British Columbia Magazine

If you’re one of those thoroughbred West Coasters who prefers cool breezes and just a hint of sunshine over truly sweltering summer temperatures, than the heat wave currently baking southern B.C. is likely making you grumble. Luckily, Whistler Blackcomb has a novel remedy for cooling down — snow! The ski resort reports that enough of the white stuff remains in the alpine at the top of the Whistler Village Gondola that, for the first time ever in July, guests can go snow shoeing and tubing at a three-lane park. Blackcomb Peak’s Horstman Glacier is also open for summer skiing and snowboarding until July 25.

There are plenty of other, more traditionally summery things to do in Whistler as well, including golf, river rafting, biking, and ziplining. See www.whistlerblackcomb.com for more options.

If you enjoyed learning about British Columbia’s hundreds of “Sleeping Giants” in our Summer 2010 issue, hot off the presses, try spending a day playing amateur volcanologist and exploring the wonders of the Sea-to-Sky Highway.

Natural Resources Canada’s Sea-to-Sky GeoTour guidebook provides information on the origins of the awe-inspiring geological landmarks along the route, including glaciers, mountains, and volcanoes.

Download the free guide or listen to the audio version on an MP3, which includes interviews with scientists like Melanie Kelman, a co-author of the tour, and one of the experts quoted in our volcanoes story. For more information on the famed stretch of Highway 99, check out the photo essay in our Fall 2009 issue.

Head to Castlegar this week for your chance to meet one of British Columbia’s most fascinating fish, face to face.

On Wednesday, April 22nd, the public is invited to help release juvenile white sturgeon by hand into the Columbia River.

The young fish to be let into the wild are only 15 to 25 centimetres long and weigh approximately 60 grams, but may ultimately grow as big as a canoe and live for 100 years!

White sturgeon have existed since prehistoric times, but are now struggling to survive due to habitat degradation, water contamination, poaching, and other factors. Approximately 10,000 10-month-old sturgeon have been released into B.C.’s Columbia River over the last seven years in an attempt to shore up this population (one of six in the province), while biologists search for more long-term solutions. There are perhaps 1,000 adults in the B.C. portion of the Columbia today.

The release, hosted by the Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program, will take place at Hugh Keenleyside Dam from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. For more on white sturgeon, check out “The amazing sturgeon” in the Fall 2008 issue of British Columbia Magazine.

Your favourite hiking trail is a great place to look for wildlife tracks in winter. Ecological meeting places and wetlands are also rich territory, writes Larry Pynn in our Winter 2008 cover story, “especially the transition area between meadow and forest, which provides animals with both food and cover into which they may escape.” 

Here are a few other tracker tips to bear in mind when trying to decode animal tracks:

* River otters are agile in water but rather clumsy on land. Look for long slide marks between prints, and note that the otter’s webbed back toes may only be visible in mud tracks. 

* Marks left in the snow by a cougar’s tail can help you distinguish between this cat and the equally elusive lynx. 

* The hind toes of the snowshoe hare spread to form a broad “snowshoe” four to 12 centimetres wide. Watch for intercepting tracks of the hare’s many avian and mammal predators.

“Share the Road.” It’s a phrase we normally associate with cyclists, but as the Victoria Day holiday approaches, it’s important to remember that wildlife use our roadways, too. According to the the Wildlife Collison Prevention Program (WCPP), more than 19,500 animals are killed each year on B.C. roads.  About 76% of these incidents involve deer; moose, elk, coyotes, bears and other wildlife make up the remaining 24% of annual animal fatalities. Before you set off this long weekend, consider the following drive-safe tips:

Watch for the signs - The yellow, diamond-shaped Wildlife Warning Sign warns of a hazard ahead.

Reduce speed -  Reduce speed, regardless of road or weather conditions, whenever your travels take you through a high density wildlife area.

Drive defensively - Actively watch for movement or shining eyes, on and beside the road, especially between dusk and dawn. Moose are especially difficult to see because of their dark coats; their height also places them above most headlights.

Use your vehicle - Wear your seatbeat at all times, and use your horn or flash your lights to frighten animals off the road. Keep your headlights on high beam at night for greater long-range visibility.  

For more tips and information about how to avoid a wildlife vehicle collision, visit the Wildlife Collision Prevention Program website.  

The next time you’re caught outside in an electrical storm, remember Environment Canada’s “30/30 Rule.” It just might save your life.

Here’s how it works: count the seconds between the flash of a lightning strike and the next boom of thunder. If it’s under 30 seconds, the storm is less than 10 kilometres away and, according to Environment Canada, there is an 80-percent chance the next strike will occur within that 10-kilometre radius.

Now is the time to take shelter: quickly! Get inside a house, if possible, into an all-metal vehicle, or move to a low-lying area. Stay put. Once you’ve heard the last peal of thunder, wait for 30 minutes before leaving your shelter.

Unfortunately, there was little shelter from the storm for the climbers in our Winter 2007 cover story, “Terror on Bugaboo Spire.” The events that transpired when a lightning storm trapped the foursome near the summit of the treacherous, 3,176-metre granite peak in the Kootenay’s Purcell Mountains are almost beyond belief.

Chances are, once you’ve read about the adventure in our Winter 2007 issue, you’ll never forget the “30/30 Rule.” But just in case, the good folks at Sport Research Intelligence and Environment Canada have produced a downloadable, wallet-sized 30/30 card.

For more information about the dangers of lightning storms, visit Environment Canada’s website.