Waters muddy between river and ocean at Fraser River Park

Fraser River with Mount Baker in background

The Fraser River starts as a trickle of glacial water near the peak of Mount Robson and rumbles speedily downward towards the Pacific Ocean. One of the fastest flowing rivers in the world, the Fraser takes an average of one week to travel 1375 km from its pure mountain source to its swift flowing salty and silty end, and is home to some of the largest species of sturgeon and the world's largest population of wild Pacific salmon.

Boardwalk over tidal marsh

As the Fraser meets the Pacific Ocean tide, the fast moving currents deposit silt and sediment it has gathered from its long journey to form ever expanding marsh lands with a very unique and rare ecology. Islands are constantly being created or expanded only to give way to the high tide and frequent dredging necessary to maintain safe shipping lanes on this major waterway.

In the early 1980s a study showed that due to pollution caused from agriculture and industry, the Fraser was on its way to being depleted and would eventually be unable to sustain much of its marine ecology. The Crown responded by restricting further development and acquiring land along the riverbanks so that much of the remaining land became parkway and protected habitat.

Creation of the City of Vancouver's Fraser River Trail is ongoing. Once completed, the trail will extend from the City of Burnaby's Fraser River Trailways system to the University of British Columbia's Pacific Spirit Park. Previous AccessEco blogs have covered other parts east of Fraser River Park.

Fishing from the shore

Ocean's beginning

Great views

Fraser River Park is best accessed by car or taxi but can be reached by transit. See www.translink.ca. The main entrance at West 75 Ave and Angus Drive is a mix of industrial park and housing and there is no sidewalk or crossways along this area of West 75th. There are designated parking spots in the parking lot with ramp access to the the trails. The trails are wide, flat and firm. There is also a great wooden boardwalk plenty big enough for chair scooters and walkers. Expect a few stairs at some lookout points along the boardwalk. This is a natural area with views of the river , Richmond's south shore and Sea Island, a designated bird sanctuary. There are many grassy fields but no children's play area. There are many benches and picnic tables adapted for wheelchairs and numerous plaques and information kiosks featuring interesting history and nature facts.Washrooms are only open in the summer months and are big enough to accommodate a wheelchair or scooter but not wheelchair accessible. There is a public telephone at the park's main entrance.

Wheelchair accessible information kiosk in Fraser River Park

For more information on the park check out the City of Vancouver Parks Board website at www.vancouverparks.org. While you're there you can download the Parks Board's new I phone app, a fantastic guide to city parks. Sadly us Android users will have to wait.

Next time: we enter the Year of the Dragon and get a do over for any of those broken resolutions. Gun Hay Fat Choy! Happy Chinese New Year!

Vancouver Aquarium rolls with the tide

English Bay

Vancouver's first privately owned aquarium opened at English Bay in 1939. The exhibit was small and featured an Oscar the octupus. In 1956 it closed and Oscar  moved to Stanley Park's newsest attraction, the Vancouver Aquarium. At the time it was Canada's first publicly owned aquarium. The idea that humanity was but a cog in the intricate dealings of the universe had not even occurred to mainstream culture. Performing dolphins attracted crowds, and in1964 the exhibit grew to include its first captured "killer whale".  It was a hit and by 1967 the aquarium was three times its original size featuring two orcas, Scana and Hyak, that performed for the crowds at what remains as one of North Americas five largest aquariums.

In 1990 the beluga whale pool was added but in 1996 the Stanley Park zoo was closed and in 2001 the orcas were fazed out largley due to public pressure and changing attitudes about animals in captivity.

Almost 450 thousand gallon tank still a tight fit

Today activists continue to agitate for the release of the belugas and dolphins. Whatever you may think about the capture and containment of large mammals, you cannot deny the aquarium's stellar record when it comes to innovations. Shows where trained animals jump through hoops have been replaced by animal-centered training sessions run by professional biologists and training specialists.

That doesn't mean the animals don't bust out a move or two for the camera, but these interactions are part of short general check ups. The aquarium has a very large rescue program that saves hundreds of abandoned seals and sea lions each year and returns many of them to the wild.

The aquarium is expanding once more as it reclaims some of the land left from the zoo. A larger rescue habitat and improvements to the recently restored salmon streams are in the works. As far as accessibility goes the aquarium is excellent. It has reserved viewing areas, automatic doors, hearing assist devices, ramps, elevators, accessible washrooms and tables in the cafeteria section designed for chairs. They also have a limited supply of loaner chairs and honour the Access2entertainment card enabling half price single admission or free attendant fare.

under our local waters

Tropical

For an extensive look at the aquarium and its programs go to http://www.vanaqua.org/

Shedding light on the origins of the season

Before Christmas the common celebration was solstice

Want to go back to origins of the season? The ancient celebration of solstice preceded the Christian celebration. Don't get me wrong. The sharing, goodwill and peace that Christmas honours are great. But as I get older I can't help but wonder why the holiday changed from celebrating abundance to encouraging over consumption. Solstice celebrations remain largely non-commercial, and, for a growing segment of the population, deeply spiritual.

Red berries were considerd magical

We celebrate nature's abundance just after the harvest season as the earth travels its furthest distance from the sun and and land in the northern hemisphere falls fallow.

Many fixtures of our Christmas celebration, such as greens and berries, had their origins in pagan festivals such as those of the Druids in Northern Europe. Traditions like feasting were born from practical considerations. Herds were culled to accommodate the lack of food winter brings. At the same time the new ale and other spirits from the grain and fruit harvest were ready. Thus the season of feasting was born.

It is true that Druidism has long been removed from mainstream culture. The last recorder of the BC Druids,  John Hugh Roberts, was laid to rest in Vancouver's Mountainview Cemetary in 1917 (see post "Moutainview cemetery; a look at our past"). For more on Roberts see www.azatlan.com/RobertsHeritage.php.

Thanks to The Secret Lantern Society you can take part in the 18th annual public solstice celebration marking the return of light on the longest day of the year, December 21. The event is very accessible. This year the Roundhouse, False Creek, Creekside and Britannia comunity centres, Granville Island's Performance Works and Chinatown's Dr Sun Yat Sen Gardens.will host festivities. All of these venues and procession routes are wheelchair accessible. For event details go to http://www.secretlantern.org/.

Next time we dive into the Vancouver Aquarium. Till then, peace.

Things Yule love to do this holiday season

Here's a list of ways to light up the holidays.

The Vancouver Christmas Market returns for its second year to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre plaza. If you were put off by the many bumpy cable crossings last year, they have smoothed things out. To be fair last year's market was a Christmas miracle: just hours before the scheduled opening a propane tank exploded on the construction site. No one was hurt and the market was able to open eventually.

 The market is situated where Georgia meets Hamilton

The market features daily entertainment, crafts, food, drink and entertainment in the German tradition. There are accessible washrooms but n.o attendant fare or PWD discount of any kind. It could use some more lower seating for chairs, strollers, etc. Christmas stollen to die for!

Across from the VPL and the CBC

Watch them, ride them or both. For carol ship routes and schedules go to carolships.org.

There's something Dickensian about

skimming the top of deep, dark

water. Remember Scooge's noctural

journey over land and sea?

Through English Bay, False Creek
and Burrard Inlet

The Van Dusen Gardens Festival of Lights continues to dazzle year after year. To see how Santa spends the summer, visit the tropical dome in Queen Elizabeth Park. Check out the City of Vancouver's Parks Board site for information on these and other seasonal offerings at www.vancouver.ca/parks.

Don't miss the famous Woodward's animated Christmas windows. For younger or newer Lower Mainland residents, the name Woodward may be associated with Christmas as the surname of the boy who got his tongue stuck to a frozen lamp pole in the nostalgic movie "A Christmas Story". Like the movie the Woodward's windows take you back to a simpler time when Lower Mainlanders made their Yuletide pilgrimmage to view these treasures. The windows are featured throughout Vancouver's downtown core this Christmas. For a map and details on a contest go to http://www.canadaplace.ca/.

The season is a time of plenty, so we'll be back soon with lots more ways to light up the holidays!

YVR Airport: Fly me to the moon (it's truly accessible)

Welcome to YVR

The Vancouver International Airport's website says the airport " is ready to ensure that travellers of all physical capabilities have a positive experience" and they are right.

YVR has everything to assist PWDs, but more importantly it is designed to aid independent use. Throughout the airport, accessible washrooms, way finding, TTY and hearing assist phones, elevators, ramps, moving sidewalks, service dog relief areas and more are provided to ensure a frustration-free experience. The areas in the terminals are spacious and decorated with art work. There are even two outdoor parks. In fact this airport offers anything a small city would: chapel, banks, post office, medical and dental care, restaurants, shops, services and a hotel.

Control Tower

The large park on Sea Island is fair distance from the terminal.and best accessed by car. If you are renting a car from one of the many airport rental operators, most companies can accommodate requests for modified vehicles if you reserve ahead of time. The park is a good place to spot planes or watch birds and other wildlife. The trails are packed gravel and there are benches and accessible washrooms. For more information on the Iona Beach Regional Park go to: www.metrovancouver.org/SERVICES/PARKS_LSCR/REGIONALPARKS/Pages/ionaBeach.aspx

Iona Beach  is a great place as you can planely see

The smaller Chester Johnson Park is located just outside the international arrivals terminal on level 2. The attractive little area is home to some of the airport's many totem poles.

If the weather is inclement there is lots to do and see indoors. The public observation area in the domestic terminal is a fun place to sip coffee and watch the flights come and go.The platform offers telescopes set at at various heights to accomodate folks of various sizes. All of YVR is a free Wi-Fi zone.

From the indoor public observation area

The domestic terminal is very accommodating to PWDs but you will notice the more recently constructed USA and international terminals are slightly better; they offer audio way finding in the elevators, more spacious walkways, etc. The Fairmont Airport Hotel, located in this section of the airport, gets high marks on our Lodgings page.

The day spa can be used for under $20

Take the Canada Line to YVR

You can take a self guided tour, check your flight or plan a day or an hour all by going to http://www.yvr.ca/ . For Canada Line information go to http://www.translink.ca/.

Next time: Christmas is coming and so is our holiday access guide to fun in the lower mainland.

Waterfront Station and Canada Place: getting there

Cool architecture

1920's style

Root beer served
in old chilled mugs

Enter at the east door

If you think of the Port of Metro Vancouver as as a single ship, then this area of waterfront in downtown Vancouver is the bridge. The port sprawls across 600 km of shoreline, 16 municipalities  and includes the Fraser River, the Pitt River and Pitt Lake. Goods are sent all over the world from Canada's busiest port, but this downtown Vancouver section is mainly concerned with passenger service. Passenger service in the area began with the construction of Waterfront Station by the CPR in 1914 to service its transcontinental railway. Next came the 1927 construction of the pier where Canada Place sits today to accommodate the CPR's steamship service. The buildings are linked by underground walkways that are not accessible. More on that later.

Old school

Waterfront Station is a major transit hub for Translink, the public transit provider. Trolley and bus service, SeaBus, West Coast Express commuter trains and all of the SkyTrain routes converge here. There's paid parking on the east side, curb cuts and wide fully automatic doors. The front entrance has one small over used semi-automatic door. The west entrance leads to a stairway. The building is a  Public WIFI hot spot and offers a mix of office space, services and restaurants. The old station has kept its facade throughout modifications and upgrades over the years. We can get an interesting perspective on the status of of PWDs and inclusion in our society over the decades simply by looking more closely at some of these changes. Obviously the 1920's building was  erected without thought of accommodation. In 1970's it was modified to include a SeaBus terminal. An elevator was installed. A washroom was built at the SeaBus terminal that remains inaccessible. The elevator is slow, small and dangerously isolated from the main traffic.

 In 1985 there was another major modification including an additional elevator installation for the SkyTrain. This newer elevator is still slow but a little bigger and closer to mainstream traffic for safety. It's difficult to access as you need to cross the heavy pedestrian traffic flow emerging from an escalator. In addition, this one elevator at the east end of the platform does not allow access to the Canada Place underground corridor at the train platform's west exit.

In the 1990's better elevators and accessible washrooms were added to the West Coast Express rail station. The completion of the Canada Line in 2009 saw the addition of two elevators that are are quick, large, out of direct traffic flow and safely transparent with multiple located call buttons for easy access, and auditory and other way finding. The track platform has a tactile strip to indicate danger. There is access to both the Waterfront Station and Granville Street exits. All the elevators are still used today; however, the older elevators have since been outfitted with audio way finding and all train lines have been fitted with tactile warning strips.

Lack of access to Canada Place at the west exit of the Expo Millennium Line platform means hiking up the street, but don't let that deter you. This area is a popular spot for Vancouver's emerging street food scene and a caravan of carts drop anchor here rain or shine. For transit info visit http://www.translink.can/. If you want to access the food court area in the underground corridor between Canada Place and Waterfront Station, use the elevator in the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel lobby.

Five sails light nightly

Canada Place is across the street from the Waterfront Fairmont Hotel. Much more than a busy cruise ship terminal, it's also home to the the Vancouver Convention Centre East, the Pan Pacific Hotel and more. Activities and events happen all year long. On Canada Day hundreds of new citizens are sworn in and events and parties go into the night climaxing with fireworks. Between November 24 and 27, 2011, Canada Place will host numerous free and paid parties during the Grey Cup and Vanier Cup festivities. After that Canada Place will undergo its annual transformation into a holiday wonderland just in time for the Christmas season. For a look at the events schedule and other info go to www.canadaplace.ca.

Ship on the dock

Beautiful views

Pan Pacific Hotel

Pier looking toward downtown

Check out the port exhibit and try your hand at operating the crane on the cargo loading simulator. There are numerous accessible washrooms throughout the facility. For information on the port including sailing scheduales go to www.portmetrovancouver.com.