Whistler

June 19 ~ 23

The "Sea to Sky Drive" from Vancouver to Whistler is near the top of the list for drama and beauty.

It's also near the top of Rick's list in white knuckle driving....narrow, lots of switchbacks and up and down the mountain.  But, boy did I enjoy it from the back!

We're staying in a kind of funny place named Riverside RV Resort (whistlercamping.com), but it simply could  not be in a  better location.... in the village and no more than 3 minutes to the resort.  We didn't like our interior site we were first assigned, but the perimeter mountain view location we moved to was just fine.  We looked over their putting course and onto the snow-capped mountains.

It is also bordered by a wonderful walking/biking paved path and a rushing stream.  On one walk, Rick decided he would build his own inukshuk, orginally a First Nation path marker which has morphed into a national Canadian symbol of welcome.

The trail then led us to the most marvelous discovery....Nicklaus North Golf Resort (golfwhistler.com).  Not only did the course look wonderful, the path led around Green Lake, a most extraordinary sight.

Stopped in the pro-shop to book a tee time for the next day and decided since there seemed to be no booking problem, to wait and see what the weather brought.  Middle of June, still nippy and mostly overcast.

Glad we waited, got to wait it out for a perfect day and found a website (golfbc.com), where we were able to book a time for almost half the listed price.

Managed to play pretty well which really surprised me since we hadn't played in three months.  The course is challenging, but fair.  Five sets of tees lets you pick a comfortable length.  It's pretty, with nice mountain and pond views, but not stunning until you get to 15.  The finishing holes border on the gorgeous lake with the float planes.

Dinner on the terrace capped off a terrific day....great food and an incredible view.

Whister Blackcomb Village  (whistlerblackcomb.com) is massive.  Was stunned at the number of hotels and residential units that fill the area.  Couple of weird things though; you really have to search to find all the shops and restaurants.  It wasn't until our second visit that we discovered them.  If you make your way to the chair lifts you will finally find all the action.

The other rather odd thing is that nearly all traces of the Olympics are gone.  The medal ceremony park is being turned into a playground....and what's there now is adorable.  The Olympic store is closed and the mogul hill is turned into a bike run for the summer.

This is the only remmant left....an outdoor table for an ice cream shop that has the mascots strapped in.

Most of the stores are very outdoorsy of the rugged variety...there are, however, two very good markets.  The IGA in the Village and Nestor's on the highway.  I finally scored an Olympic pin, of snowboarding, for Ian...found it at the IGA.

Visited the Aboriginal Cultural Center (slcc.ca) hoping to see some wonderful exhibits about the Squamish and Lil'wat nations that first settled the area.  It is a lovely building with very amatuerish displays...and at $18 a head, very disappointing.  This was a representation of a shawl.

Rick was fascinated, though, by the engineering of an out building called the Pit House that was a representation of a traditional dwelling.

We loved Whistler...lovely and beautiful.  Tomorrow we put Tor on a ferry to Vancouver Island.  Going to go up the central coast to some areas that are a bit off the beaten path.