Vancouver is about 140 miles (2.5 hours) north of Seattle. 
As mentioned in our Seattle review, Boeing tour in Mukilteo serves as an excellent stopover, about 30 miles from Seattle. Border services were a breeze. Highway 99 from the US border is a 4-lane road until it crosses Oak Street Bridge into Vancouver proper. The 30 km stretch through city traffic to North Vancouver via Lions Gate Bridge past Stanley Park can take upwards of an hour especially during commute hours.
We were in for a treat beyond words on our drive into and around Vancouver downtown the first day. The fall foliage in all shades of green, yellow, red, and purple both near and far turned ethereal under the cumulus clouds ignited by the setting sun. 
The hint of moisture left behind from an earlier rain made for a wonderful play of the colors and amazingly this Kodak moment lingered till the sun disappeared from the horizon. This was indeed chance sighting for our second day dawned bright and clear.
Our overnight reservations were in North Vancouver (Capilano Road), about seven miles north of the city. It is a great location for a number of attractions are easily accessible from there. The rates were a bargain at about $85 with breakfast part of the deal. In fact, this was the sole area where we found Vancouver to be less expensive than US. While this may seem surprising the reality is that compared to an all-time low exchange ra
te of 62 cents for one Canadian dollar in the beginning of 2002, the present 
Canada is about 70% more expensive for US visitors – currently, US dollar trades at only a very slight premium to the Canadian dollar.
Capilano Suspension Bridge built in 1889 continues to be among Vancouver’s most popular tourist attractions. Located at 3735 Capilano Road in North Vancouver the site sitting on 27 acres of rainforest land and structured like a theme park is privately owned. Tickets were $26.95 Adults and $10 Kids (6-12) after AAA discount. The main attractions in the park are:
- Story Center, Kia’palano, and Totem Park – The area boasts the world’s largest private collection of First Nations of BC totem poles – the park owners in 1930 invited the First Nations people to position their story poles in the park and thus launching the totem pole theme in the park. These poles are maintained in the same condition they were received.
The story center and the cultural center (Kia’palano) complete the theme and give the visitors a glimpse into the lives of First Nations people. - Bridge – A few steps from the story poles is the Capilano Suspension Bridge - a rope bridge supported by anchors of 13 tons of concrete at both ends. The setting with the bridge suspended over the canyon (230 feet) and blessing the trees below is dramatic. The bridge itself is 450 feet long and gently sways in response to the pressure applied. We happily set forth with the seven year old in lead but after the half-way point our older one stepped up to lent her strength. The second half gets progressively steeper, but we all easily made it to the other end. A group of high spirited school boys were behind us and they tried their level best on getting the bridge to swing to their steps much to the chagrin of the employees. Even with that none of us felt any touch of vertigo.
- Treetops Adventure –
This is the park’s newest adventure that opened in 2004. It offers a walkway through seven pedestrian bridges suspended between Douglas fir’s. Elevations on the bridges reach 100 feet above the forest floor. Although the attraction claims to provide a squirrel’s eye view of the forest, the adventure part is really more for smaller kids. There is an ecosystem of life in the canopy of the rain forests, but unfortunately this attraction is not geared towards glimpsing that. An engineering achievement sure to please any environmentalist is that the observation decks are designed and built around the Douglas fir tree trunks without damaging them in any way. Overall, the kids really enjoyed it and we rate it really relaxing. - Canyon Lookout – Certainly the most excellent views of the Canyon and the river are from here. The best part was spotting salmon fighting its way upstream. We went prepared and the binoculars paid dividends.
the local ski slope and what is considered as the peak of Vancouver. 
Though small (212 Skiable acres, 26 runs, 5 lifts) it is a popular resort (1.1M visitors per year) partly due to its proximity to Vancouver. Lift tickets and rentals are pricier than its counterparts at Lake Tahoe (Adults 19-64 - $55, Youth 13-18 - $45, Kids 5-12 - $25, and Senior - $45, Ski Rental Package: Adults - $42, Kids - $26, Parking - $5), but the timings (9AM – 10PM) also allow for nighttime skiing. The resort also offers a General Admission ticket which is overpriced in every sense - Adults 19-64 - $37.95, Youth – 13-18 - $22.95, Kids 5-12 - $13.95, $2 discount for seniors. It includes access to the following activities:- The theater in the sky – plays the short film “Born to Fly” in high definition featuring the scenic beauty of BC with its mountains and peaks in all its glory.
- The refuge of endangered wild life – There are two habitats: a 5-acre Grizzly Bear habitat shelters two orphaned grizzly bears atop the mountain and a smaller habi
tat at the base of the mountain provides sanctuary to two gray wolves (aka timber wolves and tundra wolves). The grizzly bear habitat is accessible only with the General Admission ticket while the timber wolves are a short hike from the base of the mountain and can be accessed without the gondola ride up! - Access to snowshoe trails – rental ($20 per person) is additional. Beginner lessons start at $69 per person.
- Access to Ice Skate Rink – rental ($10.50 for adults and $7.50 for kids plus $2 insurance per person) is additional.
- Sleigh Ride – Takes you around the snow-covered mountain forests in a cute sleigh, if conditions permit (good snow coverage over all areas of the plateau is necessary for this to operate – check mountain report or ask at the counter before purchasing the general admission ticket).
Our tour of Stanley Park was a very hurried one contrary to our plans.
Stanley Park is a huge thousand-acre park with the most popular feature being the nine kilometer seawall path encircling the park used extensively by bicyclers, pedestrians, and inline skaters alike – two paths, one for bicyclists and skaters and the other for pedestrians. From Capilano, it is the first exit past the Lions Gate Bridge. The highlights include the Brockton Point Lighthouse and the Totem Poles. The park also has a huge collection of various statues and plaques. One distinct feature of Stanley Park compared to other parks of comparable size in other cities (Central Park in New York, and London’s Richmond Park) is that the entire landscape takes on a natural feel as most of it is still virgin forest land. Stanley Park hosted a Children’s zoo until 1997 when it was closed following a referendum. The park is still the site of Vancouver Aquarium, the largest in Canada.
Our final leg of the trip was a round-trip drive on the Sea to Sky Highway (Hwy 99 also called Squamish Highway and Whistler Highway) to Whistler. Whistler Blackcomb Ski area is the location of the 2010 Winter Olympics and preparations are underway in full earnest. The highway itself received a face-lift with a concrete divider along with other major improvements. For years, the stretch was referred to as the Highway of Death as a combination of narrow lanes, absence of dividers and barriers, speeding, etc has resulted in many loss of life. Now, with the improvements in place the drive is much safer but following speed limits and being wary of conditions is still paramount.
The drive to Whistler is about 100 kilometers and can be covered in less than two hours (not including stopovers). The sight is representative of the renowned scenic beauty of British Columbia (BC) and is reminiscent of the drive around Big Sur. Highlights include the Shannon Falls (third highest in BC) and an associated 200 acre provincial park, the Brandywine Falls provincial park, and the Britannia Beach community which hosts the BC Museum of Mining at the site of the old copper mine.There is a general perception that Canadians are much more laid back and extremely friendly.
We joined the choir during our Eastern Canadian Road Trip, but during this second visit we nailed it – Canadians in the service sector have more of a pleasant disposition, but when it comes to the actual service provided, our US counterparts are on par or better!
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