level: 3 / 10
Cost: $0
It was a rainy Saturday. Thing 1 was at a friend's house. Thing 2 is very observant, so I decided to take him on a different kind of hike, changing the level of detail. Instead of grand vistas, we would observe the woods close up.
We packed a plastic sheet and headed down a portion of the Central Valley Greenway, an urban green belt that runs through a large swath of Vancouver.
The heavy rain had brought the banana slugs out. We compared the sizes and colors.
We headed off the trail into a stand of cedar trees. We were only a few meters from the trail but felt like we were in the heart of the woods. We found a spot under the trees that was well sheltered, laid down our plastic sheet, got down on our tummies and poked around in the mulch. We shone our flashlights in the nooks and crannies and saw that what at first appeared to be eggs were actually some kind of insect.
Energy level: 3 / 10
Cost: $0
It was a rainy Saturday. Thing 1 was at a friend's house. Thing 2 is very observant, so I decided to take him on a different kind of hike, changing the level of detail. Instead of grand vistas, we would observe the woods close up.
We packed a plastic sheet and headed down a portion of the Central Valley Greenway, an urban green belt that runs through a large swath of Vancouver.
The heavy rain had brought the banana slugs out. We compared the sizes and colors.
We headed off the trail into a stand of cedar trees. We were only a few meters from the trail but felt like we were in the heart of the woods. We found a spot under the trees that was well sheltered, laid down our plastic sheet, got down on our tummies and poked around in the mulch. We shone our flashlights in the nooks and crannies and saw that what at first appeared to be eggs were actually some kind of insect.
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