gardens Archives

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is living up to it’s reputation for rain. Vancouver is Canada’s third most rainy city, with over 161 rainy days per year! Even so we were determined to get in a bit of time exploring Stanley Park.

Stanley Park is Vancouver’s first, largest, and most beloved urban park. We stopped at the front desk for directions and to find out where we could leave our luggage until we left for the cruise ship.

Continuing in the friendly tradition I mentioned yesterday the desk tagged the luggage for us and placed it behind the desk. That way we could check out, they could get the room ready for the next guest and we could call for our luggage later.

The clerk also told us we were just steps from Stanley Park. I’m not sure if we went in the wrong direction but we ended up in a park that followed the water front. We didn’t get to the normal Stanly Park attractions like the Totem poles, the botanical gardens , or any monuments. I believe that we ended up following the Seawall.

The Seawall is a scenic 22 km path that lines Vancouver’s waterfront. We got caught up watching the birds that seemed to be everywhere, mostly herons and ducks.

There were also plenty of dogs jogging with their owners.

In spite of the cool weather, the landscaping was well underway.

Our walk started with a sculpture of laughing men.

A bit of research identified the sculpture as A-Maze-ing Laughter by the Chinese artist Yue Minjun. It is well named as it had us both smiling as we explored the bronze statutes.

The huge sails that dominate the waterfront were built for the 1986 World’s Fair . These sails are Vancouver’s equivalent of the Sydney Opera House or the Empire State Building. Located on Canada Place you can’t miss them.

We also passed a sculpture that looked like it was right out of Stonehenge.

This is an inuksuk which is a stone landmark or cairn built by humans. Such monuments were used by the First Nation People of the Artic Region. An inuksuk was used as the basis of the Vancouver 2010 logo and the construction of inuksuit around the world have led to increasing recognition of them.

The time passed quickly and before we had even scratched the surface it was time to get lunch, retrieve our bags and get a cab to the main event….the cruise ship. The friendly desk clerks helped us gather our bags and even called a cab for us.

The time had come for the adventure to really begin.

We were up bright and early the next morning. The sun seems to rise about 5am and light was filtering in through the small hall window. I believe that’s the “natural” way to wake up…to sunlight but it was still early!

Showered and refreshed we took the car when we went to breakfast. Back to the Great Maine Breakfast but we’d learned our lessons yesterday with the “Lumberjack”. We toned down our orders today. I had the cinnamon – raisin french toast. Soooo Good. I have to say, all the food has been fantastic and filling. I can’t fault the quality or the quantity. Once again I was only able to eat about 1/2 the order but I’d put a cooler in the car so I took the left over as a “doggy bag”.

We picked up some bottled water and headed out to spend the day exploring Acadia National Park. Acadia has a Loop Road that you can drive through the park. Following it will take you to many of the high points if you’re not a hiker.

We pulled off wherever there was a scenic overlook. The views of Frenchman’s Bay were beautiful. The heat and humidity were back so there was a haze that interfered with pictures even with filters to offset the effect. Still it was breathtaking.

The sand beach was so packed we weren’t able to get a parking spot.

Since there were so many other sights we skipped it for now and headed on to the next big location on our list, Jordan Pond.

We had heard that Jordan Pond was a must see/do especially their pop-over lunch. Walking to the lodge we spotted a “Mountain Garden”.

The Garden was made up of trails, water features and wild flowers native to the area. It was all done so naturally among the trees that it seemed as if you had just come upon it by accident. Each type of habitat was clearly marked.

It was here that I saw the jack-in-the- pulpit.

I was thrilled to spot it because it’s been years and years since I’d seen one.

Another plant I hadn’t seen in a long time was the pitcher plant but there they were. Talk about being taken back in time!

There were benches along the paths and little bridges over the brooks. It was much cooler under the trees too so the garden was a really refreshing break from the heat. Eventually we wandered to the lodge and checked the menu for the Pop-over picnic lunch. I don’t remember the price exactly but it wasn’t cheap and it was vetoed immediately by my frugal friend. Vacation or not, JR was on a budget. Maybe next trip.

Leaving the lodge we crossed a pretty log bridge and explored the Native American museum.

It’s very small but they had a series of dioramas that were very well done. The volunteer was well versed in the history of the area and the museum. Her husband was also there running the gift shop.

After we left the museum we headed back to the car. At the time it didn’t occur to me that we never walked down to see the actual Jordan’s Pond!

Next stop was my favorite…Thunder Hole.

Judging from the number of people here it’s a favorite of a lot of people. We followed the signs from the parking area out onto rocky cliffs. Stairs had been carved into the rock and there were metal hand rails.

Following these trails over the rocks let you climb right down to the waterline where the surf came crashing.

At the base was a blow-hole. I’d seen these in Hawaii. The water rushes in and as it exits there’s a whoosh and then the sound of “thunder”…hense the name Thunder Hole.