Travel links to Canada...

BRITISH COLUMBIA CANADA

Snow and Sunshine - great scenary Winter or Summer holidays

Trial Island Light in Victoria

  British Columbia coast  to the lighthouse lantern  Victoria 

Trial Island lantern house (as it is called) it is on the street - on the corner of Bastion Square.

It resembles a modern industrial street-art installation, picture a giant red robot helmet with a

weather vane on top.

The plaque on the lantern base states that it was first installed on Trial Island, 4 miles southeast of Victoria,

in 1908. It was a beacon there until it was replaced by an acrylic lens in 1970.

The lenses themselves are enormous. Two flashes every ten seconds

The Trial Island Light is on loan to the Maritime Museum of British Columbia,

The Rocky Mountain Buffalo Ranch Guest House located in Golden, is situated in 80 acres of buffalo ranch with

spectacular Rocky Mountain Views. A perfect location for family getaways with year-round access to a creek,

riverfront and wildlife viewing. The pleasant Guest house has outdoor hot tub, BBQ and sauna.
 

  British Columbia may not be Ireland, but they have plenty of great local beers, and places to drink them,

just the same. Vancouver Island Brewery, Gulf Islands Brewery Granville Island Brewing Tours 

Might be worthwhile if you are planning on hanging out for a while, or just plan to hit all the best brew spots

during your stay.

Big powder days at Whistler as the snow can be heavy but it's more fun when the snow is light and fluffy.

You will be impressed with the village, which is located at the base of two of the mountains

(the resort actually spreads across 3 mountains). The village is fairly small and carries off a European

look well. There are several ski in/ski out hotels & condos and rates are affordable.

It definitely lacks the scale of Whistler, but that is part of its charm. There is something nice about being able to

ski into the village for a coffee or a piece of pizza rather than paying too much at a resort cafeteria.

Besides the skiing, the big attraction was the Ice Wine festival, which is held at Sun Peaks each January.

Fifteen BC wineries participated this year and the tasting areas were spread around the village.

people can enjoy walking around a ski resort with wine glass in hand -

not normally tolerated under licensing laws.  The wineries pour whites and reds.

 - Sun Peaks if you're looking for a smaller scale resort, with a range of accommodation and amenities,

a good mix of runs, great snow. 

 Big White & Silver Star, the skiing is excellent. Both the resorts have an impressive base and fresh powder

usually every day. In fact, one morning at Silver Star there was a dump of a foot and a half overnight.

The locals suggest getting to the lifts 10-15 minutes before they open in the morning to get ‘first tracks’.

 Some other fun things are tubing and skating at Big White. It’s fun to get some friends together and hold on

to each other and spin. The outdoor skating rink is very big.

Snowshoe Sams (Big White) where they actually pour flaming liquid (coffee and liqueurs) down the barrel

of a gun into a glass. Also the snow-cat dinner tour to Paradise Camp at Silver Star is worth a visit -

cuisine, service and wines are said to be first-class.

For dining recommendations at Big White the Kettle Valley Steakhouse in Happy Valley and the

Soup Stone Café which has a wonderful selection of soups, homemade daily (near main village).

For Silver Star, Clementine’s Restaurant for fine dining, Long John’s Pub for delicious pub fare and a fun

atmosphere.