Vancouver Christmas Bird Count

 For the first time in Vancouver, Kathryn and I decided to participate in the Christmas Bird Count in Vancouver. We ended up scouring our little patch of the city from pretty much dawn to dusk and ended up with 46 species varying from eagles to sparrows and with more than a few glaucous-winged gulls and crows in the middle.

Despite not having the immediate network for such events that we had in Manitoba, it was very easy to find the phone number of a co-ordinator on the internet and get involved. We joined a little group, bringing the total to six and had a very nice sociable day spotting everything we could.

We had great weather and some very good birds that I wasn't expecting to see like an oystercatcher, harlequin duck, and some horned grebes (shown below). Since our search area was also our neighborhood and regular stomping grounds we were able to offer up good areas, with Kathryn shining in particular by knowing to the square meter where we would find a heron and some hummingbirds.

A very enjoyable time all around which we are likely to repeat in the future. We actually ran into a woman who wanted to be out birding that day, so if you live in Vancouver and want to get involved, check out the Nature Vancouver website and get on the list for next year :)

Grey Cup Parade

 The Grey Cup was in Vancouver last week and we took a few hours early on the Saturday morning to go down and watch the parade. To help people who get confused into thinking its the "Marching Bands, Cheerleaders and Animal Mascots Parade" they periodically carry through a giant inflated football just to help keep everyone focused.

 The cup itself was part of the parade along with the football commissioner and a group of Mountie guards. Even though I don't really get the big deal with sports, its fun to see some of the regalia that goes along with it all.

 Kathryn is a Roughriders fan, but this guy is a HARDCORE Roughriders fan. Given that his team didn't even make the cup, but he still flew to Vancouver to wear bodypaint and SHOOT FIRE OUT OF HIS HEAD, I don't think anyone can question his dedication to the game.