Squamish, British Columbia

So I just finished and submitted an assignment on place in Human Geography, and so I had to spend a lot of time thinking about what makes different geographic locations special to me, and I was reminded of Squamish, British Columbia (about 70km north of Vancouver) where I lived for about a year. It is the most beautiful town I've lived in, and it was a great experience taking advantage of the natural environment (hiking, biking, snowboarding in Whistler) while I had the opprotunity.

I'm not going to write an essay about Squamish, but I will say that I miss my friends from Squamish and I would love to return if I ever get the chance. Here are a few of my favourite pictures:

I miss this view:
Alice Lake Provincial Park north of Squamish, British Columbia has a great little campground and beach area.

The Stawamus Chief is the 2nd largest monolith in the world. I hiked up the back of it throughout the year while I was there. It's a challenging hike but more than worth it.

Stawamus Chief Provincial Park protects the 700 metre massive granite cliffs that stand at the southern entrance to Squamish on the scenic Sea to Sky Highway. Established in 1997, the 517-hectare park provides rock climbing opportunities of international significance. Hiking trails to The Chief’s three summits offer rewarding views of Howe Sound, Squamish town site and surrounding mountains. This park has opportunities for camping, hiking, rock climbing and scenic viewing atop the Chief.

Special Features:

• The Stawamus Chief is the second largest granite monolith in the world and provides good nesting habitat for the Peregrine Falcon. Please respect the wildlife and keep your distance. Viewing is best with a pair of binoculars or other viewing aide.
• Please obey posted closures of climbing routes on the Chief from March to July, during the critical nesting season of the Peregrine Falcon.

Park Size: 517 hectares

Below is a picture of Valleycliffe...that was a pretty dicey moment taking that picture...it would have been a long fall straight down...

The downtown area as seen from the Chief