British Columbia Magazine

Despite the recent strike action at Canada Post, the Summer 2011 issue of British Columbia Magazine is now sitting snugly on newsstands and should have arrived at all Canadian subscribers’ doorsteps. So tell us what you think! Did you love our special parks feature? Hate it? What would YOU choose as your “ultimate B.C. park”? Share your thoughts — whether complimentary or critical — for the chance to see your name in print. All letters received prior to August 8, 2011 will be considered for our Fall issue Mailbox. Please send to editor@bcmag.ca.

Some people like new car smell; personally, I’m fond of new book smell. So it was with delight that I opened up a box this week from Harbour Publishing containing 10 advance copies of James D. Anderson’s new book British Columbia’s Magnificent Parks: The First 100 Years. This lovely 259-page coffee table book was written by a parks insider who spent 30 years of his professional career creating and managing B.C.’s provincial parks.

We are giving away copies of the book along with a single copy of the Summer 2011 special parks issue of British Columbia Magazine on our Facebook page throughout the summer.

Our first winner was Lotte Sonne Nielsen from Denmark, one of the magazine’s many international readers. Congratulations, Lotte!

Keep your eye on our Facebook page for the next random drawing — and while you’re there, please “like” us to receive regular updates about the magazine. Now, back to that new book smell….

The Summer 2011 issue of British Columbia Magazine has hit B.C. newsstands (and once the Canadian postal strike ends, subscribers should begin receiving their copies too). Our featured contributor for the issue is photographer Byron Fry:

At age 23, Fry is already pursuing a second vocation. Call him a Renaissance man–or simply a photographer who discovered that he loves baking bread in a wood-fired oven.

Fry, also a vintage motorcycle aficionado, is now spending his days building a farm-based artisan bakery in his hometown of Metchosin, outside of Victoria. Both of Fry’s grandfathers were bakers, which may explain his affinity for kneading dough.

But before Fry became a baker, he travelled to the Broken Group of islands in Barkley Sound to bring us images from an exciting archaeological dig (”Secrets of the Sound”). Fry had first noticed the project mentioned on a University of Victoria website and was eventually invited to photograph the dig. “The work they were doing was so fascinating, and the place itself, the Broken islands, was so captivating.”

The highlight for Fry was walking around rarely visited islands on old lookout trails, the paths worn from centuries of First Nations’ habitation.

“I’m just happy to have been part of that project,” says Fry. “And I am really happy for people to see what was going on up there.”

Check out Fry’s six-minute long slideshow in which he shares additional images, as well as sound recordings, from the assignment.

Our covers often feature photos of our province’s amazing wildlife. Our Winter 2010 issue, for instance, showcased the cougar.

But with our Spring 2011 issue, we feature a creature never before seen on our cover–an Albertosaurus dinosaur. The cover story, by Vancouver-based writer Daniel Wood, zeroes in on a big find in Tumbler Ridge–British Columbia’s first complete dinosaur skeleton. (Hint: It’s not an Albertosaurus. Our cover model is on display at the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre in Tumbler Ridge.)

Pick up a copy to read more about the fascinating discoveries in this remote Northern B.C. community.

Also in this issue:

Travel through the Rockies on B.C.’s most luxurious locomotive or enjoy local excursions around the province.

Enjoy hassle-free hiking in Wells Gray Provincial Park.

Dare to get up close and personal with B.C.’s carnivorous plants.

Get away to historic Powell River.

Plus: two brand-new pages: Day Trip Diary and Person & Place. This issue, broadcaster Vicki Gabereau shares her favourite B.C. getaway.

It’s all inside the Spring 2011 issue of British Columbia Magazine, on newsstands now until early June.

With the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games in full swing, Ken Seabrook is off to Vancouver to oversee the printing of our Spring 2010 issue. (And if our Art Director should manage to catch a sporting event between press runs, or pose for a photo with a fuzzy Olympic mascot, who are we to judge?)

Here’s what you can look forward to in our latest edition.

“Kootenays: 4 hikes, 4 seasons” provides the answers to your most pressing Kootenay-adventure questions:

* Where can I hike a grand river canyon during the roaring spring run-off?

* Which trail will take me into eye-popping wildflower meadows this summer?

* Which fall month is best to hike among the fiery yellow alpine larch?

* Where can I find a string of cozy warming huts for a backcountry snowshoe trek?

“Slocan coffeehouses” takes you on a short trip up the scenic Slocan Valley, not far from Nelson, with java stops at hip shops including “Pony Espresso” and “Sleep is for Sissies.”

“Desolation Sound” will show you—with gorgeous photography by Saltspring Island photographer Ron Watts—why sailors, boaters, and paddlers sing the praises of this West Coast provincial marine park.

“It’s not easy, being green” explores the environmental issues threatening frogs around the world and examines what B.C. biologists are doing to help amphibians right now.

You’ll also find our regular departments:

Destination: Hippie Kitsilano–Vancouver in the groovy 1960s.

Echoes: Children on the Chilkoot Trail.

Outdoor Advisor: How to protect yourself from lightning in the backcountry.

Due West: Everything from Emily Carr murals and eco-cutlery to a Stonehenge-like site proposed for Barriere, B.C.

It’s that time again. Art Director Ken Seabrook is ferrying over to Vancouver tomorrow to oversee the press run of our Winter 2009 issue. Here is your SNEAK PREVIEW of the new cover:

What’s inside? Here are just a few teasers:

* For our special, 14-page “Do-it-yourself winter games” editorial package, we challenged our writers to try snowboarding, biathlon, alpine skiing, luge, hockey, and speed skating in wintery sites around British Columbia. Their enthusiastic adventures—and misadventures, including inglorious face plants and downhill tumbles—prove that B.C.’s snowscapes, mountains, and frozen ponds are not just for elite athletes, but for every outdoors-loving British Columbia with a spirit of adventure.

* Meet British Columbia’s first Olympic hero, sprinter Percy Williams, who astonished the running world by taking not ONE but TWO gold medals in 1928.

* Sprinting cougars, wrestling bears, salmon swimming marathons! Our photo essay of outstanding wildlife “action photos” showcases athletic feats of strength, speed, and endurance from the animal kingdom.

PLUS

* Dogsledding in the Cariboo. Love those Huskies!

* Backcountry skiing in the Purcells.

* The 2010 Cultural Olympiad. *  A thrill ride on Whistler-Blackcomb’s Peak2Peak Gondola. * Environmental initiatives for a “greener Games.” * The Four Host Nations. * Legacies of 2010. * And more!

It’s time to say goodbye to summer. It’s always a sad farewell, as we fold up our patio umbrellas and relegate our flip-flops and shorts to the back of the closet. But for readers of British Columbia Magazine, there is reason to embrace the change of seasons . . .

A new issue!

A new contest!

SNEAK PEAK: OUR LANDMARK 200TH ISSUE

The Fall 2009 edition has just come off the press. It’s a great package of stories and photographs to rev your engine for fall adventure, beginning with a small-town tour up the Sea-to-Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler—literally, the road to the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Associate Editor Jenny Manzer profiles Horseshoe Bay, Porteau Cove, Britiannia Beach, and more! Plus, this issue’s featured travel destination is sporty Squamish, a Sea-to-Sky hot spot for climbing, paddling, hiking, biking, and kiteboarding.

Other highlights of the Fall 2009 issue:

* Biologists working deep in grizzly country.

* Gerry Bracewell, our Annie Oakley of the Chilcotin.

* A visit to Klemtu, land of the “spirit bear.”

* And a paddling trip through the lush Columbia wetlands.

YOU COULD WIN!

Coinciding with the launch of our new Fall 2009 issue, we also launch a new Share Your B.C. monthly prize draw. Visit www.ShareYourBC.com to search our online database of hundreds of B.C. travel recommendations, submitted by travellers just like you.

Contribute your own “Top Thing to Do in B.C.” and you’ll have a chance to win a FREE one-year subscription to British Columbia Magazine. We’ll be giving away one every month for a year.

Later this month, we’ll announce the lucky winners of our 50th-anniversary Share Your B.C. summer sweepstakes draw, which closed September 8, 2009. Stay tuned!

I had an amusing thought this morning. British Columbia Magazine has been in publication longer than I’ve been alive. ☺

It is an honour to be the editor in 2009, the magazine’s 50th year of publication. And I have never been more excited about an upcoming issue than I am about the Summer 2009 edition.

Our editorial team has put together a true collector’s issue for this landmark occasion. I believe that our “50 Things to Do in B.C. Before You Die” editorial package will surprise and delight even those most dedicated subscribers who have been with us since the first issue in Summer 1959. Look for it on newsstands in mid-June.

This 50th anniversary isn’t just about the magazine; it’s also about you, our loyal and enthusiastic readers—the people who know this province, love it, and take every opportunity to explore it. And we want to hear from YOU in our anniversary year, about the places you’ve been and amazing things you’ve done.

That’s why we’ve created our new Share Your B.C. adventure database, a place for readers and travellers to post their favourite B.C. experiences. Visit www.ShareYourBC.com to search the many entries by specific activity or location. Enter your own “Top Thing to Do in B.C.” and you could be eligible to win one of four incredible B.C. travel packages, each ranging in value from $2,300 to $9,500. Don’t miss out!

See the full prize list and complete contest details at www.ShareYourBC.com/contest

As snow continues to swirl around many parts of British Columbia, we’re eagerly awaiting the first copies of our Spring 2009 issue—hot off the press this week!

It’s a terrific issue to help you start planning for warmer days and outdoor adventures. We’ve pulled together three inspiring “joy rides” to get you dreaming of the snow-free months to come.

* A horseback journey through British Columbia’s spectacular volcanic backcountry in Itcha Ilgachuz Provincial Park—a place few have heard of, much less visited.

* A mountain-biking exploration of Taylor Basin and Spruce Lake Protected Area, where the explosive colour of the subalpine wildflower meadows rivals a Jackson Pollock canvas.

* An offbeat motoring tour around Saltspring Island with resident author/artist Nick Bantock—creator of the magical Griffin & Sabine books.

Don’t despair, dear readers: those first green tendrils of spring will be poking above ground before you know it.

That’s right: you’re the first to set eyes on our new Winter 2008 cover.

Well, ok, technically the pressmen in Vancouver who watched over our print run last week were the first, along with Art Director Ken Seabrook—who stayed up all night on the press check to make sure our readers will receive the best-looking issue possible!

As I write this, copies of the new magazine are en route  to our subscribers around the world. British Columbia Magazine is mailed to more than 150 different countries. There are readers in Germany and Japan and Thailand who look forward to learning more about British Columbia with every issue.

With the winter issue, they’ll discover:

* Some scandalous secrets about Victoria’s 100-year-old Empress Hotel, including tales of lechery, thievery, and murder.

* How to read animal tracks in the snow to identify the wildlife in our winter landscape.

* Some of the most beautiful—and most beastly–creatures beneath the Pacific Ocean.

* Two great reasons to head North for a snowy holiday: incredible backcountry skiing in Sugarbowl-Grizzly Den Provincial Park and a zany winter carnival in the nearby city of Prince George.

* And much, much more. Welcome to winter!