British Columbia Magazine

It is a very special issue our readers will be picking up in the next couple of weeks. Our Summer 2008 edition marks the 150th year since British Columbia was founded as a Crown colony in 1858.

As I write this, the printers are wrapping this striking celebratory cover around our 100-page summer issue—our largest issue since the magazine was launched in 1959!

A special tip of my editor’s hat goes to all of the editorial staff for their work on this issue, particularly on the remarkable “Our history in pictures” photo essay, which takes readers on a visual journey over the past 150 years. Hundreds of hours of research went into the selection of photos and the accompanying text in this one-of-a-kind 18-page photo essay.

Other articles in the issue include:

* “Fast boat to Hell”: In which award-winning Vancouver writer Daniel Wood plunges into history on the Fraser River, daring to run Hells Gate exactly 200 years after explorer Simon Fraser wisely dodged these deadly rapids. Features a beautiful double-page Fraser River map.

* “Opening doors”: A profile of the exceptional new Haida Heritage Centre in Kaay Llnagaay, near Skidegate in the Queen Charlotte Islands, which is playing a key role in the spiritual, cultural, and economic revitalization of the First Nations of Haida Gwaii.

* “The enchanted Incomappleux forest”: Explore a Tolkienesque Interior rainforest in the Kootenays, complete with a waterfall-powered eco-hostel, gargantuan old-growth trees, secrets springs, and goblin’s gold.

* And much, much more!

Check back soon to our magazine’s website to view the new Photo Gallery, where we’ll be posting more than a dozen wonderful historical photographs from times gone by in British Columbia.

As the editor of a quarterly magazine with long production lead times, I often have my head in the next season while my body lags behind in the current one. This week, as British Columbians are kicking up powder on downhill slopes and mushing huskies on northern dog-sledding adventures, I’m sending our Spring 2008 issue off to press.

Throughout the chilly winter months, the editorial staff here have been preparing the articles that will bring our readers the bright optimism of spring in B.C. The issue is a diverse mix of travel, science, parks, and wildlife content, including:

* A deluxe safari adventure in Clayoquot Sound.
* The comical dances of Columbian sharp-tailed grouse.
* Stunning photography of a proposed new national park.
* The mysterious workings of the soil in supporting all life in this province.

Our cover story profiles the remarkable Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary, the only park of its kind in Canada created specifically to protect these remarkable large predators. Check back soon to our magazine’s website (www.bcmag.ca) to view the Photo Gallery, where we’ll be posting more than a dozen spectacular grizzly bear images. 

From editor Anita Willis:

Our latest issue profiles the wild grandeur of the Cariboo-Chilcotin, a fabled frontier of ranchlands and grasslands, ancient hoodoos and river-carved gorges. We are proud to showcase the photography of Chris Harris, who lives in the Cariboo near 100 Mile House. His work showcases the splendid and subtle beauty of this region’s diminishing grassland areas, vividly described in the cover story by Vancouver writer Brian Payton.

Also in the region, we introduce you to the restored Cariboo mining town of Wells. This great little-known getaway is often overlooked by travellers hot-footing it to historic Barkerville. Those who take the time to stop in will find a rich network of mountain trails to hike and bike, and in town, a colourful influx of artists who are literally painting the town red–and pink, and purple, and yellow, and sky blue.

The North is also highlighted in this issue, with a paddling trip on the Nation Lakes chain–the best paddling trip you’ve never heard of! And two secret gold-mining villages in the Omineca region: Manson Creek and Germansen Landing.

Plus: endearing sea otters, Vancouver’s historic Avalon Dairy, and wilderness first-aid advice that could save a life–maybe even your own. A great issue: don’t miss it!