Hello
I have long wanted to make a thread about the beautiful Landscapes found in the province of british Columbia, Canada
BC is the westernmost province in Canada (home of Vancouver) and has a large variety of landscapes and ecosystems, due to its large size and it geography (the Ocean, many major mountain ranges and valleys, etc...).
Some basic facts of BC:
It has an area of nearly 945 000 KM2, a population of roughly 4.5 million, and its largest metro areas are Vancouver, Victoria (the capital), Abbotsford and Kelowna.
While the odd urban picture may make its way into this thread (such as a park or beachfront) the vast majority of the pics on here will focus on BC's natural beauty.
After seeing the variety in BC you will understand why many Hollywood movies use it as a backdrop for various other locations throughout the world (even as Africa and Mexico).
For starters here is a political map of BC
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source: http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/popular-topics/distances/bcmap.html
And here is one more map displaying the vast and varied range of biogeoclimate zones in BC
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source: http://adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch8/1_e.php
Now onto the pictures! All of the following pictures are my own
First we will start off along the west coast, which has a climate very similar to southern England and northern France. In fact the south eastern portion of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands between Vancouver island and the mainland are classified as a sub Mediterranean climate. This is because of a rain shadow effect created by the Olympic Mountains that makes this region considerably dry, despite its maritime climate zone. In fact Victoria is the sunniest and driest major city in all of Canada during the summer. Vancouver, while also displaying a relatively dry and sunny summer, is much more moist than Victoria.
This first pic is from the Metro Vancouver region. This is the view from the Pitt River bridge (which connects two local suburbs) looking up the Pitt River
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This picture is taken from my home suburb of Maple Ridge, in Vancouver, last November looking north towards the mountains
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Here is the forest behind my house on a winter's afternoon. I enjoy the rain in the winter because it keeps our forest nice and green!
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This creek is also located behind my house. The winter rains give it a decent flow.
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Here are some pics taken from the western edge of Metro Vancouver in February (at the University of BC)
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The tram that takes people to a from the peak of Grouse Mountain in September (Metro Vancouver)
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A picture of the Straight of Georgia from Seymour Mountain (just west of Grouse Mountain)
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This is a photo of a natural swampland in Pitt Meadows, Metro Vancouver.
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The following few pictures are of what I believe to be Canada's most beautiful tree, the Arbutus. The Arbutus thrives in the sub Mediterranean zone of BC's south coast, and its range extends all the way south to Mexico. It is Canada's only native broadleaf evergreen tree. There are a few introduced broadleaf evergreen species now in Canada, such as holly, that have naturalized themselves in the milder regions.
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Here is some amazing sandstone on Hornby Island
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A typical view from the Sea to Sky highway (the highway from Vancouver to Whistler)
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This lake is north of Whistler, nestled in the Coast Mountains
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Now we are leaving the coast of BC and heading to the dry interior, which leeward of the Coast Mountains and is home to semi-desert valleys and Canada's hottest summer temperatures (often 35 to 40 degrees C throughout July and August). These valleys are the northern most extension of the Great Basin Desert that is found throughout the American southwest, so they are very similar in appearance and host many similar plant and animal species (rattle snakes, gopher snakes, black widow spider, a tiny scorpion, cactus, sage brush, etc...). This area is where they filmed the Mexico scenes in the new A-Team movie and the Africa scenes in the 13th Warrior.
These next few pics were taken this year in the Thompson Valley, the temperature was about 38C when i took them, nice and hot!!
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These pictures are taken from Osoyoos, in the Okanagan Valley, which is slightly less dry than the Thompson Valley, but it is just as hot in the summer. This Valley is the heart of BC's wine and fruit industry. It is also a major tourist area, a summer time paradise. These pics were taken n May, where summer is already in action.
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This is a mineral lake just outside of Osoyoos in the surrounding hills, it is a highway side attraction. it is conveniently called "Spotted Lake"
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As one drives out of the hot valleys a sage bunchgrass ecosystem gives way to higher grasslands such as this one outside of Kamloops (pic taken in November)
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And then eventually to the pine, spruce, fir and aspen parkland forests of the Plateaus. Which have many beautiful clean swimming lakes, and also many alkaline lakes such as these below.
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Anyways, that is all I have right now, many more to come in the future. If you ever want to travel to Canada I highly recommend coming to BC (especially in the summer) and renting a car. There are so many climates, attractions and landforms, BC has something for everyone!
Cheers
I have long wanted to make a thread about the beautiful Landscapes found in the province of british Columbia, Canada
BC is the westernmost province in Canada (home of Vancouver) and has a large variety of landscapes and ecosystems, due to its large size and it geography (the Ocean, many major mountain ranges and valleys, etc...).
Some basic facts of BC:
It has an area of nearly 945 000 KM2, a population of roughly 4.5 million, and its largest metro areas are Vancouver, Victoria (the capital), Abbotsford and Kelowna.
While the odd urban picture may make its way into this thread (such as a park or beachfront) the vast majority of the pics on here will focus on BC's natural beauty.
After seeing the variety in BC you will understand why many Hollywood movies use it as a backdrop for various other locations throughout the world (even as Africa and Mexico).
For starters here is a political map of BC
source: http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/popular-topics/distances/bcmap.html
And here is one more map displaying the vast and varied range of biogeoclimate zones in BC
source: http://adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch8/1_e.php
Now onto the pictures! All of the following pictures are my own
First we will start off along the west coast, which has a climate very similar to southern England and northern France. In fact the south eastern portion of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands between Vancouver island and the mainland are classified as a sub Mediterranean climate. This is because of a rain shadow effect created by the Olympic Mountains that makes this region considerably dry, despite its maritime climate zone. In fact Victoria is the sunniest and driest major city in all of Canada during the summer. Vancouver, while also displaying a relatively dry and sunny summer, is much more moist than Victoria.
This first pic is from the Metro Vancouver region. This is the view from the Pitt River bridge (which connects two local suburbs) looking up the Pitt River
This picture is taken from my home suburb of Maple Ridge, in Vancouver, last November looking north towards the mountains
Here is the forest behind my house on a winter's afternoon. I enjoy the rain in the winter because it keeps our forest nice and green!
This creek is also located behind my house. The winter rains give it a decent flow.
Here are some pics taken from the western edge of Metro Vancouver in February (at the University of BC)
The tram that takes people to a from the peak of Grouse Mountain in September (Metro Vancouver)
A picture of the Straight of Georgia from Seymour Mountain (just west of Grouse Mountain)
This is a photo of a natural swampland in Pitt Meadows, Metro Vancouver.
The following few pictures are of what I believe to be Canada's most beautiful tree, the Arbutus. The Arbutus thrives in the sub Mediterranean zone of BC's south coast, and its range extends all the way south to Mexico. It is Canada's only native broadleaf evergreen tree. There are a few introduced broadleaf evergreen species now in Canada, such as holly, that have naturalized themselves in the milder regions.
Here is some amazing sandstone on Hornby Island
A typical view from the Sea to Sky highway (the highway from Vancouver to Whistler)
This lake is north of Whistler, nestled in the Coast Mountains
Now we are leaving the coast of BC and heading to the dry interior, which leeward of the Coast Mountains and is home to semi-desert valleys and Canada's hottest summer temperatures (often 35 to 40 degrees C throughout July and August). These valleys are the northern most extension of the Great Basin Desert that is found throughout the American southwest, so they are very similar in appearance and host many similar plant and animal species (rattle snakes, gopher snakes, black widow spider, a tiny scorpion, cactus, sage brush, etc...). This area is where they filmed the Mexico scenes in the new A-Team movie and the Africa scenes in the 13th Warrior.
These next few pics were taken this year in the Thompson Valley, the temperature was about 38C when i took them, nice and hot!!
These pictures are taken from Osoyoos, in the Okanagan Valley, which is slightly less dry than the Thompson Valley, but it is just as hot in the summer. This Valley is the heart of BC's wine and fruit industry. It is also a major tourist area, a summer time paradise. These pics were taken n May, where summer is already in action.
This is a mineral lake just outside of Osoyoos in the surrounding hills, it is a highway side attraction. it is conveniently called "Spotted Lake"
As one drives out of the hot valleys a sage bunchgrass ecosystem gives way to higher grasslands such as this one outside of Kamloops (pic taken in November)
And then eventually to the pine, spruce, fir and aspen parkland forests of the Plateaus. Which have many beautiful clean swimming lakes, and also many alkaline lakes such as these below.
Anyways, that is all I have right now, many more to come in the future. If you ever want to travel to Canada I highly recommend coming to BC (especially in the summer) and renting a car. There are so many climates, attractions and landforms, BC has something for everyone!
Cheers
kay:
