It’s been a while since I’ve done a Pics & Vids so there’s a bit of a back-log of stuff, but here we go:

- This amazing collection of time lapse footage around Vancouver has been making its rounds in the blogging world:

- One hiker had a triple near-death experience:

- @Steph_Woods on Twitter had the astute observation, that whoever made this ad clearly isn’t a snowboarder:

- From Kayak Yak, ‘the most amazing footage you’ll see today’. A kayaker gets taking OUT by goose!:

- Great new video from Steph Davis’ blog; Eiger Birds:

Eiger Birds from steph davis on Vimeo.

- Shaun White lands a Double McTwist 1260 at Grand Prix:

- How cruel, and how awesome, to prank someone who is bungee jumping:

- Gadling has 10 things you shouldn’t try in a kayak. 1 video is below, but make sure you check them all out:

- Paddling.net has a beautiful video of what its like to kayak Vancouver Island’s Broken Island Group:

- @TourismSquamish just released a cool new video:

- Vancouver resident Colin Adair has some great snowboarding photography to check out [via Vancouver is Awesome]:

Related Posts:
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 05/12/2009
• Pics & Clips Of The Week 24/04/2009
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 01/10/2009

Tags: Base Jump,Bungee Jumping,Colin Adair,Kayaking,Shaun White,Snowboarding & Skiing,Steph Davis,Vancouver
Categories: Pics & Vids of the Week
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- Boston.com has a nice collection of some entries into this year’s National Geographic International Photography contest. Be sure to check out the gallery, there is some amazing stuff:

- A skiier escapes an avalanche using a parachute [via Outside Blog]

- “This video has been making the rounds the last couple of days, but it’s definitely worth sharing. It features National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen telling about an amazing experience he had while taking shots in Antarctica. Paul was actually in the water, getting shots of penguins and seals, when one of the lion seals, a 12-foot long predator, seemingly mistook him as one of its own kind, and proceeded to attempt teach him how to hunt, and even showing him how to feed.” [via The Adventure Blog]:

- Nice new BASE jumping vid from Steph Davis’ blog:

Swiss Valley from steph davis on Vimeo.

- A couple goodies from Wend Blog. The first is a wind surfing close call, the second is a nice collection of 10 crazy snowboarding aerials.

- Enjoying some of November’s pow in Whistler [via @anthonybonello]:

Davie Whyte Edit from Anthony Bonello on Vimeo.

- From the Adventure blog comes this gem. Helmet cam view of a 90 foot waterfall drop. Watch all the way through, because the dude’s reaction is great. “I broke my helmet, I’m bleeding, but that was f**** awesome!”:

Kayaking Metlako Falls – Headcam from Dave Hoffman on Vimeo.

- Some spectacular footage of BC’s Bute Inlet:

BUTE INLET WILDLIFE from Mike McKinlay on Vimeo.

- And this can’t be good:

Related Posts:
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 01/10/2009
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 28/01/2010
• Pics & Clips Of The Week 04/04/09

Tags: Base Jump,Bute Inlet,Helmet Cam,Kayaking,Lion Seal,National Geogprahic,Skiing,Snowboarding & Skiing,Steph Davis,Whistler,Wind Surfing
Categories: Pics & Vids of the Week
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- Snowboarder Xavier Delarue is lucky to survive this massive avalanche:

- I love free solo climbing videos. Here’s a skyscraper climb via Outside Blog:

- From National Geographic Adventure, this little beauty is called the Whoopy. “An inflatable wing—part balloon, part paraglider—used in skiing or snowboarding to extend jumps, ease landings, and pull off absurd leaps over crevasses and ravines.”:

- From Wend Blog, a video on Parahawking. Yes, Parahawking, which is, well, paragliding with a few hawks thrown into the mix:

- Wend Blog posted this trailer for Rio Breaks. “Part documentary, part surf film”, looks killer:

- Here’s a trailer from the Outside Blog. “Coal Country, a documentary about the battle fought over coal mining in Appalachia, exposes the environmental tragedy and social conflicts that have arisen from mining coal”:

- From the Adventure Blog, a helpful video on how to pack a backpack:

- Can’t embed the flash slideshow, but click here for a photo gallery about an Ocean of Plastic….in Bird’s Guts. “Chris Jordan ’s work attempts to place the impact of consumerism in perspective. For his latest project he traveled to the Midway Islands, near the heart of the Pacific Trash Gyre , to photograph the decomposed bodies of chicks that have been fed plastic litter by confused parents. “

Related Posts:
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 12/09/2009
• Pics & Vids Of The Week 07/01/2010
• Pics & Clips Of The Week 03/05/09

Tags: Avalanche,Coal Country,Free Solo,Parahawking,Rio Breaks,Snowboarding & Skiing
Categories: Pics & Vids of the Week
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Continuing on with the really weird weather we’ve been having this winter, the mountains are experiencing spring-like temperatures. On Friday I had a chance to go snowshoeing at Cypress and was sweating and shedding layers before even starting the trail. On Sunday I went up to Whistler for a day of snowboarding where temperatures were 10°C in the alpine (compared to much LOWER temperatures in the village). This string of warm weather is expected to continue for a least a few more days: “A strong ridge of high pressure will remain stalled over the south coast allowing sunny and warm conditions.” – from the Whistler forecast

While I enjoyed the warm weather, unlimited visibility, and snowboarding in just 1 layer and no toque, I hope this trend reverses so we can get some more fresh snow! One good thing about this warm spell is that it ‘may’ help to stabilize the snowpack and reduce the avalanche risk for the remainder of the season. As you can see from the picture below, some areas of Whistler / Blackcomb are still roped off.

It was so warm up top we ended up checking our jackets and toques, but didn’t go quite as far as Tawcan and his buddies went at Cypress. I also had the chance to ride the Peak 2 Peak for the first time, which was awesome. Its great to be able to ‘jump’ mountains in a matter of minutes! Also, the views of the village and valley were brilliant.

The best part of the spring-like weather was lunch on the patio with a pitcher of beer.

I don’t think I was the only one enjoying a ‘lazy’ day of snowboarding.

Related Posts:
• Whistler & Blackcomb Open This Week
• Grouse Mountain Opens Tomorrow + Peak 2 Peak Launch
• Low Snowpack In Whistler Could Pose Problems This Summer

Tags: Cypress,Peak 2 Peak,Skiing,Snowboarding & Skiing,Snowshoeing,Warm Weather,Whistler
Categories: Snowboarding & Skiing
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Well after a bleak start to the ski / boarding season things have picked up! In addition to Grouse’s announcement of a limited opening tomorrow, Cypress will also be opening. From the Cypress Mountain website: “The Easy Rider quad chairlift servicing “Runway” will be open tomorrow, Saturday Dec 13th from 9am – 4pm.”

And from Mount Seymour:”Views of the local North Shore mountains today confirm that the ski season is not far away. With over 15cm of snow over the past 24 hours and more snow in the forecast, Mt Seymour Resort is eager in its final preparations to open once sufficient snow levels are reached. We are waiting until we see how much snow we get over the rest of the week to determine whether we can open this weekend.”

***Post update with breaking news (you can’t say I’m not on the ball today): Seymour will officially open tomorrow as well. “As the snow continues to fall at the resort, word is out on Mount Seymour opening this weekend. An absolute winter wonderland, today’s snowfall has already topped 30cm with a total current and growing snow depth at the base of 63cm.

As such, the Goldie Rope Tow will be open from 8:30am – 4:00pm with lift ticket rates at 40% off the regular night skiing rates. Goldie Rope Tow will provide access to our green runs allowing you to get warmed up for the season. Our expert grooming team is continuing to prep the slopes and more runs and lifts will open as snow permits.”

The discover snowshoe trails will also be open.

All three mountains are charging a discounted rate as a limited number of runs will be open.

Related Posts:
• Grouse Mountain Opens Tomorrow + Peak 2 Peak Launch
• It’s Snow Time!
• Gearing Up For Winter Fun (Pt.1)

Tags: Cypress,Opening Day,Seymour,Skiing,Snowboarding & Skiing
Categories: Snowboarding & Skiing
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