Hey, Vancouverites! We Want to Hear Your Favourite Things About Where We Live

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Vancouverites are well-versed with just how extraordinary this city is, more than anyone else. Every day we live, work and play in one of the most awe-inspiring natural landscapes on the planet. Continue reading:
Hey, Vancouverites! We Want to Hear Your Favourite Things About Where We Live

Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Deanne Cote of North Shore Mountain Bike Association

Deanne Cote of the North Shore Mountain Bike Association rides in Duthie Hill, Washington

Deanne Cote, Executive Director of the North Shore Mountain Bike Association

Mountain biking wouldn’t be possible without trail builders. Since 1997, the North Shore Mountain Bike Association (NSMBA) has built and maintained trails on Vancouver’s North Shore. We chatted with Executive Director Deanne Cote about the ways that the NSMBA has created a volunteer-oriented mountain biking community.

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Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Deanne Cote of North Shore Mountain Bike Association

Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Ally Gandy of Mountain Mentors

Ally Gandy of Mountain Mentors skiing near Pemberton

Ally Gandy backcountry skiing near Pemberton with her former mentor Kate Inch.

Are you looking to deepen your outdoor skills, but aren’t sure how to start? Mountain Mentors is a local non-profit organization that pairs mentors and mentees to help women and people of marginalized genders gain confidence in sports like backcountry skiing, rock climbing, and hiking. We chatted with Vice President Ally Gandy about the program and the outdoor community they are building.

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Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Ally Gandy of Mountain Mentors

Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Arron Vickery of Sea to Sky Gondola

Arron Vickery guiding a school group at the Sea to Sky Gondola

Arron Vickery guiding a school group. Photo: Sea to Sky Gondola/Taraogradyphoto.com

Have you thought about turning your love of the outdoors into a career? Arron Vickery did just that and now works at Squamish’s Sea to Sky Gondola conducting safety patrols, leading hiking tours, and creating new trails. We chatted with Arron about his passion for guiding and exploring around the Sea to Sky Gondola.

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Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Arron Vickery of Sea to Sky Gondola

Celebrating Vancouver’s Queer-Run and Gender-Inclusive Companies, Past and Present

CMMN GRND; Photo credit @houseofbohn and @karinbohn

When Womyn’s Ware opened in 1995 in Vancouver, its business concept was ground-breaking. Co-founders Janna Sylvest and Otter Louis saw an industry that was often exploitative, and instead wanted to create an environment that was about community and education. “What they wanted to do was create a safe space for their clientele who were, predominantly at the time, lesbian folks,” says Lesley McHale, current co-owner of the business. The name, Womyn’s Ware, was a political statement meant to underline Sylvest’s and Louis’ feminist stance.

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Celebrating Vancouver’s Queer-Run and Gender-Inclusive Companies, Past and Present

Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Michael Coyle of Coquitlam Search and Rescue

Michael Coyle and his dog

Michael hiking with his dog Curie. Photo: Michael Coyle

Vancouverites love to spend time outdoors hiking, biking, and camping. But not every adventure goes according to plan. That’s where search and rescue (SAR) comes in. We chatted with Michael Coyle from Coquitlam Search and Rescue about what it’s like to volunteer with SAR, both professionally and personally, and what hikers in Vancouver need to know before they hit the trails.

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Vancouver Outdoor Community Spotlight: Michael Coyle of Coquitlam Search and Rescue

Dine Out Vancouver Festival: 20 Years of Supporting Local Restaurants

Twenty years ago, a group of Vancouver foodies and wine lovers got together with Destination Vancouver and had an idea to warm up a relatively cool period, just after the winter holidays, in the city’s restaurant scene. They pitched their idea of a fixed-price menu deal to run for a couple of weeks, in which restaurants could not only get bums in seats, but also feature their own take on West Coast cuisine to a whole new audience. Fifty-seven restaurants jumped at the chance that year and Dine Out Vancouver Festival was born.  Continue reading:
Dine Out Vancouver Festival: 20 Years of Supporting Local Restaurants