This whole trip has been full of "WOW!" moments, and today was no exception. This morning we drove north from Victoria about 70 miles to catch the ferry to Vancouver. It was a beautiful mountain drive. We then rode for about 90 minutes on the BC ferry to Vancouver. The first picture was taken from the Ferry of the Islands in the Bay. Instead of touring Vancouver today, however, we drove North another 70 miles on the Sea to Sky Highway to the ski resort, Whistler. Every turn was a WOW moment. The rugged snowcapped Mountains were spectacular. The second picture with the deep valley was taken along the road to Whistler. They are working on the highway to widen it in preparation for the 2010 Winter Olympics, which are scheduled for Vancouver. They will definitely use the ski slopes of Whistler for the skiing events. The road work was a mixed blessing. It took longer to get to Whistler because the construction speed limit was 30 miles an hour versus the normal 50 to 55 miles an hour. At the same time, the lower speed limit made the trip less nerve racking. They are literally moving mountains to widen the road, and they close the road for two hours each night from midnight to 2:00 am to do blasting. It will probably take the full 3 years to complete the work. Whistler was a beautiful and expensive looking Village. Skiing is still going on and will until June 3. The third photo is of Chateau Whistler and the fourth photo was Whistler Mountain. Note the ski slopes on Whistler Mountain. After having lunch at Whistler, we turned around and went back to Vancouver. The scenery was even prettier from that direction. Tomorrow we will tour Vancouver. And, yes, we found the stations showing both American Idol and Dancing with the Stars. The stations in Vancouver are primarily from Seattle, so we are hearing a lot about hometown boy, Blake Lewis. We'll watch tonight to see if Blake goes home. It was a blessing that Billy Ray got the boot from Dancing with the Stars. His fan base kept him on for too long even from his perspective.
Jack failed to mention that he almost bagged a deer on the road to the ferry this morning. I spotted the deer first. It had just entered the highway right in front of our car. I screamed. Jack braked and honked. The deer did a little circle dance then ran off into the brush along the side of the road. We didn't need a repeat of what happened on the backs roads of Utah leaving the Gold Spike National Monument.
ReplyDeleteUhh....did we fail to tell you that hunting story? Well, this beautiful pheasant walked slowly and proudly into the path of our car which was going 60 mph down the road. There was no time to brake or swerve. Car slammed into pheasant. It was not a pretty sight. I thought I would have to hand Jack a Kleenex because he was about in tears for having nailed that bird.
That night when we had our car washed in Idaho the car attendant pulled pheasant feathers from beneath our car's grill.
It sounds like the wildlife may be out to get you. I'm just happy that it was only a pheasant that you hit and not some moose, because that would have been deadly. Be careful--we want you to be around for the birth of your first grandbaby (who has been squashing his mommies ribs and lungs--I believe he is outgrowing his space).
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