fall color

Port Moody’s Shoreline Trail

The Shoreline Trail boardwalk during low tide at the Port Moody Arm of Burrard Inlet in Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada.

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Shoreline Trail Boardwalk in Port Moody (Purchase)

Another location I visited in search of some fall foliage in 2021 was the Shoreline Trail area of Port Moody. I’d previously visited Port Moody and photographed some nice color in Rocky Point Park to the west. The Shoreline Trail itself runs from Rocky Point Park around the Port Moody Arm of Burrard Inlet all the way to Old Orchard Park on the north side of the inlet. In the first photograph you can see the somewhat iconic view of a park bench on the boardwalk of the Shoreline Trail with some nice fall foliage provided by Black Cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) trees in the background (with fresh snow on Mount Seymour). I’ve mentioned finding fall foliage during moments of sunshine before, as that is sometimes elusive here at that time of year. This particular afternoon yielded exactly one sunny break which lasted just a few minutes but luckily I was in place already and made the first photograph above. Compared to the photograph below, the colours really light up in the sunshine!

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Fall at the Shoreline Trail Lookout in Port Moody (Purchase)

The second photograph here shows the wooden viewing area near Old Millsite Park across Burrard Inlet. The pilings in the mudflats are from an old mill site that burned down in 1949. Much like the nearby Barnet Marine Park, this area shows some relics of a more industrial past here and there along the trail. Noons Creek empties into Burrard Inlet near the right side of this photograph and many shorebirds feed on the old bits of salmon and other nutritional items deposited into the inlet by the creek. Consequently, one of the exposures I made of this composition had a bit more of a Seagull element than I’d anticipated!

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Apartment/Condo Towers in Port Moody (Purchase)

After photographing from the south side of Burrard Inlet I headed along the trail to the same viewpoint as above. The apartment/condo tower photo above shows one of the views from that lookout.

For more photographs of the Port Moody area visit my Port Moody Gallery.

A Fall Day at Deer Lake Park in Burnaby

Reflections in Deer Lake on a fall day at Deer Lake Park in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.

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Reflections at Deer Lake In Burnaby (Purchase)

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Last year was a great year for fall foliage and there was still some remaining when I visited Deer Lake Park in Burnaby during mid November. This was after the first damaging atmospheric river this part of British Columbia dealt with. Deer Lake itself didn’t suffer much in the way of damage though some trails were initially flooded due to the influx of water. Not much of this was visible when I was there 4 days later although some trees had fallen. I parked at a new (to me) starting point on the west side of the park and walked around the lake. While the sun made on a few short appearances wind stayed quiet so there were some great reflections much of the afternoon. The photograph above shows hints of fading fall leaves in the larger trees such as the Maples and some good foliage in the Willows near the shore of the lake. The building in the background is the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts which sits above the “festival lawn” that is used for festivals and concerts.

two people enjoying the view at deer lake in burnaby

Enjoying the view at Deer Lake Park (Purchase)

I photographed various people enjoying the view on the newly replaced dock/viewing area on the north side of Deer Lake, but I prefer this wider view of two seniors in this spot flanked by the nice foliage of the Willow trees. All those dark shapes you see on the festival lawn in the background are a rather large flock of Canada Goose manure spreaders roaming the area and occasionally making a racket.

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Hart House (1921) vs. New “City of Lougheed” Towers (Purchase)

The Lougheed Mall area in Burnaby is undergoing a huge transition due to increased transit and with that comes a lot of new development and condo towers. It has certainly changed a lot since I lived nearby in the late 1990’s. Every time I visit Deer Lake or Burnaby Lake it bugs me a bit I didn’t visit at all when I lived fairly close! I liked the contrast in this scene between the historic Hart House (built in 1912 in the Tudor Revival style) and the “City of Lougheed” towers in the background. There are going to be many more towers there in the future but personally I’d rather look at Hart House and the other historic buildings around the edges of Deer Lake Park. Hart House has been home to the Hart House restaurant since 1988.

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Metrotown Towers and Deer Lake In Burnaby (Purchase)

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The last time I photographed this scene at Deer Lake was the previous autumn, and many of these towers were still being finished an some still had cranes erecting them. A lot of the skyline around Deer Lake Park seems to be changing and I imagine the next time I’m looking at this scene there may very well be another crane in sight.

In September of 2021 I was at Deer Lake for a quick visit while on my way back from Richmond and photographed a few scenes in the gardens and along the shore of Deer Lake. While I was near the dock pictured in the second photograph above, a young couple came down with a dingy and launched into the water near that location. You can see from the photograph above there are a lot of weeds in the water near the shore, and were much thicker during that point in the season. The progress was very very slow getting through that thick weed layer with the dingy. The young lady involved seemed increasingly less impressed with the frequent off colour exclamations and oars flailing about that never yielded the joy of open water. When I left they were still about 15 feet from the edge, it was getting dark, and the audible bickering was ramping up. Hopefully they did not require rescue of any kind, though I did find it rather amusing as did others passing by on the shoreline trails.

More photographs of Deer Lake and other parks in the City of Burnaby can be found in my Burnaby gallery.

Fall at Deer Lake in Sasquatch Provincial Park

Fall Maple leaves (Acer Macrophyllum) on the slopes of Sasquatch Peak in Sasquatch Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada.

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Fall foliage on Sasquatch Peak at Deer Lake (Purchase)

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   This year was not a great one for fall leaf colors in the Fraser Valley, probably in part due to the 4 month drought we had this summer. I am used to not having area-wide color and having to hunt a little for it though. Much like wildflowers, sometimes you only need one good spot to make a good photograph. One of the areas I checked for fall foliage this year was Deer Lake in Sasquatch Provincial Park. Just a short drive up the side of Harrison Lake near Harrison Hot Springs, Sasquatch Provincial Park is a nice recreation spot with 3 lakes, campgrounds, and hiking trails.

   In the spring of 2013 I photographed a nice reflection at Deer Lake and noted it might be a good place to come back for fall foliage. The first photograph here is the result – though it did come with some problems. I had set up to somewhat recreate the photo linked above but a man showed up and was about to wade out into my reflection area to fish. I pointed out I would like to make two quick photos and I’d be finished. He doesn’t say anything but proceeds to wade into the water right in front of me and began fly fishing. After briefly wondering how my tripod would work as a cudgel I decided to simply photograph over his head and forgo the reflection shot for this year. I like the results – the top photograph here and its alternates in my library have a nice mix of green conifers, fall maple leaf colors, and various snags and other light colored tree trunks. About 10 minutes after making these photos I heard him yelling and swearing. I looked around the corner and I guess his casting had gone awry and he had hooked himself in the back. I still do not feel bad about this.

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Fishing for Rainbow Trout at Deer Lake (Purchase)

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   I briefly chatted with the older man and woman in the above photo as they were fishing for Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) off the end of the dock at Deer Lake. As with many other lakes in BC, Deer Lake is stocked with fish by the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC. For some of the reflection photographs I made at Deer Lake I had to wait until the ripples from rising fish dissipated – so it would appear this lake has a decent fish population. The fall foliage in the background of this photo is growing on the slopes of Sasquatch Peak, which is taller than the nearby Mount Hicks.

kayaking at deer lake in sasquatch provincial park

Kayaking on Deer Lake (Purchase)

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   The trails at Deer Lake don’t allow one to walk around the entire lake. These kayaks look like a great way to explore the shoreline.

fall foliage at deer lake in sasquatch provincial park

Fall foliage at Deer Lake (Purchase)

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   I included the above photograph in my 2016 Nature Calendar and the Top 10 Photographs of 2015 blog post. I think this might have been the best fall foliage scene I found this year, and the lack of wind (or fish ripples) at the time made for a very nice reflection. I may try to visit Sasquatch Provincial Park in the winter and see what scenes I can find when the trees have no leaves at all.

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Boardwalk over a marsh on the Deer Lake Trail (Purchase)

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   This is the Deer Lake Trail between the parking lot and “The Point” – just below the Bench Campground. I liked the colours around the boardwalk here, and the light colored trunks of the Red Alder (Alnus rubra).

For more photographs from Deer Lake visit my Sasquatch Provincial Park Gallery.

Star Magnolia Fall Foliage

Star Magnolia tree fall leaf colour at Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

star magnolia tree in queen elizabeth park vancouver british columbia

Star Magnolia Fall Leaf Colours (Purchase)

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   I have photographed this Star Magnolia tree before – in spring when it was in full bloom. When I was in Queen Elizabeth Park earlier this fall I noticed I was standing in almost the same spot, and the tree had some nice fall foliage. I managed to make a photograph reminiscent of the first spring photo. I may try this again during winter when there are no leaves, or perhaps if I am lucky when there is snow on the branches, though that is probably rare in Vancouver.

Rose Garden Cottage at Stanley Park

The Rose Garden Cottage (built during WWI) at the Rose Garden in Stanley Park, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

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The Rose Garden Cottage near the Rose Garden in Vancouver’s Stanley Park

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   I was not able to find a lot of information on the Rose Garden Cottage in Stanley Park. The Rose Cottage was built during World War I (reportedly in 1914) and now functions as a building in the service yard of the Mounted Division of the Vancouver Police Department. In October I made this photograph of the Rose Garden Cottage in one of the few areas of Stanley Park not obscured by fog. I could barely see the Lions Gate Bridge and you could not view downtown Vancouver from Stanley Park at all! I was happy to find the cottage and rose garden area relatively free of fog – with even a little sunshine breaking through occasionally.

   See more of my photographs from the Vancouver Coast & Mountains.

Chilliwack Lake Fall Colour

Fresh snow on Mount Webb and some fall foliage colours at Chilliwack Lake in Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park, Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada

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Fresh snow on Mount Webb and fall colours at Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park (Purchase)

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   A few weeks ago I was in Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park looking for some fall colour and hoping to catch some fresh snow on Mount Redoubt. I found both of those, but the clouds preferred to keep most of Redoubt to themselves. This is Mount Webb, also with some fresh snow, and is part of what is likely a more interesting composition than is possible with Mount Redoubt itself. Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park’s gate is closed for the winter, but I’ll be back in there when there is some winter snow on the ground. Hopefully the mountains choose to make an appearance on that day as well.

fall foliage along shore of chilliwack lake in chilliwack lake provincial park

Fall foliage along the shoreline of Chilliwack Lake (Purchase)

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   I also liked this composition that doesn’t include as much of the surrounding mountains. This one focuses on the contours of the water’s edge and shows the fall foliage colours just a bit better than the photograph above. The spot on the beach here is not that far from the outflow of the Chilliwack River, where there were a great many salmon congregating to spawn. While making the above exposures I had some difficulty conveying the smooth surface of the water because it would occasionally be interrupted by a jumping salmon. Always an interesting event to witness, if not particularly convenient at that time.

Rolley Creek Fall Colours

Vine Maple Fall colour foliage along Rolley Creek at Rolley Lake Provincial Park in Mission, British Columbia, Canada

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Fall foliage along Rolley Creek (Purchase)

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   Some years are great for Fall colours, and some not as much. This appears to be a year in the Southwest corner of British Columbia that is not so great. Our dry Summer seems to have allowed powdery mildew (a fungus) to grow on the leaves of the Bigleaf Maples (Acer macrophyllum) and as a consequence has impacted the Fall colour display. So instead of great yellows and some orange, many trees are turning from green to a orange tinged brown. Not nearly as photogenic!

   While the Fraser Valley does not have a wide variety of plants that make great Fall colours, there is always the Vine Maple (Acer circinatum) to the rescue. This tree, while not as nearly large as the Bigleaf Maple, seems to always come through with at least decent Fall foliage colours in some locations. Just like looking for wildflowers, sometimes all you need is one! While hunting for what turned out to be the elusive Rolley Falls (more on that in my next blog post) I was able to find this Vine Maple along Rolley Creek on the way to the falls.

Downtown Vancouver Fall Panorama

A Panorama of downtown Vancouver including the Trade and Convention Center, Canada Place, and HMCS Discovery on Deadman’s Island – as seen from Stanley Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

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Panorama of Downtown Vancouver and Deadman’s Island (Purchase)

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   Back in 2011 I was experimenting with various locations to find a good place to make panoramas of downtown Vancouver. This particular panorama was made from Stanley Park near the totem poles. My favourite panorama of Vancouver remains the blue hour photograph from a nearby location, however. I should try a blue hour photograph from this location but I normally try to avoid the floating gas station which bobs up and down and is troublesome during long exposures. The sky on this particular day had a bit too much grey in it for blue hour, however. I like the the nice maple fall colour foliage on Deadman’s Island and think it adds some interest beyond the city buildings.

If you enjoy panoramic images I have an entire gallery of panoramic images on my site. You can also click on the panorama or panoramic keywords at the bottom of this post to see the panorama blog posts.