But first, a quick shout out to all who swung by my #1 watering hole in Vancouver, the “Yaletown Brewing Company” for a pint on Saturday night. It was fantastic to see so many faces belonging to friends that I have and will cherish for life! You guys are what makes a 6-year stint in ANY country worth while, so thank you, thank you, thank you!

South America – Here I come!

With some help and thanks to my buddy Erin (@EzzaAtGap), I’ve got myself booked on a 31-day tour of Peru and Bolivia on G Adventures’ “Altiplano Expedition” tour which kicks off this Friday in Lima, Peru. Taking in some of the highlight destinations on the South American continent like the ancient and mysterious “Machu Picchu” as well as the salt flats of “Salar de Uyuni” in Bolivia, the tour consisting of 12-15 other people will take in the following rough itinerary:

Day 1 – Lima

Free day to explore Lima, the capital of Peru in my own time.

Day 2 – Pisco

Free morning in Lima before travelling by bus to Pisco,

Day 3, 4 – Nazca

Optional visit to Ballestas Island before travelling to Nazca. En route stop at a winery and at the Oasis of Huacachina. Guided tour of Nazca desert cemetery and potters studio. Optional flight over the Nazca Lines before the night bus to Arequipa.

Day 5-7 – Arequipa/Chivay/Colca Canyon

Free day in Arequipa for an optional visit to the Catalina Convent or individual exploration. Guided tour to Colca Canyon to spot condors. Optional visit to local hot springs. Return to Arequipa on Day 7.

Day 8 – Cuzco

Fly to Cuzco. Take an optional city tour or explore the city’s markets, museums and plazas.

Day 9 – Ollantaytambo

Full-day guided tour of the Sacred Valley and Ollantaytambo ruins. Shopping opportunities at a local market.

Day 10-13 – Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

4-day guided Inca Trail hike with visit to Machu Picchu. Optional climb up to Huayna Picchu or a visit to the Inca Bridge before returning to Cuzco.

Day 14-16 – Cuzco

Free time to explore Cuzco or relax. Active options include whitewater rafting, horseback riding and mountain biking.

Day 17 – Puno

Travel day by bus from Cuzco to Puno.

Day 18, 19 – Lake Titicaca

2-day excursion to visit the floating Islands of Uros and take a guided tour of Lake Titicaca with a homestay in a small village. Optional visit to Sillustani burial site.

Day 20, 21 – La Paz

Travel by bus and cross the border into Bolivia, arriving to La Paz.

Day 22 – Uyuni

Travel by train and bus to the town of Uyuni.

Day 23-25 – Uyuni/Salt Lakes Excursion

3-day 4×4 excursion to the Salar de Uyuni and surrounding desert altiplano with spectacular scenery.

Day 26 – Potosi

Bus journey from Uyuni to Potosi. Optional excursion to a working silver mine or free time to explore the city.

Day 27-29 – Sucre

Continue by bus to Sucre. Optional visit to the nearby dinosaur tracks, or explore the beautiful colonial city.

Day 30 – La Paz

Fly to La Paz. Optional city tour and free time to explore the markets and winding streets.

Day 31 – La Paz

A final free day in La Paz to explore this amazing high altitude city.

If you want to read into the itinerary in any further detail, check it out on the G Adventures website here.

With that said I’d better get to it – see you on the flip side!

The product known as “Wavegarden”, can be installed in new or existing lakes and ponds in an environmentally safe and friendly way that involves wave generation technology being hidden, either underground or underwater. The entire dealio just looks dead set cool and presents an exciting opportunity for inland communities to have access to waves in an economically viable way.

To find out more about the concept, check out the official “Wavegarden” website and check out the promotional video below.

Following the extreme snowboarding antics of top boarders Travis Rice, John Jackson, Mark Landvik, Scotty Lago, Jake Blauvelt, Nicolas Muller, Gigi Ruf, DCP and Pat Moore, “The Art of Flight” looks like it’s going to provide another exciting visual feast of adventure from the “Red Bull” stable.

But don’t take my word for it, watch the trailer below. If that 3:30min masterpiece doesn’t turn you on just a little bit, then you, my friend, are not human!

PS. The killer track used for the trailer above is “Fire Shall Devour Them” by “The Three Corners of the Earth”, a collaboration between Anthony Gonzalez from “M83″ and Curt Morgan from “Brain Farm”.

So Friday morning I headed out to YVR to board the 11:30am Air North flight bound for Whitehorse. Clear skies were in order and I spent quite a bit of time gasping over the beauty of the frozen landscapes that were being presented below. After a few short hours the wheels were down and were skidding along a partially snowy runway at Whitehorse International Airport.

Acclimatising in Whitehorse

My good mate Chad was generously standing at the baggage carousel when I emerged from the oh-so-short walk from the Air North Boeing 737 to the arrivals lounge (a MASSIVE contrast to the 1km+ to the same end in Shanghai last year). There’s always a certain chilly thrill I get from leaving the Whitehorse International Airport terminal during the winter and hoofing it to a vehicle a couple of dozen meters away. Despite the small distance, the cold which you can almost guarantee will be -15 degrees celsius or worse, still has enough time to penetrate every last soft tissue in your body leaving you more than aware that your’re but a day’s drive to the Arctic Circle.

On Friday, it was no different.

The only way to combat the need to acclimatise, of course, was to throw on a heavy, fur lined, hooded jacket and wander into town, and down to the edge of the mighty Yukon River, to have a look around. I’ve become quite familiar with this Northern town over the years, so finding something to eat and a few decent galleries to peruse was no effort.

The Starting Line

With the 2011 Yukon Quest 1,000 Mile Race set to kick off at 11am (so I found out from the official website on Friday night) I was up early enough to hopefully slip out of the house without disturbing baby Sonny, Chad or Peg. As it turned out, Chad was already up by the time I got vertical, so we made plans to meet in the early afternoon in town towards the end of the race start.

With that I scampered off heading for main street where the race has kicked off the last two years (2007/2009) that Whitehorse has hosted the race start. By the time I was 3/4 of the way down the main street I began to wonder if I had gotten the dates all mixed up, or something. The place was deserted. Had it not been for a small printed sign on a door at the end of the street letting people know that the start line had been moved this year, about 1km away at “Shipyard’s Park”, I would have been left scratching my head wondering what happened to the race.

A quick change of course and I soon found myself in a large car park area that was doubling as the crew assembly area for the 25 crews taking part (see table below) in the 2011 event.

With final preparations including vet checks taking place, it was the perfect opportunity to get around and take some up close profile shots of these beautiful beasts before making my way to the starting line/chute where all the action kicked off right on 11am like clockwork!

Takinhi River

As we’ve done on previous occasions, as soon as the last team ripped down the chute away from the starting line, Chad and I, after a quick coffee to warm up our insides, jumped in his truck and headed out to a far bend in the Takinhi River, a bend where we’d be able to get down onto the frozen river surface and get close to the passing dog teams without the crowds present back in town.

It’s always a bit of a gold mine photography-wise, and our efforts to make it out there in time, this time, didn’t go without reward as you can see from the following selection of shots.

After a quick return back to home base for less than an hours rest, it was back down to the starting line ready for the start of the smaller “Yukon Quest 300″ race as the light began to fade.

Yukon Quest 300 Kicks Off

Featuring less experienced mushers and mushers looking to use the 300 as a way of qualifying for future Yukon Quest 1,000 and Iditarod challenges, this year’s 300 starting list featured some familiar faces for me from previous Whitehorse starts, as well as a healthy International representation with mushers from Switzerland, France and even Australia taking part.

All-in-all, a predictably enjoyable day in pretty comfortable temperatures under blue skies – a trend that one can only hope will follow the mushers and their teams as they make their way towards the respective finish lines in Fairbanks, Alaska (1,000 Race) and Pelly Crossing, Yukon (300 Race).

As darkness fell, it was time for me to head back to join Chad, Peg & little Sonny and some of their extended family members for a delicious dinner of Elk Tacos! That’s right, Elk Tacos! So awesome!

Lodging payment via hard labour

Now that Peg has little Sonny (only a few months old) to attend to round the clock, it seemed only right that I pay for the lodging and generous hospitality afforded me by my hosts over the course of the weekend by throwing on my “lumberjack” cap and heading out into the forest to help Chad take down some trees for firewood for the next month and a bit.

Hitting the road early Sunday morning and chasing the pink-washed sky out of town into a beautiful part of the territory, we eventually came to a spot Chad knew well, that was in a legal firewood gathering zone, and we began the task of finding dead trees to cut down, chop up, and load into the sizeable trailer we were hauling. With the snow being about thigh deep, it wasn’t the easiest of tasks, but I certainly wasn’t expecting the job to be a holiday by any means.

Over 6-7 hours, we took down 8 large spruce, fir & pine trees with a chainsaw, cut them up into perfect fire log chunks and arranged them carefully in the trailer to maximise carrying capacity.

So, how did we go in the end? Well, needless to say the house should stay cosy and warm for the next little bit with a decent triple-layered stack of prime firewood now in the front yard all ready to go.

The only thing left to do was head indoors, cast off a few layers, stoke up the fire and settle down in front of the TV with Sonny and watch the Superbowl. NFL in general, and therefore the game, doesn’t do much for me, but a little armchair sport action to cap off the eventful weekend was just what the doctor ordered!

Whether anyone believes me or not, I had a funny feeling that we were going to be in for a great sunset and it’s always been a dream/bucket list item to be up on Grouse overlooking Vancouver’s downtown as the sun set at the distant reaches of English Bay. I’ve heard people rave about the spectacle, some going as far as saying it’s a truly unique experience that everyone should have the chance to take in before they die. I, for one, didn’t need anymore motivation to get up there!

The 45min or so journey from my apartment to the Grouse Mountain chalet is less than an hour despite covering three modes of public transport (Skytrain, Seabus & Bus). Sounds unbelievable to have a hill the quality of Grouse so close to home, but Vancouverites are well aware of the fortunate position they find themselves in.

Heading across Burrard Inlet on the Seabus, the ski fields (see image below) beckon in the distance not all that far away from my workplace (approx. 17 minutes by Bus). Crazy, I know!

Once at the top, I strapped in, got a few runs on “The Cut” under my belt before heading straight for the Quicksilver Terrain Park to see if there were any gun boarders and skiers around, flipping and contorting in the air. The following are a a few shots I captured of some pretty talented kids.

Leaving the terrain park, it was up to “The Peak” and the highest vantage point possible from which to catch the pending sunset.

The whole idea was to get a few quality runs in as the sun dropped behind the horizon and give the sky a chance to be drenched in colour, ready for me to snap the shot I have been wanting to take for almost 6 years now. Here’s what I ended up with.

What do you think? It’ll do, eh? – haha! Good enough to make it into my project365 as day #3 anyway.

I can’t recommend a Grouse Mountain winter sunset viewing enough. Whether on ski, board, snowshoe or foot, it’s a spectacle I’ll certainly remember for a long time and I hope others who have not known about it get the chance to experience too after reading this entry.

Like it or not, social media networks and applications like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and the focus of this post, Gowalla, are becoming major influencers in our lives. The rapid adoption of smart phones like the iPhone, Blackberry and Android, mean that we have 24/7 ready access to information and news regarding our friends at any time.

Perhaps the most recent players on the social application scene are location based applications such as Gowalla and Foursquare. Such services allow users to keep track of where their friends are in the world and allow them to discover share new places and hot spots through the posting of photos, recommendations and more.

The focus of this post is, in my opinion, the better of these two aforementioned services – Gowalla, and how you can use Gowalla to complete a really fun and entertaining walking tour of Vancouver, British Columbia as outlined in part one of this post series.

What is Gowalla?

There’s no need for me to reinvent the wheel on something like this, so here’s a well written description as listed on the Gowalla Wikipedia page:

Gowalla is a primarily mobile web application that allows users to check-in to locations that they visit using their mobile device. This is achieved either through the use of dedicated applications available on Google Android, iPhone, Palm WebOS and BlackBerry, or via m.gowalla.com. Check-ins can be pushed via Notifications to iPhones, and by linking accounts, to Twitter and Facebook.

Why Gowalla & not Foursquare?

So why did I choose Gowalla, with a userbase of around 150,000, instead of competing application Foursquare, which is reported to have over 500,000 users? I could attempt to cover the main arguments myself, but I recently read a brilliant post by tech blogger Roger Erik Tinch that covers everything beautifully – especially in this one opening paragraph:

Mind you, I was using Foursquare before Gowalla, but I found it to be a very tedious and frustrating process in adding locations compared to Gowalla’s elegant solution of using GPS coorindates to determine your “spot” (of course Foursquare has added this feature in recent versions). From there I fell in love with the idea of “items” and the strong sense of design (particularly icons) that added to this intriguing notion of owning these virtual goods. It’s become a tiring routine of trying to sell people on Gowalla while I watch them “check-in” on Foursquare. Kind of reminds me of 2007 when I constantly peddled Facebook as the social network to join while calling MySpace an also-ran. But, I digress…

Check out Roger’s full, thoughtful article here.

The Gowalla “Walking Tour of Vancouver” Trip

I guess the main point to this post is to let you know that there’s now a “Walking Tour of Vancouver” trip available on Gowalla which I set up recently.

By using Gowalla as your guide for spots to check-in at along the way, your chances of getting lost are slim, you have the opportunity of picking up and swapping random items as you go (see images below), and at the end of it you’ll have enjoyed an entertaining day seeing some of the best free attractions Vancouver has to offer, and you’ll receive your very own “Walking Tour of Vancouver” pin which you can add to your collection.

You can check out the full list of trip locations on part one of this post series which you can find here.

Personally, I’d LOVE to see my “Walking Tour of Vancouver” become a featured trip on Gowalla and receive a special badge icon (*hint, hint*). The current camera icon is lovely, but wouldn’t it be awesome to see a prominent Vancouver icon used instead?

Part one of this special two-part blog series will take a general look at what you can see on my “Walking Tour of Vancouver”, by listing some of the major sights along the way.

Of course, I don’t expect others to remember the route and/or the spots you should be looking out for along the way, so I have spent some time creating a “Walking Tour of Vancouver Trip” on popular location based social application, “Gowalla”. By checking-in with your smart phone (iPhone, Blackberry, Android) at the following listed locations using Gowalla as you go, you’ll eventually earn yourself a “Vancouver Walking Tour” pin and potentially get your hands on a number of “items” along the way to add to your Gowalla collection.

All this Gowalla talk may be like a foreign language to most, which is why I have prepared a second post for this two-part Walking Tour of Vancouver post series. In it I take a look at the Gowalla service, why I like it more than arguably the most popular location based social application, Foursquare, and how it can add a little bit of extra fun to your Vancouver site-seeing experience.

Click here to check it out.

View Gowalla Walking Tour of Vancouver in a larger map.

Walking Tour Highlights

The following locations/attractions are pretty much all free and act only as major stops of note on this Walking Tour of Vancouver which starts off in Gastown and finishes on Granville Island. There’s so much more you can and will see between these spots, so make sure you bring your camera with you!

As you can see from the summary trip map above, each spot is pretty easily accessible from the one proceeding, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding your way around. It’s a fairly long day during which you cover a pretty large distance on foot (roughly 7miles (11km)), so your fitness level is going to want to be good to better-than-average. Capiche?

Ok… let’s begin.

a. Cafe Medina

560 Beatty Street, Vancouver. V6B 2L3

Kick off your day with a hearty breakfast at Cafe Medina on Beatty Street – definitely one of the best breakfast/brunch spots in Vancouver. Get there early or prepared to wait outside in line for a spell… the secret’s out.

HOT TIP: Try the Paella – “One baked egg, curried orzo, hungarian chorizo, zucchini, red pepper, roast corn, grano padano, avocado and tomato salad.” It’s a WINNER!

b. Gassy Jack Statue

Leaving Cafe Medina, head about 3 blocks north-east to the eastern end of Gastown to the statue of Fraser River pilot turned saloon keeper – Capt. John “Gassy Jack” Deighton.

Considered the founding Father of Gastown (which later became incorporated as the City of Vancouver), Gassy Jack’s statue fittingly marks the start of your walking tour in the spot where the city of Vancouver began.

c. Gastown Steam Clock

Heading west along the cobblestones of Water Street, you’ll eventually reach one of Gastown and Vancouver’s most beloved monuments on the corner of Cambie Street – the Gastown Steam Clock. Undergoing a complete restoration over the years the four-faced clock is now listed as a heritage feature, and is promoted as such.

There’s every chance that you’ll arrive in time to hear the clock announce the quarter hour with a cloud of steam and whistle chime that plays the “Westminster Quarters”. The whole shebang is somewhat underwhelming if you ask me, but hey, the hoards of tourists that gather to witness the spectacle hour after hour seem to take some delight out of the display, so who am I to judge!

d. Steamworks Brewery

Continuing along Water Street you’ll arrive at one of Vancouver’s most popular micro-breweries, the Steamworks Brewery, where you can enjoy any of the hand-crafted ales and lagers brewed on-site.

My HOT TIP: if it’s in season, is a cold pint of the Coal Porter. It’s every bit as smooth as suggested!

e. Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre

Exiting Steamworks (if you end up sipping on a brew), you’ll notice Waterfront Station right in front of you. If you walk towards the station and continue past it heading West sticking to the water’s edge, you’ll eventually arrive at Vancouver’s Convention Centres – the old and the new. You can’t miss the iconic sails of the old version, while the new structure, having served as the press centre for the 2010 Winter Olympics, is worth wandering through if permitted.

f. The Olympic Cauldron and Flame

Popping out the end of the new Convention Centre, you’ll arrive at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics cauldron. More than 12,000 people had the chance to carry the flame that lit this impressive structure throughout the memorable games in early 2010.

g. Harbour Air

Dropping down the stairs back to water level, you’ll have the chance to view Harbour Air’s seaplane airport. With over 25 years of service and more than 30 aircraft, it’s the (self-proclaimed) largest all-seaplane airline in the world.

h. Vancouver Rowing Club

Following the sea wall, which you are now on, along towards the beginning of Stanley Park, you’ll eventually arrive at the unmistakable heritage building perched over the water that serves as the Vancouver Rowing Club. Established in 1886, the rowing club offers decent photographic opportunities any time of the year.

i. Totem Poles

Following the scenic sea wall path for a distance, you’ll eventually arrive at Stanley Park’s, and perhaps one of Vancouver’s, most visited tourist attractions. The series of 8 totem poles each have their own story to tell supported well by descriptive signage.

j. Lumberman’s Arch

Passing straight through the Totem Pole monument area you’ll arrive back on the sea wall which you should head left on. You’ll eventually arrive at a kid’s water park which is where you will leave the wall and head into the interior of Stanley Park.

The first landmark you’ll arrive at is “Lumberman’s Arch” – a timber-and-stump archway that replaced the original Lumbermen’s Arch built by lumber workers for a visit by the Duke of Connaught to Vancouver back in 1912. The arch also marks the beginning of a tree grove which, in the Fall (Autumn), is quite possibly one of the most beautiful places in Vancouver.

k. Vancouver Aquarium

At the end of the tree grove, on the western side of the Aquarium just south of the Japanese Canadian War Memorial, you’ll find a pathway that takes you down into a free viewing area where you can get a great and FREE look at the Vancovuer Aquarium’s main attraction Beluga Whales. Time it right and you almost get the best seat in the house for the 2pm show.

l. Lost Lagoon

Leaving the Aquarium, you’ll want to follow provided signage towards nearby Lost Lagoon – easily one of the best spots in Stanley Park to come face to face with a wide selection of wildlife from ducks and swans, to squirrels, bald eagles and raccoons.

HOT TIP: You’re almost guaranteed an encounter with raccoons near the bridge at the western end of the lagoon.

m. English Bay

Leaving Lost Lagoon and whatever critters you found there, make your way back to the water and the sea-wall. At the south-eastern end of Stanley Park’s section of sea wall lies one of Vancouver’s most populated beaches – English Bay Beach. Get some sand between your toes, take a dip, or just take a seat and indulge in some people watching as a diverse crowd of individuals pass by.

n. Inukshuk

Continuing along the sea wall towards False Creek, you’ll arrive at the English Bay Inukshuk. This ancient symbol of Inuit culture was positioned on the point at the mouth of False Creek in 1987 and was an iconic monument during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

o. Aquatic Centre Ferry Stop

Heading in the direction of the Burrard Bridge, you’ll come to the Aquatic Centre Ferry stop. One of the quickest and most scenic ways to travel from the sea wall on the northern shore of False Creek, across to Granville Island is via one of the cute little False Creek Ferries.

p. Granville Island

Granville Island is easily one of Vancouver’s best locations for wining, dining, shopping and just a neat spot for general site-seeing. Grab a freshly brewed beer at the Granville Island Brewery while you look over photos from your day’s journey, or grab some fresh produce from the bustling public market.

Arriving at Granville Island you will have officially concluded my walking tour, the same tour I have shared with a number of Aussie and other overseas visitors over the years.

The original idea was to tackle my new favourite trail, the BCMC (British Columbia Mountaineering Club), to the top of Grouse Mountain and kick around up there for a bit before coming down late afternoon in time for the Canucks vs Red Wings Game, but I was enjoying the trails so much that I decided to make a big day of it and take the Baden Powell/Skyline Trail for quite a ways before doubling back jumping on the BCMC (as per map above) as originally planned.

The BCMC for those who don’t know, is an alternative trail to the infamous “Grouse Grind”, leading hikers up to Grouse Mountain’s chalet. Almost an identical distance (2.9km) and scaling the same grueling elevation gain (2,800 feet) as the Grind, the BCMC has the major advantage of being largely unknown, and therefore enjoys far less traffic on a day-to-day basis – perfect for a weekend ascent!

One of my favourite places to be in Vancouver for sure!

I spent a good couple of hours today reading right through his initial posts and thoroughly enjoyed every one of them. The theme and content of his Blog is pretty similar to what I present, so if you find my content at all entertaining or interesting in any way, make sure you add Joe’s site to your RSS reader or weekly “must-visit” list.

If for no other reason, keep an eye on HugeAwesome.com to be among the first to see Joe’s incredible travel images. The man certainly knows how to take stunning images, and he’s managed just in the past 12 months to snap a number of images (a couple of teasers below) that I could only dream of capturing!

Awesome work mate – congratulations on a fantastic release!

This year’s overall winner, Chris Burkard’s inspirational golden light surfing image was revealed at the end of August in a free exhibition held at Dublin’s Trinity College in Ireland.

Winners were selected in a number of categories which covered the following image subjects:

Below are just a few of the category winning images shot by some clearly talented photographers from around the world:

Marcel Lämmerhirt – Category Winner 2010: Wings

Stuart Gibson – Category Winner 2010: Energy

Adam Kokot – Category Winner 2010: Spirit

You can check out the 50 finalists and all of the category winners, as well as vote for your favourite image in the competition’s “People’s Choice” award by visiting the Red Bull Illume website at: www.redbullillume.com